Bebo, the British social networking website, announced a link-up with its rival Facebook yesterday that allows software developed for one site to work on the other.

The link gives companies developing applications – including NBC, the American broadcasting network, and Last.FM, the music recommendation website – the ability to offer features compatible with both networks, which have nearly 100 million users.

Bebo’s decision is a boost to Facebook, which had stood apart from a competing standards initiative called Open Social. This is led by Google and supported by MySpace, the network owned by News Corporation, parent company of The Times. MySpace has 110 million users.

“Facebook had great success when it allowed third parties to write their own software applications a few months ago,” Joanna Shields, the president of Bebo, said. “Now, within a few hours, a Facebook application can run on Bebo, which should be good news for software developers”.

Facebook has supported thousands of third-party applications since it opened up its site six months ago. Those taking advantage of the technology include the BBC, which transmits all its stations via a digital radio player, and Zomba, Britney Spears’s record label, which allows fans to get music and video clips on their profiles.

However, the technical tie-in falls short of allowing people with Bebo profiles to link directly to Facebook users. “I don’t think we are there yet,” Ms Shields said. “We think people use social networks for different things: Facebook is a great social utility, whereas you use Bebo to share media and entertainment.”

Gap, the American clothing chain, is one of Bebo’s launch partners. Its software allows people to “cast themselves as Gap models”, according to Will Hunsinger, vice-president and general manager of Gap Online, as the retailer tries to improve sales through online engagement.

Bebo is linking up with Open Social, as well as Facebook, making it the only leading social network to straddle the competing technologies — known as application programming interfaces, or APIs. That integration, though, will not take effect until “early 2008”.

Google set up Open Social at the end of October and swiftly attracted the backing of MySpace. DespiteMySpace’s greater size, Facebook’s early willingness to embrace third-party development helped to give it a boost that contributed to its massive surge in popularity this year.

Facebook is now the clear No 2 worldwide, with around 50 million active users, just below half of MySpace’s level. A year ago Facebook, which began life as a networking site for American students founded by Mark Zuckerberg, a college drop-out, had 12 million active users. The growth allowed it to raise $240 million (£117 million) from Microsoft, based on a company valuation of $15 billion.

Separately, MySpace is helping to resurrect Hammer Films, the British studio behind horror classics such as The Curse of Frankenstein and Dracula. Although Hammer has not made a film since 1976, it was acquired by John de Mol’s investment vehicle this year and is rebuilding its production capability. Entitled Beyond the Rave, the modern horror, will be released in 20 episodes via MySpace – before being released straight to DVD as a complete film – including “vampires, blood, death and suspense throughout”.

— Penthouse Media Group, the adult entertainment group, has bought the owner of the matchmaking site Adult-FriendFinder.com for $500 million in cash and securities. The combined 2007 revenue of the two is estimated to be $340 million.

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