Facebook to let users add names to profile addresses

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(Agencies)
Updated: 2009-06-11 13:18

SAN FRANCISCO - Facebook on Friday will begin letting members use their full names in online addresses for profile pages at the popular online social networking service.

Profile addresses, referred to as Uniform Resource Locators (URLs), that are changed to the personalized format will consist of facebook.com/ followed in each case by a user's name.

"This way people will have an easy-to-remember way to find you," Facebook designer Blaise DiPersia said in a message posted at the firm's website.

"Your new Facebook URL is like your personal destination, or home, on the web."

Switching to user names in URLs will make it easier for people to find people's pages using Facebook tools as well as online search engines, according to DiPersia.

Facebook said users will be able to start claiming personalized URLs on a first-come, first-served basis beginning 9:01 pm Friday in California (04h01 GMT Saturday).

To thwart "squatting" on names, Facebook is only providing the option to members who signed up before midday Tuesday, according to DiPersia.

Facebook rival MySpace, owned by News Corp., has permitted personalized user names for about five years.