Dive summary:
- Facebook revealed it's new home screen replacer, Home, as part of their partnership with HTC and AT&T; the downloadable system allows uses to customize their homescreens with what Facebook calls "cover feeds."
- The customized homescreen includes Facebook owned apps such as Instagram, Camera, and Messenger, but third party apps will now require several swipes for access; this may affect brands' willingness to invest in proprietary apps because they will no longer be front and center on many Android phones.
- The data that Facebook Home would collect will likely heavily increase the firm's advertising reach; the features of Home will allow brands to use location based marketing in a fairly unobtrusive way, which is something other apps are unable to offer.
From the article:
"Indeed, it's all about the data. Krishna Subramanian, CMO of Velti, concluded from today's press conference that the 'opportunity [is] for highly targeted ads [to be] be massive based on the user behavior that will be collected from the OS. By having Facebook interactions—chat, message, status updates, photos, location check ins—that are all highly personal at the center of the operating system, marketers can know the audience more than they ever have before.'"
