Το Facebook αξίζει σήμερα πάνω από 200 δισεκατομμύρια δολάρια, σύμφωνα με τα στοιχεία που αποκαλύφθηκαν από την εταιρεία στα τέλη του 2014. Τα στατιστικά στοιχεία που δημοσιεύονται στην επίσημη σελίδα του Facebοok με τις πληροφορίες δείχνουν ότι το κοινωνικό network έχει περισσότερους από 1.390 εκατομμύρια ενεργούς χρήστες κάθε μήνα, εκ των οποίων οι 1.190.000.000 χρησιμοποιούν τα κινητά τους για να δημοσιεύουν μηνύματα, photos, play games, or chat with their friends.
Needless to say, Zuckerberg, like any other right billionaire, is constantly looking for new ways to expand his business.
So from time to time Zuckerberg has invested in a number of complementary projects related to Facebok or not. Whether his investments have been successful or unsuccessful can not yet say for sure. The sure thing is that he's still trying.
A Facebok phone is nothing new, and the social network has tried to do with this project, to find it on another level.
Facebok has made the development of HTC First, a device that has proven to be something like Microsoft's Windows Vista: a complete failure that stopped just a few months after its launch.
The HTC First, also known as the Facebook phone, was released in the US in April 2013, but later that year, AT&T decided to offer the device completely free of charge because no one asked for it.
Below are the basic technicalities characteristics of the Facebook phone, which undoubtedly show a low-end device considering Facebook's size:
| Operating system | 4.1 Android Jelly Bean |
| Screen | 4.3 inches, 720 x 1280 pixels |
| Processor | Qualcomm Snapdragon MSM8930 400 |
| RAM | 1 GB |
| Storage | 16 GB |
| Cameras | Back: 5MP; Front: 1.6MP |
| Battery | 2000 mAh |
However, Facebok seems to have everything it takes to join mobile telephony with something that could change the world.
Voice WhatsApp as well as video calls
WhatsApp is now a mobile messaging service with more than 700 million monthly active users and is owned by Facebook. Recently, it also added voice messaging support so you can now call your contacts using an Internet connection without the use of your carrier. This feature is obviously a very strong hit to players from all over the world. But their nightmare probably will not end here.
Video calls will be the next addition to WhatsApp. Sooner or later, Facebook shows that it could become the most powerful competitor in the mobile phone industry by eliminating them from the map. WhatsApp seems to be able to do what Facebook did not do.
Let's see, however, that the technologies already announced by Facebook could change our lives.
We all know there are three different things that are crucial to a Facebook phone: WhatsApp, Facebook integration, and Wi-Fi.
First and foremost, the WhatsApp application seems to be constantly evolving. The next step besides voice calls will be video calling, WhatsApp could allow Facebook to have a phone without even needing a device but also without the need for a SIM card. Here's the future: without SIM cards, you will not need a contract, you will have to pay and you can at any time but talk on your phone as much as you want.
Obviously, to do this, you will need an Internet connection, but this requirement is closely related to the other two. A SIM card with a phone number is mandatory for those who use WhatsApp, right? But an integration of WhatsApp with Facebook seems to be all it takes to completely avoid SIM cards.
[signoff icon = ”quote-circled”] ”A Facebook phone can work without a SIM card, but you can have one. Calls and Internet will be completely free thanks to your friends. ”[/ Signoff]By integrating Facebook on a phone, saying Facebook differently along with WhatsApp will allow you to call and chat with your contacts at any time without paying a single cents to any player. Without the need for a SIM card.
The more friends you have in Facebok, the more people will appear in WhatsApp you use. More friends, more contacts, more ways to talk for free.
But to use WhatsApp and your Facebook contacts without a SIM card, you obviously need a wireless network with Internet access. This is where free Wi-Fi comes in.
Facebok is already trying to provide free Internet in some poor countries around the world, but the SIM-free phone plan will probably expand its free Wi-Fi distribution.
[signoff icon = ”quote-circled”]Have you ever wondered what happens if Facebook can allow its users to share their internet connection with their friends?[/ signoff]The profit from a Facebook phone, a built-in WhatsApp with Facebook accounts and a shared free Wi-Fi will be huge for the social network and probably disastrous for the phone companies who will have to look for other resources to survive.
A Facebok phone should be very annoying for today's mobile operators. Even if Facebook loses money by offering free drones to the market, with this project, it actually wins. How; More and more people will join the social network to have free phone calls and get free internet.
The project could convince as many users as possible to join Facebook. Just imagine you want to travel to another country, and you will be able to make free calls via Facebok with free internet that you can use all the time. The more friends you have on Facebok, the more likely you will be to connect to a free Wi-Fi. All this is in Zuckerberg's vision. A connected world could become a reality.
The only big issue faced by Facebook is the unhappy providers and laws of unfair competition. Facebook could easily become the target of anti-monopoly investigators, as complaints by broadcasters and telecoms companies that see their profits drop sharply.
