Google Inc., the world's biggest search engine, shut down the invite mechanism for its new Google+ social network after "insane demand," said Vic Gundotra, head of social efforts, on the company's website.
Google introduced the service on Tuesday in a fresh attempt to compete with Facebook Inc.'s site. Google+ looks similar to Facebook, with streaming updates of photos, messages, comments and other content from selected groups of friends. CEO Larry Page is starting Google+ after missteps last year with the introduction of a social component to Gmail called Buzz.
Google needs to fix the invitation glitch quickly if it wants to effectively challenge Facebook, the world's largest social network, said Josh Bernoff, an analyst with Forrester Research in Cambridge, Mass.
