Report: Through unpaid posts, Starbucks reached nearly one-tenth of all U.S. Internet users

It’s a question as old as, well, Facebook (or marketers’ interest in the social network).

One study from last June said the average fan is worth $136.38. In a recent report, ComScore said the answer is far more nuanced than that. The online analytics firm teamed with Facebook to look more closely at Starbucks, Bing, and Southwest brands, and it determined a fan is only as valuable as the number of Facebook friends he or she has.

Here’s how it works, in a nutshell (via Advertising Age): If you don’t like a brand, the only way you’ll come in contact with it is if one of your friends comments on the brand’s post. The more friends that person who comments on a brand’s post has, the more likely it is that more people will see it.