MENLO PARK, Calif. (AP) - What's the worst insult you can throw at a
fast-moving company like Facebook? Call its iPhone app slow and poky.
On Thursday, Facebook Inc. addressed users who had
gripes with its app for iPhones and iPads with the launch of a faster
version. Rather than add a slew of new features, the company said it
rebuilt the application from scratch to make it speedier and less
clunky.
In a recent demonstration at the company's Menlo
Park, Calif., headquarters, the new iPhone app opened about twice as
fast as the older version. Photos and comments also load faster. Users
can now "like" comments on photos, which wasn't possible with the
previous mobile app.
Mick Johnson, mobile product manager at Facebook,
said programmers removed some lesser-used features, such as a way to
view the app horizontally, to help speed it up.
The mobile arena presents Facebook with its biggest
challenge -and its biggest opportunity. That's where its user base is
growing the most. At the end of June, Facebook had 543 million users who
accessed it with a phone or tablet computer, up 67 percent from 325
million a year earlier. Its overall user base grew 29 percent over the
same time period, to 955 million.
But while Facebook ads are well-established on its
website, the company only recently started experimenting with mobile
advertisements. That's been a concern for investors, who've sent
Facebook's stock down by nearly half since the company's initial public
offering three months ago.
The iPad version of the new app now features
Timeline, the latest version of the profile page that Facebook is
rolling out to all of its users.
The app is available for free from Apple's App Store.
Still absent from Facebook's app is any integration
of Instagram. That's because Facebook hasn't closed the acquisition of
the photo-sharing app. Though it got a step closer Wednesday, when the
Federal Trade Commission said it has closed its investigation into
Facebook's planned acquisition.
The FTC said it is not taking action on the deal,
which can now go forward as planned. Facebook has agreed to buy
Instagram in a cash and stock deal worth about $748 million, based on
Facebook's stock price on Thursday. The price tag had been about $1
billion when the companies initiated the deal before Facebook's IPO, in
April.
File photo (MGN)
