My real beef with this post is the assertion that Facebook apps are dying because of changes in layout. That's not true. Most of the big-name Facebook apps are growing traffic AND revenues. Check out how well the CPA-based solutions are doing.
The Facebook app realm is dominated by engaging, high-retention games. Think anything of the "Mob Wars" ilk. I can sympathize with the author's position seeing as how his apps were largely based on having something on the user's profile surface. Unfortunately, those apps are dead; it's the games that dominate Facebook now.
Now developers will need to come up with things that are more compelling, and this will bring better experiences to the users. Not that people were somehow coerced or spammed to install my badges. They spread by people noticing the badges on their friends' profiles, and installing them from there. Loyalty in Google Analytics showed a lot of people visiting regularly to tweak the layout of their badge, and I got a lot of nice feedback.
The company that I most look up to with admiration is Playfish. Those guys really know how to create experiences that are genuinely fun, but still viral enough to spread. I wish one day I will be skilled enough to be able to come up with apps that have quality matching what they offer.
