With Facebook’s F8 developers conference starting later this week, the organisation is already hitting the headlines with news of features that will be ‘coming soon’. From a PR perspective the timing of the news makes perfect sense, but what is the actual impact of these changes?
With more than 600 million users, Facebook’s announcements carry a lot of weight. However, I can’t help wondering whether the half a million new users that join the social network on a daily basis truly understand the impact of many of these ‘enhancements’.
The main change announced to be in the pipeline is that Facebook members will soon be able to send their profile directly to a connected Twitter account.
This comes hot on the heels of Facebook revealing its ‘subscription’ system which is very similar in operation to Twitter’s ‘follower’ function.
Sounds like more benefits for users of the network, as well as Twitter – a network which believes it will have 1 billion users of its own by next year.
What few may realise though is that the changes will mean that Facebook members who subscribe will be able to see the public updates of potentially any of its users.
A small percentage of people take the time to review their security and privacy settings regularly if at all. When you’re in a rush to hear the latest news about your friends, favourite brands and groups, stopping to think about Terms & Conditions is the last thing on your mind.
So, is it a good thing that Twitter and Facebook are making it easier for people to share their news across networks? From a digital PR and communication perspective – yes, but a word of caution.
Remember who your real circle of friends are and ensure you’re talking to the right people when using social networks. Sharing information is one thing, issuing private information to the world is another.
