Tsū (Social networking website)

Tsū was a social network based in New York. Its name comes from Japanese language. The spelling of Tsu is the Japanese character "ツ" which is similar to a smiling face.

Users were required to register before using the site, which registration was only possible by invitation. After that, they could create a personal profile, add other users as friends, and exchange messages, including automatic notifications when they update their profile. In addition, users could join groups of common interest from other users.

Tsū was a unique online community for content creators and consumers. Unlike most social networks, Tsū strongly believed in rewarding users who contribute to the platform's growth and success. As a result, advertisements are served and up to 90% of the revenue is shared with the creators of the #originalcontent platform from around the world.

Tsū was created by Evacuation Complete, LLC, a Texas company, founded on February 7, 2008. The founders of Evacuation Complete are Sebastian Sobczak, Drew Ginsburg and Thibault Boullenger. Tsū is open to new users through invitations.

As in Facebook, when registering on the web, users had to create a user profile and they could add friends, post messages, statuses and photos, as well as receive notifications from other users. Tsū differed from other similar networks in that it is a platform that gives payments to those who use it.

Tsū has been compared with Ello, a social network that refuses to sell user data as a product, Tsū's goal is to share the benefits in compensation with the users. This approach seems to give this service some of the typical characteristics of a multilevel marketing strategy.

On August 2, 2016, without prior notice to its millions of users, Tsū ceased their activities, leaving a message to their followers in which they give thanks, but without further explanations about the reason for its closure. During one month it was possible to access so that users could download all the files they had published in the social network. As of August 31, 2016, Tsū closed definitively.