Facebook Inc (FB): A New RSS Feed on the ‘Flip’ Side?

Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) is apparently on the clock. At least that seems to be the case when it comes to RSS feeds. Since the earth-moving announcement a few weeks ago that Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) was doing away with its Google Reader RSS system, there has been much talk – and in some circles, consternation – about if there would be a single RSS reader that would step up and fill Google Reader’s shoes.

The competition for that coveted spot has been heating up, with talk that several companies are currently rolling out or will be bringing out their own versions of RSS readers to fill the void. One of the companies that has been rumored – maybe because some have wanted it to happen? – to be putting something together has been Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB), because of the apparent recent trend that Facebook seems to be trying to compete with Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) directly through some of its services – namely Graph Search.

Well now there is a report that says that indeed, Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) is working on an RSS reader that may model itself after the magazine-style format of Flipboard’s app for iOS by Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Android by Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG). Word is that Facebook Reader (its current internal name) is being prepared as an app for smartphones and tablets and thus would not have a web-based version for PCs. Word is that development has been going on for at least a year now, which seems to go contrary to the company’s past approach as “move fast and break things.” It seems that CEO Mark Zuckerberg has developed a vested interest in the Reader project – which currently is being developed for iOS first, attempting to leverage some design elements of iOS into the app – by checking up on the development, giving input and paying close attention to details of the project all along its process.

The idea behind Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) Reader, as Zuckerberg puts it when he described the revamped News Feed, “is give everyone in the world the best possible newspaper we can.” In the case of Reader, this reportedly will include curated content from the social network and its digital media partners to create an opportunity for users to have deeper interactions with Facebook and to get information that is of interest to users quickly and efficiently, presenting them in a magazine or long-form layout similar to what Flipboard offers – complete with photos and images. And of course, there is expected to be a mobile advertising opportunity thrown in here as well.

What are your thoughts about this concept? Do you think Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) should put together a Reader application, and do you think it will work? Does it have the potential to replace Google Reader? Give us your feedback in the comments section below.

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