Facebook and It's Focus on Mobile Optimization

In one of my previous blog posts, Android: The New Home for Facebook, we learned that the company Facebook planned to host a media/press event on April 4th. Distributing invitations that only said "Come see our new home on Android", this stirred up several resources and Facebook fanatics.  People (again) got amped up about the possibility of a Facebook phone.

That time has come and gone, and Facebook unveiled it's "new home" on the Android OS. While is it not a cell phone, it is a major leap in Facebook's mobile capability. If you own an iPhone, an older Android phone, or Blackberry, I am sure you know the feeling of frustration that is stemmed from the limited capability of the Facebook mobile app. The new launcher (called Facebook Home) is a home screen application that will sit on top of, not replace, the Android OS. It is designed to work with apps already installed on your device, and also features a family of associated applications. The goal of the launcher is to make mobile devices more social.

Facebook, for several fiscal quarters, has been focusing on mobilizing the popular desktop entity. Just last year, the company finalized it's acquisition of the popular photo app Instagram. Facebook also released several mobile updates within the last year or so as they continued to develop and improve on the mobile application for iOS and Android platforms.  This development has not gone in vain: At the beginning of the year, it was noted that the number of mobile users increased 57% from the beginning of the previous year. Facebook also benefited financially from the mobile development efforts, gaining 9% in ad revenues from the previous quarter, and 23% for the entire fiscal year.

Although this is a huge step for Facebook, the company should also be prepared to face the reality of the situation.  Though this launcher may be impressive to Facebook power users, there are going to be several users that find the launcher overwhelming: It is the first thing you see when you power up your phone, locked or unlocked. You go to look at the time, check a text message, or call a friend, you see Facebook statuses. The launcher is a full-time commitment to Facebook, and several mobile users may be haunted rather than excited. I guess we will just have to wait to hear more about the consumer response. The launcher will be available on the HTC One X, HTC One X+, Samsung Galaxy X III, and Samsung Galaxy Note II in the Google Play store beginning April 12th.

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