Study: Facebook apps have created 182K jobs

Facebook applications have created more than 182,000 jobs and contributed more than $12.19 billion in wages and benefits to the U.S. economy, according to a study released by the University of Maryland Business School.

The study was led by Il-Horn Hann, an associate professor of information systems, and was part of a partnership between Facebook and the University of Maryland. The researchers found the market for Facebook apps has directly created 53,000 new jobs in the software companies that design the apps. Zynga, maker of the popular Farmville game, now has more than 2,000 employees and an estimated value of $15-$20 billion, according to the study. The researchers note the boom in software jobs has also created additional jobs in the businesses that supply the app developers and from the increased household spending of the developers' employees. The study estimated the Facebook "app economy" has indirectly created at least an additional 129,000 jobs.