So last week the news was Facebook’s growth is coming to a slowdown. This week, the ultra-popular social networking site is reportedly adding a social music platform that could be music to the ears of Facebook ad prospects, as the addition would likely bring more users and traffic.

According to a report by GigaOm, Facebook will partner with Spotify, a music streaming service – as well as additional music services and applications – to launch a platform that will allow users to listen to music directly through Facebook. The platform would also give users real-time transparency into that their friends are listening to, the report said.

With nearly 700 million users, the music platform could have ad sales soaring and CEO Mark Zuckerberg singing.

Already with Spotify, users can share music with a click to Facebook or Twitter by dragging and dropping music between usernames.

Facebook’s “Music Dashboard” will reportedly include music “notifications” that show if friends have listened to songs recommended by you or on your profile. It will also include “recommended songs,” where users can get a list of songs heard and recommended by their friends and can also be played back by clicking the play icon. Other features include “top songs” and “top albums” from friends and “recent listens” from your friends, according to GigaOm.

The Music Dashboard is said to also include a “happening now” ticker that would show-up all throughout the user’s music experience and not just on the music dashboard, the report said.

The platform is already raising security concerns, according to a PC World report, which suggests Facebook’s Music Dashboard could push some users out of their comfort zones.

“So the question, as usual, is whether Facebook will take an opt-in or opt-out approach to music. If Facebook begins broadcasting users' listening habits without consent, there will be another privacy backlash, but this is how Facebook operates,” the report bluntly said.

As TechZone reported on June 13,  Facebook traffic in the United States has dropped off by nearly 6 million users, according to statistics from Inside Facebook Gold analytics service, the research arm of Inside Facebook, which gets its information from Facebook’s advertising tool.

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Erin Harrison is Executive Editor, Strategic Initiatives, for TMC, where she oversees the company's strategic editorial initiatives, including the launch of several new print and online initiatives. She plays an active role in the print publications and TechZone360, covering IP communications, information technology and other related topics. To read more of Erin's articles, please visit her columnist page.

Edited by Jennifer Russell