Less people know that you can also use Facebook to target users based on the pages they are a fan of. Right now, this is only feasible if the person advertising owns both the advertised and the targeted page (cross promotion). But with a switch of a button, one line of programming code, Facebook could allow marketers to target users based on the competing fan pages they are connected to. For example:

- A solar panel company could promote their fan page to people who are fans of the Toyota Prius

- Google could target the Android page to fans of the iPhone SDK.

- Verizon could reach AT&T's customers with a special offer to switch phone carriers.

Currently, Facebook has companies caught in a race to acquire fans. And companies are spending large amounts of money on Facebook to achieve that goal. As people's connections with their favorite brands are mapped, the game will shift, and the race will be to acquire customers from your competition or from other brands that share similar values. And how will companies do that? By spending even more money on Facebook ads. 

The marketing process will become more liquid as customer groups are easier to find and communicate with. And as a result, the delta between customers' perceptions of brands and the real value that a brand provides will narrow, forcing companies to focus more and more of their energy on creating measurable value and creating great products that speak for themselves. 

So who benefits from this? 

- Facebook wins by increasing revenue, and accumulating valuable competitive data. 
- Customers win as companies' offers and marketing messages become more transparent and genuinely useful in a bid to acquire them. 
- And innovative product-focused companies eventually win by understanding early on that when your customers are so easily targetable by your competitors, the only way to keep them loyal is by constantly delivering innovative products.