Facebook tests TikTok-style video format on its main app in India
Facebook is going all-in on short-form videos. After flirting with the idea in Lasso, a TikTok-clone it tested in select markets, and adding a similar feature called Reels to Instagram recently, the company is exploring a new venue for this TikTok-Esque experience: The big blue app. The company confirmed that it is testing short-form videos in the Facebook app in India, its biggest market by users. In the current avatar, “Short Videos” has a dedicated section within the news feed. On top of it sits the “Create” button, tapping which prompts Facebook Camera to launch, and users can browse through videos by swiping up. “We’re always testing new creative tools so we can learn about how people want to express themselves. Short-form videos are extremely popular and we are looking at new ways to provide this experience for people to connect, create and share on Facebook,” a Facebook spokesperson. Matt Navarra, a social media consultant, first revealed the existence of the new test. INTERESTING! Facebook is also testing a ‘short videos’ feed with TikTok-like swipe up in its main appThis appears to be in addition to Instagram Reelsh/t @roneetm pic.twitter.com/0XHiSowCwW— Matt Navarra (@MattNavarra) August 13, 2020 The test comes as Facebook continues to cash in on the absence of TikTok, the ByteDance -owned app that was banned by India in late June. Facebook launched Reels in India last month, weeks before launching it to dozens of additional markets. Read the full article
