Bit.ly: More popular than Ebay and NYTimes?

4.7 billion. That is how many clicks link shortening site bit.ly got in May. For those of you unfamiliar with bit.ly, it is simply a way to take a long website address and convert it into a shortened address that is more friendly to character limited social networking sites. The site gained a major boost when Twitter switched from TinyURL, one of the first link shortening utilities, to Bit.ly last year. Bit.ly now ranks as more popular than such internet staples as Ebay and the New York Times based on page views.

Bit.ly was in the news this week with the announcement of a partnership with website analytic company Webtrends. Although the site currently offers a number of free basic statistics such as how many clicks your shortened URL has received, the new partnership will allow bit.ly to offer a premium service for enterprise users. For the "low" price of $995 per month, enterprise users can have enhanced tracking for a wide array of user statistics and even brand shortened links to their liking.

Even though the price may sounds steep, bit.ly has already announced partnerships with Pepsi, Amazon, NPR, and several other major corporations. Details can be found on the bit.ly blog:

blog.bit.ly