The number of Applications on Facebook has risen continuously since Facebook announced its Developer API in mid 2007. While there has been a slew of applications, it is very easy to see a clear trend. As much as 50% of the applications on Facebook are identity definition applications like Characteristics and Compare People, where people characterize their friends, and get characterized in various ways. A big share of the rest of the pie is taken by communication enabling applications like FunWall and SuperPoke which identified the limitations in Facebook early-on and made a field-day of the lower restrictions on spamming in the early days of the Facebook Developer Platform.
Is that all? Can a Facebook Application go beyond the fun to be had out of throwing cows at people, and try to do something that is useful, engaging and fun at the same time? Is there much sense in trying to do anything like that on Facebook? Why not an independent site? These are big questions. And questions any one launching a web-app today must answer.
On taking a close look, it seems it makes sense for a lot of web-apps to start out on Facebook, and here’s why:
1. An existing Social Graph: Any web-app that needs connections between its users to be established should consider being on Facebook. It makes a lot of sense to utilize the connections that people have already built on Facebook with their friends, family and strangers, than to try building it all over again from scratch in a stand-alone web-application.
2. Diverse user demographics: While almost all of the current most successful applications on Facebook have ridden on huge activity of teenagers on Facebook, there is a continuously rising base of users who are post their mid twenties, are college grads, and are not really interested in xMe and SuperPoke. A “useful, engaging and fun app” sure might appeal to them.
3. Freedom to Developers: Facebook allows developers to do pretty much anything inside their applications as long as they do not bother Facebook users who don’t want to use the application. This allows developers to do just about as much they could have done on an independent web-site, at a place the user frequents often.
The above three factors, combined together, offer a very exciting possibility for anyone launching a web-app today. Your web-app might be of the “serious” kind, and not as much “fun” or “viral” as a FunWall or Compare People, but it would still make a lot of sense to launch it on Facebook. What more, a “serious” application can potentially put the Social Graph to more interesting, beneficial and directly monetizable uses.
Of course, the opportunity comes with its own set of hazards. More later!
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I liked your pro-fun attitude. But good developers swear by commercial prudence.
I got nosey and poked around some data. Tim O’Reilly has found that out of 5000+ FB apps, 87% of the usage comes from just 84 apps. Even the monetization record of #1 FB app – Top Friends (Slide) with over 2.8 m users – rakes in only about $1000 a day. I’m sure they must be trying hard but they aren’t simply getting it. How much will, finding place in that long a tail be really worth?
I go the experience of 5000+ FB apps is broad enough sample to draw inferences and base decisions on. I am tempted to run with the consensus – the future opportunity is less in FB apps per se, it is more in the development of applications that use the social graph embodied in FB for entirely “new purposes”.
So let’s go figure what those *new purposes* are…:-)
Hi Bipin, two things:
1. A serious app does not need to have as much popularity and as large an install base as most of the frivolous apps to be useful, valuable and monetizable. I would suggest you have a look at the iThink application on Facebook. They have created much more value than more popular applications with a smaller user-base in my opinion. If your app has value, and if you target the right people for taking it up, you can get user traction.
2. I did not say developers are not bothering users .. they definitely are. What I meant is that the only thing that FB doesn’t want developers doing is bothering the users. Developers continue to bother users, and FB has been coming up with restrictions on developers to stop them from bothering users.
What I really wanted to convey is that FB doesn’t bother developers until they don’t bother users.
Thanks,
-Niraj
I stopped using Facebook because of features like “throwing cows at people”. There are about 50 invitations in my FB account similar to throwing cows. I know a lot of people who are put off by these endless apps. I was planning a widget for Facebook for my app but now I am having second thoughts. What chance does my app have of being noticed among those 50? Zilch.
Your comment about developers not bothering FB users is therefore not correct. I am being bothered and many more are being bothered.
Hi Krish,
I can share our own experience with you. We launched our application iAspire on Facebook (http://apps.facebook.com/aspirations) a few weeks back. iAspire allows people to express their aspirations, and connect with people with similar aspirations. While this is the immediate appeal of the application, what we really intend to build is a great advice/Questions&Answers/Recommendations product.
We don’t see monetization happening anytime soon. It will take time. The aim currently is to get a lot of users, and get them actively involved in discussions and helping each other out. While we have a vision about how we would like to monetize, trying to work in that direction now in this initial stage would kill the fun on the app.. and fun is a very important ingredient on any facebook app.
The experience of developing on Facebook is definitely liberating, and there are lots of possibilities.
Hope that answers. Would be glad to answer more questions.
-Niraj
Niraj,
Could you share the experience of developer(s) having tried it out any Facebook App?
Where can we get some data on its utility and revenue experience…?
Is it in some way restrictive or is it truly liberating…?
The answers, if positive should trigger the next wave I guess.