With its Open Graph announcement at F8 earlier this year, Facebook appeared to be launching an initiative to take over the web. It’s been pretty successful so far. You’d be hard pressed to name five mainstream sites that don’t have some kind of Facebook integration, whether that be the ability to log in with Facebook or a simple like or share button.
Facebook is not stopping at the web though. Facebook may take over more and more of the physical world. This is strongly fueled by Facebook Places, announced last week. People can check in to physical locations, which will associate them with a Place page on Facebook, bringing the physical world into the social network, one check-in at a time.
It doesn’t end there, however. Caitlin Fitzsimmons at AllFacebook talks about a couple other real world integrations with Facebook. One involves a Coca-Cola festival in Israel, where teenagers could "like" attractions on Facebook by waving RFID bracelets.
The other instance is the use of QR codes for "liking" physical objects, courtesy of mobile marketing company Macanudos. "Our business idea is about looking for new concepts and applications that serve as a bridge between the physical and digital -known as the’ internet of things’ – … using the phone in this process," Gabriel Medina, head of Macanudos is quoted as saying.
While this may not be an offering from Facebook itself, it doesn’t have to be. Businesses create their own Facebook pages and apps. Facebook provides the means for creation and for exposure. We’re likely going to see a growing number of instances in which the physical world is being linked to Facebook.
