Regular roundup of social media news & events applicable to the B2B world.
by Anna Gerz  & Mike Wilt

This month’s collection of all things Social Media takes us uber-local, international and deal hunting with some of the big names in the game.

Foursquare hit 6 million and Places flounders.
Apparently not everything Mark Zuckerburg touches turns to gold.

Foursquare recently celebrated its 6 million users, who have successfully checked-in in every country of the world (as well as check-ins in space), while Facebook places is struggling. Compared to Facebook’s 500 million plus users, skeptics originally doubted the strength of Foursquare -- were they wrong? Foursquare CEO and co-founder Dennis Crowley wants to keep the company humble, but still touts the global use and growth around the world. Zuckerburg isn’t ready to throw in the towel yet, though. We will have to wait to see if “Places Deals” will help garner more sticking power for Facebook Places.

Have I got a deal for you!
Group buying certainly is not a new concept. But some up and comers in the social media circles aren’t just chipping in for a communal office coffee club. Groupon and Living Social are commanding a lot of attention from investors, businesses, social media mavens and your favorite account managers. The concept is pretty simple. Businesses partner with group buying sites to offer products or services at a descent discount in exchange for being broadcast to the site’s respective network. Skeptical? Groupon recently turned down a $6 billion buyout offer from Google. Living Social then stole headlines and expendable income with a serious investment from Amazon offering 50% off the online giant’s gift cards and moving over a million of the $20 credits.

Of course I was one of the million takers but I also purchased a similar 50% Groupon deal for a local photographer (what I need a photographer for I have no idea). But talk about scalability, $175 million of gift cards to a $75 all day kid’s birthday photo-documentary. These services are begging for a creative B2B application.

International SM News
As twitter announces the latest international iteration, we’ve seen social media making news around the world. Korean is now the seventh language supported by twitter – deemed necessary by the twitter staff after a tenfold increase in the past year.

The unrest in Egypt has also brought international social media efforts into the limelight in the past month. Streams of tweets and YouTube videos fought to keep the world abreast of the situation, against the government’s efforts. Perhaps Babylon sees all of this international action as a chance to stake its ground and necessity.

We’re also keeping a Social Media-minded eye on these developments:

• Quora – A sort of Wikipedia in Q&A form. Information categories provide an interesting spin and an almost professional/education slant. Worth a look.

• Vimeo – Think: professional YouTube. The site has been around for a while now but recent adjustments to its service offerings and integration with streaming devices may have some legs in the B2B world.

• AOL acquisition of Huffington Post – Already being heralded as a move that “will create a next-generation American media company” it is part of AOL’s attempt to reestablish itself as a major player in the online world. A path most certainly to cross with Google, Facebook and the like.