Bill Gates: 'I'm Too Popular For Facebook'

Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates has admitted he was forced to stop using Facebook because he is too popular.

Bill Gates discussed Facebook at an event last month, “NASSCOM CEO’s forum with Mr. Bill Gates on Transforming India Through Technology” at The Taj Hotel, New Delhi.

The billionaire businessman and philanthropist said he was inundated with messages when he used the social networking site.

"It was just way too much trouble so I gave it up," he told an audience in India.

Mr. Gates was in India to receive the prestigious Indira Gandhi award for Peace, Disarmament and Development on behalf Gates and Melinda foundation.

Microsoft Corp co-founder Bill Gates (R) receives the Indira Gandhi Peace Prize from Indias President Pratibha Patil (2nd L) as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh (L) looks on during the conferment ceremony at the presidential palace in New Delhi July 25, 2009.

He said he would find "10,000 people wanting to be my friends" when he logged in, and working out if he "knew this person" was too complicated.

The Microsoft chairman also confessed he was also "not that big at text messaging".

Despite his views, the Bill Gates fan page has nearly 17,000 followers while his charity's page has attracted the support of 34,000 users.

But neither page matches the popularity of Michael Jackson's fan page, which has more than 10 million supporters.

Blogs are circulating screenshots which allegedly reveal his Facebook account.

According to the pictures, his favourite television show is 24, and his interests include "tennis, bridge, reading, movies".

The computer expert is not the only high-profile name to walk away from Facebook.