Twitter, which came into existence five years ago, now boasts of 100 million active users worldwide.

“After launching Hindi, Filipino, Malay and simplified and traditional Chinese in the coming weeks, Twitter will support 17 different languages,” according to a company blog.

Both Twitter and social networking site Facebook have huge following in India. Among others, Facebook already offers its services in Hindi and five other Indian languages—Tamil, Malayalam, Punjabi, Telugu and Bengali.

Going by estimates, Twitter has around 200 million registered users.

“For many, getting the most out of Twitter isn’t only about tweeting: 40 per cent of our active users simply sign in to listen to what’s happening in their world... Our 100 million active users range from passionate early adopters to recent converts,”the blog dated September 8 said.

The micro-blogging site allows users to send messages, with a maximum of 140 characters.
Global leaders, film personalities, journalists and sports persons, including Indian cricketers, are among the diverse Twitter users.

According to Twitter, 35 global heads of state such as Australia’s Julia Gillard and Argentina’s Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, use the site.