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Facebook Coming To A Website Near You

The social in social media and social network is about to become even more social. On Wednesday, Facebook announced they will be reaching out to other sites around the world in order to bring the web together. What does that exactly mean and how will it impact everyone’s Internet experience? Let’s explore this notion.

Most avid Facebook users are familiar with the “Like” button, which usually shows that they’re interested in a friend’s status updates, photos or links. According to Facebook, the average user clicks “Like” on at least nine pieces of content each month.

Soon users will see “Like,” or in some cases “Recommend,” buttons on a number of popular websites including CNN.com, NYTimes.com, LIFE.com, Fandango, NHL.com, Pandora.com, TIME.com, Levis.com, Univision.com and ABC.com.

For example, if a Facebook user likes a video on CNN.com, they can click the “Like” button to share the video with friends, through their Facebook profile, who can then comment on it. Let’s say, though, that a user is browsing CNN.com for a video; if a friend has already viewed and liked a video, their picture will appear next to the “Like” button, giving the user a heads up of their recommendation.

 “Recommendations and social connections are the basis for the future of the Internet,” Facebook says. “Boring old hyperlinks are becoming something of the past.”

Facebook also announced they’re working on a new toolbar, which will allow users to talk with friends without physically being on logged in at Facebook.com. As long as they’ve recently been to the site, the browser will remember and make recommendations based on their friends’ activity. 

Of course, the new feature brings up the entire privacy issue, once again. Facebook says that all user information will remain safe and recommends that users check their privacy settings occasionally as updates are often made to the site’s privacy policy.  

Facebook also noted that they are working to help unite the web; and as one of the most visited sites on the web, with more than 400 million users worldwide, they have quite a head start.