WebProNews

Facebook has lifted its restrictions on applications that contain content that promote or reference the sale of alcoholic beverages.

The company says it will use its Demographic Restriction feature to manage the way alcoholic content appears to its users. Facebook's restriction technology is based on a combination of what information a user has entered and verified on the site along with IP targeting by location.

Facebook says that beginning January 6, 2009 it will require that all content related to alcoholic beverage including unbranded, generic drink images be available only under its Demographic Restriction feature.

The company first announced its Demographic Restriction feature in August and said it has made several improvements since its launch.

Facebook explains on its developer blog. "First, we have modified the age and location parameters for the API method. Whereas previously, you had to set the same age restrictions across all countries in the location parameter, you now have the ability to set specific age restrictions for different countries. This gives you the ability to vary the restrictions across different locations for even greater flexibility."

Facebook has also introduced a new parameter called "type." "Type is basically a combination of pre-set age and location parameters that act as if you had manually entered the full itemized list of restrictions for what we believe to be the alcohol content requirements for almost every country in the world. If you wish, your application can then use the 'alcohol' type instead of manually setting each age for each individual country."