Facebook testing $100 charge to message strangers

Facebook is at it again, folks. The social network giant is testing out yet another new feature, and this time it's almost too ridiculous to believe. Facebook is testing a new service that charges you $100 to send a message to a stranger. So, instead of having the message land in their "Other" inbox, it will go straight to their main inbox.

Some Facebook users have been reporting an interesting popup when they attempt to send messages to people outside of their friend network. The popup notes that the message will be filtered to the "Other" inbox of the recipient, but offers to deliver it to the top of the recipient's inbox for a staggering $100.

Facebook first began experimenting with this kind of option last month when it first introduced filters, including the "Other" folder. In initial tests, the fee was just $1. However, according to Mashable, Facebook confirms the $100 option is part of that test, and they say they're testing "some extreme price points to see what works to filter spam."

Mashable reported seeing $100 as the fee to send a message to Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg, but sending messages to other strangers result in the same price, which means that the fee isn't based on the popularity of the user. However, unless you're part of the test group, you still can't send a message to strangers, and there's no word on when or if the feature will be rolling out. It's also entirely possible that if the service eventually launched, the fee might change.

[via Mashable]