Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg took to his [blog][4] to discuss the [agreement][5] with the government. In his post, he says that Facebook is committed to giving its users "complete control" over what they share and with whom.
FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz said in a statement that the settlement of an eight-count complaint requires Facebook to warn users about privacy changes and to get their permission before sharing their information more broadly.
Facebook has also agreed to 20 years of privacy audits, which sounds somewhat similar to what Google agreed to in its own social media settlement with the FTC that originated in charges over the now defunct Buzz product.
Leibowitz added, "Facebook is obligated to keep the promises about privacy that it makes to its hundreds of millions of users… Facebook's innovation does not have to come at the expense of consumer privacy."
Facebook has formally agreed to several measures, some of which the company had previously announced in the past year-and-a-half or already had in place:
* Creating two new positions to more closely monitor privacy issues: [Erin Egan][6] becomes Facebook's chief privacyofficer, and Michael Richter becomes chief privacy officer for products.
* Offering [inline privacy controls][7] on existing posts and the creation of new ones.
* Reviewing tags before they appear in a profile.
* Eliminating the verified apps program and fixing the issue that allowed advertisers to see ID numbers of some users in URLs.
As we've noted before, this latest twist could be perceived as much ado about nothing. In August, Facebook made [privacy controls ][8]much more prominent, giving consumers much greater access to what-and how-they share on the social networking site.
Privacy advocates on Capitol Hill are also applauding the settlement. Frequent Facebook critic [Rep. Edward Markey][9] (D-Mass.), co-chair of the Congressional Privacy Caucus, said in a statement:
The settlement's privacy protections will benefit Facebook users and should serve as a new, higher standard for other companies to follow in their own efforts to protect consumers' privacy online. When it comes to its users' privacy, Facebook's policy should be: Ask for permission, don't assume it.
So how will the news of the FTC settlement affect Facebook's value?
As a private company, Facebook doesn't share projected revenues with the public. But eMarketer estimates that there's an upward trajectory for the social network this year. According to the consultancy:
* Global revenues at Facebook will reach $4.27 billion in 2011, up from $2 billion in 2010.
* The firm also estimates Facebook will earn $3.8 billion worldwide this year in advertising revenue, up 104 percent from $1.86 billion in 2010.
* By 2013, Facebook is expected to earn $7 billion in worldwide advertising revenues.
* Ads, which represented an estimated 95 percent of Facebook's total revenue in 2009, will fall to 89 percent of total revenue this year, eMarketer estimates.
* Revenue from Facebook credits will grow to 11 percent of the company's total revenues in 2011, compared to 7 percent in 2010.
* Facebook's company's share of the $12.33 billion U.S. display ad market will reach 16.3 percent in 2011.
* Google's share is expected to increase, while Yahoo and Microsoft's shares are expected to decline.
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[1]: http://www.allfacebook.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/facebook-privacy-lock-260-e1322593150265.jpg
[2]: http://www.allfacebook.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/facebook-privacy-lock-260.jpg
[3]: http://www.allfacebook.com/facebook-privacy-3-2011-11
[4]: https://blog.facebook.com/blog.php?post=10150378701937131
[5]: http://ftc.gov/opa/2011/11/privacysettlement.shtm
[6]: http://www.allfacebook.com/facebook-continues-to-expand-washington-d-c-team-2011-10
[7]: http://www.allfacebook.com/facebook-privacy-settings-3-2011-08
[8]: http://www.allfacebook.com/facebook-brands-2011-08
[9]: http://www.allfacebook.com/facebook-mines-2011-09
[10]: http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/Mq6UUnx3YJukxOVP4dO4yqHZvck/0/di
[11]: http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/Mq6UUnx3YJukxOVP4dO4yqHZvck/0/da
[12]: http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/Mq6UUnx3YJukxOVP4dO4yqHZvck/1/di
[13]: http://feedads.g.doubleclick.net/~a/Mq6UUnx3YJukxOVP4dO4yqHZvck/1/da
[14]: http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/allfacebook?d=pnQdOprp5To
[15]: http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/allfacebook?a=VJCdTmvz41Q:lv1I46QOgp4:pnQdOprp5To
[16]: http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/allfacebook?d=qj6IDK7rITs
[17]: http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/allfacebook?a=VJCdTmvz41Q:lv1I46QOgp4:qj6IDK7rITs
[18]: http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/allfacebook?i=VJCdTmvz41Q:lv1I46QOgp4:gIN9vFwOqvQ
[19]: http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/allfacebook?a=VJCdTmvz41Q:lv1I46QOgp4:gIN9vFwOqvQ
[20]: http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/allfacebook/~4/VJCdTmvz41Q
URL: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/allfacebook/~3/VJCdTmvz41Q/facebook-ftc-privacy-2011-11
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