Friendster Revamp to Revive Asia’s social network

Login to Friendster and you’ll get a major surprise. What used to be shades of white and grey (with ads thrown here and there) are now green and yellow. Improvements to the interface are long overdue for this social network that’s still giant in Asia — and now it’s a whole new brand. Though most of the west are already on Facebook, Friendster still has a strong user base in Southeast Asia especially the Philippines, thanks particularly to its early-mover advantage. All of my college friends are still my contacts on Friendster.

New Friendster: simple fun personal

If for some reason or other, you won’t login to Friendster, you can take a peek at

“First” Impressions

Green and yellow The new logo is quirky, tightly integrated with the whole new look, even the favicon, though I’m not fond of it yet. Green because they can’t do blue anymore?

More user-friendly navigation Friendster’s easier to use and nicer to look at now. Navigation is more obvious so I’m no longer afraid to click because I might get lost.

Efforts to get user feedback Sometimes you’d get an image ad asking for you to give feedback. Some incentive would be nice, perhaps some credit in the “Wallet” feature which I’m still not sure what it’s for.

Distracting image ads They get eyeballs but it’s hardly quality attention. I’m looking forward to more relevant and less obtrusive advertising. Good copy and stylesheets can do wonders.

An overhaul of a social network with a huge existing user base is a massive undertaking… which must be why my Friends list isn’t working yet.

What do you think of Friendster’s new look?