Having recently become a fully-fledged company, Facebook is now obligated to make a statement of intent by diving head-first into the acquisition pool, and with Instagram secured and Opera also thought to be on the cards, the hotly-rumored coup of Face.com has now become official.
Although Facebook is undoubtedly the world’s largest social network with the rest of the offerings paling into insignificance by comparison, the recent public attention that has been lavished on the company in the last few months is enough to make even Mark Zuckerberg and his team feel a little pressure. The acquisition of Instagram and the company's initial public offering have made sure that all eyes are firmly fixed on Palo Alto.
Believe it or not, we spend countless hours every year just going through tons and tons of apps discovering what’s new and noteworthy. The App Store and the Google Play Store is a mighty hub for all your app-full needs, and throw in Facebook and the apps which it has to offer, we get something which geeks would term as “app heaven”.
Although Facebook has been a web success story surpassed only by Google, its shortcomings in the mobile space have been plain for all to see. The Facebook mobile app is below par on every ecosystem and device going, and the inability to monetize the growing mobile market has been the elephant in the room for a good few years now.
With all eyes on Facebook, and being the company of the moment, it would seem that not even the tiniest little detail seems to slip by the watchful eyes of the technology loving world. Facebook has over nine hundred million registered members, the majority of whom visit and use the social network’s services regularly by logging in through a variety of different methods such as the web, mobile browsers or mobile apps.
Although Facebook's IPO just 10 days ago has been shrouded with controversy, the rumor mill has been working overtime in trying to ascertain the social network's next move. Following on from the report that Zuck's company might be looking to purchase the Opera browser, an Israeli business site seems to believe it may now be looking to acquire native facial-recognition technology company Face.com.
Facebook's IPO just a week ago has been surrounded by controversy ever since, with the consensus being that the social network was grossly over-valued, while CEO Mark Zuckerberg has also been accused of not being wholly transparent with the numbers.
In what comes off as a rather unusual and quirky move, Facebook has just released Facebook Camera for iOS. Aptly named, the app is essentially a standalone app that lets you manage and post photos on the social networking service. There's more to it than that, though; the service also offers 14 filters for you to "decorate" your photos with. In many ways, the app offers functionality that's very similar to that one prominent photo-sharing company they acquired last month for $1 billion. Now, I proceed, I just want to give Facebook credit for creating such a pleasantly-designed app; coming from a company that's notorious for terrible mobile apps, this is quite something.
It's getting extremely interesting on the eve of Facebook's IPO, with the social network managing to raise an incredible $16 billion, while setting the price per share at an impressive starting point of $38 apiece. As expected, the managers from the big-money companies have all been keen to get in on the act, and the share price leaves Facebook's market value at an incredible $104 billion - half that of fellow web-based giant Google.
Imagine a dedicated Instagram-inspired camera dedicated to those old-fashioned, Polaroid shots we all know and love, and then picture that camera with the sleek, smooth edges of an iPhone 4S. Got a rough idea in your mind? Well, the chances are, you thought processes wouldn't have led you to anything like the masterpiece crafted by resident concept-designer Antonio De Rosa, who has once again treated us to a sublime figment of his tech-tastic imagination.
