Seeing as how this is officially Facebook week, we had to mention a new photo-viewer layout being tested by the network. What makes the layout new is the way it mounts engagement buttons and comments to the right rather than beneath images. The significance of such a change, as TechCrunch’s Josh Constine explains, is that “encouraging conversation aligns with Facebook’s goal of driving connections between people, such as friends of a photo’s owner who might interact in its comment reel for the first time.” Also, additional comments equal more notifications to other commenters, which naturally drives more return visits and …

Still processing the implications of a public Facebook, The Wall Street Journal suggests that advertisers will pay a price for the change. “For advertisers on Facebook Inc., the free ride may be coming to an end,” it writes. As stockholders demand additional profits, Facebook will likely demand more fees from advertisers. “For years, many advertisers simply set up shop for free on Facebook, displaying their brands to users who ‘liked’ them,” WSJ explains. “But to see how Facebook now hopes to turn many of those advertisers into paying customers, look at how it convinced clothing retailer Gordmans to stop relying …

Online, Pinterest is now driving more referral traffic than Google+, YouTube, Reddit, and LinkedIn combined, according to a new study from content sharing company Shareaholic. Surprised by the finding, GigOm admits: “Pinterest, the website which lets people collect and share photos online with a ‘virtual pinboard,’ has steadily amassed a very dedicated following of users that spreads far beyond the app-obsessed early adopter crowd.” In January, Pinterest was responsible for 3.6% of referrals tracked by Shareaholic -- up from 2.5% month-over-month. Twitter, by contrast, drove 3.61% of referral traffic in January -- down from 3.62 percent in December. “Pinterest’s ascent …

Next up for Facebook -- after its billions in public funding start pouring in -- is, or course, world domination! Or not. As The Wall Street Journal reports, the social network still faces intense competition in key global markets. In China, where the Facebook still isn’t allowed to operate, rivals are flourishing. “Chinese social media companies, including Sina, Renren and Tencent Holdings Ltd., have thrived in terms of membership and activity over the past two years despite requirements from authorities to filter content based on censorship regulations,” reports WSJ. Yet, because no single company has a presence as ubiquitous as …

Tumblr wants the world to know about its community of bloggers, and how they interesting they are. So, to get the word out, the blogging platform is hiring professional journalists to report on the wide world of Tumblr. As The New York Times reports, Chris Mohney, a senior vice president for content at BlackBook Media, will be Tumblr’s editor in chief, while Jessica Bennett, a senior writer and editor at Newsweek and The Daily Beast, will be the executive editor. “Basically, if Tumblr were a city of 42 million (i.e., the number of Tumblr blog that currently exist) I’m trying …

Thanks to a strong retail business -- combined with promising tablet and Web service efforts -- analysts have high hopes for Amazon. Too high, in fact, as company shares slumped in after-hours trading on news of a 35% revenue gain last quarter. “Most retailers would die happy with such a jump,” notes The New York Times. “But for the e-commerce leader, sales were nearly a billion dollars short of what analysts had been expecting.” What went wrong? Video games sales, for one, along with supply issues from flooding in Thailand, suggests NYT. “And maybe there was a bit of backlash,” …

Kicking Google when it’s down -- due to criticism over new search and privacy policies -- Microsoft has unleaded a related ad campaign promoting its rival services. In light of the growing unrest, Microsoft “has decided to pounce on this shift in public sentiment by releasing an advertising campaign specifically designed to get users to switch,” reports PCMag.com. The ads, set to appear in major U.S. newspapers every day this week, are titled "Putting people first," and highlight how Google's recent changes affect users and their personal information. "Why are they so interested in doing this that they would risk …

Putting the IPO talk aside, TechCrunch looks into Facebook’s new behavioral ad targeting system. “Facebook has been quietly rolling out the beta of ‘Open Graph action spec targeting’ which allows advertisers to target users by what they listen to, where they travel, what they buy, and other in-app activity,” it reports. These behaviors can reportedly do a better job of denoting conversion potential than, say, a user’s biography or interests. “That means Open Graph action spec ad targeting could turn finding a needle in a haystack into shooting fish in a barrel,” TechCrunch suggests. “The targeting options could improve the ROI of Facebook …