Facebook stock rebounds

"Maybe they need money," India Waugh, a student at HACC, said of Facebook's experiment with the messaging fee. Waugh had heard of the company's weak profit margins earlier this fall.

But, according to the Associated Press, the stock price has rebounded, hitting a six-month high last week when it closed at $30.59 on Jan. 9. The number represented a 73 percent increase from the company's all-time low in September. On Wednesday, the stock closed at $29.85.

If an extra $1 was added to a phone bill or to monthly internet charges, most customers wouldn't bother to argue.

But if social media giant Facebook adds a $1 messaging feature, the company might have a fight on its hands.

On Dec. 20, in a press release on its website, the company said it would begin a "small experiment" using "economic signals" to test the best way to deliver messages to people's inboxes.

The experiment shows up on the screen when you hit "message" on a profile that you have no connection to. It allows you to choose to have the message delivered directly to an inbox for $1, or else the message lands in the "other" box, a place usually reserved for spam.


Though it didn't garner the same headlines as Facebook's Tuesday announcement of a social search feature, the $1 fee had some users commenting on the York Daily Record/Sunday News Facebook page that they felt charging for anything was a breach of the company's promise to provide a free social network.

"It undermines the 'free' premise. A portion of the free service has now been removed, and they're charging for it," Justin Mann wrote.

But the company said it is meant to be a defense against spammers who, they argued, wouldn't be willing to pay.

The experiment has caused con´ fusion, because the company is targeting a small percentage of profiles during the testing phase. Some people are being offered the option, while others aren't, leading many to call it a hoax or rumor. Others wondered why they would want to message people they don't know, even without the fee.

Diane Harshell commented on the York Daily Record/Sunday News Facebook page that she belonged to a yard sale site and messaged strangers to make arrangements to pick up items. Others said they had created pages for businesses and used messaging to reach out to customers.

Company representatives also offered up a couple of scenarios for when someone might want to contact a potential employer or to network. But India Waugh, a third-year student at HACC who will soon be searching for a job, said she wouldn't message employers on Facebook, even if she knew the messages would be sent directly to an inbox. Waugh said she only contacts people she's friends with.

Lindsay Starner, who is studying elementary education at HACC, agreed. "I'd definitely find another way to contact someone," Starner said. E-mails and phone calls are free, Waugh added. No unexpected charges show up on her phone when she picks up a call or sends an email. Starner added she doesn't use Facebook as a professional resource, but rather to stay in touch with friends and family. Most of the time, her priority isn't to check messages or status updates. "I mostly use Facebook to see what people are posting in terms of pictures," Starner said. Waugh said she felt the fee would ultimately cost the company if it chose to make it a permanent feature. "I think they're going to lose a lot of customers. Why would you charge us for something you created?" Waugh said. "Don't hide the fine print."

771-2098; @hsawyerYDR