Facebook has continued its domination of the digital world, with the social media giant rolling out new plans for video offerings.
The new developments will see live video placed on mobile with a dedicated tab for easier navigation. Facebook explains in a statement: “You can discover live video that the world is talking about, live video from the friends and creators that matter most to you, and live video on topics you're interested in. From that place, you can also search live and non-live videos, and choose to go live yourself. Simply tap on the new video icon in the app to navigate to this new space." A similar feature will also be made available for desktop – named Facebook Live Map, which will allow 60 different countries to share live video.
The video space itself is also developing, with new features including the ability to filter videos in a similar fashion to Snapchat, as well as draw on videos while they are playing. Facebook’s recent addition, Reactions, will also be able to be applied and will appear throughout the video. The platform explains: "Live video on Facebook is truly interactive as broadcasters engage with their commenters and respond to their suggestions and questions. In fact, from initial data, we've seen that people comment more than 10 times more on Facebook Live videos than on regular videos. We want people watching the broadcast after the fact to feel 'in' on the action."
Additionally, videos will be able to be posted in groups and on event pages. In a beneficial move for publishers and video creators, Facebook has also confirmed the number of total live viewers during broadcast will be able to be measured.
