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"Last week, we reported that Facebook was opening up its virtual gift shop to third-party developers and also introducing physical gifts, for example, being able to send someone a dozen roses using Facebook credits.  \nSpeaking at today\u2019s Social Good Conference, Facebook\u2019s Randi Zuckerberg made another announcement surrounding the Facebook Gift Shop: charity gifts.  \n\nIn a test starting next week, (RED), Kiva, Toms, and WWF will each offer 1-2 gifts at $5 or $10 each.  Facebook users will be able to buy these gifts for friends, and the proceeds will go to the charity associated with the gift.  This is essentially an extension of an increasingly popular offline concept \u2013 the idea of giving a gift to a recipient\u2019s favorite charity as a present.  \nThis isn\u2019t the first time Facebook is experimenting with virtual gifts for charity \u2013 earlier this year, they launched a similar initiative upon hitting the 200 million member milestone.  However, as Facebook moves further into gifts and payments, charity gifts may become a staple of the site.  \nAccording a company spokesperson, \u201Cthis is an alpha initiative and is not available to other charities at this time, but we may open up the program to new partners in the future pending the results. It is our goal to give our users a way to support the causes and issues that are important to them on a global scale.\u201D\nSee Also: DIGITAL CHARITY TOOLBOX: 50+ Ways to Get Your \u201CGive\u201D On"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://mashable.com/2009/08/28/facebook-charity-gifts/>