Today, Facebook announced Home, a deep integration of Facebook into Android that basically turns any phone that installs it into a Facebook Phone. Home, which will launch on April 12th, is a family of apps that when installed, turns your entire homescreen into one big Facebook experience.
And the main aspect of that experience is the Cover Feed. It features all the fresh content from your Facebook news feed, basically turning your Android device into a photo-oriented, swipeable Facebook hub. You can like, comment, and view notifications directly from your Facebook Home screen – with no need to launch any sort of app. It’s without question the deepest Facebook integration any mobile OS has ever seen.
And you can bet that Facebook it going to try to monetize it.
After the event, CEO Mark Zuckerberg made it clear that ads will be coming to your Facebook Home Cover Feed.
“There are no ads in this yet, I’m sure that one day there will be,” he said. He then repeated his answer when asked again about whether or not ads would be coming to the Cover Feed. According to Zuckerberg, ads are just another kind of content.
C’mon. Don’t look so sour. You didn’t think that Facebook would build a grand new Android-based user experience and leave out the ads, did you?
When Facebook Home launches, it will be downloadable on the HTC One X, HTC One X+, Samsung Galaxy S III and Samsung Galaxy Note II – and eventually the HTC One and Samsung Galaxy S4.
And on that same day, the HTC First will launch as the first phone the comes with Facebook Home pre-installed.