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Facebook at Work officially launches as 'Workplace'
Right on schedule, Facebook's private social networks for companies officially launched today. After several years in private beta, the company's Slack and Yammer competitor is now known simply as "Workplace," and is available to companies, non-profits and educational institutions of any size.
Facebook's Slack competitor may be coming next month
With nearly two years of development and 450 companies already on board, Facebook at Work is gearing up for a commercial launch of its in-house social network and communications platform for companies. According to a report from The Information, the service will launch next month and the social network will charge a set monthly fee per active user.
Facebook at Work rolls out a dedicated chat app on Android
Facebook at Work caters to businesses, allowing employees to communicate and share documents on private channels, and this week it adds a new mobile feature called Work Chat. Work Chat is a separate messaging app that operates similarly to the standard Facebook Messenger service, though it's restricted to you and your coworkers only. It's available to select companies on Android now, with an iOS launch in the works, TechCrunch reports. Facebook at Work is still in beta, though TechCrunch says about 300 companies use it daily, from Heineken USA to the Royal Bank of Scotland. When it launches for all businesses next year, it'll use a "freemium" model, the site reports.
Facebook at Work coming today, creates in-house social networks
TUAW sister site TechCrunch is reporting that Facebook is launching iOS and Android apps today called "Work" that connect with a special "Facebook at Work" service to allow business create their own in-house social networks that work exactly like Facebook. The app, which will be usable via a limited pilot at first, requires a separate login created by employers to use just the Work account, and users can link the work login with other profiles if they wish to see all Facebook content in one location. Work is designed to compete with Microsoft Yammer, Slack, Convo, Socialcast, and other enterprise social network hopefuls. It's not guaranteed that Work will be successful; TechCrunch's Ingrid Lunden reports that Facebook engineering director Lars Rasmussen previously led the failed and similar Google Wave project. There are other uncertainties about Facebook's enterprise push as well; will the service be free, run advertisements, or work on a subscription basis like Slack? And, as Lunden points out, there's a lot of concern within corporations about Facebook having access to their data - "That can be frustrating when related to pictures of you too drunk when you were in college, or frankly scary looking when you were in high school, but potentially very costly and illegal if proprietary work information is involved."
Facebook at Work tackles office communication with familiar tools
We heard rumblings about Facebook's plans to tackle communication in the office back in November, and now the app is starting its rollout. Facebook at Work allows you to chat with colleagues with the social network's tools rather than email with either a website or dedicated mobile app. The apps haven't popped up in iTunes of Google Play just yet, but The Wall Street Journal reports that only a limited number of companies will be able to employ it at first. Those that do can expect a similar design to the regular Facebook experience, except there aren't any ads and Zuckerberg and Co. won't track and hold data from the project.
Facebook wants to handle your workplace chats
Your office may try to keep you off Facebook right now, but you may have a genuinely work-related reason to hop on that social network in the near future. Sources for the Financial Times understand that the internet giant is developing "Facebook at Work," a professional take on its familiar formula. It'll reportedly look like the regular page, but will focus on chatting with coworkers, connecting with business partners and collaborating on documents. On the surface, it sounds like a cross between Facebook, LinkedIn and Google Drive.
