Facebook Connect was launched in December of 2008. This features allows Facebook users to connect their account with certain applications and third-party websites, often without having to register repeatedly in order to join each site; the user logs in using the Facebook account. In addition to allowing the user to set privacy settings, it allows for the posting of information from each site onto the individual's Facebook page.
One of the benefits of Facebook Connect is that, by gathering the information from the profile, it allows for the user to skip the hassle of registering on a different website each time. As long as the user is logged in on Facebook, the site will recognize the user by that ID. Before integrating with the account, the website will ask for the user's permission to connect as well as agreeing to the terms of service.
To adjust privacy settings for Facebook Connect, the user must do it through the Facebook account under the “applications and websites” page. This allows users to control what information is available to friends through the third-party sites and applications. Users can choose to share with friends all of their information, some of it or none at all.
Third-party websites and applications use Facebook Connect to read the users' friends list and compare it to the users on their site that also use the feature. This is useful for allowing users in common to have another way of discussing and sharing their interests with each other. Depending on the site, users can get reviews from people they know on specific products and places instead of random reviews from strangers.
Instead of the user manually posting individual bits of information to their Facebook news feed, Facebook Connect automatically allows the posting of information from the site onto the news feed. While it may seem essentially like the same process, it eliminates quite a few steps. This allows the user to share information easily and more seamlessly.
Facebook Connect allows Facebook users on other websites to have real identities attached to their accounts instead of it being anonymous, which creates a more personal experience. When the user changes something on his or her profile, it automatically changes on the third-party website or application as well. The feature helps users connect with friends on a variety of websites without all the extra steps in between.