Facebook Home gathers up Instagram, Pinterest, and more

Facebook is acknowledging
that most smartphone
owners want a broader view
of the social-networking
universe, not just a window
to planet Facebook.
Starting Thursday, the
company is incorporating
Flickr, Pinterest, Tumblr, and
Instagram content into the
Facebook Home lock screen
experience, marking the
biggest modification since a
dramatic shift in strategy
that came after its once-
bundled Android software
package failed to move
consumers.
The Home improvement, only
available in the Facebook for
Android beta application to
start, gives application users
the option to add streams of
content from the third-party,
image-rich social services to
their smartphone lock
screens. The release turns
Cover Feed, a picture-centric,
panning version of News
Feed that replaces a
smartphone's lock screen,
into a more socially aware
zone where people can
consume photos and posts
from places other than
Facebook.
Adding non-Facebook
content to Home is part of
the social network's
switched-up strategy to slice
and dice Home into pieces --
the messaging app Chat
Heads, Cover Feed, and the
application launcher -- that
consumers may actually want
to add to their smartphone.
After a flop of a launch,
Facebook hopes Cover Feed,
as a standalone, ambiently
aware lock screen for visually
enjoying a variety of friends'
and celebrities' updates, will
convince people to give
Home a second chance.
Facebook-owned Instagram
is an obvious addition to the
lock screen. Tumblr,
Pinterest, and Flickr,
meanwhile, highlight the
social network's remodeled
attitude and should appeal to
people other than just
Facebook enthusiasts. People
can engage with the added
content just as they would
with Facebook content in
Cover Feed, meaning they
can double tab on the screen
to favorite a Flickr photo or
"heart" an Instagram, Tumblr,
or Pinterest photo. There's
also a "view on" link included
with the third-party photos
and posts that, when clicked,
will direct people to the site
in question.
Facebook for Android beta
users can turn on the
additional services from the
Home settings menu. Though
currently in limited release,
Facebook eventually plans to
make the more inclusive lock
screen available through its
standard Android application
and is already testing it in
the wild, a Facebook
spokesperson told CNET. The
company also plans to add
additional services to the lock
screen but has nothing
further to announce beyond
the four added Thursday, the
spokesperson said.