Facebook apps and games coming to your mobile

The Gadget Show  Tuesday 11 October 2011

Facebook has just fired another shot across Google +’s bows – the social networking giant is opening up its app API to mobile developers.

What this means in practical terms is that developers will be able to offer the same kind of apps and games that Facebook users can enjoy on the web top users who only ever access their Facebook account through a mobile phone.

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At the moment the mobile version of Facebook is much more spartan than the full web version and the various Facebook apps for iPhone, Android and other platforms are similarly less rich than the ‘real’ Facebook experience. What Facebook is doing no is offering developers a way to get the apps and games that run inside our Facebook page onto a mobile screen by opening up the Application Programming Interface (API).

Developers will be able to offer bookmarks, links and notifications from apps and games that they can access on the full web version of Facebook. Tapping these links on your phone will either open the appropriate mobile app or direct you to (e.g.) the App Store to download a copy of the app. This app will then prompt you to log in using your Facebook account.

Initially the iPhone & iPad apps and the mobile site m.facebook.com will be able to offer these links – what Facebook calls its Social Channels – but other platforms may be added later. Sadly, yes, this does mean that you will be able to tend the pretend chickens in Farmville even when away from your computer. There is no escape.

Facebook Credits are now available to mobile users as well, so developers can let mobile users pay for in-app items and perks using a consistent system. Only the mobile website supports Facebook Credits at the moment – Apple is a bit sniffy about apps accepting payments without going through their in-app purchasing system first.

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