Facebook is continuing its war on Facebook apps that push the limits on acceptable user interaction. Last week it was Slide’s Top Friends App, which it briefly suspended. Later Facebook also suspended another popular app, Social Me.
This time they’re targeting Slide’s rival RockYou and their Super Wall application, which tends to have a lot of spammy user content. But instead of shutting down the application wholesale, they’ve simply turned off the viral components of the app - invitations, notifications, etc.
The consequences have been just as dramatic. A month ago Super Wall had 2.4 million average daily users. Today it’s 600,000 and falling fast.
RockYou CEO Lance Tokuda confirmed that Facebook had shut down features of Super Wall, but says they’re working with Facebook to fix the issues and expect things to return to normal soon.
One thing is clear in all this: Facebook is serious about slapping down app developers who go too far in their efforts to grab new users.
superwall is one of the most annoying facebook apps.
Suspending one application per week is OK with me.
Top friends is back afaik.
This could have waited Michael, sleep isn’t a bad thing.
Good!
There should be quality control on Facebook Apps, there is just too much garbage and spam on there now, it’s turning Facebook into Myspace at lightning speed.
Thumbs up for Facebook. Destroy them all!
Both Superwall and FunWall do systematic organized spamming, they ask users to forward to all friends, but send notifications to “selected targets”. Those selected targets are likely users to trap.
Sending user does not know whom all it sends notifications, but he simply forwards to all his friends, and rockyou selects targets to notify. This practice of both spamwalls is not an act of “transparency” which facebook expects.
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These apps make Facebook look more like MySpace
Michale : Crunchbase profile of Slide shows funding as $496 Million . AFAIK it valuation was $500 Millionat previous funding round . is there an error ??
thanks. super site
FB are genius. They got all those developers to build viraly apps that took FB into the growth stratosphere and now that they’ve achieved a market leading position they’re saying to the apps FK U, we don’t need you anymore and you can try and monetize $0.01 CPM’s, enjoy.
That said I know of a lot of app developers who are actually enjoying taunting their FB installed app users who have come to depend on the apps, kind of a way to say Marky Z FK U right back, you swindler.
FB is no google, never will be ‘relevant’ and hopefully the likes of FriendFeed will put it in the grave next to Yahoo.
Yo…facebook APP devs…why are you wasting your time developing apps on a site that you are not “welcome”? When your APP gets big and successful…get out of here!!!…
-respect to the users complaining about the mess with the APPS.
it was only a matter of time before Facebook starting cracking down on the bad actors who wouldn’t have a business if Facebook didn’t exist. These social app companies are incredibly vunerable to Facebook’s whims and will not last long. These companies need direct relationships with consumers on their own web sites which they will never have. I hear the bubble leaking.
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Maybe Admonics has a self-serving interpretation of “daily active users” that doesn’t work out when the spammy invite system is turned off…
It’s interesting that FB is cracking down on bad practices by major apps brands leading up to F8…trying to clean house before showing it off, but this really should have been done sooner — in addition to having some standard and enforceable protocol when working with app devs. FB needs to take lessons from SFDC on how to work with developers if FB is ever going to become stable and productive utility. Which I do think is possible.
all the apps on FB are garbage…the goal of them is to drive users in order to monetize on the crap banners. I’m actually surprised FB doesn’t monetize on the apps instead of allowing rockyou, etc, do so.
the sooner the apps come down, the better.
I have never seen Super Wall without the crazy spam. Really annoying FB app.
This is such a crock. Facebook, if you are beating MySpace in global visitors now don’t you think that might have something to do with the apps.
If people are getting worried about being “spammed” by facebook, then they are on there way too much. I don’t hear anyone complaining right now about the advertisements being pushed in the friend feeds. Mark Z. you are a punk.
Of course that is just my opinion, I may be wrong.
I’ve personally complained about FunWall’s spam and misleading messages, and it takes them a year to clean it up?
Sure, I think it’s great that they’re *finally* cracking down on spammy applications, but I feel it’s just too little too late. I’ve lost all faith in most FB apps, and thus lost faith in FB as a whole.
Facebook is cool, if you don’t have one get one. I hate spam but everyone needs to get paid.
kudos to facebook
facebook laying the smackdown on these companies
‘
and its nothing the apps creators can do about it
since their whole business model revolves around facebook
which basically means you have no business models
They should block users who send those damn chain letters too… send them back to MySpace!
Basically, facebook needs developers to keep it platform grow. Without its platform, facebook will be nothing better than H5 or Friendster.
So … going war against apps mean alienating all the developers. I found this is very stupid move. Definitely a good way to go down.
Why they doing that? Should do some a retriction but no go to far. Especially when FaceBook is facing multiple competitors like Friendster, Hi5, and MySpace with their own platforms.
Not to metion, the biggest threat of facebook survival is Google.
FaceBook in my opinions, missing a big picture. I thought they could be the next Google but it seems to greedy and can not get that far!
Definitely, upsetting Slide, RockYou, … are the biggest mistake. They can every much leaving facebook any moments to go to facebook competitors like MySpace, Friendster, … Hi5 and facebook will be doom.
The frenzy for Facebook apps was misplaced. One year ago everyone thought a Facebook app was the golden ticket. But anytime you have to build on someone else’s platform you’re at their whim. Here’s what I wrote a year ago:
http://www.bestcashcow.com/tec.....r-facebook
Is there a way to enjoy the viral aspects built into the FB API without the penalty? Is there a “right way” guidelines some one can point to?
Bravo is all I can say. The less of that crap the better. is the facebook version of
I still have th feeling that without Slide’s spammy apps, FB would feel dead (seriously, there’s not much going on on FB)
too little too late?
Facebook has given such an insurmountable advantage to some of these guys that it makes it very difficult for other to compete in the space.
I think facebook should have an app contest and freely promote the winning apps to help push for more utility and useful applications.
I feel sort of sorry for the guys who put money against the Rock You of the world since the whole (very healthy) valuation was based on these “blockbusters” apps.
In any cases, I completely agree with ’silicon valley dropout’ - there’s not defensible position here vs
1. other apps developers despite what the rock you of the world are trying to convey to justify the huge valuations
2. facebook itself which will at some point take a share of the revenues + has a total right of live or die on the apps themselves…
its funny that the top apps are the most spammy, good for fb to clamp down on the biggest offenders. they do howoever need to show a better path forward for dev or else they will go elsewhere.
This is great news. Crappy apps like Superwall do nothing for the Facebook community, and largely consist of spam. It’s good to see them taking positive action to remove this kind of rubbish from the system.
Michael, great post.
Maybe there is a lot more beyond what is happening and goes directly into facebook strategy for growth and differentiation.
it is clever, once achieved a broad catalogue of apps, to focus in ensuring smoothest customer experience avoiding too-fast-forwarding apps.
The time will come when facebook only allows “official” apps who pay a FEE.
how long will they let people make $ on their turf w/o getting a cut?
finally, they did something right.
i have been clicking on the spam button all day long everyday. the last time i went there is 3 wks ago.
well it’s about time indeed! I just hate those useless apps on facebook that just look like they want to get all your data and have nothing to offer.
This is good news. As I say on our blog, creating widgets that rely on you spamming your friends to propagate, is about as forward-looking as putting radio on TV. It’s just a waste of the medium, channel and audience attention.
Lessons learned:
1. RockYou and Slide’s business model is built around Facebook (and other social networks)
2. Facebook’s business model is built around Facebook
3. RockYou and Slide’s business model has failed
4. Facebook’s business model is non-existent
Mark Zuckerberg is going to wish he’d sold a long time ago. The jokes on you Marky Mark.
Just shut down Facebook all together.
next up is vampires and the rest of the ones like it i hope. and facebook is awesome i keep in touch with around 100 people on it. the thousands of app request are what sucks
facebook should goes public to raise money to compete with Google. If they keep slacking off then other social networks will eventually caught up and it will be too late.
There is no way they could compete with Google with little cash they have now. They may stay alive for a while but won’t make any progress.
It should be wiser to go public raise cash while their stock is hot and make some acquisition in search (buy Ask) and enter google space.
That’s a good strategy!!! If they don’t they will be end up like Yahoo somedays.
What this proves is that viral growth is not all it’s cracked up to be, it has little user retention capability, and serves only to jack up valuations on inflated numbers.
Just look at how quickly those active numbers dropped off after spam was disables. If those users had been actual loyal users of the app, who derived serious value from it, they wouldn’t have dropped off so quickly. The reality is, viral growth is a shitty business model that abuses your customers by treating them as disease vectors.
And one thing people do when they get a disease is try and get rid of it as soon as possible.
FaceBook’s entire platform is based on a disease concept, which is why that $15 billion valuation will crumble into vapor once the antibodies of rationalism and viral-app-fatigue bite into them.
Feel a bit bad for Rockyou and Slide. Facebook, MySpace, and all these social networks use these “viral” tactics to gain initial user traction. Rockyou and Slide are not doing anything different. In fact, their messages are probably helping Facebook to retain its users.
They are just getting all the blames.
As a marketer, I’ve learned a lot from Slide and rockyou’s viral marketing tactics. But facebook may be teaching us the most important lesson yet - “don’t annoy users with hyper aggressive viral marketing.” As marketers we need to moderate ourselves if we want viral marketing to continue working in the long run… I’ve posted some key marketing lessons based on the Slide/rockyou/facebook situation here: http://startup-marketing.com/2.....klash.aspx .