There have been hushed words and unsubstantiated rumours for the past year or so that Facebook was looking to build its own smartphone with its own OS known as “Project Spartan” capable of running HTML5/Facebook apps – and those rumours appear to have come true. According to AllThingsD, Facebook has got HTC on board to manufacture the phone -codenamed “Buffy” after the Vampire Slayer TV series.
Facebook is already available as a web app and OS-specific apps for most web enabled devices – letting users see their news feed, connect with friends, and upload photos – but Buffy is going beyond that. Facebook recently released a dedicated messenger app to let smartphone users instant message with their friends through Facebook – stepping outside SMS, group SMS, or more recent group messaging apps like Kik or iMessage – but Facebook is all about the platform.
The games and apps on Facebook.com have been a great success for the company, with the introduction of their own currency in Facebook coins making the platform even more lucrative – and an OS is just the next logical step from there. Facebook.com has become a web-based OS of sorts with integration of both social activities, photo tools, music integration form the likes of Spotify, and more – and bringing all this together into a real OS makes sense.
Currently Facebook is at the mercy of Apple, Google, Microsoft, or RIM for getting their apps onto consumer internet devices from smartphones to tablets – but with their own OS – they can control it all. They already have the support of developers – and with a userbase pushing a billion (nearly 1/7 of the world population is on Facebook), it would not be difficult to convince others to support their platform. Moreover – if the apps are truly HTML5, then they will work on all other platforms as well, but with Facebook integration -meaning Facebook getting its tentacles into the apps on other OSes as well.
Whilst smartphones with dedicated Facebook buttons or even with Facebook branding from HTC, Motorola, and INQ in the past have not sold particularly well – a true Facebook phone would be more of a step towards making Facebook an intricate part of the mobile web – something it has so far only managed as a segregated app.