Just how much is a Facebook app -- or a Facebook app user -- really worth? A lot more than a year ago, it seems.
Yesterday, Inside Facebook reported that app maker RockYou bought two apps -- Pieces of Flair (3.5 million total users) for $2 million and Speed Racing (4.76 million total users) for $1 million. That pegs the value of a Pieces of Flair user at 55.5 cents and a Speed Racing user at 21.0 cents.
On June 25, 2007, about a month after Facebook opened its developer platform, Max Levchin's Slide bought the app Favorite Peeps for $60,000. At about 1.3 million total users, that valued each one at about 4.6 cents.
So based on those very rough comps, the value of an app user has jumped about between 4.5x-12x in the last 12 months. Big variables to keep in mind: The number of active users vs. total users, as well as the apps' presence on other social networks. We also suspect there is a limited market for app buyers, primarily limited to a handful of very deep-pocketed competitors like Slide and RockYou. So if app-makers can't get those any of the big guys to bite, their price per user may plummet dramatically.
See Also:
Facebook To Developers: We’ve Got No Problems Shutting You Down
App-Maker RockYou: We're Not Done With Facebook (And We May Be Raising More Money)
Widget Maker RockYou Raises $35M C Round
