Facebook referral program offers free talk time in India

Facebook is offering Rs 50 worth of mobile talk time to its selective users in India joining the social network through referrals. The system is very new, and the program in India is one of the tests being carried out. As confirmed by Kevin D'Souza, Country Growth Manager, Facebook, the amount of recharge will vary from user to user and place to place. 

D’Souza went ahead and also confirmed that the offer was for users coming through referrals. He was quoted as saying at a press conference, "We keep on trying new things. Because we do not know what will work. This is one of the tests. Just to get a feel of it, this particular test is being done in India.” 

Available for users in India joining via referrals

At the moment, the plan is developing with multiple pricing strategies, and D’Souza shared that different telecom carriers have different Facebook plans. After registration, those interested will have to provide their mobile number to get Rs 50 worth of free talk time, and also the mobile number of the individual who may have referred him/her.

"Once you sign up and confirm your account, you will receive the talktime within three days," Facebook said. "Facebook reserves the right to discontinue this service at any time without notice. Talktime rewards earned before this service is discontinued will be credited as appropriate," the company added.

Only this week, Facebook’s "The Anti-Virus Marketplace" or The AV Marketplace got updated to accommodate seven new partners to its existing network of security companies. What this means is that now Facebook users will be able to download software from avast!, AVG, Avira, Kaspersky, Panda, Total Defense, and Webroot. Users will also have access to new anti-virus software for their mobile devices from many of Facebook's existing partners such as Microsoft, McAfee, Norton, TrendMicro, and Sophos. A user can download free anti-virus software for his or her PCs, Macs, and mobiles from the AV Marketplace.

If you have been spotting a slightly different looking top navigation bar in your Facebook account, then you are among the chosen few on whose profiles Facebook is testing it. Inside Facebook now reports that some users have been spotting a rather different-looking top navigation bar, in which the Search bar has been pushed closer to the company logo. The icons to view friend requests, messages, and other activity notifications have been moved further right on the bar. In fact, closer inspection reveals that Facebook has completely done away with the 'Home' button. Users viewing the test design have to click on the Facebook logo to go to their news feed.

Facebook is known for introducing cosmetic changes to the profile appearance and to the way images are displayed. The tweaks to the top navigation bar are under test, and there is no saying if the changes will actually find their way to user profiles. The most prominent of the changes that Facebook introduced to user profiles in the recent past remains the Timeline.