• by Mark Walsh  @markfwal, August 8, 2012

After introducing subscriptions for apps on a limited basis last month, Facebook on Wednesday announced it was making subscriptions available to all developers with apps on the social network. The feature allows developers to set prices based on local currency (e.g. U.S. dollars, Japanese yen) and offer different levels of subscriptions. Users pay with a credit card or PayPal account, and can cancel from their Facebook payment settings.

Among the initial group of developers offering game subscriptions on Facebook were Kixeye, Playdom and Zynga. Playdom's “Gardens of Time” game for instance, carries a $15 monthly subscription which includes virtual gold and other exclusive items for in-game use.

If offering both subscriptions and in-app payments (for virtual goods), Facebook cautioned developers to make clear why it has dual fees. “For example, you might offer a monthly subscription for energy or supplies and sell vanity items through in-app purchases,” stated a post on Facebook's developer blog today.

The opening up of subscriptions widely comes a day after the company announced it would allow developers to start running ads promoting their apps in users' mobile news feeds. That option lets them target the demographic audience they're trying to reach and set a campaign budget via the App Dashboard.