Facebook tests $1 fee for stranger to message inbox

(NBC News) A pair of updates to Facebook’s messaging feature is sure to ignite controversy over the holidays. While the improved filtering Facebook has implemented will be welcomed, an experiment allowing strangers to pay $1 to give their message high priority will likely cause serious unrest.

The updates are part of continuing efforts to expand and monetize Facebook messaging, which means change from a just being a way for friends on the social network to chat to a more universal and easy communication platform. To that end, Facebook has to allow and control for the possibility of strangers contacting users.