Facebook announces ‘next wave’ of Timeline apps

Facebook has announced a slew of new apps for Timeline including ones from Foursquare, Nike, The Onion, VEVO, Fandango, Viddy, Endomondo and RootMusic.

The announcement takes the tally of apps on Timeline close to the 3 000 mark. It says the new apps “give people more ways to add their location, fitness, video and media interests to their timeline and share what they love with friends”.

Let’s take a closer look at what Facebook says some of these new apps can do:

Foursquare: Foursquare users can now reportedly “add their Foursquare check-ins to their timelines and maps”, share their badges and see the top places they’ve checked into.

Nike: Facebook claims the Nike+ FuelBand is using Facebook integrations to step up its social pedigree. People can already use the Nike FuelBand iPhone app to find friends and see a leader board of how much Fuel they’ve earned versus their friends. Soon, says Facebook, people will be able to “post their achievements and milestones directly to their timeline”.

The Onion: People can now log into one of the web’s foremost parody and satire sites with their Facebook account. They can also add The Onion content directly to their timeline and share articles and videos as they read and watch. Friends can discover articles in news feed, and get personalised recommendations on TheOnion.com. This, says Facebook, is all about making “America’s finest news source” more social.

VEVO: People can sign into Vevo.com with their Facebook account. Facebook claims they can also get personalised video playlists based on the artists they’ve liked, discover new music through friends and post any music video from Vevo’s library directly to their timeline.

Fandango: The new Fandango app reportedly lets people add the clips they watch, the movies they rate and any films they want to see to their timeline.

Viddy: Viddy is a mobile app for creating quick videos and adding filters. Facebook claims it now lets people add clips to their timelines as they shoot.

Endomondo: The fitness app lets users share their workouts, progress and favourite routes with friends on Facebook. Sharing fitness activities with friends “makes it easier to coordinate workouts and cheer each other on to new fitness goals” says Facebook.

RootMusic: The new RootMusic timeline app reportedly lets people “mark their favourite songs and artists and the concerts they plan on attending” from the Facebook Pages of bands. As people click “favourite”, “going to go” and “wants to go” on a Root Music app, their picks will be added to their timeline.

Facebook claims that a number of startups have also seen positive growth since launching apps on Timeline. According to the social networking giant:

• Pinterest grew its daily active Facebook user base by 60%.
• Goodreads increased daily traffic by 77%.
• Pose saw 5X growth in signups on its website and mobile app.