Is battle about to intensify as two of the social giants go head to head? The mobile marketing strategies of Facebook and Google are under the spotlight again after Facebook raised concerns that Google could be moving towards a putting hurdles in the wayfor Facebook on Android. The big push from Google for integrating Android with Google+ and the single Google cookie is yet to come, but when it does, here’s why Facebook thinks it matters…
Facebook expressed concerns that Google could seek to check its growth by limiting its presence on the Android mobile operating system, instead favouring its own Google+ social networking venture.
In its IPO filing, Facebook said Google could use its “strong or dominant positions” to make “access to Facebook more difficult”, adding: “(It could) gain competitive advantage against us by integrating competing social networking platforms or features into products they control such as search engines, web browsers, or mobile device operating systems.”
The social network raised fears that Google could leverage its Android operating system or Google search engine to propel Google +, the social network it launched last year, over and above Facebook.
“[It could] gain competitive advantage against us by integrating competing social networking platforms or features into products they control such as search engines, web browsers, or mobile device operating systems,” Facebook said in the filings.
The documents spoke at length of the important role that mobiles will play in growing the world’s most popular social network, and risk inherent in a situation where Facebook users access the site on devices produced or controlled by some of the company’s fiercest competitors.
“We are dependent on the interoperability of Facebook with popular mobile operating systems that we do not control, such as Android and iOS [Apple’s operating system], and any changes in such systems that degrade our products’ functionality or give preferential treatment to competitive products could adversely affect Facebook usage on mobile devices,” it said.
Mark Zuckerberg will retain control of Facebook with 56.9pc of the voting shares.
The filing also revealed that Mark Zuckerberg will effectively run Facebook like a private company after it floats, retaining the right to pick all of its directors as well as a successor to inherit control of the business when he dies.
Zuckerberg, who founded the company when he was a student at Harvard University, owns a 28.4pc stake, but will retain effective control under a share structure which gives him voting rights over 56.9pc of the equity.
“Mr Zuckerberg has the ability to control the outcome of matters submitted to our stockholders for approval, including the election of directors and any merger, consolidation, or sale of all or substantially all of our assets,” the filings said.
“Additionally, in the event that Mr Zuckerberg controls our company at the time of his death, control may be transferred to a person or entity that he designates as his successor.”
The documents also laid bare details of Facebook’s rapid growth, including revenues which soared from $777m in 2009 to $3.7bn last year, and profits which nearly quadrupled from $229m to $1bn over the same period.
The company did not give details of its target price for the initial public offering, instead leaving blanks to be filled in at a later date, but the IPO is expected to value the company at up to $100bn.
