Facebook is continuing to push its Gifts program, but this time, users are being prompted to give gifts based on keywords in friends’ status updates. As sister site Inside Facebook discovered, when some users post that they’ve got good news, such as new jobs, their friends can also see a button suggesting that they purchase a Facebook Gift. A Facebook spokesperson confirmed to AllFacebook that the prompt is triggered by keywords.
We're kicking off our upcoming Social Media Marketing Boot Camp with a special keynote presentation by Ella Chick (left), the digital producer at Anderson Cooper 360°. She'll discuss how the network uses social media for breaking news and leverages social media to draw attention to organizations and causes. Learn more about our program and register here. 
Facebook’s $1 billion deal to acquire Instagram was actually a $715 million deal to acquire Instagram, as the social network’s slumping stock price lowered the value of the major component of the deal for the photo-sharing application, Facebook revealed in its 10-Q filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
We all know the five-second reaction to seeing a friend’s birthday on Facebook — a basic greeting posted to their timeline. What if you want to do more? Several companies are filling the gap and making a statement with social gifting, allowing people to give real-life presents to their friends. While entities such as Wrapp and Gifties are getting a foothold in the market, Facebook announced Thursday the launch of Gifts, a native program where users can give things such as Gund teddy bears, Starbucks gift cards, and Star Wars flash drives.
When Facebook acquired social gift application Karma in May, right around the time of its initial public offering, the social network pointed out that unlike some of its other acquisitions, the deal was not a talent grab, and Karma would continue to operate. According to a report in The Next Web, the fruits of the Karma acquisition may soon be unveiled.
As Facebook looks for more ways to boost revenue, the company has gone from buying out companies for talent grabs to focusing on acquiring properties that can help make money. Instagram and Karma were two of the biggest buys this year, but a Facebook official told The Wall Street Journal that Mark Zuckerberg’s checkbook might still be out.
Facebook bought itself another gift over the weekend, acquiring mobile gift-card application Karma. Unlike other recent acquisitions by the social network, however, this is not just a talent grab, as Karma will continue operations.
Wrapp may have thrown its hat into the U.S. gift card ring this morning, but it’s not the only player, as San Francisco-based Karma has been occupying the space since February.
