Facebook Splinters Mobile Strategy With New App

Facebook today is starting the rollout of a new mobile app called Messenger that extends its Messages product.

It’s a strategic departure for the company, which has said it will emphasize HTML5 over native apps so as to simplify development — in fact, it still hasn’t released a general-purpose Facebook iPad app. But now, Facebook will split off just its messaging features into the Messenger app that’s native for both iPhone and Android.

The Messenger app was developed by the Beluga team, which Facebook acquired in March, and like the start-up’s original product it emphasizes group planning.

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