Facebook now boasts 500 million members after just six years in existence.

More than 500 million people have joined the social networking site Facebook, announced Founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg yesterday.

He said in the company blog: “As of this morning, 500 million people all around the world are actively using Facebook to stay connected with their friends and the people around them.

“This is an important milestone for all of you who have helped spread Facebook around the world. Now a lot more people have the opportunity to stay connected with the people they care about.”

The website, which was originally created for college students to keep in contact with one another, was launched in 2004 by Mr Zuckerberg and co-founders Dustin Moskovitz, Chris Hughes and Eduardo Saverin in their dorm room at Harvard University.

Six years later, and the 500m mark means that almost 8% of the world’s population uses the tool to connect with friends, family and colleagues.

Apparently, the average member has more than 130 friends and creates 70 pieces of content each month.

Zuckerberg continued with news of a new Facebook app: “To celebrate, we’ve put together a collection of stories you’ve shared with us about the impact Facebook and your friends have had on your lives.

“We’re launching a new application called Facebook Stories where you can share your own story and read hundreds of others, categorized by themes and locations around the world.”

Facebook has zoomed past one-time social network giants such as Friends Reunited, Bebo and MySpace, but a US study released on Tuesday (20 July) indicated that while people may be addicted to Facebook they rank it near the bottom when it comes to customer satisfaction.

Facebook landed with airlines and cable television companies in the bottom 5% of private companies ranked in a 2010 American Customer Satisfaction Index E-Business Report produced in partnership with ForeSee Results.

“Our research shows that privacy concerns, frequent changes to the website, and commercialization and advertising adversely affect the consumer experience,” ForeSee Chief Executive Larry Freed said in a release.

Facebook recently overhauled privacy controls in the face of a barrage of criticism that it is betraying the trust which has made it the world’s biggest social network.