Facebook Inc.’s app for the stars has added a few new features to help celebrities better engage with their fans, including built in support for Twitter and Instagram sharing.

Unlike the rest of Facebook’s rapidly growing library of apps, Facebook Mentions is only available to well known public figures, namely accounts with verified Facebook pages. Facebook describes mentions as “a better way for actors, athletes, musicians and other influencers to stay in touch with their fans and the people and things they care about.”

Until now the app has had a Facebook-only focus, but the most recent updated has also added support for Instagram and Twitter. While the Instagram move is obvious – Facebook does own Instagram, after  all – the addition of Twitter support is a bit more surprising.

Facebook and Twitter Inc. were not initially direct competitors since both offered a product with a slightly different focus, but within the last few years, Facebook has been expanding its territory into areas that overlap with Twitter’s, especially with short-form, media sharing apps like Instagram or its recent focus on real-time ad coverage.

Also included in the new update are improvements to the Mentions Feed, which allow users to follow people or subjects that interest them to stay up to date on the latest trending topics. Users will be able to see what other people are saying about the topics they have added and share posts with their fans.

Facebook Mentions is yet another niche app developed out of the Facebook Creative Labs program, which allows internal Facebook teams to work on smaller projects separate from the core Facebook app, usually without the weight of the Facebook brand name hanging over them.

Other apps from the Creative Labs program include Rooms, Slingshot, Paper, and Facebook Groups. So far, none of these apps have come close to matching the success of Instagram or WhatsApp, but there is always the chance that Facebook could fold features from these smaller programs into its bigger apps.

If you happen to be a public figure with your own verified Facebook page, you can download Facebook Mentions on iTunes to request access. There is currently no word on an Android or Windows version.

Screenshot via Facebook Mentions/iTunes