Facebook constantly experiments with new features plugged into it's interface in order to increase consumers' interest or at least keep it stable. No matter whether this or that change is preferred by facebook users, the company does not seem to try do a research on their expectations. However, this absence of action is not necessary because a consumer has a choice whether or not use a new 'button'.
An article "Facebook launches subscribe button for following anyone's updates" is mainly a new tool on facebook that helps you to subscribe any updates from any person who may not even be your 'facebook friend'. Now instead of clicking on somebody's profile and guess what he or she might be posting at the moment you simply can follow any updates this person posts. This idea does not seem to be new though. On Twitter you can do the same thing and be aware of everything that is on mind the person who you follow. At the first glance, the whole Twitter's concept is copied and inserted into facebook platform. We just take the core of the platform and transform it into the part of even better core of another platform. So now every person you want to 'read' will be posted on your news feed page.
However, Facebook went a little bit farer than simply copying stuff from Twitter. It sorted out news for the subscriber that he/she wants to follow. Lets say, I want to know how is the best friend of my boyfriend doing and I don't know him in person, I might subscribe for only the statuses he posts, but I want to see neither the games he shares nor the pictures he puts in his albums. A good feature for those who want to follow real people, not the brand. Here I mean that if I am a big fan of Madonna I may 'like' her page and follow all updates that appear on her page, but this doesn't mean that I follow particularly Madonna. This means that I read those updates which accompany Madonna's brand, not her personally. So in this case subscription is slightly different thing from 'Like' button.
Is this idea good? Well, as long as it is optional, which under facebook terminology means that everyone who is not interested to be subscribed may remove this function from his/her page, so that others cannot follow his/her updates. On the other hand, you may not subscribe anyone so that you do not mess up your own news feed page. I feel neutral to this idea and even see how it can benefit those who necessarily want to be 'online' with every person they even are not acquainted with. Moreover, it can benefit those who are subscribed because one should be proud of the fact that lots of unknown people will to read his/her posts. However, here I see a huge flaw. Facebook positions itself as a platform which is designed for those users who want to control their own profiles. Well, this doesn't not sound control. Lets say, I do want to try and feel that a bunch of guys are interested in my updates, but what if somebody who is even not my facebook friends subscribes me in order to find any compromising info? What if a company I am going to apply is interested in following me swearing in my posts? Of course, users are warned that they better don't post compromising photos on facebook or be pc in their status updates, but most of them do not mind doing that. There are plenty of opportunities to know what a person is just by subscribing him on facebook.
As for me, I am not going to remover this button from my page. Not because I don't want to have followers (I guess everybody wants to be recognized), but simply because I have nothing to hide. And when one has nothing to hide he is usually at a lower risk of being compromised.
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