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Facebook Blocks Google+ App, Google Removes Twitter From Real Time Search

Posted by samzenpus on from the punch-the-person-to-your-left dept.

An anonymous reader writes "Facebook has blocked access to Friend Exporter, a Google Chrome application that helps users import their Facebook contacts into Google's new social network — Google Plus. " Meanwhile, reader dkd903 points out that Google has been busy removing Twitter from real time search, due to a contract expiry with Twitter."

14 of 250 comments (clear)

  1. Alas. by Vegemeister · · Score: 4, Funny

    Begun, the Corp War has.

  2. How Microsoft of Them by causality · · Score: 5, Insightful

    "Facebook has blocked access to Friend Exporter, a Google Chrome application that helps users import their Facebook contacts into Google's new social network — Google Plus. "

    Clearly Facebook is afraid to compete on the merits of its services. Isn't that the message whenever any sort of vendorlock is implemented?

    I never before took Google's social network very seriously. Now that Facebook is showing fear of them, and acting so childish about it, I'm willing to reconsider that. To anyone with some sense, Facebook is providing a more stunning endorsement of Google's services than Google itself could have ever created.

    --
    It is a miracle that curiosity survives formal education. - Einstein
    1. Re:How Microsoft of Them by segedunum · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Facebook was effectively invite only for a while until anyone over 13 could join up and that only seemed to increase the excitement. You want to be a part of what you can't have.

      If I was Facebook I would be worried. Zuckerberg merely came up with a few chance ideas that made social networks......social. Relationship status and all that. Apart from that it's merely a fairly clean looking, unspectacular PHP application. Facebook's lead as the premier social networking site is everything. If they have to start competing on technology then the future doesn't look bright.

    2. Re:How Microsoft of Them by beuges · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Except that you can test an email platform with a limited amount of users, because those users can still email others outside of your platform, due to the way email works.

      I've had a google+ profile for almost a week, and I haven't bothered logging in after the first day, because none of my friends are on it and I can't invite them either. It's a social network that doesn't allow you to network with your social circle.

      When I mentioned that I had a google+ account, at least a dozen of my friends asked me to invite them, and I couldn't. They'll probably lose interest waiting for an invite, just as I've lost interest waiting to have more friends to interact with.

      How exactly am I supposed to help them test their platform if I can't use it?

    3. Re:How Microsoft of Them by Xest · · Score: 4, Insightful

      It all wouldn't be so bad if it weren't for the fact that Facebook built up it's userbase around taking information from things like MSN, your e-mail contacts and so forth.

      Worse, I've had a Facebook recommendation from Facebook for someone I've only ever spoken to via MSN and have no real life friend connections, and both of us are tech savvy such that neither of us let Facebook import friends from Outlook, MSN etc. and we both live at opposite ends of the country and have never met IRL so I'm still to this day a little perplexed as to how the hell Facebook made that link. It kind of implies that Facebook has had access to MSN data even when explicit permission wasn't given.

      In this respect it's sheer hypocrisy, I mean what the hell is wrong with them? It's fine for them to build their business off the back of others, but not for someone else to do the same with them?

    4. Re:How Microsoft of Them by redemtionboy · · Score: 4, Informative

      Because Facebook launched nationwide to everyone at once and didn't do something like slowly expand from school to school and then eventually to the general public....oh wait.

  3. Re:And the consumer is in the middle. by Missing.Matter · · Score: 4, Funny

    Didn't you read the TOS? Your friends are now Facebook's friends. Your pictures and memories.... all belong to Facebook. I believe there was something about your soul in there as well...

  4. People are Facebook's product, not their customers by Bloodwine77 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    If there was any doubt as to how Facebook thinks of its users, this should drive home the fact that people are Facebook's product. It is only free if you don't value your information.

  5. Thank you Facebook by JanneM · · Score: 4, Insightful

    You just gave me another reason to go with Google+ and ignoring you.

    --
    Trust the Computer. The Computer is your friend.
  6. So by hjf · · Score: 5, Insightful

    When does the antitrust trial begin? It's like Microsoft all over again. Facebook abuses its dominant position on the internet (facebook forms in almost every "web 2.0" website, just like IE was "so tightly integrated in windows that it couldn't be removed"). And now they're also trying to destroy competition by blocking them.

    In comparison, with IE you can at least download another browser. Facebook won't help you in your transition (or let you delete your stuff from their servers).

    Come on, guys... you hated MS for much less than this.

  7. Curious by benjfowler · · Score: 4, Informative

    Facebook count on the social network being 'sticky' enough to retain their users and make it hard to move. Obviously, with competitors which don't suck, they need to play dirty.

    I was keen to see if their backup feature exported email addresses. Sure enough, it doesn't. So there goes my idea of writing a script to extract my contacts out of Facebook backups suitable for import into Google+.

    About the only way this state of affairs will change, is if the bad publicity gets bad enough for Facebook to be shamed into doing the right thing.

    Smart move by Facebook -- pissing off their hardcore techie users. Very classy.

  8. Fortunately redirecting through Yahoo still works. by morgosmaci · · Score: 5, Informative

    Just sign into yahoo using your facebook account and it will even create a throw away yahoo acount for you and import all of your facebook friends as contacts. Then just export those contacts into a vcf and import them into a contact group in gmail. (Or import them directly into G+).

  9. Re:People are Facebook's product, not their custom by betterunixthanunix · · Score: 4, Insightful

    That might not matter quite as much as you think. Do you only have nonsense conversations with your contacts on Facebook? Do people only post nonsense messages on your "wall?" Do you only click on random links? Facebook collects a lot more information than what you overtly give them.

    --
    Palm trees and 8
  10. Re:Turnaround is fair play by makomk · · Score: 4, Informative

    They blocked Facebook from accessing GMail contacts directly because Facebook wouldn't allow them to import Facebook contacts directly. You can still download your entire GMail contacts list yourself in a multitude of formats and do whatever you like with them, including importing them into Facebook if you really want to, whereas this news article is about Facebook blocking their own users from doing the same kind of mass-export.