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Facebook is going to let strangers pay to spam you

Josh Peterson Tech Editor
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Facebook announced on Thursday that it will be testing out a new system to allow people to directly message others not within their immediate network.

The company currently uses social and algorithmic cues to filter messages sent to a user’s inbox.

Facebook is hoping to use the test —which will be administered only in the U.S. for personal messages between users — as a way to deliver messages to users not easily filtered socially nor algorithmically.

“Several commentators and researchers have noted that imposing a financial cost on the sender may be the most effective way to discourage unwanted messages and facilitate delivery of messages that are relevant and useful,” a release from Facebook said.

Facebook did not say how much the service would cost, although it would limit the amount of paid messages a user receives in their inbox to one per week. The test is also being conducted with a “small group of people”, although it was not specific on the number.

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Josh Peterson