Facebook might be upgrading an application or simply defending its brand, but the social network yesterday obtained seven domain names related to the secure socket layer protocol and notifications.
Fusible reported that the social network registered for domain names Monday including Facebook-SSL.net, Facebook-SSL.org, FacebookNotifier.com, FacebookNotifier.org, NotifierFacebook.com, NotifierFacebook.net, and NotifierFacebook.org.
Those URL registrations came on the same day that Facebook finally launched its iPad app and announced the debut of Facebook platform for mobile.
Facebook had made SSL mandatory for all third-party applications on the social network as of October 1.
Athough Facebook already has its own Desktop Notifications, it’s labeled as an experimental prototype that has only been tested on Macintosh OS X 10.5 and no other operating system. This app has just over 40,000 active monthly users, a mere sliver of of the social network’s total of more than 800 million members.
Whether the notifier web addresses would ultimately serve up a more expansive application for Facebook remains to be seen, but the registrations could simply be a legal tactic.
Often the social network acquires domain names as part of a pre-emptive legal strategy, to proactively defend Facebook’s brand against would-be squatters; that strategy could very well explain this latest batch of seven registrations.