September 17, 2007 1:46 PM PDT

Report: Facebook may be headed for data storage

by Caroline McCarthy

Remember when Facebook was just a way to "poke" that kid who sat in front of you in macroeconomics class? Yeah, that was a long time ago. Rev2 reported on Sunday that technobabble on the Facebook Developer Wiki may be hinting that the "social utility" wants to expand into data storage.

So far, this appears to only apply to developers who have created applications on the Facebook Platform and have until this point provided their own data storage for the apps. A Facebook data storage plan would allow them to rent or purchase storage (or perhaps, at least in a beta form, get some for free) from Facebook instead, which could potentially be more economical for some app developers.

But if it proves successful, who knows? Facebook might be headed into Google Drive territory.

Caroline McCarthy, a CNET News staff writer, is a downtown Manhattanite happily addicted to social-media tools and restaurant blogs. Her pre-CNET resume includes interning at an IT security firm and brewing cappuccinos. E-mail Caroline.

Topics:: Gossip

Tags:: Facebook,; developers,; rumors,; storage,; gossip,; Facebook Platform

Share:: Digg; Del.icio.us; Reddit; Facebook

About The Social

CNET News' Caroline McCarthy is a downtown Manhattanite who believes that, despite popular opinion, the Web can actually help your social life. She's happily addicted to fun social-media tools from Twitter to Yelp to Facebook, sends an inordinate number of text messages, and has a tendency to waste time at the office reading restaurant blogs. Here, she explores all facets of the Web's gregarious side, as well as the unique tech culture in her home city of New York. (Don't call it Silicon Alley.)

Add this feed to your online news reader

The Social topics

Inside CNET News

Scroll Left Scroll Right

Business Tech
EMC raises bid for Data Domain
In the battle for Data Domain, EMC increases its bid to $33.50 per share in cash and says its offer is "clearly superior" to NetApp's bid.
Gallery
Photos: 'Train warriors, test weapons'
Technically Incorrect
Craigslist, eBay fighting Michael Jackson scalpers
Craigslist and eBay are full of offers of tickets to the pop singer's memorial service--some with an asking price of thousands of dollars for a pair. But are the tickets worth anything?
Beyond Binary
Windows 7 testers have long path to upgrade
Moving from the test to final version of the operating system is not as easy as just forking over the money. In some cases users have to do two installations of Windows to get to the final version.
Video
Video: iPhone 3G S launch in New York City
CNET News Daily Podcast
CNET News Daily Podcast: Beware URL shorteners
Windows 7 to be finalized this week; electric motorcycles in Best Buy; ABC on Hulu; and the dangers of the short URL.
Video
A recipe for high-tech chocolate
The Social
Andreessen: Facebook revenue to top $500 million in '09
The Netscape founder, a member of Facebook's board of directors, says the social network has the potential to be a billion-dollar company already.
Cutting Edge
Large Hadron Collider grid stress-tested
The tests, which were deemed a success, threw huge amounts of data at the grid that will process information from the collider.
Gallery
Photos: Spiral Jetty, Robert Smithson's wondrous earthwork
Crave
Samsung Omnia photo gallery
Samsung continues to expand its Omnia line with new models. See them all here.
Green Tech
Report: Toyota to mass-produce plug-ins in 2012
The first plug-in Priuses will be tested next year with plans at Toyota to mass-produce plug-in vehicles in 2012, according to a report in the Nikkei.