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Inside Facebook

Platform Developers Say Facebook Asks them to Switch from AdSense to an Approved Ad Networks

Posted: 16 Mar 2011 06:37 PM PDT

Some application developers who use Google’s Adsense advertising network are now saying that Facebook has begun contacting them, asking them to stop using it because Google has not signed its Platform Terms for Advertising Providers. Facebook’s deadline to only use ad providers on its whitelist was February 28th, but this is the first major case of enforcement.

Google isn’t heavily used used by Facebook developers because there are more effective Facebook-tailored options. Still, those who do are concerned because they haven’t found other ad networks with as accurate targeting and that don’t show spammy ads.

A post to the “Facebook Developers” Group explained that Facebook had contacted a developer with the request, and he was now seeking suggestions of which ad network to replace AdSense with. Facebook recently added 28 more ad providers to the whitelist, bringing the total count from which developers can choose to 72.

Google and Facebook’s continuing impasse, which last flared up when Facebook refused Google’s request to allow users to export the email addresses of their friends the same way they can export their Gmail contacts. That issue didn’t result in any functionality change for Google, and users only had to endure a slightly longer Gmail contact export flow.

Kicking AdSense off of Facebook directly impacts developer business, though. Some might see the policy enforcement as the precursor to further restriction in the future, and could cite it as a reason why not to build on the Facebook Platform. The restriction could push developers to switch to Facebook ads, generating revenue for the site.

However, Facebook’s terms are there to protect user privacy and keep their data from being used elsewhere — and purposefully or not also preclude other companies, like Google, from using their own technology and reach to make more money off targeting ads themselves. We don’t expect Google to sign on any time soon.

Import and Publish YouTube Videos to Your Facebook Page with Cueler YouTube

Posted: 16 Mar 2011 04:49 PM PDT

Cueler is a useful and easy Facebook application that allows Page administrators to automatically synchronize their YouTube videos to their Facebook news feeds. The Silicon Valley startup aims to help Page admins specifically use videos to promote their Facebook presence.

Once Cueler is installed, every time a user uploads a YouTube video, it publishes to the Facebook news feed. Page administrators may opt for a standard message to accompany this video, or customize it to suit their fans' needs.

After visiting the Cueler app on Facebook, the install is fairly simple. One simply selects which Facebook Page to install Cueler to, then configure your settings. This means adding your YouTube URL, whether the videos include any uploaded or a specific playlist, whether you want to automatically add new YouTube videos to the Page and customizing the message that posts with each new video.

Cueler creates a YouTube Videos tab with a banner video, a Page admin must select a banner video as the centerpiece of this new tab. Admins may also use Cueler to require Facebook users to Like their Page before being able to watch videos,, and they may appear in 400 or 520 pixel widths. Once these settings are in place, hitting the Configuration button and re-editing them is very easy.

Once the app is installed, users may invite others to the Page, as well as share and view videos right on the Facebook Page. Which is to say Cueler doesn't link back to Facebook, but allows users to stay on the platform and view the stories, encouraging people to continue to interact with the Page. For more info about the app visit the Facebook Page or watch the YouTube video tutorial.

Highlights This Week from the Inside Network Job Board: Inside Network, Hands-On Entertainment, Diversion, & More

Posted: 16 Mar 2011 12:08 PM PDT

Inside Network itself is hiring for an Operations and Sales Support Coordinator, a job that will put you in the middle of the industry as we continue to build out our business operations. It’s part-time and open to entry-level applicants in the Silicon Valley area. More details here.

Here are this week's highlights from the Inside Network Job Board, including positions at Inside Network, Hands-On Entertainment, Diversion, Games Cafe, and Electronic Arts. The Job Board is dedicated to providing you with the best job opportunities in the Facebook Platform and social gaming ecosystem.

Listings on the Inside Network Job Board are distributed to readers of Inside Facebook and Inside Social Games through regular posts and widgets on the sites. Your open positions are being seen by the leading developers, product managers, marketers, designers, and executives in the Facebook Platform and social gaming industry today.

Scoreboard Sports Show Makes Facebook a Video Content Channel

Posted: 16 Mar 2011 11:57 AM PDT

Scoreboard is a new Facebook application from Screenpop that allows the user to interact with the sports show in a game-like interface. The app incorporates video, comments, viral elements as well as Credits and Scoreboard is one of several other apps — such as ustream, Dark Knight and Facebook Live — which are turning Facebook into a viable video content channel. The app launched on March 4.

The app is easy to use and loads to the sports show interface on the Watch The Show tab. You can see the upcoming show schedule and watch the first game, or click over to the Play The Game tab and begin to interact with the show.

This game portion of the Scoreboard app allows users to predict scores of upcoming football (soccer) matches in the English Premier League. During the week leading up to the game users may make predictions, comment and interact with other users, and use in-game currency to make "bets" on these predictions.

When the hourlong show portion of the app airs every Friday live, it will incorporate content generated from the interactive portion of the app, creating the feel of a competition between Facebook users and the BBC Radio pundits and former pro football players that host the show.

The game portion of Scoreboard allows users to make predictions, augment these with in-game "bets," track your progress (Achievements), post comments and interact with other users, win "trophies" and post to the stream. The app also incorporates Credits to allow users to further augment their predictions with in-game currency to "boost" their predictions.

Major League Baseball to Stream Some Games Live From the News Feed

Posted: 16 Mar 2011 11:03 AM PDT

Facebook users will be able to stream several pre-season major league baseball games for free from the MLB’s Page or stories it publishes to the news feed. Sports have proved to be popular discussion fodder on Facebook, so the promotion could expand the MLB’s audience and generate a high volume of engagement.

Unlike Warner Bros renting films for Facebook Credits through dedicated apps, bringing the streamed video content to the center of user experience has much greater potential for wide reach and virility. If the MLB experiment succeeds in either driving significant Likes or engagement on Facebook, or selling streaming content subscriptions offsite, more brands could look to stream video from the news feed.

Users can easily re-share the post, Like it, comment on it to converse with other baseball fans, and or publish their own feed story discussing the game. And if the millions of status updates about World Cup games are any indicator, users will be eager to employ these social features.

Likes, comments, and shares will raise awareness of the MLB’s game streaming, which is planned through the pre-season but could include regular season games as well. The MLB hopes users will grow to enjoy streaming games online, and then purchase a full season subscription on mlb.com, which it is promoting through a tab on its Page.

In this way, video streaming on Facebook could be used for premium content lead generation, as well as a way to grow a content provider’s Page. This indirect model could end up driving much more revenue than trying to make money directly through content sales on Facebook.

Horoscopes, Badoo, Twitter, Video and More on This Week’s Top 20 Facebook Apps by DAU

Posted: 16 Mar 2011 08:31 AM PDT

Horoscope Facebook applications were big on our list of top 20 by daily active users this week, there were also lots of games, video apps, a birthday reminder, Twitter and Badoo. The list was compiled based on AppData, our data tracking service covering traffic growth for apps on Facebook, and covers apps that grew the most in the past week.

Top Gainers This Week

Name DAU Gain Gain,%
1. Daily Horoscope 1,088,894 +831,493 +323%
2. CityVille 21,212,965 +735,392 +4%
3. Badoo 4,059,088 +500,416 +14%
4. Games 1,936,176 +412,910 +27%
5. Windows Live Messenger 14,719,906 +254,111 +2%
6. 開心探寶 251,590 +247,459 +5,990%
7. Mynet Çanak Okey 752,289 +239,662 +47%
8. 2011星座運勢 235,996 +216,013 +1,081%
9. Bejeweled Blitz 3,671,801 +163,537 +5%
10. The Fortune Teller 1,245,964 +151,898 +14%
11. Birthday reminder 167,915 +141,598 +538%
12. Twitter 526,998 +138,283 +36%
13. Tư vấn vui 133,080 +131,817 +10,437%
14. Videoloji 132,436 +121,404 +1,100%
15. Zoo World 554,358 +118,806 +27%
16. 德州撲克(中文版) 528,740 +109,921 +26%
17. Komşu Çiftlik 725,530 +104,307 +17%
18. Yılbaşı Hediyeleri 100,135 +97,637 +3,909%
19. HTC Sense 4,886,900 +91,361 +2%
20. Gourmet Ranch 311,834 +82,671 +36%

Daily Horoscope topped our list with 831,500 DAU this week. 2011星座運勢, a Chinese horoscope app, saw 216,000 DAU; the app publishes a story to the feed when a user begins using it. Video apps were also popular. There was Videoloji, a Turkish app with 121,400 DAU and Yılbaşı Hediyeleri, which saw 97,600 DAU.

Elsewhere on the list was the ever popular Badoo dating app with 500,400 DAU, the app continues to grow in countries other than the U.S. and sends friends notifications after a user answers questions about their online network.

Windows Live Messenger's Facebook integration saw 254,100 DAU. A Birthday Reminder app grew by 141,600 DAU mostly in the Philippines and Indonesia. Twitter's Facebook app grew by 138,300 DAU in the U.S., Indonesia and Mexico. Tư vấn vu, a Vietnamese app, is a quiz game for consultants and grew by 131,800 DAU. Then there was HTC Sense, an Android phone app, with 91,400 DAU.

torsdag den 17. marts 2011 at 07.20