Facebook to offer vanity URLs

Facebook is letting users customize their profile URLs starting this weekend. Vanity web addresses will be dispensed on a first-come-first-served basis, replacing the random string of digits used by the social networking site now. Starting Saturday, June 13 at 12:01 a.m. EDT (4:01 a.m. GMT), Facebook users may procure a custom …

[Steven]

Missed a trick???

I'm sure Facesuck could have charged £1 or so for this, they might actually have made some money for a change. Not that I would have paid (dont use it anyway) but im sure lots of morons, I mean users would.

[Anonymous Coward]

I'd rather...

.. register my own domain. At least then I have control over my web presence.

[Robert Grant]

@Steven

That's got to be the world's worst signal to noise ratio in a comment.

[Matt Smart]

Hmm

Have to say I'm quite surprised they didn't charge for this. Seems rather a good idea.

[Camilla Smythe]

Copy Cats

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/06/09/register_comments_handling/

Still at least Steven could have become 'Steve_ is_ Brill' rather than Steven003.

[Rod MacLean]

@Dee Sobek

What - code an entire social networking site yourself? Good luck!

[Michael]

Shouldnt they..

... Charge for it???

[Anonymous Coward]

@Steven @Michael I agree they should have charged

I agree with you guys they certainly have missed a trick. Perhaps the free offer is for a limited period? Perhaps they feel that people wouldn't cough up initially but will once they can't be without the "vanity" as the article says.

[Anonymous Coward]

@Rod MacLean

*doh* course not. I'd rather set up www.deesobek.com and list my presence in facebook, twitter and all other places I can be found. Rather than rely on facebook as my main online presence or have it compete with my own domain when my name is googled.

Paris - cos she'd have understood..

[gav_taylor]

saw this coming

am surprised this hasn't happened sooner, pretty much all social networks already offer this

they could have made a lot of money charging users to have a personalised homepage, thier marketing guys will be kicking themselves now... lol