(WIRED) -- Facebook unleashed a new commenting system last week that promises to help online publications clean up their commenting cesspools, while simultaneously extending Facebook's tentacles further into the web outside its walls. Unfortunately for those with visions of a non-Facebook dominated web, this initiative has the potential to dramatically expand the ginormous social network's already imperial reach. The new system lets website owners replace their current commenting system with Facebook's simply by dropping in a few lines of Javascript. Then, commenters have to sign in using either their Facebook or Yahoo IDs, an attempt to ensure a commenter is a real person. Commenters can opt to have their comment posted as an update, along with a link to the original story, which spreads the story link inside Facebook's walls.
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Facebook unleashes new commenting system that promises to clean up cesspools
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System simultaneously extends Facebook's tentacles further into the web
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Facebook system competes most directly with Disqus
Facebook offers its plug-in for free, while @placeholder commenting requires premium accounts for the features a large site needs to have.