The Web has been praised for taking publishing to new heights, but it's also pioneered new ways for people to connect and reconnect. In Facebook, Mixi, MySpace and hundreds of other large and small online communities, we're learning new modes of socialization.
And, as with any community, the person with the most friends or followers is the one who stands out in the crowd.
In the emerging societies of social media, "friends are the new currency," said Haruka Horauchi, CEO of Ishosha Inc. Horauchi's company aims to give social-media users direct access to this emerging currency with a new service called TomoToday.