Facebook Apps Actually Create Jobs—182K So Far

Playing FarmVille may not make you an actual farmer—but it does help create some bona fide, albeit non-agricultural, jobs. A new study released today estimates that more than 182,000 jobs have been created because of Facebook applications. University of Maryland Business School researchers pegged the number of software-company jobs created by the apps at 53,000 (FarmVille-maker Zynga employs more than 2,000).

The rest stem from jobs created by companies who supply the app developers, and from these now-employed developers' additional household spending (so maybe there are a few new app-created farm jobs). What's the boost to the economy? Between $12.19 billion and $15.71 billion, notes the Hill. (More Facebook app stories.)