Facebook has launched another way for members to sift through the noise when it comes to the thousands of developer-created applications on its platform: a "verified app" badge.
It's sort of like the "verified merchant" status that PayPal awards: it's designed to signify that the application has met standards that deem it "respectful, transparent, and meet the guiding principles for trustworthiness," according to a statement from Facebook. Interested developers can apply for the verification process--a $375 fee--and if approved, will receive the virtual badge within a few weeks.
The "verified" badge will appear on an approved application's "About" page, as well as next to its listing in the application directory.
Plus, Facebook says that starting early next year there will be visibility benefits: access to more communication tools, and more prominent placement in members' activity feeds.
Some other social networks' developer platforms, like that of business network LinkedIn, require all apps to go through a verification process before they even go live. Facebook's platform, on the other hand, is open--though it has been known to be quick to pull down apps with potential security violations or intellectual property issues.
Google News is getting an interesting feature this week, and by interesting I mean it's downright peculiar. Users of the U.S. version of Google News will now be able to comment on a story, that is assuming they're somehow involved in it. The process is not for everyone, and in fact requires a lengthy verification process of sending off your comment and credentials to a special Google e-mail address, and later verifying your identity via domain name and an e-mail follow-up from Google staff. If you pass the test, your comment will show up alongside the article.
Philipp Lenssen over at Google Blogoscoped has spotted two examples (1, 2) of these comments in the wild. They show up underneath the story description with the person's real name and title.
Will this work? Yahoo tried out a somewhat similar feature with forums dedicated to each story, but shut it down late last year when the amount of spam and off-topic conversation became overwhelming. There were plans to bring it back earlier this year, but the feature remains defunct. Google's approach is almost entirely on the other side of the spectrum, keeping comments tied down to experts.
My only questions are who on Google's end will be doing moderation, whether or not they're capable of those editorial decisions, and if they'll be able to handle the onslaught of incoming e-mail. I also question if going to Google first instead of the story's source for things like corrections or comments is really the best way to add context to a story. While Google may be linking to the content, keeping the system too closed might keep the real story from coming out.
Story comments from reputable sources show up under stories once they've gone through a two-step verification process.
(Credit: CNET Networks)
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