Facebook users will soon be able to watch videos on bigger screens from the comfort of their living room couch.
Last week, Facebook announced its launch of a new standalone television app for Samsung Smart TV, Apple TV and Amazon Fire TV, which allowsusers to watch videos from their friends, “liked” pages and top live videos on their TVs. This update will include recommendations of videos based on users’ interests and the ability to watch saved, already watched, shared and uploaded videos.
Facebook said it also has plans to release the app for other television platforms.
Additionally, Facebook announced video updates and new features. Videos will automatically play with sound on by default in News Feeds as long as the user’s phone sound is turned on. Vertical videos will automatically expand to fill the whole screen, like Snapchat, and videos will continue to play at the bottom of the screen while users browse through their News Feed.
“People are watching and sharing more video on Facebook than ever, and we’re focused on continuously improving the video experience,” Facebook said in a news release. “Today, we’re excited to share several updates that make watching video on Facebook richer, more engaging and more flexible.”
Lance Porter, associate professor and director of the Social Media Analysis and Creation Lab, said Facebook has a long history of looking at competitors and growing its product to offer the same functionality. He said Facebook has a tendency to adopt features from competing platforms, and this launch of video updates is a continuation of that strategy.
“This is them really becoming more of a media company,” Porter said. “They’ve often shied away from that label. They prefer to think of themselves as a technology company while making plays in media. I don’t really think they can stand behind that argument anymore.”
Porter also said Facebook will still be about user-generated content, but this shift should be a way to bridge its way into competing with Amazon and Netflix.
He thinks it is a smart move and logical next step for Facebook, especially when Facebook sees little growth in its users’ attention times because the platform is so large. He said it will draw direct attention and allow the selling of higher-priced advertisements with better quality.
“I think we can kind of expect to see where they introduce this new feature. It allows people to watch the same types of videos that are currently on Facebook on their television screens, and then they will allow advertising in that area that’s going to have some sort of unique facet to it,” Porter said. “And then they proceed into the full commercial offerings, and so when you combine the quality of that type of advertising offering with Facebook’s targeting capabilities, then that’s a big deal, in terms of what they can offer advertisers.”
Porter said that while television is dying more slowly than many expected, it is declining because people prefer to access only content they want. He said Facebook is preparing itself to be a place where people can access a lot of different kinds of content.
Facebook did not announce release dates for the app or video updates.