The Globe and Mail Launches New Facebook(R) Integration

Globeandmail.com is the only Canadian media site to offer latest Facebook Social Plugins

TORONTO, April 21 /CNW/ - The Globe and Mail today revealed a new Facebook integration to create a more personalized and social user experience at Globeandmail.com. Using Facebook's new Social Plugins, The Globe and Mail has created a more vibrant and interactive community, allowing readers to connect with millions of Facebook users, share and recommend content and follow friends' activities and "Likes", without leaving Globeandmail.com.

These new features were announced today at f8, a Facebook conference for developers and entrepreneurs. The Globe and Mail is one of three Canadian companies to work with Facebook on this new integration, and the only Canadian news site.

"The Globe and Mail continues to evolve our products to adapt to a constant changing market. Our newest integration with Facebook allows us to introduce our readers to the most current online networking features available," said Phillip Crawley, Publisher and CEO, The Globe and Mail. "Our readers want to connect with their friends and the online community to share great content, discuss the issues at hand and stay informed. Now, with a click of a button, the Globe community can easily interact with their Facebook friends and find out what others are reading about in the pages of The Globe and Mail."

The most recent readership numbers from NADbank, for the 2009 calendar year, reveal The Globe and Mail continues to show significant growth for both newspaper and online. The Globe's online readership jumped 12.7 per cent to 1,245,600 average weekly readers.

The Globe and Mail today introduces three Facebook Social Plugins that will further customize the experience at Globeandmail.com. These features include:

Like Button:

Facebook users can endorse select articles and reporters from Globeandmail.com, by clicking the Facebook "Like" button. These updates will be shared with the user's Facebook friends.

Activity Feed:

While browsing Globeandmail.com, Facebook users will see an activity box that shows their friends' recent activities, "Likes" and recommended content from The Globe and Mail.

Recommendations:

As a user's friends endorse select articles and content, the Recommendations Facebook Social Plugin creates a list of recommended content based on what friends "Like".

The Globe and Mail, Canada's national newspaper, is a division of CTVglobemedia, a dynamic multi-media company, which also owns CTV Inc., Canada's number-one private broadcaster.

Facebook(R) is a registered trademark of Facebook Inc.

For further information: please contact: Jill Anzarut, [phone], [email protected]