<h3>
Origins 
</h3>

Facebook's chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg, started the popular social networking site just eight years ago in his college dorm room at Harvard. On Friday, he was set to remotely ring the bell from company headquarters to start Facebook stock trading on the Nasdaq exchange in New York.


Even with the public sale of stock, however, Zuckerberg, who turned 28 earlier this week, will still control more than 55 percent of Facebook's voting stock.


Some analysts expect millions of Facebook shares will be purchased because of the high demand to own part of such a ubiquitous and recognized product. The stock will be traded under the symbol "FB."


But others are advising clients to wait and see whether the company can still continue to grow and how much advertising it can sell before buying shares.

<h3> 
Ad revenue 
</h3>

Facebook's advertising revenue growth has slowed in recent months, and doubts about its long-term viability were heightened earlier this week when General Motors announced it was pulling its paid advertising off the website.


"The reality is, I think a lot of investors are really going to be very much focused on the short-term financial results, but because the company and its CEO presumably won't be, we think there are going to be ample opportunities for disconnects in the marketplace which could disappoint and frustrate some," said Scott Kessler, of S&P Capital IQ.
 

Facebook has also yet to devise a strategy to attract advertising on mobile devices like smartphones or tablet computers. 


Facebook has more than 900 million users worldwide. People use Facebook to post photographs and write details about their lives, often reconnecting with long-lost friends and family members.






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Facebook Set for History-Making Stock Sale