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aSmallWorld is an online social network service similar to Friendster. Dubbed "Snobster" by critics, it is an exclusive invitation-only network with roughly 128,000 members. Founded by Erik Wachtmeister, a former investment banker and the son of a former Swedish ambassador to the United States, the network includes socialites such as Naomi Campbell, James Blunt, Ivanka Trump , Tiger Woods and Emanuele Filiberto di Savoia.

Contents 1 Features 2 Members 3 aBigWorld 4 Funding 5 References 6 See also 7 External links

aSmallWorld shares many features with other social network services, such as profiles, an event calendar, and private messaging. Unlike most other such services, aSmallWorld allows users to list multiple cities as their location of residence.

aSmallWorld offers 60 detailed "city guides" written by its members detailing and rating high-quality clubs and restaurants. Members can also buy, sell, and auction items using aSmallWorld's private forums.

According to Wachtmeister, "members are people with large personal networks, frequent travel and highly active personally." Most aSmallWorld users come from European countries. However, London, New York and Paris are the top three cities of residence. Wachtmeister has been quoted as stating that only some members have the right to invite others, as determined by a panel that factors in more than a dozen variables for eligibility. According to Wachtmeister, aSmallWorld keeps "track of people's behavior and we actually do kick people out." Members are not allowed to discuss the inner goings-on of aSmallWorld on any outside website, and doing so may result in internal exile to "aBigWorld".

aSmallWorld is patrolled regularly for suspicious activity or members who are not closely connected enough to its main userbase. Problematic users are immediately exiled to a separate network called aBigWorld without notice; when exiled users log in, they will find that the color scheme of the website has changed from blue to green, and they no longer have access to aSmallWorld profiles or forum posts. aSmallWorld members can see the profiles of exiled users, and have the option to reinvite them with an administrator's permission.

aBigWorld prevents outside groups from breaking into aSmallWorld's network. For example, when hundreds of Swedish teenagers managed to get invited in May 2004, they were quickly discovered by the administrators and kicked out.

With its cachet of exclusivity, the site has attracted the interest of film producer Harvey Weinstein. In May 2006, his The Weinstein Company invested a significant amount in the site as their first online venture.

• "Social Software Company Profiles Wiki: aSmallWorld" by David Teten, TheVirtualHandshake.com, July 2005
• "Bin Laden in 'Hell'" by Xeni Jardin, Wired Magazine, August 2005
• aSmallWorld Gets Even Smaller by the editors, Gawker.com, 6 October 2004

• List of social networking websites

• aSmallWorld
• Gawker: aSmallWorld: Friendster For The VIP Set
• Gawker: aSmallWorld Gets Nasty
• Gawker: Sneaking Around aSmallWorld