Facebook to open Dubai office to seek advertisers?

Advertising on Facebook is a self service option

Facebook Inc., the social networking company that listed last week one of the largest initial public offerings in U.S. history, will open an office in Dubai next week. Or so some media reports claim. The  move  is aimed at capturing more advertisers from the Gulf Cooperation Council, or GCC region, online statements continue.

However, this may sound a little doubtful, considering that the combined population of the GCC countries is far smaller than the population of the already developed by the network markets. Read more

“One of the biggest offenders of users’ privacy” to cash in

Personal information assessed to enable businesses to sell more products through online advertisement

Social media’s indisputable leader, Facebook has been “one of the biggest offenders of users’ privacy since the beginning,” said John Simpson, privacy project director for Consumer Watchdog. The organization is a nonprofit and dedicated to providing an effective voice for consumers in the United States in an era when special interests dominate public discourse, government and politics. Read more

Facebook to launch App Center

App Center will be accessible on computers, Android and iOS devices

Facebook announced it will finally launch an application hub to offer social apps in one place. It is called App Center. The company says developers can start prepping new apps for inclusion immediately.

Among other things, developers will be able to charge flat fees for apps up front, like Apple via the App Store. Currently, the social network takes a 30% cut. Some developers already charge users for in-app purchases, but allowing them to charge for apps outright is new. The new apps will be accessible on computers, Android and iOS devices. Read more

Facebook could raise fifth largest IPO in history

Will Facebook remain the undisputed leader in social forever?

Media and advertising is notoriously fickle business. Investors eager to get a slice of it, now have a perfect chance.

According to a regulatory filing in the United States, Facebook is offering about 337.4 million shares for $28 to $35 each, according to a regulatory filing in the United States. The shares wil trade under the ticker symbol FB. Facebook Inc.’s $11.8 billion initial public offering will put the social network among the highest-valued companies. The personal status of 27-year-old Mark Zuckerberg will elevate to one of the world’s richest men.

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How Facebook changes people’s lives

The most popular social network has by now over 800 million users. Researchers and pollsters are pretty busy studying them. Here are some of the ways the site is impacting people’s lives and changing their behavior.

You may become addicted

If you are on Facebook, could you pass a day without checking your page? According to polls, 80% of users couldn’t. And for a little over a third of the site’s users, it is even worse. Read more

Unfriending on Facebook grows in popularity

Many of us befriend easily on the social networks. Some of our online “friends” are people whom we know, friends of our friends or even complete strangers with seemingly common interests.

A survey from NM Incite, a Nielsen McKinsey company specializing in data on social media, that surveyed over 1,800 social media users found that 82 percent of Facebookers “friend” people they recognize in real life, while 60 percent link with mutual friends. Read more

Middle East Digital Consumer Survey Report

Two-thirds of consumers in the Middle East use the internet to research products and services, according to new research published today by Econsultancy and Real Opinions.

The Middle East and North Africa Digital Consumer Report shows that 66% of consumers in MENA are using the internet to look for products or items to buy prior to purchase. Of these respondents, 48% use the internet occasionally and 18% use the web regularly to research products.

The report, which is based on a survey of more than 2,000 consumers across different regions in the Middle East, also shows that a third of consumers are currently purchasing products online, and this includes 27% who purchase occasionally and 6% who regularly buy online.

Online consumers are paying for a wide variety of products. Flights are widely bought on the internet in the Middle East, but other things paid for online include hotel reservations, utility bills and books. Read more

Ambitious UAE professionals can get ahead by using 8ack App

• UAE Leadership Skills Trainer Reveals Secrets as Free Facebook App

8ack International, a Dubai-based expert provider of leadership skills training, today announced it has launched a free Facebook App for ambitious professionals with the desire to climb the increasingly competitive career ladder.

The App will become a ‘Facebook library’ of leadership and management skills tutorials written by industry experts including Professor Adrian Furnham, from University College London, Dr Robert Hogan, President and Founder of Hogan Assessment Systems, and Dr Paul Turner, a world-renown international HR consultant. Read more

FREE Amazon Student App for iPhone makes Back to School a Breeze

• Check Prices On-the-Go, Buy and Sell Back Textbooks and More From Anywhere
• FREE Two-Day Shipping for Amazon Student Members

Amazon.com, Inc. announced the free Amazon Student application for iPhone and iPod Touch that offers students a convenient and easy way to shop for textbooks, electronics, apparel, bedding and more. Students can compare prices, buy textbooks, or trade in textbooks for up to 70 percent back–all from their mobile device. With this new free app, signing up for the Amazon Student program, which gives college students access to FREE Two-Day shipping and exclusive deals, is simple. Read more

‘What’s Your Address’ Facebook App

• The Address Hotels + Resorts provides guests with the best business, lifestyle and entertainment solutions on Facebook
• Offering a spectrum of choices across shopping, dining, spas, golfing, leisure and business
• Application available on Facebook pages of all five The Address properties

Discovering the ideal choice for lifestyle preferences has never been easier. With The Address Hotels + Resorts’ newly unveiled “What’s Your Address” Facebook application, visitors can decipher their address to shopping, dining, pampering, golfing, business, marina, leisure attractions, and night life, all at the click of a button. Read more

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