Facebook to let developers charge subscriptions

Facebook is allowing app developers to charge subscription fees, in addition to existing onetime payments, for games and other applications on its site. Facebook says the subscription feature will be available next month. The changes open up a new revenue stream for developers as well as for Facebook, which takes a 30% cut from all payments on its site. People will still able to make payments on a onetime basis. Facebook also announced it's replacing its own Credits currency with users' local currency—meaning, for example, that U.S. users can now pay for virtual items in dollars, and those in Japan can pay in yen—a move Facebook says will streamline operations and eliminate any currency exchange-rate confusion. Sales of virtual items accounted for 17% of Facebook's revenue in the first quarter. After a disappointing initial public stock offering, Facebook hit a milestone of sorts in its brief history as a public company on Tuesday, when its shares rose for the fourth straight day—the longest positive run thus far. The stock, while still down 16% from the $38 offering price, has rebounded 25% since hitting a low of $25.52 on June 6.

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