Facebook rolls out the share button to mobile users

Designed to encourage mobile users to share more types of content with their friends, Facebook is rolling out a new share button for the mobile interface.

Detailed by Techcrunch earlier today, Facebook has launched a share button on the mobile version of the social network and is planning to add sharing capabilities to both the iOS and Android applications at a later date. While the ability to share a particular article, video or picture is commonplace on the Web version of Facebook, mobile users can simply tap on the new share link in order to pass along an interesting piece of content to their friends. When a user brings up the mobile version of the social network, they will notice a new Share button to the right of the Like and Comment buttons. 

Tapping the new share button brings up an interface that allows the user to write a comment that goes along with the shared content. In addition, the user can isolate the post to a specific subset of their friends through groups or post it publicly in order to reach all subscribers.

Once the user is satisfied with the post, they confirm the sharing action by tapping the Share button in the top right corner of the screen. Alternatively, cancelling the post returns the user to the news feed. The new share button is only appearing within the News feed at this point. When visiting a personal page of a friend or a brand, the share button hasn’t been incorporated within the design yet.

The launch of the new sharing feature marks a trend in Facebook’s strategic approach to mobile. While the inclusion of the sharing button isn’t a technical achievement by any means, the priority of improving Facebook’s mobile interface is evident. According to Facebook’s third quarter results, the social network has approximately 600 million active mobile users each month. In addition, about 120 million of those active users check Facebook exclusively through a mobile device. The addition of the share button on the mobile version of the site could result in a spike in the amount of articles, videos and pictures that are shared each day. 

With the addition of the share button for mobile users, this brings Facebook more in line with social network competitor Twitter. On the web version of Twitter, users are encouraged to retweet posts and share them with friends. It will be interesting to see if mobile users on Facebook transition from the Like action to the Share action. Potentially,  it could significantly increase the amount of shared content people find in their News feeds each day and possibly drown out other status updates from friends and family.

However, it could be extremely helpful to brands and advertisers since the share action is more valuable when attempting to spread a particular piece of content. In a related story noted by The Next Web, Facebook is also rolling out a new feed that allows a user to view posts from brands and other pages into a completely separate feed. While posts from those pages will still appear within the News feed, users can visit this page in order to view recent updates only from liked pages.

Source : http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/facebook-share-button-on-mobile/

Read More

Is text messaging becoming obsolete? New study shows texting drop in Q3

The number of text messages sent in the US has seen a drop in this year's third quarter. Could services like iMessage and Facebook Messenger replace texts?

Text messaging has arguably eliminated the need for phone calls on a day-to-day basis. It has enabled users to communicate concise messages without sitting through forced (and sometimes painful) conversations. But with texting alternatives such as Apple’s iMessage are gaining popularity, will text messaging soon become obsolete? According to a report published Monday, American cell phone carriers are seeing a decline in the number of text messages sent by each customer on a monthly basis.

The data comes from Chetan Sharma, an independent mobile analyst and wireless carrier consultant, who wrote that the number of text message exchanges in the U.S. had dropped by about 2 percent in the third quarter. This may not seem like a significant drop, but it’s a sharp difference from the steady growth that text messaging had previously seen. Sharma says it’s too early to tell if this is the beginning of a decline, but it is the first time that text messaging has begun to dwindle in the United States.

Texting saw a noteworthy boost in 2011, when 2 trillion texts were sent in the U.S. by the year’s end. This marked a 14 percent increase from 2010, according to Forrester Research, which also notes that 6 billion messages were sent per day throughout the country last year.

This current decrease in SMS usage, which stands for “Short Message Service,” a service enabled by cell phone carriers, can largely be attributed to the rise of text messaging alternatives.

One such platform is Apple’s iMessage, which operates almost exactly like a text message but only communicates between Apple devices. Therefore, iMessage completely bypasses the carrier when sending text messages between iPhones.

Another perpetrator could be Facebook’s Messenger app, which essentially exists as the mobile presence for the social network’s instant messaging feature. Unlike iMessage, Facebook’s Messenger app can be used across multiple platforms, which could give it an advantage when it comes to text messaging alternatives.

Does this mean the era of texting is coming to an end? Not exactly. Texting is still a huge part of the way people communicate via mobile devices, but the emergence of these new messaging options could hopefully lead the way toward cheaper texting plans.

Source : http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/text-messaging-obsolete-dropped-q3/

Read More

HTC Opera UL could be the first Facebook phone

Don't get your hopes up just yet though

The HTC Opera UL will be the first official Facebook smartphone, so says a "very reliable source".

According to Pocket-Lint, an unnamed insider spilled the beans on social network's first handset, claiming that it was indeed in development and that we'd already got the first glimpse of it in a benchmark test.

It's claimed the HTC Opera GL is the name for the handset which is being developed specifically for Facebook, although little else is known about it at this time.

Delays

The benchmark result which the informant refers to reveals the Opera UL sports a 1.4GHz processor, 720x1280 HD display and comes running Android 4.1.1 Jelly Bean.

The source did reveal the Opera UL has been subject to delays, it's not clear what the reason is behind this, or indeed how long the handset has been pushed back.

There have been many, many rumours about a potential Facebook phone, none of which have come to fruition, so we're taking this latest news with a heavy dosage of salt.

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/htc-opera-ul-could-be-the-first-facebook-phone-1109585

Read More

Healthy figures mean more ads coming to Facebook's mobile apps

Mobile - the future of Facebook

Facebook came clean about its plans for the future in an earnings call yesterday, talking up the potential for its mobile business and healthier-than-expected income for Q3 2012.

Having revealed that Facebook made over 14 per cent of its advertising income from mobile ads (equating to around $150 million/ £92m/ AU$144m), CEO Mark Zuckerberg told investors that mobile is a key part of the company's future.

"I think our opportunity on mobile is the most misunderstood aspect of Facebook today," CEO Mark Zuckerberg told investors.

"As proud as I am that a billion people use Facebook each month, I'm also really happy that over 600 million people now share and connect on Facebook every month using mobile devices."

Spectappular

He added that 126 million users accessed Facebook only through a mobile device in September and that the mobile trend can mean only dollar-signs for the social network.

"First, mobile will give us the opportunity to reach way more people than desktop," he explained.

"Second, people on mobile use Facebook more often. And, third, long term, I think we're going to monetise better per amount of time spent on mobile than desktop."

So what does this mean for the average Facebook user? Probably more adverts on the move; Zuck sees mobile ads becoming more "like TV" in that they're integrated into the app itself rather than simply displayed alongside.

You can already see the beginnings of this in the undismissable sponsored posts popping up in your mobile newsfeed.

Facebook's shares rose 19 per cent on the strength of the announcements, the site's highest ever rise since it went public back in May.

Instawhat

The financial filing also revealed the final amount that Facebook bought photo-sharing app Instagram for: a total of $715 million (around £443m/ AU$688m).

It's a lot lower than filter-happy photography app's reported price tag of $1 billion because a certain percentage of the payment was made in shares, which lost value as Facebook struggled on the stock market.

Still, what do you expect from a company that prides itself on being like a chair?

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/internet/healthy-figures-mean-more-ads-coming-to-facebooks-mobile-apps-1107303

Read More

Facebook to host Nov. 1 Gifts event at FAO Schwarz in New York City

Zucks probably won't wear the outfit (credit: FAO Shwarz)

Facebook new and improved Gifts has rolled out to a small number of users so far, but that's likely to change at the top of next month, when the social network site holds a Gift-focused event in New York City.

Facebook's press event is scheduled to take place on Nov. 1 in the home of high-end toys, FAO Schwarz.

Yes, that's the same Fifth Avenue retailer at which Tom Hanks danced to songs on a giant floor piano.

While there's no word as to whether or not Mark Zuckerberg will perform "Heart & Soul" and "Chopsticks" on the famous keyboard, the Facebook CEO should go into great detail about the new physical gift-giving program.

Ho-ho-ho

Facebook Gifts is expected to get a big push ahead of the holidays, as it's seen as a new way for the company to make money on mobile platforms (we've never written that sentence before).

More than half of its traffic accesses the site from mobile's hard-to-advertise-on screens.

Partners like Starbucks, Happy Socks, The Honest Company and Cheryl's Cookies by 1800 Flowers are also hoping to benefit from the new giving-and-receiving initiative and the now-one billion users who populate Facebook.

Facebook 'Questions' will go unanswered

With the advent of one new product comes with the demise of another: Facebook Questions for users.

A Facebook representative confirmed to TechRadar that the company is retiring its user-based questions-and-answers feature to "focus efforts elsewhere."

"Pages and Groups will still be able to ask Questions," noted the Facebook representative. "People will also still have access to their old questions via timeline."

This comes at a time when there are more than a dozen question and answer competitors out there.

The most notable rival is Quora, which, interestingly, was started by two former Facebook employees, Adam D'Angelo and Charlie Cheever.

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/internet/web/facebook-to-host-nov-1-gifts-event-at-fao-schwarz-in-new-york-city-1105791

Read More

Ads to invade Facebook mobile app News Feed

The pressure's on

Users might notice new ads pop up on their smartphones' Facebook News Feed as the social network has opened up its latest strategy to make money through its mobile app.

In August, Facebook began testing a new "mobile app install ads" program that wasn't connected to users' social ties.

The test was apparently a success as Facebook announced Wednesday via its developer blog that it's opening the service up to all developers.

The test program allows an undisclosed amount of third-party developers purchase ad space on the mobile News Feed to help drive buyers to their apps.

Those advertisements then lead users to the developer's app store purchase page either through the Android or Apple app store.

It all ads up

"For years, many apps and games on Facebook.com have used ads as an important part of their growth strategy," Facebook's Vijaye Raji wrote on Facebook's developer's blog.

"Now we are bringing these opportunities to mobile apps," Raji continued.

"With these new ads, mobile apps and games of all sizes across any category can reach the right audience, at scale."

In the post, Raji touted the new program's ability to help developers reach more relevant audiences and drive up install rates.

He pointed to game creator TinyCo, which saw a 50 percent higher click-through rate when it participated.

Other advertisers reached 8-10 times the audience and Ad Parlor clients saw consistent 1-2 percent increases in click-through rate from the home feed, according to Facebook.

This is a bit of a break from the Facebook ad norm. Traditionally, ads pop up on users' pages because they or a friend liked the brand.

But with this program, dev advertisers will be able to target the audience they want to sell to, instead of who likes them. Facebook is banking on the hope that those two groups will have a large cross-section.

Since the ad program is new, Facebook will still need to work out a few kinks to smooth out the user experience.

The company will also improve the program's ad targeting abilities, as well as make sure developer ads aren't targeting users on the wrong platform.

Facebook in free fall

The program comes as Facebook tries to monetize its mobile space.

The social network as a whole has felt the pressure to become more profitable after its failed IPO in May. In September, the stock hit a new low at $17.55 (UK£11.14, AU$17.33) from its starting price of $38 (UK£23, AU$36).

We'll see if the new mobile app install ad program wows investors next Tuesday, when Facebook calls to share its third-quarter earnings.

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/ads-to-invade-facebook-mobile-app-news-feed-1105154

Read More

Path update lets existing users fill their page with Facebook, Foursquare, Instagram data

Path's iOS 6 update will allow existing users to add their Facebook, Instagram, and Foursquare activities to their log.

Up until now, Path users who wanted to fill their accounts with Facebook, Instagram, and Foursquare data could only do so when they signed up for a new account. The most recent update now allows existing users to import data from the three major social networks so you don’t have to start over if you really want to link all the accounts together.

What the iOS 6 update does is essentially allow you to pretend to make a new account, giving you the option to “Start Your Path” all over again and access the Import button for the three services under the Settings page. After the import, depending on the size of the data which you are syncing over to Path, it could take several minutes for your account to list all the moments from the three services you just hooked up.

While the update is helpful to Path users, this sync will inevitably clutter most users’ home feed, logging in every single action from the three big social networks. Luckily, if you’re like most people and only have a limited amount of friends left on Path, this journal won’t look too bad. But if you have plenty of friends who are constantly updating the Path logs, prepare to scroll an incredible amount just to get through a day’s worth of activities. Each log for an Instagram photo already takes up a good amount of display real estate, fitting about a photo and a half per screen. And yes, this is on the iPhone 5′s enlarged screen. 

Either way, it’s to Path’s credit to allow users the option to make that choice if they want to, and the import integration will be useful to existing users who want to remain on the app and make it as content-filled as humanly possible.

Source : http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/path-update-lets-existing-users-fill-their-page-with-facebook-foursquare-instagram-data/

Read More

Facebook Messenger app for iOS updated

The Messenger app now plays nice with the iPhone 5

Facebook has tweaked its Messenger app for iOS.

The changes mirror those rolled out to the Android version of the instant messaging application on September 20.

The most important of which will allow iPhone, iPad and iPad touch users to swipe to the left to see which of their contacts is online and available

Friend bump

Another update enables users to keep their favourite friends at the top of the online list to reduce the need to scroll through the entire contacts list.

Messages now appear as speech bubbles, giving conversations an altogether more attractive look, similar to the iOS Messages and SMS applications.

The new version of Messenger, which has also been optimised for the iPhone 5's 4-inch widescreen, also brings improved speed and reliability, along with a host of bug fixes.

It can be downloaded now from the App Store.

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/software/applications/facebook-messenger-app-for-ios-updated-1100818

Read More

See which tech companies are profitable with ‘How Do They Make Money?’

How Do They Make Money shows you which popular tech companies are profitable and how they earn it.

Because of huge acquisitions like Facebook’s billion dollar purchase of Instagram, it’s easy to assume all tech companies are making a ton of cash. And so it may bewilder you to find out many popular web-based services are not turning a profit. There are also many online services that are earning money — some we did not expect at all — but we’ll get to that later.

If tech industry funding is something that interests you, How Do They Make Money can answer quite a few questions for you. The site lists a large number of different companies like Facebook, Tumblr, Pandora, and Netflix. When you click on one, a window pops up containing funding information. On the left-hand side it shows whether a web service is profitable or not and the information on the right gives examples of how it is funded. These money-making methods include things like advertising, subscribers, and selling data, among others. If one long list seems overwhelming, How Do They Make Money lets you filter choices by service or revenue type.

For instance, Dropbox is listed as “profitable” by offering paid subscriptions and freemium content. Instagram is apparently not profitable, but the following clarification is included: “Before selling to Facebook they were not making money.”

Spotify is not profitable either, despite offering advertising and paid subscriptions as part of its service. Competitor, Rdio, is also listed as not profitable. It’s extremely odd considering Instapaper is allegedly profitable through advertising and subscriptions. If an offline reading application, which has many free alternatives, can turn a profit then why can’t a music streaming service? 

One drawback to the site — and it’s a pretty big one — is that it doesn’t provide sources for the financial information listed. Actual earning numbers are omitted as well, only giving a thumbs up or down to indicate profitability but never listing how much money is brought in. This makes it difficult to take anything on the site without a considerable amount of salt. Unfortunately, if you’re after cold, hard facts and solid numbers then you’ll need to look elsewhere.

But despite the lack of transparency with its data, How Do They Make Money is still worth checking out. It certainly made us look at the free services we use in a different light. It’s unbelievable so much hard work and dedication can go into a product that may never make a dime. 

Did any companies on the list surprise you? Maybe we were shocked by the same ones!

Source : http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/which-tech-companies-profit-how-do-they-make-money/

Read More

Google snaps up Instagram-rival Snapseed to boost Google+

Google+ now has its own Instagram-like plaything

Google has picked-up its own photo-sharing app to rival Facebook's purchase of Instagram, by acquiring the German photography software company Nik.

Nik developed the Snapseed application for iOS devices, which was the iPad App of the Year in 2011 and grabbed nine million users in its first year.

The application costs $4.99 from the App Store and it is thought that an Android version of the software is in the works too. You'd imagine that process may be sped up a little now.

The app garnered huge popularity thanks largely to its multi-touch enabled editing capabilities, but Nik also boasts a range of photography software which is now also under Google's control.

Joining Google+

The Snapseed team will relocate to the Mountain View HQ to join the Google+ team, so Google's intentions are pretty clear on this one.

"We want to help our users create photos they absolutely love, and in our experience Nik does this better than anyone," said Google+ boss Vic Guntora.

In a statement on the Nik website, the company said: "We are pleased to announce that Google has acquired Nik Software. For nearly 17 years, we've been guided by our motto, "photography first", as we worked to build world class digital image editing tools.

"We've always aspired to share our passion for photography with everyone, and with Google's support we hope to be able to help many millions more people create awesome pictures."

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/software/applications/google-snaps-up-instagram-rival-snapseed-to-boost-google-1098010

Read More

Grooveshark bypasses app store bans with browser-based mobile app

In the face of app store bans by Facebook, Google, and Apple bans, Grooveshark has launched an HTML5 mobile browser-based application.

What do you do when you’re banned from the Facebook App Store, Apple’s App Store and Google Play? By launching an in-browser mobile player, of course! And that’s exactly what controversial music streaming service Grooveshark has done.

Long suspected of shady music practices that both music labels and musicians, Grooveshark has been in and out of lawsuits for suspected violations of copyright infringement and failure to pay royalties for years.

Grooveshark’s browser app has been built in HTML5, and leaves behind crash-prone Adobe Flash. According to the company, users can search, discover, and play more than 15 million songs from any mobile device, or listen to genre-based stations and listen to tracks shared by friends.

In one respect, the app stores bans are a blessing in disguise. Managing the app and implementing new features on the browser app doesn’t require the hard coding and different languages that would otherwise be necessary to maintain native apps for Android, iOS and, soon, Windows Phone 8 devices. Rather, the company will simply have to add additional code depending on the browsers supported.

When testing out the app ourselves, we noticed that the app sticks the user experience that we’re used to from a native app. We can sign into our profile and view our existing content, from saved playlists, to favorites, followers, and users that we’re following. All said, it functions much like it would like a Spotify app. But as a browser app, it has its limitations. Features like the ability to slide your fingers to move pages from left to right or visa-versa is lost, and there’s a slight but noticeable delay when interacting with the app.

If you like the convenience of a button that opens up the app, you can do so by adding the site to your Home Screen on your iPhone.

Unlike Spotify and Pandora, which negotiate and pay for the rights to stream libraries of music from music labels like Universal Music, EMI, Sony and Warner Music Group, Grooveshark enables its users to upload their own music onto its platform and share that content with other Grooveshark users. The company claims that this strategy allows it to bypass the need to pay royalties to musicians and music labels. Theoretically, Grooveshark imparts the accountability of uploading infringing music to its users. Of course in practice, the accountability may ultimately lie with Grooveshark, which claims to abide by the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) — a belief backed by the courts on at least one occasion so far.

There hasn’t been an official explanation for why Grooveshark has been banned from app stores, but it’s evident that the very public copyright infringement claims mounting against the service, Apple, Google, and Facebook aren’t taking any chances with supporting Grooveshark. Still, Grooveshark hasn’t been deterred as its browser app first launched in the United States on Wednesday, with an international launch due in the coming months. 

Source : http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/grooveshark-bypasses-app-store-bans-with-browser-based-mobile-app/

Read More