Why? As research house Jefferies & Co. explains in a research note to clients today, if Twitter hasn’t yet managed to transform its popularity into significant revenue, how will Microsoft (MSFT) or Google (GOOG)?

“While we believe Microsoft pulled off a little bit of a media/PR coup by announcing the Twitter deal and forcing Google to rush into a similar deal, we do not believe Microsoft will be able to capitalize on its first mover advantage in the short run since neither search engines nor Twitter have figured out how to monetize the data streams from Twitters (affectionately known as Tweets),” Jefferies analysts wrote.

“We believe that users focused on real-time data would be less tolerant to advertising,” the research note adds. “That said, we can see new business models emerging down the line where the realtime tweets blended with local information (traffic conditions, flight arrivals, etc.) could be more easily monetized and where ‘premium’ tweets from celebrities could be included for a premium subscription. For now, the real-time data integration would mean more refreshes from the users to get up to the minute updates, which should translate into higher query volume, all else equal.”
 

One way to think about this is as a timeline–or a stream. As people share more, the timeline gets filled in more and more with what is happening with everything you’re connected to. The pace of updates accelerates. This creates a continuous stream of information that delivers a deeper understanding for everyone participating in it. As this happens, people will no longer come to Facebook to consume a particular piece or type of content, but to consume and participate in the stream itself.”

A heavyhanded explanation for a simplistic concept, but perhaps there is a deeper meaning to be found in our collective tweet of consciousness mutterings–“John is stuck at SFO,” “Beth is all liquored up,” “Adam is reminiscing about his days on the Newton”…“Mark has a laughably grandiose vision of his social-networking service.”

Or perhaps the deeper meaning here is to be found in another tweak Facebook is making to its service. As part of this redesign, the company is making profiles and pages the same thing. What that means is that pages created by public figures, organizations and companies will now look, feel and behave just like any other profile. Now their proprietors, too, can join “the stream.” “These folks will now be able to share status updates, videos, photos or anything else they want, in the same way your friends can already,” says Zuckerberg. “You’ll be able to keep up with all of their activity in your News Feed. This means that you can find out that Oprah is reading a book backstage before a show, CNN posted a breaking story or U2 is working on a new song, just as you would see that your friend uploaded new photos from her trip to Europe.”

Presumably, that also means folks like Microsoft (MSFT), BlockBuster (BBI) and Coca-Cola (KO) can also tip you off to the fascinating things they’re up to. So in the end, this redesign isn’t about the continuing evolution of the “social graph” or whatever the hell Facebook calls its network these days. It’s about developing a new advertising program that allows businesses legitimate access to the 175 million Facebook members the company has so far failed miserably to monetize.