Webfusion

Just months ahead of its planned move behind a paywall, NYTimes.com has moved to integrate Facebook into its main site.

The New York Times  has long embraced social media. It has it’s own TimesPeople social news network which allows registered users to set up their own network for recommendations and share content from the site. However, by adding “Log in with Facebook” as an option and re-drawing pages to allow room for a Facebook news module NYTimes.com is now aiming for maximum exposure.

The Facebook login won’t replace the standard NYTimes.com registration but will link the two which will grant NYTimes perhaps with an alarming amount of control over registered user info. It does require a user to connect the two accounts before any of their information is shared with NYTimes.com but everyone will see the module. Those who connect their accounts will see their friends’ public activity, including comments and recs.

Cynics may suggest the timing is an attempt to integrate readers ahead of the forthcoming paywall so they will not want to do without the site and therefore subscribe, but what it certainly does offer is a different way of using corporate Facebook entities and perhaps a new marketing route for Facebook to exploit in the future.