Social networking site Facebook introduced a program that will allow third-party developers to integrate services and applications into the site, essentially transforming it from a MySpace wannabe to a mash-up of multiple Web sites and services.
The developer program allows partners to create Web applications built specifically for the Facebook site. Facebook members can use these applications to create customized profiles similar to that of MySpace, but with far greater freedom and options.
For instance, the music community and recommendation system iLike will create a service within Facebook that will let users see which other Facebook members like similar music or plan to attend the same concerts, automatically, in addition to listening to and recommending music.
Warner Bros. Records also was listed as a developer partner, but no details are yet available as to what intentions the label has for it.
In all, the new program launched with 65 developers contributing a total of 85 applications.
Facebook last September stopped restricting membership to college students and opened it up to all. Since then, Web traffic to the site has increased more than 100%, and is listed as the second most popular social networking services after MySpace, with an 11.5% market share to MySpace’s 80%, according to Internet traffic monitoring firm Hitwise. It has 24 million members.
Those developing applications for the site may do so at no cost, for now anyway, and can generate their own advertising revenue or sales commissions.
