Facebook’s mobile apps are about to take a complete turn in their design and functionality: with TikTok’s dominance in the social landscape, Meta wants to target its apps to Reels videos and user-recommended content. With an unexpected move: Messenger will return to the Facebook mobile app.
In 2014, Facebook starred in one of the most criticized movements in mobile telephony: the company forced all those who wished to communicate via instant messaging to use the independent Messenger application. since that year Facebook users had to load with two applications, not exactly optimized. Eight years later, the horizon reverses the decision.
Facebook looks to go head-to-head with TikTok
It’s no secret that the company owned by Mark Zuckerberg is a bit sluggish, especially among the younger group of users. With Instagram Meta it more or less keeps the competition to TikTok; with some Reels that they are eating the space of photography. And the Facebook app goes the same way.
The Verge managed to speak with those responsible for Meta who told the media what would the evolution of the social platform in its mobile applications look like. And the bad news is that the Reels are going to take center stage: Facebook wants to recover the young public by cloning the best of the rival service. Fresh videos, recommendations based on tastes and vertical scrolling will dominate mobile apps.
As detailed to The Verge, the Facebook mobile application is going to give prominence to the Reels to be this section the main cover of the applications. The app, which will maintain the aspect of navigation by upper tabs, will offer access to the different areas of the platform as follows:
- Facebook cover, the section that appears when you open the app. It will contain a mix of Reels and Stories, both from people who are followed and unfollowed.
- Recommended Articles. Facebook will display a selection of posts that it will take from both Facebook and Instagram.
- Right area of the upper tabs intended for messaging. Facebook would finally reverse its decision to separate Messenger from the main application: it would be enough to have the Facebook app installed to have access to Messenger’s instant messaging.
Just like what happened with Instagram and the obsession with cloning its Stories, in Meta they are going to turn the Facebook application into a kind of TikTok; grouping the rest of the functions offered by the social network, including Messenger. On paper, it will imply a change in the use of Facebook apps, both visually and for navigation. And bad luck for those who don’t want to watch videos on their phone: Just like on Instagram, Meta is going to sneak Reels everywhere. We would not be surprised if they reached WhatsApp.
That Facebook users can do without the Messenger application is great news, the problem comes with the rest of the changes that this turn in the Meta strategy entails. Turning Facebook into a TikTok is probably not what its users want, to see short videos they would go to said TikTok.
Via | TheVerge
