The CW was the first network to have a profile on MySpace when they unveiled there back in Sept 2006. The CW follows up that pioneering move by establishing on Facebook a "Featured - Sponsored" group profile in the early evening of February 21st. FoxNews - a sister subsidiary of MySpace - probably takes the distinction of being the first network on Facebook; the CW would be second.

The CW's Facebook profile is a lot tamer than the one on MySpace. Facebook is the community where the style of every house has to meet community standards. On Facebook that means strict adherence to the standard profile template. Even the Apple Students sponsored profile--with 437,897 members--is subject to the same restrictions. The narrow fixed width three column layout puts a cap on graphical expression. The CW uses the main body of the center column to promote videos for the network, Americas Next Top Model, PussyCat Dolls, and Smallville. (Quicktime seems to be required to watch the videos and, unfortunately due to technical problems, I don't run Quicktime.) Underneath the video viewer is a scrunched up subway map-like depiction of their primetime schedule. A long vertical voting banner in the third column solicits votes for the thirteen ANTM contestants.

The CW's MySpace profile is visibly more its own creature but that is merely consistent with the Wild West nature of MySpace layouts in general. The variation between high and low makes MySpace a noisy place where meaningful signals have to compete with a cacophony for attention whereas stylistic constraints on Facebook boost the signal to noise ratio. On the open internet, stylistic constraints would be a liability but here the audience is "local" -- like opening a drugstore in Noe Valley, you do as the locals do. With several months head start on MySpace, The CW has amassed 31,629 friends there, and 7,355 in a few days on Facebook.

Last year's introduction of sponsored ad feeds on Facebook got some people's panties in a bunch - mostly commentators and not actual users. Facebook has no obligation to be ad free like Craigslist or Wikipedia. They have been measured and judicious in placing ads. (I see mostly ads targeted at current students at my alma mater in the left banner column.) The CW profile came to my attention through an ad placed in my news feed-the first ever I've seen--promoting ANTM. The ad was undoubtedly triggered by my favorite TV shows list where having watched early episodes of ANTM on VH1 recently, I listed the show as profile filler. Liking and having listed the show, I can hardly object to an ad drawing me to the current season. The rare and surgically targeted Facebook ad is much better than the constant carpetbombing of seemingly random ads endured on MySpace. It's not clear that this idyllic regime will persist as Facebook continues to monetize its traffic. We can hope.