Facebook Plans To Turn Messenger Into A Platform

From TechCrunch

Next week at its F8 developer conference, Facebook will announce new ways for third parties to offer experiences through its Messenger app, according to multiple sources. Facebook hopes to make Messenger more useful, after seeing Asia’s chat apps WeChat and Line succeed as platforms that go beyond just texting with friends.

At first, Facebook will focus on how third parties can build ways for content and information to flow through Messenger. Depending on the success of the early experiments, Facebook may then mull bringing more utilities to Messenger.

While the Messenger platform is said to be a major part of F8 by all the sources, it’s unclear exactly what form the third-party integrations will take. Considering what WeChat and Line have done, there are plenty of opportunities including ways for businesses to communicate or share content directly with users, or options for richer friend-to-friend content sharing.

The platform is likely to start slow, with Facebook working with preferred partners, but it may eventually open to more developers. Facebook declined to comment on this story.

Avoiding Spam

Facebook is looking to recreate the best parts of its earlier web platform efforts without repeating its mistakes.

Facebook’s web canvas thrived with games, as it let users quickly bring their identity and friends to third-party experiences. And its Open Graph protocol connected people’s apps back to their Facebook profiles. Both were popular because they helped developers find an interested audience. That’s something especially tough now in the mobile era, as the app stores have become highly competitive and overcrowded.

Facebook Game Spam, circa 2010

The problem was that the web platform became so overrun with game spam that Facebook had to reduce its virality. Eventually, it withered as engagement shifted to phones during a time when Facebook was confused and slow moving on mobile. Open Graph got a rotten reputation for over-sharing, as it auto-published news, music and video consumption to the News Feed Ticker.

Learning from those experiences, Facebook is likely to be careful not to let spam slip into its relatively pristine Messenger app.

Inspired By Asia’s Monolithic Chat Apps

Until now, Messenger has been almost entirely a Facebook experience. Websites can integrate a Send button that lets users send the URL privately to a friend. But otherwise, Messenger focuses on letting users send and receive texts, phone calls, photos, videos, stickers, voice clips and money, all through Facebook’s own systems.

Facebook subtly hinted new developer capabilities for its chat app would be in store for F8, as it told me that Messenger would have announcements at the conference. And Messenger head David Marcus told Wired last year that he’s intrigued by how businesses and people communicate directly, citing the poor experience many have with touch-tone phone numbers and airline customer service. Facebook previously offered a little-known way for users to send private messages to Facebook business Page admins.

For Messenger’s platform, Facebook is said to have eyed Line and WeChat. They were pioneers in using their frequently used instant messaging apps as the centers of mobile interfaces that act as monolithic portals. Snapchat is another messaging app that’s recently explored a platform approach.

Line’s platform page

Japanese messenger Line includes a “More” tab with access to a Sticker Shop for buying premium emoji to share through Line, Line Pay for making quick transactions in brick-and-mortar stores, and featured collections of Line companion apps and games. Those apps range from homemade emoji makers that let you send your face to friends, Line Toss for photo sharing, Line Brush for drawing, Line Card for sending greeting cards, Line Camera for making collages, B612 for jazzing up selfies, and Line WebToon for reading manga.

Snapchat Discover

Line also lets users follow Official Accounts that let them receive content directly from celebrities, entertainment properties, news organizations, and brands like Paul McCartney, The Walking Dead, Manchester United, and the BBC. Compared to the constant barrage of posts to their Facebook and Twitter accounts, Line Official Accounts are designed for lower-volume, higher-signal, direct communication with fans.

Snapchat has pursued a premium, glossy content strategy with its Discover page. Major media outlets like Comedy Central, CNN, Vice and ESPN can offer up Snap-formatted photos, articles, and videos with interstitial ads. Meanwhile, WhatsApp has seen its Send buttons drive massive traffic for media properties by letting users push URLs to friends through WhatsApp messages.

Facebook could take inspiration from any of these apps. An option would be for Facebook to let third-parties help people create and share richer content like embellished photos through Messenger. Facebook already released its own Stickered For Messenger companion app for slapping stickers on photos and sending them to friends. 

Alternatively, Facebook could allow users to follow or visit official accounts. That might help them stay current with things they love that might get lost in the News Feed, or communicate with businesses directly in a way that’s more efficient than a phone call. One more possibility is that Facebook might try to make it easier for web and mobile content properties to gain viral traffic via Messenger. Facebook’s own News Feed could get better ways for people to push stories they see to Messenger.

Facebook Stickered For Messenger

China’s WeChat platform has centered more around commerce. Users can buy movie tickets, pay for taxis and more through the messaging app.

While content is said to be the focus of Facebook’s initial Messenger platform efforts, it could expand into commerce eventually if third-party experiences gain traction. Just this week, Facebook added a way to make free friend-to-friend payments through Messenger by adding a debit card. With a native payment interface already in Messenger, it would be easier for Facebook to build in more commerce opportunities.

China’s WeChat offers commerce experiences in its app. Via Benedict Evans

With well over 500 million users, Facebook Messenger has become one of the most popular apps in the world. While Facebook’s main app is essentially a version of its website ported to the small screen, Messenger was built for mobile. Facebook is something you lazily browse with little intent, whereas Messenger is designed for taking action and getting things done. For some around the world, Messenger has become the primary way they use Facebook. Improving content inside it could make sense for users who aren’t glued to the News Feed.

Facebook’s mission for Messenger as of late has been to make it “more useful, expressive and delightful,” according to its payments feature’s product manager Steve Davis. Now it’s ready to ask for some help from outside the walls of 1 Hacker Way.

Facebook friends can send money through Messenger app

Facebook's Messenger is piling on new features.

Want an easy way to send money to your friends? Facebook hopes you'll turn to its newly beefed-up Messenger app for that, instead of relying on a growing list of competitors trying to siphon off its users.

The social-networking service on Tuesday said Facebook friends can now send cash to one another for free, after they've connected information from their MasterCard or Visa debit card accounts. Users activate the feature by tapping a dollar sign while chatting with a friend in Facebook's Messenger app. About 500 million people currently use Messenger.

The new feature helps Facebook stave off a growing list of competitors. Square, for example, partnered with Snapchat in November, giving users of the ephemeral messaging service an easy way to send cash to each other. PayPal's Venmo and Square Cash also link to users' debit cards, making it easy to split a bill among friends.

The payment feature could help Facebook dominate mobile app messaging. At the end of last year, the social network tallied nearly 1.2 billion monthly users logging on from a mobile device, but less than half use the company's Messenger service. Facebook last year acquired Whatsapp for more than $19 billion, which counts 700 million users around the world -- but doesn't offer payment services.

You can now send cash to friends through Facebook's mobile Messenger app.Facebook

Meanwhile, competitors, such as Snapchat, have grown from tiny startups to monsters of the industry, in part by tying into new trends among younger users. Snapchat is particularly popular among the 14- to 34-year-old set, according to industry researcher eMarketer. That age group also happens to be the largest without a bank account, according to surveys by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. These new payment services could help to change that.

Mobile payments are also becoming one of the biggest trends in Silicon Valley. Apple introduced its Apple Pay service last year, allowing iPhone and (soon) Apple Watch owners to tap their devices to point-of-sale terminals at thousands of merchants. Competitors Samsung, Google and PayPal also offer similar features -- or soon will.

Facebook said it already processes more than 1 million transactions on its site each day, and plans to use security features it's been building for payments services on its website since 2007.

The feature will become available to iOS and Android users in the coming months, the company said.

Facebook Messenger users gripe and grumble in online reviews

• by Don Reisinger 
   @donreisinger
 



Facebook

Facebook's Messenger app, which has shifted the social network's instant-messaging features off the main mobile app and onto its own standalone program, has found its niche -- among critics.

App Annie, an analytics-tracking site that gathers the collective wisdom of app users, shows that Facebook's Messenger app has received nearly 59,000 one-star ratings from users over the past month, dwarfing the nearly 2,700 five-star ratings the app has received from users.

Facebook announced at the end of last month that it was beginning the final phaseout of mobile messaging within its main app. The company rolled out the Messenger-only app in Europe in April, but has since rolled it out globally. In a statement to CNET last month, Facebook said that while it might seem unorthodox to break out a feature, the move is designed to "focus development efforts on making Messenger the best mobile messaging experience possible and avoid the confusion of having separate Facebook mobile messaging experiences."

When users now try to send messages through Facebook's standalone mobile app, they are prompted to download Messenger. Upon doing so, users will still be able to see pending messages in the Facebook main app, but when they decide to respond, they are sent to the standalone Messenger.

Not surprisingly, there has been some outcry among people who were previously accustomed to sending messages through the standard Facebook app. Facebook, however, has largely stayed out of the ongoing criticisms hitting the Web, deciding instead to focus on its data points that show using the Messenger app would make communicating with others 20 percent faster and more reliable than using the main app.

App Annie is by no means is the last word on overall Facebook user sentiment. The compiled data does not come from a traditional survey. It is compiled from people actively choosing to vote. Thus App Annie can be a lightning rod for critics. At the same time, this is a large-scale reaction to Facebook's recent switch. Out of the more than 64,000 reviews of Facebook's Messenger in the past month, the app has only been able to garner a 1.2-star average rating.

"I hate this app," one user wrote on App Annie's comments section. "Why make everything harder? Just don't understand that." Another user wrote: "I hate it! I delete it every day because Facebook force[s] me to download that awful app every day."

Another reason not to lend too much credence to the App Annie findings: while the opinions of 64,000 people is nothing to ignore, Facebook has well over 1 billion users worldwide and 200 million using its Messenger app. That leaves many, many people who haven't shared their opinions via App Annie.

Still, the comments address the fact that at least some, very vocal people don't appreciate the transition or the new app.

SMS makes way for texting apps

Kit Eaton, April 14, 2014, INYT

Kik me!” is not a silly note to pin to someone’s back. It’s a request to use the Kik app to chat with someone through mobile instant messaging.
Kik is just one of many messaging apps that have arrived recently to rival the humble SMS as a way of rapid text communication from phones. If you haven’t tried any, you may be missing out.

Of all the SMS alternative apps, WhatsApp, recently acquired by Facebook for $16 billion, is perhaps best known. It is free for the first year and then costs $1 (Rs 60) a year after that, in addition to any mobile data fees from the cellphone provider.

It allows users to share chat messages that are longer than the odd 160-character limit of SMS messages; also, photos, videos, links and so on can be included inside chats. Chat messages can go to users all over the world no matter where they are, as long as they are also members.

Like previous forms of text messaging, WhatsApp is tied to a phone number. When you turn it on for the first time, it will scan through your contacts to see if any of your friends’ numbers are already signed up. You can then start or answer chats by tapping on a speech bubble icon.

Each chat is displayed in order by time, with colour coding to indicate whether a particular message was sent by you or the recipient. A check mark appears when a message has been delivered and read.

But WhatsApp has features that make it slightly more clever than an SMS system. For example, it lets you set a “status” flag so contacts can know if you are available to chat or are busy. With a tap of a button you can also add a photo, video, your location data or even a particular contact’s information. Other extras include the ability to set the wallpaper behind each chat, or the option to “broadcast” chat messages to more than one person for group chats.

There is little to dislike about WhatsApp except that sometimes its interface design feels a little 1990s. It is available free on iOS, Android, Windows Phone and BlackBerry.

Kik is similar to WhatsApp. It does not require a phone number, because this chat app identifies you with a user name, but entering your number may help other users find you more easily. Chatting in Kik works like chatting in WhatsApp, including the way it shows messages inside chats, which Kik calls “conversations”: listed by time, with alerts for successful delivery and read receipts. Kik users can also share photos, videos and so on.

But Kik is as much about communicating with other Kik users across the world as it is about communicating with your friends. The app feels more playful, and it has a browser built in so you can quickly surf to a website, or perhaps a YouTube video, then chat about what you find. The app aims to appeal to a more youthful audience, but how you use it is up to you and your contacts.

It’s free on iOS, Android, Windows Phone and BlackBerry.

Viber, also free on iOS, Android, BlackBerry and Windows Phone, is an alternative messaging app that has one big extra feature: the ability to place free digital voice calls that do not eat up cellphone minutes, though they consume mobile data if you’re not on a Wi-Fi network.

Skype has long had a text-based messaging system alongside its more famous digital phone call system. The messaging part works reliably well, and in its favour is the fact that many millions of people already use Skype. This means the odds are that someone with whom you may want to chat is already using Skype. It is free on Windows Phone, iPhone, Android and BlackBerry.

Lastly there is always Facebook Messenger, which works either inside the main Facebook app or as a stand-alone service. Like Skype, Facebook is already used by many people. But Facebook Messenger is my least favorite SMS alternative, mainly because of the awkward interface. At least it’s free.

App updates you should know: WeChat comes to Mac, Hangouts for iOS updated and more!

You can't miss these updates (Image credit: Getty Images)

By Nishtha Kanal /  01 Mar 2014 , 11:58

It’s been a rather busy week for apps with some getting new features, new clients and new platforms and some shutting down. Have a look at some app stories you cannot afford to miss this week.

Facebook Messenger for Windows desktop:

The desktop client of Facebook Messenger is shutting down come March 3. The app has started showing a link saying, “We’re sorry, but we can no longer support Facebook Messenger for Windows, and it will stop working on March 3, 2014. We really appreciate you using Messenger to reach your friends, and we want to make sure you know that you can keep chatting and view all your messages on http://www.facebook.com.” The move comes only days after it was announced that Facebook Messenger was coming to Windows Phone soon.

Goodbye, desktop. Hello, mobiles

WeChat gets a Mac client:

Cross platform messaging app WeChat is stepping up its game, and how. After completely revamping its Android client, WeChat has introduced a Mac app, available both in English and Chinese. WeChat had been available for use on the web earlier, by way of scanning a QR code, but this is the first time a native app has been unveiled. There’s a good chance that a Windows client could be released next. Get hold of the WeChat Mac client here.

Line will let you sell your own stickers:

Speaking of cross platform messaging apps, Line has now announced a new platform called the Line Creators Market. Starting April, you will be able to sell your own stickers on the app. You can make sets of 40 stickers at 100 yen, but you will need Line to approve it. The app will keep a 50 percent cut of all your sticker earnings.

Sell your own Line stickers soon

Skype-Microsoft Integration complete:

Updates galore! Skype has not only updated its Windows Phone app to support Microsoft accounts, it will also let you sign up for its services using a Microsoft account. Essentially, you won’t need to remember multiple IDs and passwords for your services, and get an optional two-step verification from Skype. Win-win?

Google+ for Android:

The Android version of Google+ has received a nifty little update that will improve your photo experience on the app. Now if you start editing a picture on one device, you can continue doing so on another one. Essentially back up full-resolution pictures and then edit them from wherever you have.

Along with this, Google has pushed out some new filters inspired by Snapseed and tools like better crop and rotate too. There’s also a new “All” view display for your entire photo library as well as browse them by date. Get the Google+ update for Android here.

New and improved Hangouts for iOS

Google Hangouts for iOS:

Not just Android, Google’s showing some love for iOS too! The newest version of Hangouts for iOS is bringing along a brand new look and feel, and easy navigation. You can now sent animated stickers to your contacts, record and send short video messages as well share your location. The app is now also optimised for the iPad.

Of course, it will still allow you to make all those free voice and video calls. There are also some major performance improvements. Head on to the App Store to download Hangouts 2.0 for your iOS devices.

Oggl for iPad:

Hipstamtic’s photo editor Oggl is now available for iPad. Which, of course, means being able to edit and view your images a lot better on the bigger screen. The app does not look like an oversized version of the iPhone app, which is a good thing.

Oggl comes to iPad

The app also brings along a new SurfMode on Air Play, which you can use to present an Oggl feed onto an Apple TV and have a live photo stream running. The Surf Mode works well on just the iPad too. There’s now a notifications ticker, that pretty much gives you information on all the love and reposts your pictures get on Instagram, Facebook, Flickr and more. Get the Oggl for iPad app from the App Store.