Facebook Applications and Fan Pages

Developing fan pages and applications for Facebook is changing rapidly. The current implementation of FBML is to be deprecated in Q1 2011 and the new iframe development model will be rolled out across Facebook in the coming months.

This will make developing pages and apps for Facebook a lot easier than at present, where FBML is used for everything from simple javascript interactivity and SWF file includes to more advanced form controls and database driven apps.

Developing fan pages and applications for Facebook is changing rapidly. The current implementation of FBML is to be deprecated in Q1 2011 and the new iframe development model will be rolled out across Facebook in the coming months.

Implications for developers

Developing pages and apps for Facebook is about to become a lot easier than at present, where FBML is used for everything from simple javascript interactivity and SWF file includes to more advanced form controls and database driven apps.

To be honest, FBML is a pain to use and I always felt that it was heading for extinction from the moment it was created. It's fate has now been sealed, read the first paragraph of: https://developers.facebook.com/. I feel the new Facebook app features due to be released in Q1 2011 (http://developers.facebook.com/roadmap) will bring about a massive change for Facebook users and businesses.

Implication for businesses

To put it simply, creating pages and applications for Facebook is going to cost less money, a business will have more developers to call on when creating Facebook content and creative departments will have more control over what is presented on Facebook.

The reason for this is that the new iframe standard will simply be an interface for a web page or website that is hosted externally. The webpage or website will then be pulled into Facebook using a Facebook iframe application or page tab, and finally, by using the Facebook JavaScript SDK the webpage can then interact will the Facebook social graph to provide tightly integrated, user-focused interactivity.

Implications for Facebook

The new iframe standard of creating apps and pages for Facebook will be a win-win for the company. They will no longer be required to serve large amounts of data in the form of application and page content and will be greatly reduce the cost for businesses to create content for Facebook. This will be a huge draw for businesses, which will result in more businesses using the Facebook Advertising system to advertise their newly created Facebook app or page. Revenues will therefore increase for Facebook whilst the direct costs of hosting and supporting applications and pages will drop. Brilliant, bottom line down, top line up!

Implications for users

Facebook users are going to be immersed in new brand experiences and targeted, location-based content. It should transform the experience of being a 'fan' of a particular page whilst also allowing anyone with an ounce of HTML knowledge access to one of the largest undeveloped online markets.

Conclusion

It's going to be an exciting year for Facebook and their investors and hopefully will make the experience of using Facebook more entertaining and immersive. The opportunity is huge for web developers and many new players will come to the fore offering Facebook apps and pages that seamlessly integrate with a company's non-Facebook website.