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Read more at Counterparties Klein: Don't worry about the deficit Dimon on the market's "brain freeze" Follow Reuters Facebook Twitter RSS YouTube Read White House in damage control over Obama Supreme Court remarks 04 Apr 2012 Americans brace for next foreclosure wave 04 Apr 2012 Google takes wraps off Web-based digital glasses 6:08am EDT With new momentum, Romney accuses Obama of hiding 04 Apr 2012 Food inflation seen back on the table as prices rise 04 Apr 2012 Discussed 798 Obama confident Supreme Court will uphold healthcare law 255 Government plans to sue Arizona sheriff for targeting Latinos 183 As Paul’s White House campaign fades, supporters face choices Watched World's biggest car delivery centre Wed, Apr 4 2012 Rare Indochina tigers thrive in Berlin Tue, Apr 3 2012 Massive tornado churns across Texas Tue, Apr 3 2012 Facebook e-commerce: the next big thing? Tweet Share this Email Print Related News Meet a few would-be powers of Facebook commerce 7:09am EDT Yahoo to lay off 2,000 employees Wed, Apr 4 2012 Facebook launches patent counterattack against Yahoo Tue, Apr 3 2012 Facebook halts secondary market trading, plans for May IPO Wed, Mar 28 2012 Most of world interconnected through email, social media Tue, Mar 27 2012 Analysis & Opinion The recession killed journalism â€“ and saved it Secret London Related Topics Tech » Media » Facebook » Facebook Director of Marketing Mike Hoefflinger announces a new ''Premium on Facebook'' service as he delivers a keynote address at Facebook's ''fMC'' global event for marketers in New York City, February 29, 2012. Credit: Reuters/Mike Segar By Alistair Barr SAN FRANCISCO | Thu Apr 5, 2012 11:40am EDT SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - A group of e-commerce start-ups, backed by some of the tech world's most pedigreed financiers, are betting that Facebook Inc can become an e-commerce powerhouse to rival Amazon.com Inc and eBay Inc. As the world's largest social network hurtles toward a $5 billion initial public offering, it will come under more pressure from Wall Street to find new sources of profit growth and reduce its reliance on advertising, which accounted for 85 percent of its 2011 revenue. Some entrepreneurs and investors increasingly think "f-commerce" - meaning e-commerce on Facebook - is the answer. Start-ups such as BeachMint, Yardsellr, Oodle and Fab.com are coming up with novel ways to persuade Facebook users to not just connect with friends on the social network, but to shop as well. Backed by tens of millions of dollars from venture capital firms like Accel Partners and Andreessen Horowitz, and other big investors like Goldman Sachs, these start-ups are pushing out shopping apps, hosting online garage sales and testing out new business models on Facebook. "E-commerce is a huge category with very strong tailwinds and it's a natural move for Facebook," said Sam Schwerin of Millennium Technology Value Partners, which owns Facebook shares and has a stake in BeachMint. Amazon revolutionized online shopping by crunching lots of customer and purchase data to come up with relevant, personalized recommendations. In the same vein, Facebook's combination of data, analytics and payment technology could fuel the next generation of e-commerce, Schwerin said. Harvard MBA David Fisch, a former executive at eBay's StubHub online tickets business, oversees Facebook's e-commerce efforts, working with retailers to build social commerce businesses on the platform. "People have always shopped with their friends; now they expect it online," Fisch wrote in a December blog. "Companies who think differently about social will find success." Fisch declined to comment, but investors said Facebook understands the importance of having an e-commerce strategy. "It's a big imperative for them," said Theresia Gouw Ranzetta of Accel Partners, an early backer of Facebook. "They understand it's an important strategic benefit for them to make e-commerce players successful on the platform." ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Graphic: e-commerce's lure link.reuters.com/qac57s ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ BIG BRAND STORES FLOP Facebook had 845 million monthly active users at the end of 2011, far higher than Amazon's 164 million active accounts or the eBay online marketplace's 100 million active users. But despite that huge base, Facebook is primarily a way to connect with friends, and not an online shopper's first destination. Big retailers including J.C. Penney, Gap and Nordstrom had previously set up stores on Facebook but shut them after generating few sales. That has not stopped venture capital firms from pouring money into rookie companies they think have cracked the code. There is a lot of buzz about Fab.com, which has amassed 3 million users who broadcast purchases via a "bought" button that advertises their shopping habits to friends. Fab built its user base in part by offering $5 a month to those who agree to share their Fab purchases and favorites on Facebook. Chief Executive Jason Goldberg said "tens of thousands" opted in. BeachMint co-founder Diego Berdakin said his company had set up a live video event called StyleMint.tv last holiday season featuring a brief appearance by Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg's sister, Randi Zuckerberg. For about two hours, they showcased BeachMint products that people could buy with one click. More than 50,000 Facebook users watched the show and a "huge percentage" bought something, Berdakin said, adding, "At the time, it was the biggest day in our history in terms of sales." Yardsellr, started in 2010 by former eBay manager Danny Leffel, organizes people into 3,000 communities, or "blocks," based on common interests. When someone posts a product for sale, it is sent to the news feeds of people in that block and purchases can be made with a few clicks. Gross merchandise sales, a measure of the value of products, has been growing about 30 percent a month, according to Leffel. "Social commerce could be bigger than eBay," he argued. Then there's Oodle, a start-up headed by Craig Donato, who runs Facebook's official marketplace, which boasts more than 3 million unique monthly users. When buyers and sellers post items, their Facebook identities are attached, giving users more confidence in the transactions, Donato said. MAKING MONEY For now, Facebook is making money mostly by selling ads to merchants trying to target potential customers. But many experts say it is a matter of time before the eight-year-old social network will ask for a cut of shopping transactions, or seek other ways to profit. They point to Facebook's relationship with online games developer Zynga Inc as an example. Facebook takes a 30 percent cut of revenue generated from the sale of virtual goods used to play Zynga games. Gamers pay for those virtual goods using Facebook Credits, a virtual currency that could eventually be used to buy physical goods, according to some Internet entrepreneurs. "Facebook has a huge opportunity to monetize e-commerce," said Christian Taylor, chief executive of Payvment, a startup that operates thousands of Facebook stores. "They have the infrastructure and team to pursue that." Others downplay the potential for Facebook Credits, saying physical goods offer much thinner profit margins than virtual products. "The 30 percent model is great for products with near-zero cost of goods sold," said Kevin Hartz, head of ticketing start-up Eventbrite, which works closely with Facebook. "But selling a TV with thin margins, that model will just not apply." Nevertheless, if e-commerce on Facebook takes off, many expect the social network to find a way to make money off it. "When you build on top of a platform like Facebook, there is always the risk that the platform provider decides to change the rules later on," said Laura Valverde of Beetailer, which runs more than 3,000 stores on Facebook. "We have seen this with Facebook Credits and games. So, once social commerce fully takes off, it will only be natural that Facebook tries to benefit one way or another from it." (Editing by Edwin Chan, Tiffany Wu and Bob Burgdorfer) Tech Media Facebook Related Quotes and News Company Price Related News Tweet this Link this Share this Digg this Email Reprints We welcome comments that advance the story through relevant opinion, anecdotes, links and data. If you see a comment that you believe is irrelevant or inappropriate, you can flag it to our editors by using the report abuse links. Views expressed in the comments do not represent those of Reuters. For more information on our comment policy, see http://blogs.reuters.com/fulldisclosure/2010/09/27/toward-a-more-thoughtful-conversation-on-stories/ Comments (1) miaperry wrote: Edition: U.S. Africa Arabic Argentina Brazil Canada China France Germany India Italy Japan Latin America Mexico Russia Spain United Kingdom Back to top Reuters.com Business Markets World Politics Technology Opinion Money Pictures Videos Site Index Legal Bankruptcy Law California Legal New York Legal Securities Law Support & Contact Support Corrections Connect with Reuters Twitter Facebook LinkedIn RSS Podcast Newsletters Mobile About Privacy Policy Terms of Use AdChoices Copyright Our Flagship financial information platform incorporating Reuters Insider An ultra-low latency infrastructure for electronic trading and data distribution A connected approach to governance, risk and compliance Our next generation legal research platform Our global tax workstation Thomsonreuters.com About Thomson Reuters Investor Relations Careers Contact Us Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms. 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