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This sort of feature will be (Blizzard assures us) optional; players do not have to link up their Battle.net accounts to their Facebook account, or connect their real name/identity to their Blizzard game play. This was the bone of contention during the [[Real ID]] debacle, when fans were outraged at Blizzard's plans to require players to use their real names to post on most of the Battle.net forums, including the Tech Support forum.
==Battle.net and Facebook Integration==
The first news about [[Real ID]] and Facebook integration into Battle.net came in May 2010, when Blizzard announced a Facebook / Battle.net connectivity. [http://diablo.incgamers.com/blog/comments/activision-blizzard-announces-battle.net-and-facebook-integration]
<blue>IRVINE, Calif., May 05, 2010 -- Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. announced today that its Battle.net gaming service will integrate with Facebook, linking the world's premier online gaming platform with the world's most popular social platform. The first step in the integration will enable StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty players to quickly add Blizzard gamers who are friends on Facebook to their Battle.net friend lists, facilitating their social gaming experience on the service.<br>
"We're pleased to be working with Facebook to integrate their platform with Battle.net to enhance the social-entertainment experience for our players," said Paul Sams, chief operating officer of Blizzard Entertainment. "This new functionality will make it easier than ever to connect with friends on Battle.net and play StarCraft II and future Blizzard Entertainment games together."
The new Facebook functionality in Battle.net will be tested in the near future via the ongoing StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty beta test and will be available to all StarCraft II players when the game ships later this year. Information about other Facebook-related features on Battle.net will be announced at a later date.</blue>
This announcement was greeted with more suspicion and worry than excitement and anticipation, but the attachment of publicly-viewable real names to Battle.net accounts didn't become a big issue until later, when mandatory plans for [[Real ID]] in the B.net forums were announced. (Then scrapped, after massive fan opposition.)
