Seems like a first step towards a pure-play FB OS, no? Built on Android? Those of you with a significantly greater technical understanding than me (aka, everyone here) may have a better take of what's possible.
Seems like they would need to have a compatible Android fork for this ... anyone know what pieces would need to be carved out and rebuilt for FB to mount a successful effort? Ie they don’t want this to benefit Google in any way.
Or is there some other viable mobile OS they could use? Not obvious to me.
I've been waiting for this for years- it always seemed so obvious to me. Had Facebook done this a few years ago, I think it would have been a huge preemptive strike against the iPhone (and possibly Foursquare). After all, Facebook has the UX skills combined with massive amounts of data.
Now, though, it comes off more as a "me too" move.
Hopefully it's built on Android. Even if it looks and works nothing like Android, it's one less platform developers have to worry about when creating an app. I mean, imagine if developers had to create a separate version of their site for IE, Firefox, Safari, etc.
(Of course, my opinions are even more speculative than the original post- I'll wait until I actually see it to judge it.)
Isn't the point here that instead of creating hardware and developing the software on top of it, Facebook is creating its own mobile offering in reverse? Building all of the software and setting the hardware component as priority two.
Facebook Messenger's new read/delivered functionality is much like BBM or iMessage. They just unveiled their app store. Now a Photos app.
Once the core apps are done and everybody who has an iOS or Android phone already uses them and enjoys them, convincing people to jump to an actual Facebook phone may not be a stretch.
Not saying that will ultimately happen, but it seems like this approach is keeping that door wide open.
I've been convinced for a couple years now that Facebook's next big thing will be a Facebook phone (likely based on Android, but partnering with a single manufacturer).
Maybe there's an option to create a custom android rom by facebook. something based on cyanogenmod(which support 60 devices), that deeply integrates facebook.
Then push installations using independent installers ,for people who already got phones and new phone buyers ?
Is there really space for facebook in the mobile operating system and browser realm though? The way I see it facebook's best bet is NOT to try and make its own phone and operating system, which is way beyond their specialty and current capability. No offense to all the web-devs here but web programmers are not operating system programmers in the same way operating system programmers are not web programmers. Not to mention the hardware side of what it takes to make a phone (although they could outsource the hardware to another company similar to the way the Google Nexus program works).
Instead, in my humble-yet-broadly-assumptive opinion, the best R.O.I. for facebook would be to try and lobby for greater integration in the phones and mobile operating systems that already exist rather than try and reinvent the wheel on their own. I think they missed a major opportunity by not becoming integrated in the iPhone (losing out to twitter), but I don't think they entirely missed the boat there. If any platform opened up enough to allow facebook to become a viable way of sending messages, finding contacts, and sharing photos and the like, it would not only provide a valuable user experience but also prove profitable for all parties involved.
just curious, do you think this would be a positive development? I have to assume a facebook OS would combine the worst parts of the iOS walled garden and android data mining. but still, I think it would be good overall to have a third major smartphone OS, if only to add a little pressure to the existing competition.
Who would want to buy a Facebook phone and with what operating system? I think “Social OS” could have been a good idea, but the actual Facebook App sucks.
Personal disclosure - I'm not interested in a Facebook phone in the slightest (mostly for privacy concerns).
I think this is an interesting concept. Let's assume it is in fact a total fork of Android, in essence, a "Facebook Phone". I really think (as big as Facebook is) they will have a hard time with this. I'm not sure there is space for another type of device - even if it is a massive consumer brand.
I get the sense that a lot of people use Facebook for it's utility... but I think it has lost it's "cool factor" with the general public. I can't see a lot of people thinking "man - I really want deeper integration with Facebook!" Isn't the FB app good enough for most people?
Likely this is part of a strategy to get users to install all kinds of FB apps on their phone and slowly take over the phone experience. Next up, Facebook mobile games?
I doubt Facebook would build a hardware device. Instead, I think they'll do a 'social OS' that uses Android for all the low-level stuff, but with the Google apps all replaced with apps that have deep Facebook integration (messages, contacts, photos, etc.).
Microsoft Bing apps (e.g. Maps) could round out the features that FB doesn't build themselves, and they could use Amazon's Appstore in lieu of Android Market.
But to your point, it's possible these designers are at work making this social OS beautiful. Android in the back, iOS in the front.
A Facebook phone makes no sense. So it seems probable that this is just one or two new apps for Android. Similar to their remake of the iOS apps a while ago.
I would be surprised if Facebook is not working on their own mobile OS. All those amazing designers they acquihired can't be working on plain-looking webview apps.
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