With Diwali just around the corner, Facebook is claiming to be ‘the new greeting card’. The social media behemoth has just released statistics on how Indian users' activity on the platform changes during the festive season. So how do people celebrate Diwali on Facebook?

From the fashionable Mipsterz to the ‘Happy Muslims’, the latest cultural movements in the Islamic world have been well documented across social media. With a global population of approximately 1.57 billion, what are the implications for brands trying to reach modern Muslims?

"From a commercial point of view, if Christmas didn't exist it would be necessary to invent it," writes journalist Katherine Whitehorn. People are increasingly more interested in Santa than Jesus, and there are concerns in the Middle East that Ramadan could be the next holiday to fall victim to consumerism.

Ramadan and Eid have become, after Christmas, the second most profitable season for UK retailers. While Middle Eastern shoppers typically prefer luxury boutiques, mass-market brands like M&S, Primark and H&M are starting to benefit from the Ramadan Rush.