Right now there are two things that consumers are addicted to: connected devices and social networks.  When they’re on their smartphones, they can access almost any site (well, except some of those requiring Flash support), either to check their Facebook or LinkedIn, or to see the latest Groupon offer.  If people aren’t glued to their smartphones, they’re glued to their computers playing the latest social game from Zynga.

Looking at other industries, social media has made more money from IPOs than companies that make energy technology, greener transportation, and biofuels (another industry of extreme interest in today’s market).  Below is a table of recent IPOs in the social media sector, outlining a business trend that’s really taken off these past few months:

Social media IPOs that have happened or are planned:

Image courtesy of schumachergirl1956.

On the Social Media list, 4 companies have been branded as belonging to the ‘elite’ group.  Zynga is valued at $10-20 billion but this might change once they go public – they may be worth more than that; Groupon, which was only valued at $1.4billion late last year is now valued at $30 billion; The appetite for LinkedIn was so intense that, on 17 May, the company’s bankers raised its asking price by 30 percent. As a result, the company debuted on the stock market with a value of $4.3bn, 20 times its 2010 revenue.

On the first day of trading, shares rose by as much as 171 percent, and closed at $94.25, 109 percent above their IPO price. Shares held most of their gains on the second day of trading, leaving investors with a 107 percent gain; Facebook is valued at $70 billion but this is a rough estimate until Facebook goes public.

Although Facebook and Zynga has been profiting from each other, this doesn’t mean that Zynga has no plans of going public.

“If we are unable to maintain a good relationship with Facebook, our business will suffer,” according to the filing. “Facebook is the primary distribution, marketing, promotion and payment platform for our games.”

At times, the relationship has been strained over disputes concerning Facebook Credits, its virtual currency system, and changes to the site’s notification system. Tensions flared last year over Facebook Credits, which effectively takes a 30 percent “tax” from virtual good purchases, but the pair hammered out a five-year agreement in May to keep Zynga on the platform. Notably, the company’s revenue figures are net of Facebook’s cut.

Whatever these social media moguls decide on, go public or not, we consumers will always be on the sidelines, waiting for the next big, social-changing thing to happen – and making their bank accounts bigger and fatter.