Yesterday, in its most-talked about move since Timeline, Facebook bought photo-sharing application Instagram for about $1 billion in cash and stock. Facebook Founder Mark Zuckerberg posted about the acquisition on his Timeline:

“We believe these are different experiences that complement each other. But in order to do this well, we need to be mindful about keeping and building on Instagram’s strengths and features rather than just trying to integrate everything into Facebook.”

Instagram CEO Kevin Systrom assured users that the Instagram they know and love “is not going away” in a website post:

“It’s important to be clear that Instagram is not going away. We’ll be working with Facebook to evolve Instagram and build the network. We’ll continue to add new features to the product and find new ways to create a better mobile photos experience.”

More importantly, what will this acquisition mean for users? Here are some notable insights from the Twitterverse:

With these Tweets in mind, what will this acquisition mean? A few predictions:

It may alienate the hipsters. It’sno question that Instagram has gone “mainstream” in the eyes of hipsters. Instagram will still allow users to add vintage style effects to their photos, but there’s fear that it may become another Flickr or Photobucket. If Instagram forays into video and web uploads, it may lose the sense of exclusivity that its mobile-only platform provides. The Facebook acquisition also carries the risk of making photos too shareable.

Facebook isn’t trying to ruin the user experience – it simply has to compete with Pinterest. Facebook has the opportunity to fill the need for a great Instagram web viewer, where users can store all their photos online, and where non-Instagram users can also participate in the photo-sharing community. David Coursey of Forbes says, “ Facebook provides an option for the millions of users who like Pinterest’s pinboard interface and simple feature set. By linking it to existing Facebook accounts, two logins become one, Instagram’s pinboards can appear as part of a Facebook account and everybody gets what they want.”

Community guidelines can change to better accommodate marketers. We know Facebook has its caveats – users can’t host competitions on pages, nor can they use Timeline photos with promotional words. Instagram, however, is known as a space for creatives, and Facebook should consider user guidelines accordingly.

The Facebook brand could get a boost. From a public relations perspective, there can be some good in this. Om Malik of GigaOm says unlike Facebook, whose “internal ideology is that of a desktop-centric Internet company,” Instagram has built a platform with emotional appeal. He says he has made friends based on photos users share, knows how they feel, and how they see the world. Perhaps users will associate these fuzzy feelings with the Facebook brand, rather than privacy concerns.

What do you think of the acquisition? Good or bad? Did Google miss out on a prime opportunity?

According to a recently published report, a team of about two dozen engineers is currently working on a project to turn Facebook into a search engine. This news has big implications for existing search engines like Google and Bing. Every day, millions of users publish content to, share, and like Facebook pages. Every brand with a budget has a Facebook presence. While Google +, Google’s attempt at a social network, has never really taken off with the likes of Facebook and Twitter, Facebook sees most of the published content on the internet. A Google search for something like a dessert place will yield pages of results. A Facebook search for a dessert place will show you the closest location with the most likes. It presents you with the best choice, and you didn’t even have to weed through the first page of options, as you might have to do with Google. It will be very interesting to watch how the team develops the Facebook search engine, and what the company chooses to do with it.

Creatives are often dubbed, “in a league of their own,” a quirky bunch stereotypically synonymous with, yes, “bad puns,” “stick-men drawings,” and maybe the occasional overflowing ashtray. And sometimes they clash with the analytics team, and the strategy team, but perhaps this San Francisco Egotist post will soften your opinion. Though some will continue to argue that paid media isn’t as influential as owned media, both types of communicators are in the business of storytelling. In the latter case, getting your client’s message out there comes a bit easier, but the process of getting there can be treacherous. Former creative Linds Redding shares why, in what he calls “the scam” of the industry:

Does that change your perception of the industry? If you’re curious for more, check out the full post. And if you’re a creative struggling with the “Overnight Test,” here are his final words of advice:

Have you ever heard of Riot! in Paris? (Insert awkward silence).

Well, maybe you’ll get to know them better in the coming weeks. The Brooklyn alt-rock and hip hop duo is spending the next month writing personalized songs about people based on their social media profiles. They’ve already written songs about four famous people: actor Aziz Ansari, model Kate Upton, photographer Terry Richardson, and New York meteorologist Mike Woods. The songs are personalized down to the tone and personality of their subjects.

Fortunately, you don’t have to be a celebrity to get your own song. So, if you don’t mind being social stalked and have always dreamed of being serenaded, you can request a song through Track Me, the site documenting the project. If the duo deems you songworthy, after digging through all your excessive participation in trending Twitter hashtags, Boloco mayorships, and tell-all Tumblr posts, your dream can come true.

This is not only an interesting PR tactic for a little-known band, but it brings a larger issue to the forefront: young people have supposed inattention to online privacy issues. It may certainly be a wake-up call if two strangers can write a song about you as your best friend could, merely from your online social properties. If you’re a tell-all social media user and get chosen, this could go either way; the band’s relatively modest social influence (618 Twitter followers) won’t give the videos too far a reach. However, if they’re following blows up because of this stunt, just be prepared to have all the skeletons in your social media closet on display.

By Stephanie Miceli

The news keeps getting worse for Carnival Corporation. After its Costa Concordia struck rocks off the Italian coast on January 13, just this morning, BBC reported 16 are dead and another 16 still missing.

As the search goes on, the question is-where is Micky Arison, the company’s CEO?

Mr. Arison has been managing the crisis from Carnival’s Miami offices-leaving Pier Luigi Foschi, CEO of Carnival’s Italian unit, Costa Crosciere, to do all the heavy lifting.

Arison has taken a hands-off approach, limiting his response to Twitter posts and statements in press releases expressing condolences. But for an industry that has long had a reputation for safety and few major accidents, 140 characters simply isn’t enough.

With photos of the overturned ship still circulating the Internet, this crisis isn’t about to set sail anytime soon. Here are what I believe to be Carnival’s biggest gaffes so far–and how to fix them:

Enhance CEO visibility: Mr. Arison has been managing the crisis close to Carnival’s Miami port, and according to a PRNews article, hasn’t visited the scene of the shipwreck to speak to the families of the dead and missing. Instead, he’s left on-site communication efforts to Pier Luigi Foschi, CEO of Carnival’s Italian unit, Costa Crociere S.p.A. It would only make sense that he’d be able to manage communication more effectively in Italy.

Prioritize: Of course, it’s crucial to be transparent and to communicate early and often in a crisis. However, when appointed spokesperson Pier Luigi Foschi said Costa backed a plan to steer close to shore as a way to generate publicity for the cruise line, it made the company appear as if it prioritized self promotion over passenger safety. Mr. Foschi blamed the ship’s captain for the tragedy, who apparently denied raising the alarm when the ship was in danger. Instead of assigning blame, Carnival should focus on assuming responsibility in the most appropriate manner – yet another reason why crisis management is best left to the CEO.

Listen, listen, listen: According to PRNews, Costa Cruises offered 30% off future cruises to survivors–an offer one passenger called “insulting.” Those affected aren’t looking for discounts-they’re looking for justice, something that could have been concluded through simply listening. CEO Arison would have ideally offered condolences to passengers in person, while designating a team member to monitor stakeholder conversations on and offline. After all, listening demonstrates humanity.

Don’t forget about employees: Employees should be the company’s allies and biggest champions-at all times. One of the best ways to do that is to ensure is having superb internal communication. Crisis contingency plans are part of that-and creating allies sometimes means planning for the worst, and being pleasantly surprised when “the worst” doesn’t happen.

During a crisis, the CEO is typically charged with public communication. Perhaps Mr. Arison’s absence doesn’t necessarily stem from a lack of humanity, but a lack of media training. Or is the notion of the CEO as primary spokesperson outdated? This case may bring that question to the spotlight, and though it won’t be old news soon, at least Arison hasn’t pulled a Tony Hayward and asked for his life back.

Spotted: The BIGfish team at the Lux, Bond & Green party in Boston.