f8

Facebook global revenue expected to hit $4.27B

Facebook is on fire.

Global revenue for the world's most trafficked social platform will hit $4.27 billion this year, up from $2 billion last year, according to a forecast issued today by digital market research company eMarketer.

Facebook is also on track to pull in $3.8 billion from advertising worldwide, that's up 104 percent compared to last year's $1.86 billion. While brand advertising remains a primary revenue stream, analysts at eMarketer and elsewhere anticipate advertising revenue to decline as the company continues diversifying its model.

For example, advertising represented 95 percent of Facebook's total revenue in 2009, whereas this year it will drop to 89 percent. "This slight revision downward for 2011 should not be taken as a sign that Facebook's overall business is losing momentum," according to Debra Aho Williamson, a principal analyst at eMarketer.

Facebook Credits, meanwhile, is one revenue stream that's becoming increasingly important to Facebook's future, according to Williamson. Credits, a virtual currency for games, is expected to reach $470 million this year, or 11 percent of total revenue, up from $140 million in 2010. Credits are a key part of the Facebook platform, where major businesses like social-gaming giant Zynga have been built. Facebook takes a 30 percent cut of every in-app transaction conducted on its platform. … Read more

Magisto automates online video editing for you

Think about all that video sitting on your hard drive, all those clips of the kids, the vacations, the graduations, your karaoke parties. Now imagine actually doing something with it.

Enter the Web-based video-editing service Magisto, which today announced its public rollout, along with $5.5 million in a series B funding round led by Horizons Ventures, the private venture firm of Li Ka-shing, the world's 11th richest man.

Li, who has an estimated net worth of $26 billion, is known for making smart early-stage investments in companies like Facebook and Spotify. Magma Venture Partners, an original investor in … Read more

Wall Street Journal to unveil app for Facebookers

The Wall Street Journal is launching a Facebook app today that will draw from Journal content to create a socially oriented news publication housed on the popular site, according to a report.

With the new WSJ Social app, readers will choose to follow various streams--some curated by staff, others by fellow readers--which will determine what stories they see, writes Forbes reporter Jeff Bercovici. Readers with the most followers will be eligible for prizes.

The Journal will get all revenue from ads within the app, and Facebook will place ads around it. Paid content on the Journal's Web site will … Read more

Talk of 'major' redesign of Facebook profiles as F8 nears

As Facebook's F8 developers conference edges nearer, more snippets are emerging about what might go down at the event, including talk of the unveiling of a "major" redesign of the social network's iconic profile pages.

This weekend The New York Times' Ben Sisario said the paper had confirmed with unnamed sources that Facebook is partnering with music services and others to create a media platform that will let its users "easily share their favorite music, television shows, and movies, effectively making the basic profile page a primary entertainment hub."

Sisario mentions music services Spotify, Rhapsody, and others, but doesn't name any movie- or TV-streaming companies. However, Claire Atkinson, at cross-town rival the New York Post, published her own report about some sort of tightening of integration between Facebook and Hulu. She also mentions Netflix.

Now Mashable's Ben Parr and his own anonymous sources have backed up the Times report and added a couple of other tidbits. A "major" profile redesign is in the offing, Parr reports, which will be part of a stronger move toward social e-commerce--a move that may include making Facebook Credits more conspicuous, as well as the launch of a Facebook app store. It may also have to do with a rumored HTML5-based mobile platform called Project Spartan, Parr adds. … Read more

Facebook hides 'Poke' button ahead of rumored redesign

For those of you who engage in the pinnacle of silliness and double entendre that is a Facebook "poke" war, a time of reckoning has come. The Poke button has been quietly hidden by the powers-that-be in Palo Alto, Calif.

Of course, it's still possible to poke--the feature's just been hidden away in a drop-down under that little gear icon in the upper right corner of your friends' profile pages.

So how much does poking mean to you? Is that inane tradition of poking your old college buddy every time the Broncos score a touchdown worth the extra click?

The banishment comes amid some big changes at Facebook. In recent weeks, the social network has rolled out subscriptions and smart lists, and there are reports that later this week, a complete overhaul to profiles will be unveiled at the f8 developers conference.

So it could be that pokes are getting hidden to make way for new functions, but aren't we all surprised that a feature that tends to be used primarily as a tool for irony and/or harassment has even lasted this long? Let's just hope it isn't being relocated to make room for a new "spank" feature.… Read more

Facebook partners for easy song, film sharing--report

Following reports yesterday that suggested Facebook would use its upcoming F8 developers conference to announce some sort of music and/or video service, The New York Times says it has confirmed the service with anonymous industry sources, and the paper has provided some details on how the new service will look.

Yesterday, Dutch entrepreneur and developer Yvo Schaap spied a clue in the HTML for the Web sites of Spotify, Rhapsody, and several other major music services that pointed to some type of custom Facebook format. Meanwhile, The New York Post reported that Hulu and Facebook would announce at this … Read more

Facebook, Hulu to strengthen ties, report says

Facebook is set to announce stronger ties to Hulu next week at its F8 developer conference, according to a report in the New York Post.

Citing anonymous sources, the Post offered little detail, saying only that the social-networking giant would announce deeper integration between the two companies--integration, the Post said, that could lead to "the potential for users to see what their friends are watching on Hulu and share video content between their personal networks."

The Post also reported that other video providers could be involved, and mentioned that Netflix is "also very close" to Facebook.… Read more

Buzz Out Loud 1540: Astronomy is a girl's best friend (Podcast)

On today's show, we discover the universe's biggest diamond floating out there in space. Plus, the FCC is investigating why cell phone networks went down during this week's East Coast earthquake, especially with Hurricane Irene bearing down on the East Coast even as we speak. Our BOL PSA to you: text, don't call. And also, be safe. Plus, Pandora makes some money and the most awkward voicemail session ever.

Subscribe:  iTunes (MP3) |  iTunes (320x180) |  iTunes (640x360) |  RSS (MP3) |  RSS (320x180) |  RSS (640x360)… Read more

Buy.com has the Sony Walkman NWZ-E438F 8GB MP3 Player for $102.95, after $17.04 savings.

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