Facebook Home - in the end Facebook did not announce its own smartphone - is a collection of apps including a home screen and user interface centred on the social network. All Facebook's features have been integrated into a skin that can be deployed over the Android OS. This goes far beyond a basic app, offering a deep integration with the Google operating system. The question is whether Facebook users will adopt the software en bloc. Whatever happens, this is an important milestone in Facebook's development.
In the prospectus for Facebook's IPO last year, the company outlined potential risks to its business, and one of these was the mobile market. At the time Facebook was not offering any ads in mobile apps. The risk was an acceleration in the migration of internet use from fixed to mobile that could quickly cut into its advertising revenues. Furthermore, Facebook had no control over the dominant mobile operating systems, Android and Apple's iOS. In the course of the year it also became clear that Facebook had made a wrong move in choosing HTML5 rather over native mobile apps.
In many ways 2012 was an especially good learning period for Facebook where it was able to overcome many of the challenges to its business. Facebook opened up to mobile ads and optimised its apps for Android and iOS. In early 2013, it also started to experiment with VoIP calls over 3G, 4G and Wi-Fi and introduced Graph Search to help users find connections with people, photos, places and interests.The company has now created a platform for users to connect instantly with a range of its services, including the photo service Instagram and Facebook Messenger. Apps will no longer be needed to navigate the social network.
Facebook is smart making Home available as a download on Google Play. This makes the complete Facebook environment available on handsets such as the HTC One X, One X+, Samsung Galaxy SIII and Galaxy Note II and the upcoming HTC One and Samsung Galaxy SIV. A tablet version is also on the way, but it's not clear yet when this will be available. Facebook has also started a programme for handset makers and carriers that want to develop Android smartphones with Home.
The big question is whether users will be as keen to adopt Home as they have embraced the social network. Facebook has become so big (618 million active daily users on the site, monthly 1.06 billion), there is a risk of saturation as users are confronted at every turn with the social network.
In addition, privacy questions remain, and this will probably only increase with Home, as the social network essentially becomes part of the Android operating system. Facebook also faces growing competition from new social networks such as Tumblr, which is increasingly popular with young people.
Facebook Home does not work on Android Gingerbread and older versions of Android. This rules out about half of Android users. As it does work on all the new models though, the target group should expand quick enough.
