User-generated online community Facebook views itself as a utility rather than a social network, the co-founder and editor of Social Media Portal has said.

The web 2.0 resource’s Rachel Hawkes highlighted a distinction between websites that are based on making new friends and those focused on communication between existing acquaintances - with Facebook viewing itself as the latter.

“Facebook likes to be seen as a social utility, rather than a network - what this means is that their aim is to help people connect and communicate more efficiently with the people they already know, as opposed to locating new friends and social groups based around a particular interest area,” she said.

The recent introduction of Facebook Chat is merely a “natural progression” for the site, the expert added.

Rather than representing Facebook’s attempt to move into areas of the web beyond social media, the application is characterised as just another way in which friends can communicate online.

Nielsen Online has named Facebook as the second-fastest growing website in the UK in 2007.