Nielsen: Facebook App tops in 2015, and Messenger became the The Fastest-Growing App.

   Facebook this year continued to hold the number one position as the top app installed on U.S. smartphones based on the average number of unique users, according to a new report out this week from Nielsen, but its mobile messaging application clocked in as the fastest-growing app of 2015. Having foreseen the shift from more public social networking to private communications, Facebook forced users to install Messenger in spring 2014 by ripping out chat from its main app. In the months since, the app has soared to the top of the App Store’s charts. Over 2015, Messenger grew more than any other app, the new report says – with a 31 percent increase in users from 2014.
   That’s slower growth than Messenger saw in 2014, when it rose 242 percent over the year prior thanks to Facebook’s huge push. The question now will be whether or not Facebook can do the same for its next most-promising creation, the private photo-sharing app Moments which is now replacing photo-syncing on Facebook’s social network.
   Also in the running for fastest-growing app was Apple Music, which saw a 26 percent year-over-year climb. However, that’s a bit of different situation from Messenger, given that Apple’s streaming music service only launched this June.
   In terms of the top apps by users, Facebook led the way with more than 126 million average unique users each month, up 8 percent over last year where it was also the top app. And YouTube was hot on its heels with 97 million average unique users each month, up 5 percent over last year.
   On the list we see the top 10 Apps of the year:
1. Facebook
2. Youtube
3. Facebook Messenger
4. Google Search
5. Google Play
6. Google Maps
7. Gmail
8. Instagram
9. Apple Music
10. Maps(Apple)

Source;Techcrunch.com

Transportation with Uber now available on Facebook Messenger

   Facebook Messenger now lets you order “Transportation”, starting with Uber and with more services on the way. Facebook’s twist is that ordering a car via Messenger alerts those in your chat thread that you have indeed grabbed a ride…instead of you lying that you have while still in your pajamas.

   This isn’t the first time a ridesharing app has hooked up with a messaging app. WeChat, a messaging and calling app used outside the U.S. also allows users to book cars on ridesharing platforms such as China’s Didi. However, WeChat’s parent company Tencent blocked users from booking with Uber a number of times recently in an ongoing Chinese rideshare war.

source; slashgear.com

   But Facebook claims this collaboration wasn’t necessarily inspired by WeChat. “For us we’re more inspired by how we see our users using Messenger and we just saw the growing popularity of group chats and this is one of the best use cases of why Messenger’s so great,” Facebook product manager Seth Rosenberg said.

How It Works

   The new Uber in Messenger feature can be found by clicking on the car icon or finding “Transportation” in the three-dot “more” menu below where you write your messages. Either of those actions will open Uber’s Request Ride option where you can add your pick up location, destination, and car type.
   Everyone who uses Messenger Transportation will get a $20 Uber credit. It’s rare for Uber to hand out these kinds of free credits to people who are already users, but somehow Facebook convinced it to create a big incentive to use Messenger Transportation.

   Uber’s public API for its Request Ride button has a policy excluding partners from featuring it alongside competing ride services. However, Uber tells us that since the Messenger Transportation feature is built through a private integration, that anti-competitive policy doesn’t apply and Messenger can include other services like Lyft.
   Both Facebook and Uber sidestepped questions directly about a Lyft integration, but a source close to the matter tells TechCrunch that Lyft will offer rides through Facebook Messenger starting in January. Messenger already partnered with KLM for flight-booking option, but it’s been delayed until early next year.

source; techcrunch.com

Offline Mode for Facebook

source; thenextweb.com

   Facebook said it will begin rolling out new technology that allows users on slower mobile connections to still see new stories in their News Feed, even when on a poor connection or when they’re unable to reach Facebook’s servers. In addition,