Brian Solis, award-winning author and principal at Altimeter Group, unveiled the fourth edition of his Conversation Prism, an ever-evolving infographic that captures the state of social media, organized by how important social networks are used by professional and everyday consumers.

Viewed and downloaded millions of times over, the Conversation Prism in its various stages captures a snapshot of important moments in the history and evolution of Social Media. It’s the only research-driven map to explore the evolution of the social web dating back to the rise of social media.

“The social landscape is evolving with increasing acceleration. As you can see throughout every iteration of the Prism, the number of networks that vanish and emerge is staggering. But more importantly, the nature and focus of how networks are used is dramatically changing as well,” said Solis.

“We are moving into an era of context where what we share, how we interact and how we form relationships is moving away from a general social graph to a distributed yet organized network defined by shared interests,” he added.

With research beginning in 2007, the original Conversation Prism debuted in 2008 as a visual map of the social media landscape. It groups networks by how people use them, including both leading and promising networks. The prism isn’t intended to show every network, but instead shows how the shape of the social web is changing and who are the front-runners pushing social media in new directions.

The Conversation Prism is available as a poster for $20 or as a free digital download in a variety of resolutions and sizes. 4.0 is available exclusively at www.conversationprism.com

About Brian Solis

Brian Solis is principal at Altimeter Group, a research firm focused on disruptive technology. A digital analyst, sociologist, and futurist, Solis has studied and influenced the effects of emerging technology on business, marketing, and culture. Solis is also globally recognized as one of the most prominent thought leaders and published authors in new media. His new book, What’s the Future of Business (WTF), explores the landscape of connected consumerism and how business and customer relationships unfold and flourish in four distinct moments of truth.

His previous book, The End of Business as Usual, explores the emergence of Generation-C, a new generation of customers and employees and how businesses must adapt to reach them. Prior to End of Business, Solis released Engage, which is regarded as the industry reference guide for businesses to market, sell and service in the social web.