There were some big and interesting hires this week. Buddy Media brought in a managing director for their Europe office, there were various engineering and sales positions across several companies, 140 Proof hired a VP of Product, North Social hired a VP of Business Development and SocialShield hired a chief of safety.

If your company is bringing in new people or making a notable promotion, please let us know. Email mail (at) insidefacebook (dot) com, and we’ll get it into next week’s post. Also, please note that information about most new hires, below, comes directly from company updates from LinkedIn.

Looking for new opportunities? Check out the Inside Network Job Board, which shows the latest openings at leading companies in the industry.

Here’s this week’s list of hires:

Buddy Media

• Luca Benini, Managing Director, Europe – effective August 1; previously worked as VP, Commercial Director, comScore Europe.

Syncapse

• Edward Chow, Statistician - formerly a Data Analyst at the Canadian Red Cross.
• Mohammad Adil Khan, Manager, Client Solutions - previously a Summer Marketing Intern at Tkaro, Inc.

140 Proof

• Alan Shusterman, Vice President of Product – founder of Jobnob and formerly worked as VP of Client Services for Edusoft.

TBG Digital

• Gregory Vindry, Client Services Manager – previously worked as an account manager specialist at Microsoft Advertising.
• Reginald Sebastian, Social Media Analyst – formerly worked as an associate at the Life Management Institute at LOMA.

Involver

• Kefan Xie, Ruby on Rails Developer Intern – formerly worked as a QSL Developer at Qualcomm.
• Chase WIlson, User Interface Developer - previously worked as a Frontend Web Developer at Oakley.

BranchOut

• Abhik Pramanik, Senior Software Engineer – formerly the founding engineer at Top Prospect.

Wildfire

• Bradley Wolf, Sales Manager – was previously an Account Executive at Wildfire.
• Mithya Srinivasan, Sales Associate – worked as an International Communication Intern at Facebook.
• Natalie Parks, Account Management Intern – previously worked as an intern at UBS Financial Services.
• Gregory Furmanek, Software Engineer – founded Elegant Software.

North Social

• Mike Johnson, Vice President of Business Development – formerly a digital marketer with Electronic Arts.

SocialShield

• Steve DeWarns, Chief Safety Officer – founder of Internet Child Safety and a former police officer.

The Netflix Q2 earnings report released today noted that the video rental and streaming company will soon launch a Facebook integration, but only in Latin America and Canada, not the United States. This because the Video Privacy Protection Act prohibits the disclosure of a citizen’s rental history and genre preferences without written consent. A bill that clarifies the law is currently under review that would legalize Netflix’s Faceboon integration in the US.

The VPPA apparently doesn’t apply to all-digital video streaming company Hulu, though, as it launched a Facebook Connect integration earlier this month that allows users to share their viewing history with friends. This may be because Hulu does not rent, sell, or deliver any physical media.

The law specifically prohibits those who rent, sell, or deliver “prerecorded video cassette tapes or similar audio visual materials” from disclosing personally identifiable information such as rental history or genre preferences to anyone without written consent or a warrant. Netflix’s letter to its shareholders (.PDF) explains that “Under the VPPA, it is ambiguous when and how a user can give permission for his or her video viewing data to be shared.” The VPPA-clarifying bill HR2471 might allow users to give consent digitally, such as through Facebook extended permissions.

Currently, Netflix’s website has no integration with Facebook or any other social media platforms — not even Like or tweet buttons. This may be be significantly hampering viral growth for the service. Facebook has still helped drive growth for Netflix, though, as subscriptions to the service are frequently found as an option on the offer walls of social games, allowing gamers to earn Facebook Credits, proprietary virtual currency, and virtual goods for signing up.

The launch of the integration in Latin America and Canada, potentially followed by a US launch pending the success of the VPPA-clarifying bill HR2471, could drastically boost virality, Facebook users could receive recommendations or even previews of content their friends are watching, leading them to sign up for a subscription in order to view that content immediately.

This would support Netflix’s long-term strategy of pushing its customers towards streaming and away from shipped DVDs. Facebook would likely help promote the integration, as Netflix CEO Reed Hastings sits on Facebook’s board.

We imagine the Netflix Facebook integration will be similar to Hulu’s. It might allow users to see a feed of what their friends are watching, leave comments on videos that friends can see and which are also syndicated to Facebook, and share either news of their viewing habits or actual video clips of what they’re watching directly to Facebook. It could also have Netflix-specific features such as allowing users to share their DVD shipping queue with friends, or even make a collaborative queue.

Even if HR2471 passes, Netflix will have to be very careful about how it handles privacy. If it can offer clear, simple to use but granular privacy controls behind social features that improve content discovery, it may be able to turn some of its 25 million subscribers into Facebook evangelists.

Last night, TechCrunch reported that the unreleased Facebook for iPad app was hidden within the code of the latest Facebook for iPhone update, and could be accessed from jailbroken iPads. Now it appears that Facebook has blocked connections from the iPad app, but not before plenty of screenshots of its interface could be taken. Here we’ll breakdown the feature set of the current state of the Facebook for iPad app, which a Techcrunch source says could be released soon in a similar form, though there’s a chance it could be delayed and altered.

A month ago, The New York Times revealed that Facebook had in fact been developing an official iPad app. In its absence, several unofficial iPad apps had gained traction, though they’re now looking to differentiate themselves with games, Twitter integrations, and more.

Traditionally, those opening the Facebook for iPhone app on an iPad only see the iPhone app loaded in the center of the screen. Over the last 12 hours, though, some users have been able to get the tablet-optimized Facebook for iPad app to load when opening the Facebook for iPhone app. They accomplished this by using a jailbroken iPad and changing a UIDeviceFamily setting in the iPhone app.

Now, though, those trying to login through the iPad app are receiving a “Failed Login: Unable to connect to Facebook. Please try again later” error, which may indicate that Facebook has blocked connections in an effort to prevent access before the official launch. TechCrunch’s MG Siegler tells me that he successfully connected last night but is now seeing features that require a connection ceasing to function, such as notifications.

The app is reportedly built on HTML5 so it can import information from m.facebook.com. This is turn allows Facebook’s mobile team to push updates to a single set of code that interpreted by multiple different mobile apps, reducing development time. At this time, there’s no integration for third-party apps and games over HTML5, which Facebook is currently working on.

Overall, the Facebook for iPad app addresses many of the limitations of the Facebook for iPhone interface, improving on navigation, Chat, Photos, and more as we describe below.

Facebook for iPad Feature Set

Sidebar Navigation

The most important difference between the iPad and iPhone apps is that the iPad app allows for navigation through an expandable sidebar menu. At any time, users can click the list icon t reveal the nav menu, from which they can access Facebook’s in-house apps including the news feed, Messages, Events, Places, friends, and Photos, as well as their different Groups. This will allow for speedier movement between apps than on the iPhone app, which requires users to return to a home screen.

A drop-down pop over stemming from one’s own profile in the menu reveals quick links to logout, or access one’s Facebook Account Settings, Privacy Settings, or the Help Center. Same as on the iPhone app, the Account and Privacy Settings links launch mobile-optimized web pages that where settings can be configured.

A search box in the sidebar navigation menu allow users to pull up friends, other users, and Pages. Rather than visiting dedicated screens to view notifications, respond to friend requests, or read and compose Messages as one does on the iPhone, these features are accessed as pop-overs from the top navigation bar. This allows users to quickly check for these types of activity without losing what they’re currently viewing.

Persistent Chat

Chat also uses a sidebar navigation design to permit persistent use while browsing the app. When uses flip the iPad horizontally, their buddy list appears as a right sidebar. Tapping a friend’s name starts a conversation with them, and users switch between the sidebar displaying an active conversation and the buddy list. Unlike the Facebook for BlackBerry PlayBook app’s multi-pane Chat interface, the lack of a full-screen mode adds a bit of friction to carrying on multiple conversations simultaneously. Facebook could offer full-screen access from the sidebar navigation menu in the future, though.

Still, this interface is a huge improvement over the iPhone app’s Chat interface, which requires users to navigate back to the Chat feature each time they want to send an instant message. It should allow for more passive use cases by allowing one to maintain conversations as they watch TV or read the news feed.

News Feed, Places, Events, and Photos

While viewing the news feed, users can upload photos, or publish status updates through a pop-over that includes a lock icon for setting privacy restrictions on the post. As with the iPhone app, users can filter their news feed by story type. Users can check-in through the Places feature, as well as view a map showing the locations of nearby friends.

The Events feature displays a multi-pane interface, allowing users to select an Event on the left and view its details on the right. This will help users who’ve been invited to multiplie events to efficiently plan an itinerary. Clicking the “Birthdays” button in the top right corner reveals a pop-over of upcoming birthdays.

The Facebook for iPad app doesn’t appear to include the special features seen in the leaked mobile photos app, such as filter lenses, multi-shot uploading, or location tagging. However, when viewing a photo from an album, a photostrip at the bottom of the screen allows users to skip around between photos in the album, similar to the iPad’s native photos app and Google+’s photos interface.

Those who haven’t already hacked their way to accessing the Facebook for iPad app and established a connection may have to wait for the official launch of the app. If that release looks like what we’ve seen today, expect the app to quickly gain traction and pull users away from the unofficial Facebook iPad apps. Facebook might choose to move up its launch date in response to the leak, but it also might wait until it can include HTML5 support for games and apps.

Acceptly is a Facebook Connect application that leverages a user’s social network to help motivate and encourage them in the process of applying to colleges and universities. The app currently works only for high school students set on beginning their undergraduate careers, but the company’s community director, Kathryn Favaro, says eventually it could also be made available for graduate school applicants.

The free app gathers a user’s information via Connect, creates a profile, and then allows the user to begin racking up points by completing tasks that will aid them in their college application process, such as writing up their extracurricular activities or making a list of colleges they would like to apply to.

The app also directs students consistently back to Acceptly’s website for more information on, say, how to volunteer or why extracurricular activities are important.

When these tasks are completed, users receive points and badges, and there are several opportunities to publish these acts to their Facebook feed, thus alerting friends to their activities and inviting engagement around the college application process. It’s precisely the publishing of this information that Favaro says is the crux of Acceptly’s work.

“We’ve done a lot of research in game mechanics, and so the fun, social and motivation [aspect of Acceptly] is very much what we’re playing on,” she tells us. Additionally, Favaro says part of the company’s monetization model is to allow students to exchange their points for scholarships or discounts on textbooks.

Ultimately Acceptly is striving to become not just a tool students may use to organize their application process, and motivate themselves to do it, but also to become a community of would-be college students that can provide support internally. As that process continues, the company is also working to individualize and customize each users’ profile down to geography and specific needs, such as recommending a specific tutor to help a student with critical reading for the SAT.

Acceptly has an interesting integration because it seems to leverage the social aspect of a high schooler’s experience as it pertains to college, rather than trying to become the experience as other apps have done. We’ve written previously about Inigral’s attempt to build a closed version of Facebook and CampusBuddy’s application’s most recent partnership with Cramster.

Charity, branded gaming, purchase selection and free food were part of the ways brands engaged customers on Facebook this week. We’ve excerpted two of the campaigns below. You can see the full week’s coverage in the Facebook Marketing Bible, which also includes detailed breakdowns of dozens of other featured campaigns by top-performing brands and businesses on Facebook.

Craftsman’s Public Park Rehab Project

Goal: Engagement, Product Purchase, Network Exposure, Charity

Core Mechanic: A photo contest that allows users to encourage their network to vote for their photo.

Method: Essentially this photo contest asks users to submit a photo of a park in their area that could use some revamping. Whichever park wins will receive a $10,000 makeover, the user who uploaded the photo will receive a set of Craftsman tools, and there will be runner-up prizes of tools as well. Once a user completes the contest entry, they may publish a story to the stream.

Impact: The Craftsman Page has 496,900 Likes so far, but the contest is not Like-gated, thus the company is losing out on potential growth to their Page with this contest. Though users must return to the Page to vote for the entries, the only real viral component of this contest is the publishing of a feed story upon entry, which is optional.

Unilever’s Lux Featured on FarmVille Chinese

Goal: Network Exposure, Product Purchase, Brand Loyalty

Core Mechanic: Unilever’s Lux brand launched a FarmVille Chinese tie-in.

Game: Within FarmVille Chinese, users will have the chance to wherein to beautify their farms with Lux limited edition beauty products. Users then are rewarded with virtual currency they can use to redeem for beauty crops inspired by the company’s products, such as a cooling mint tree, apricot or cherries.

Method: Within the game users who interact with Lux’s icon, actress Shu Qi, are rewarded for doing so. This gives users the incentive to interact with the company’s product within the game, thus making the product placement an integral part of the gaming experience.

Impact: According to AppData, FarmVille Chinese has about 850,000 MAU; thus, product placement within this app is guaranteed to reach a wide audience.

60 Photos continued to dominate on our list of applications growing by monthly active users this week, although a handful of other friend apps and quizzes made the list, too. There were some Page tab apps, a few mobile apps, then Yahoo and Bandsintown.

The titles on our list gained the most MAU of any apps, growing from between 337,100 and 3.6 million MAU, based on AppData, our data tracking service covering traffic growth for apps on Facebook.

Top Gainers This Week

	Name	MAU	Gain	Gain,%
1.	60photos	37,504,312	+3,660,564	+11%
2.	Static HTML: iframe tabs	36,083,728	+2,468,084	+7%
3.	Facebook for Every Phone	6,940,320	+2,097,177	+43%
4.	MyCalendar	2,785,744	+1,853,062	+199%
5.	21 questions	18,472,843	+1,532,092	+9%
6.	Friend Buzz	5,713,237	+1,255,214	+28%
7.	Mahjong Saga	1,876,231	+1,035,266	+123%
8.	Yahoo!	17,943,921	+817,658	+5%
9.	Gourmet Ranch	2,370,949	+575,151	+32%
10.	Global Warfare	4,767,343	+550,285	+13%
11.	Static Iframe Tab	6,209,884	+541,861	+10%
12.	Socialbox	2,211,935	+472,870	+27%
13.	Hosted iFrame	2,599,941	+433,518	+20%
14.	Zoo World	4,741,847	+396,633	+9%
15.	The Pokerist club — Texas Poker	835,558	+392,625	+89%
16.	Bandsintown	2,808,079	+384,065	+16%
17.	Samsung Mobile	9,202,693	+380,503	+4%
18.	Gardens of Time	15,636,971	+379,307	+2%
19.	Between You and Me	5,675,511	+344,566	+6%
20.	The A-List	396,305	+337,087	+569%

60photos, if you recall, is an app that induces virality by using photos and asking users to rate them either “nice” or “pass.” Every “nice” rating is posted to the Wall of whoever’s photo it is; the app grew by 3.6 million MAU this week. MyCalendar, which allows users to create their own customized birthday calendars, grew by 1.8 MAU.

Quiz app 21 questions grew by 1.5 million MAU, and a similar app, Friend Buzz, grew by 1.2 million MAU. Both apps allow users to answer questions about their friends, posting answers to their Walls. Socialbox, a chat app download, grew by 472,900 MAU and Between You and Me is also a quiz app that publishes answers to questions to the Walls of a user’s friends with 344,600 MAU this week.

Page tab apps this week included Static HTML: iframe tabs with 2.4 million MAU, Static Iframe Tab with 541,900 MAU and Hosted iFrame with 433,500 MAU. Then there were mobile apps, Facebook for Every Phone with more than 2 million MAU and Samsung Mobile with 380,500 MAU. Finally, Yahoo’s app grew by 817,700 MAU and Bandsintown by 384,100 MAU.

All data in this post comes from our traffic tracking service, AppData. Stay tuned for our look at the top weekly gainers by daily active users on Wednesday, and the top emerging apps on Friday.

Here are all the latest headlines from around Inside Network this past week.

Inside Mobile Apps

Tracking the convergence of mobile apps, social platforms, and virtual goods.

Monday, July 18th, 2011

• Emerging Paid iOS Apps: iPad Charts Prove More Active Than iPhone
• Monday Mobile Roundup: Fiscal Reports, Metrics, Digital Payments & More
• Glu Mobile Moves Up Vesting For Execs in The Event of an Acquisition, SEC Filing Shows
• Hothead Games & Magic Creator Richard Garfield Launch Kard Combat for iOS
• Facebook for Android 1.6.1 Lets You Post to, Search For, and Tag Pages

Tuesday, July 19th, 2011

• Apple Sells 20.34M iPhones, 9.25M iPads in Third Quarter
• Emerging Top-Grossing iOS Apps: Harry Potter & Top Paid Apps Grow
• Zynga-Facebook Agreement Included Targets For Mobile Users Growth
• Wooga Moves Into Mobile Gaming With Forthcoming iOS Version of Diamond Dash

Wednesday, July 20th, 2011

• PopCap’s Games to Come Pre-Installed on Sony Ericsson Xperia Devices
• New This Week on the Inside Network Job Board: Glu Mobile, Kabam, Ubisoft and More
• Heyzap Launches Personalized Game Recommendations on Android
• Emerging Top Free Apps on iOS: Google+, Older Games Flourish
• Wednesday Mobile Roundup: Google+, App Launches, Partnerships, & More
• Shake Spears! Brings Fresh Gameplay to iOS
• Game Insight Says it is Netting $1M in Revenue From Top-Grossing Android Game Paradise Island

Thursday, July 21st, 2011

• New Hires in Mobile: EA Mobile, Game Insight, Gameloft, & More
• PopCap’s 4th and Battery Studio Turns a 9-Year-Old Leukemia Patient’s Dream Game Into Reality
• Sid Meier’s Pirates Makes a Splash on The iPad
• Android Market Now Supports Multiple APKs, Letting Developers Reach More Devices

Friday, July 22nd, 2011

• Friday Mobile Roundup: Lawsuits, Android Launches, iPhone Activations, & More
• As Mobile Gaming Acquisitions Heat Up, Is Storm8 Next?

Inside Social Games

Covering all the latest developments at the intersection of games and social platforms.

Monday, July 18th, 2011

• Lolapps Merges With 6waves, Seeks Out Funding
• Global Warfare, Mahjong Saga Lead This Week’s List of Fastest-Growing Facebook Games by MAU
• Animal Party Picks Up Speed on Facebook Under 6waves Publishing

Tuesday, July 19th, 2011

• New Zynga S-1 Docs: Traffic Guarantees From Facebook, but No Canvas Ad Revenue
• Upcoming Facebook API Changes Bring Back Virality By Sorting Game Genres
• Bingo Blitz Grows on Facebook Through Focus on the Game’s Fundamentals
• Wooga Moves Into Mobile Gaming With Forthcoming iOS Version of Diamond Dash

Wednesday, July 20th, 2011

• Mad Respect for Mahjong on This Week’s List of Fastest-Growing Games by DAU
• Lisa Marino on RockYou’s Publishing Partners, Ad Platform Growth in Gourmet Ranch And Zoo World
• Wooga: Building a Successful Social Game by Combining Metrics With Emotion
• Inside Network Cocktail Party — Today in Seattle
• New This Week on the Inside Network Job Board: Spooky Cool Labs, Ubisoft, Kabam and More
• Game Insight Shuns iOS for Android, Prepares to Tell Facebook Crime Story

Thursday, July 21st, 2011

• New Hires in Social Gaming: Digital Chocolate, iWin, Kabam, & More
• ESPN Sports Bar & Grill Serves Up Team Spirit
• KlickNation Grows Futuristic Wild West Social Game Six Gun Galaxy

Friday, July 22nd, 2011

• Animal Party, Digital Chocolate’s Millionaire Boss Top This Week’s List of Emerging Facebook Games
• Kixeye’s Next RTS, War Commander, Due Out in August
• Google+ and Social Games: What We Know So Far
• StreetRally Rolls Off of the Assembly Line Onto Facebook
• Social Gaming Roundup: Mergers, Funding, Azure Toolkit, PlayPhone, & More

Inside Facebook

Tracking Facebook and the Facebook platform for developers and marketers.

Monday, July 18th, 2011

• 60 Photos, Mobile, Pages, MyCalendar and Bandintown on This Week’s Top 20 Facebook Apps by MAU
• Featured Facebook Campaigns: HP, Stella Artois, Stoli Vodka, Lady Gaga, Monster Galaxy and More
• Facebook Opens Viral Growth Channel for Pages, Delivering Invites to Like as Notifications
• Platform Update: Graph API Management of Pages, Send Button Referral Parameter
• Facebook for Android 1.6.1 Lets You Post to, Search For, and Tag Pages

Tuesday, July 19th, 2011

• New Facebook Platform Industry Hires: Vitrue, Efficient Frontier, Tealium, Hearsay and More
• New Zynga S-1 Docs: Traffic Guarantees From Facebook, but Now Canvas Ad Revenue
• Report: Facebook Advertising by Brands For Their Pages Increased 1900% Year Over Year
• Vitrue Acquires GamesThatGive So Clients Can Engage Via Charity Donation Apps
• Bringing Video Ads to Games: Supersonic Raises $4.2M and Crowdstar Partners with Jun Group

Wednesday, July 20th, 2011

• Horoscopes, Friends, Mobile and Dating on This Week’s Top 20 Facebook Apps by DAU
• The 25 Most Liked Pages on Facebook, Summer 2011
• New This Week on the Inside Network Job Board: Context Optional, Spooky Cool Labs, Ubisoft and More
• Facebook Asks Users to Help It Get Local Business Owners to Claim Their Places
• Gekko Pulls in Prices and Lets Users Request Deals to Differentiate From Other Facebook Travel Apps
• How Facebook Pages Can Use “Invite Friends” to Gain Fans

Thursday, July 21st, 2011

• Facebook Hires and Departures: Interns, Engineering, Mobile, Communications and More
• Facebook careers Postings: Engineering, Dublin, Counsel and More
• Facebook Comments Can Now Display Photos, Play Videos, and Preview Websites
• Facebook Hires Engineers, Licenses Patents From Scrapped Facebook Browser Client Wowd
• Facebook Releases OAuth 2.0-Ready JavaScript SDK, Extends Migration Deadline to October 1st

Friday, July 22nd, 2011

• Hulu, BeKnown, MySpace, Dating and More on This Week’s Top 20 Emerging Facebook Apps by MAU
• Facebook Deals, Three Months In: Product Testing and More Cities
• Facebook Shows Event Wall Photos in RSVP News Feed Stories
• Facebook Roundup: Lobbying, Mobile, Google+, Winklevoss and More

The Inside Network Job Board is dedicated to providing you with the best job opportunities across social and mobile application platforms.

Here are this week’s highlights from the Inside Network Job Board, including positions at LeadBolt, Metamoki, Inc., Context Optional, Kabam, Glu Mobile, Spooky Cool Labs, Social Point and Ubisoft.

• Publisher Sales Manager-Digital
• Advertising Sales Director-Digital

• Senior Backend Software Engineer
• Backend Software Engineer

Listings on the Inside Network Job Board are distributed to readers of Inside Social Games, Inside Facebook and Inside Mobile Apps through regular posts and widgets on the sites. Your open positions are being seen by the leading developers, product managers, marketers, designers, and executives in the Facebook Platform and social gaming industry today.

Facebook Spent 320K on Lobbying in 2Q – TechCrunch reported this week that Facebook spent $320,000 on lobbying in the second quarter; the company has already surpassed its 2010 total lobbying spend in the first two quarters of this year.

Judge Dismisses Second Winklevoss Lawsuit –  Reuters today reported that Facebook was awarded a dismissal of a second lawsuit filed by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss. The suit, filed in Boston, had sought to bring the twins more money on top of the $65 million settlement they had already received as the outcome of a suit claiming they came up with the idea for Facebook.

Facebook Testing a Phonebook App – VentureBeat reported that Facebook may be testing a phonebook app for mobile users, allowing them to see their contacts on Facebook as a phonebook and then dial them directly from the Facebook app on their phones. However, this could have been developed by Google to deepen the integration of Facebook with its mobile OS.

“Who Owns Facebook?” Website - Venture capital directory publisher Massinvestor has launched a website called “Who Owns Facebook?” that features profiles of all of Facebook’s biggest stock holders.

Fraction of Facebook for iPhone Users Complaint About Bugs – The Financial Times reported this week that there is a “revolt” amongst Facebook for iPhone users regarding bugs in the latest version of the app. In fact, the 20,000 users complaining make up just a tiny fraction of the app’s 84 million monthly users, and therefore does not represent widespread discontent.

Which Facebook Employees are on Google+? – AllFacebook reported this week that a slew of Facebook employees are on Google+, including CEO Mark Zuckerberg and several members of the executive team. Here’s a list of some of them.

Harvard President Slams Winklevoss Bros – Larry Summers, who was president of Harvard University when the Winklevoss twins had their spat with Mark Zuckerberg over the founding of Facebook, seems to have been no fan of the brothers. He basically called them a vulgar name, hinting that they are jerks.

Talenthouse to Develop Fan Skill Competition Apps - Talenthouse is a platform for running promotions on Facebook where fans can compete to donate their skills, such as blogging or video editing, to help complete projects for their favorite celebrities. AllThingsD reports that the company has signed a deal to provide apps for Universal Music Group artists.

Facebook Report: Engaging Readers on Pages – Facebook released an analysis of user engagement with posts by the Pages of news organizations Pages, noting the influence of thumbnail images, post length, photos, questions and more. This study fell in line with one we reported earlier of journalist Pages.

Other Announcements:

Buddy Media Expands to Europe – Buddy Media announced this week that it would open a European headquarters in London.

myYearbook, Quepasa Merge – myYearbook and the Quepasa Corporation agreed to merge this week, bringing the social game developer and Latino social network together. The $100 million deal reaches across Latin America, includes 70 million registered users, 2.2 million mobile app installs and 11.5 million mobile game installs.

French MXP4 Opens US Office, Signs Deal – French developer of music-based social games MXP4 will move business operations of its Bopler Games unit to a new office in Los Angeles, closer to US record labels. The week prior, MXP4 signed a deal with EMI to bring the music of the record label’s artists into Bopler Games.

Wispor Launches Using Faceboom Comments Plugin – Wispor is a newly launched discussion-based social network where users can start conversations about any topic. The site is built on top of the Facebook Comments Box social plugin in what appears to be the deepest integration of the commenting widget to date.

Third-Party Facebook Photos App Pixable Adds Video – Pixable, a Facebook app we’ve previously covered that helps users sort through all the photos their friends upload, now allows users to browse videos uploaded or shared by their Facebook friends.

RootMusic BandPage Launches Social Touring Feature – BandPage, a Facebook app that allows bands to set up a profile and stream their music, has launched an integration with concert date tracking services Songkick, Bandsintown, and SonicLiving. The Social Touring feature allows musicians to automatically have their tour dates imported to their BandPage from these services.

When Facebook shows users news feed stories about events their friends have RSVP’d to, it now also shows photos uploaded to the event’s wall. These photos should make event stories more eye-catching and increase earned RSVPs. Event admins should therefore add wall photos to their events to gain news feed visibility.

The Events feature hasn’t received many major changes over the years, to contrast with other Facebook products that seem to be in constant flux. Here are the minor changes that have been implemented since 2009:

• August 2009 – Facebook makes it easier to invite the same set of friends to multiple events by adding friend list and characteristic filters to the event inviter.
• May 2010 – Facebook begins showing upcoming events and allows users to manage RSVPs from the home page. It also adds an event creator to the home page to facilitate spontaneous and last minute even creation.
• July 2010 – Facebook redesigns event pages to look more similar to business Pages.
• December 2010 –  Facebook introduces a special news feed story about people becoming friends after attending the same event.
• March 2011 – Users gain the ability to check in to events, rather than just Places.

Now, if users RSVP to a Facebook event that has had photos uploaded to it’s wall, these photos will be displayed in the news feed story about the RSVP. A user’s friends can then click to view these photos in-line. Unfortunately, these stories don’t appear to pull in photos accompanying check-ins by friends. The inclusion of check-in photos in the feed story could help users find out what an event in progress looks like in real-time.

Because the RSVP stories about events with wall photos appear much bigger in the news feed, we recommend that all event promoters upload additional photos to the walls of their events to take advantage of this opportunity for more news feed exposure. This will help them attain more RSVPs, and remind those have RSVP’d to attend.

[Thanks to Eti Suruzon for the tip]