Facebook is getting serious
about on-the-go social networking with a suite of new features
announced during the Facebook Mobile event on Wednesday. We've already
taken a look at how the release of a new Facebook Places API to mobile
developers will change the way we shop, but how will the simplified Single Sign-on process change our favorite apps?
PC World editor Mark Sullivan
took some time on Wednesday to interview three social networking
applications whose users will be affected by the new Single Sign-on
feature: Loopt, Flixster, and Booyah.
Loopt is a great example of how the Single Sign-on integration will actually simplify the user experience, as Loopt is available on multiple mobile devices--from simple feature phones to Blackberry devices, Apple's iPhone,
and the Android OS. After logging onto Facebook with the Single Sign-on
feature, users will be able to see where their friends are and what
they're doing via services like Bing, Zagat, and CitySearch.
Loopt co-founder Alok Deshpande tells us how Facebook's new Single Sign-on feature will affect Loopt users:
For the movie geeks among us, Flixster
is a social network for film enthusiasts to discuss current and
upcoming movies with friends and family. The Android and iPhone "Movies"
applications are mobile extensions of the website, and Flixster
co-founder Joe Greenstein believes the option to sign into your
Flixster account using Facebook's new Single Sign-On feature will
significantly improve the user experience.
Joe discusses how the new simplified Single Sign-on process will change mobile development:
Joe also gives us a sneak preview of how the Single Sign-on feature will work:
But what about mobile gaming? A simplified Facebook login coupled with
public distribution of the Facebook Places API is sure to entice mobile
game developers who want to emulate the financial success of such
successful Facebook apps as Farmville.
Jon Parise, senior engineer at Booyah (maker of such social networking games as MyTown and InCrowd), gives us a quick demo of how the new features will affect players of mobile games:
After rampant rumor-mongering about a possible Facebook phone,
these software upgrades may seem pedestrian, but the Facebook Places
API and Single Sign-on feature combo is a powerful one-two punch for
mobile developers looking to take advantage of Zuckerberg's social
network. After all, if you can't beat 'em, why not join 'em?