MICRO-BLOGGING SITE Twitter says it now has 100 million active users.

The social media company announced its new user figures on its blog yesterday.

It is five years since the first ‘tweet’ was sent by Twitter founder Jack Dorsey (@jack) to just seven followers. He now has over 1.7 million followers.

According to the blog posting, more than half of the 100 million users log into the site each day. However, not everyone ‘tweets’. Some 40 per cent of active users just sign in to read what everyone else is writing about.

In the coming weeks, Twitter plans to launch Hindi, Filipino, Malay and Chinese versions, which will mean the site will support 17 different languages.

Famous users

Twitter has become a social media haven for well-known personalities and world leaders.

According to the company’s blog, 35 heads of state use Twitter, while religious leaders such as the Pope and Dalai Lama also ‘tweet’.

Athletes, musicians and other entertainers have also graced Twitter with their presence. The firm claims that 87 per cent of the Billbaoard’s Top 100 musicians of 2010 and every NFL team are active on the site.

Celebrities often use the site to release information about their personal lives or ‘tweet’ images to avoid media frenzy. Wayne Rooney famously tweeted a picture of his new hair transplant in June.

According to the bLog, some momentous news stories have also “broken” on Twitter with most major newsrooms using it to supplement reporting efforts. It has allowed for ordinary citizens to give their views on what is happening in the world.

In case you’re wondering, TheJournal.ie is there too – @thejournal_ie.