14 DAY TRIAL // Facebook is enjoying a very solid position as the largest social network in the world and one of the biggest sites online. But it still wants people to spend more on the site and one way it's doing this is by having more and more content inside.
We already knew that it's working with media companies, music streaming and video companies, to add content to the site.
The site is now said to be working on having news publishers add some of their top stories to the site directly, according to Forbes.
The publication reports that about a dozen news outlets have already signed up, including big names like CNN, Washington Post and The Daily. The idea is to have some of their stories published on Facebook via dedicated apps.
This would ensure that users would consume the news on Facebook, rather than leaving the site for the original report, which in turn means more ad money for the social network.
Facebook is working hard on driving up ad revenues, which are already significant. The more people spend on the site, the more ads they'll see and click on.
Facebook editions of the news publications involved are to be launched later this year, possibly as early as September.
The site has always followed this strategy, of keeping people locked in. It's walled garden approach has some big advantages, if it can pull it off.
For some users, Facebook could become synonymous with the web, they would be able to connect with friends, find out about their favorite celebrities, listen to music, rent movies and catch up on the latest news all on the site.
Facebook didn't say much on the rumor. "We have nothing new to announce. The top media sites around the world are integrated with Facebook and we’re constantly talking to our partners about ways to improve these integrations," a Facebook representative told Forbes.