New utilities from Facebook
At the F8 Developer Conference this week, Facebook didn’t just announce a few updates, they shared how their forward-thinking vision has come to life and forever changed the way people will share and become aware of information on the web.
In essence it’s all about connections. Facebook started this movement when they introduced the “like” button and allowed you to “like” a picture, posting or status update your friends listed. Next they announced they would be changing all “Become a Fan” buttons to “like” buttons. This week they revealed how through discontinuing Facebook Connect and launching their Open Graph API, “like” buttons would now be a permanent feature across thousands of sites on the web.
The Open Graph API allows developers to include numerous features such as Like, Recommendations feed and Activity feeds on their website. These features pull in info (like friends) from your FB profile. For example, on CNN you can see which of your friends have already recommended or “liked” an article in the Activity Feed (or on the article itself). You can also recommend an article by publishing it to your FB page with comments. This seamless linking between sites and Facebook will result in more pass along and organic views than ever before.
While specific advertising opportunities around this new type of sharing have yet to be determined, there are a few significant implications already evident.
The first is that Brand Pages on Facebook will no longer be a necessity. Once a user has “liked” something on a particular website, that brand can now update them via their newsfeed. This will eliminate the need for Brands to build followings on Facebook in order to message and converse with users. Their own sites will enable this.
Additionally, the Open Graph allows Facebook to not only infiltrate thousands of websites, but also to gather data based on your habits. Instead of relying on the limited data you provide when signing up, (and that you don’t update frequently) your profile will now be “connected” and updated based on your Likes. If done correctly, Facebook will be able to aggregate and sell targeting segments that are more granular, recent and relevant than any other company out there.
Another update is a Credit program called “App2User.” This allows companies to provide an option to its users to turn reward points into Facebook credits that can be spent in Apps.
Facebook launched the new Open Graph with about 30 partners. Check out Pandora where you can now see what stations your friends are listening to, Yelp where you can view your FB friends’ reviews or NHL where you can “like” and publish to FB who your favorite team, player, etc. is.
While some groups will certainly scream about privacy concerns, Facebook has taken a major leap forward in socializing the web and making the flow of information more relevant to all users.
Please let us know your take!
