Facebook Should Focus on Apps, Not Buffy the Phone
Yes, the Facebook phone is apparently real, and its name is Buffy but is a Facebook phone really wanted?
According to the guys over at AllThingsD, not that many are interested in having a Facebook phone, according to a recent survey of their readers. The survey took in some 1500 readers’ opinion and asked the question “would you buy a Facebook phone?”
According to the poll, only 7.52 percent would actually like a Facebook phone, whilst a whopping 80.98 percent said they have no interest in a Facebook handset. Another 11.49 percent voted they would possibly be interested.
Of course, 1500 people isn’t a huge number when it comes to Facebook’s billion users, but it does indicate that maybe, just maybe it’s about time the Facebook phone was finally put to rest, ending a potential disaster before it even gets started.
“Facebook should be focused on building the best Facebook app for every major platform,” Enderle writes. “Going into competition with these platforms and phone providers could alone turn them into the next Netscape.”
But what would Facebook even need a phone for? According to some, Facebook needs its own smartphone to battle Google for mobile ads. Some 350 million or more of Facebook’s 800 million-plus users use Facebook for Android, iPhone or some other mobile app (or even just Facebook’s mobile website) to access the platform and connect with friends, family and colleagues.
Since Facebook relies on advertising to make money, you could then simply point to Google, the dominant online desktop and mobile Web ad provider in the world, as the reason Facebook needs to command the smartphone experience.
If Facebook has a smartphone, it can control the ads and apps it serves, building out a portal similar to what Amazon’s done with the Kindle Fire tablet. This could possibly strengthen the connections users have between not only other users, but merchants, game publishers and other industries dabbling in mobile commerce.
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