Facebook app is redesigned by Meta to perform more like TikTok

• Image Credit: Internet

• Jul 22, 2022 | Kabir Chakraborty

The content in that category will be determined by Facebook's algorithms based on the user's browsing history on Facebook and hundreds of distinct information signals. These algorithms are powered by Facebook's artificial intelligence technology, which is known as the "discovery engine."

Digital Desk: For the
majority of Facebook's existence, its leaders have followed a tried-and-true
strategy: imitate other people's achievements.

The business, now known as Meta, kept up
that strategy on Thursday with a redesign of its primary Facebook app that
would alter how users explore the site and make it behave somewhat more like
one of its major rivals.

Users of
Facebook will soon be able to open the programme to a new Home page, which will
display a stream of images, movies that loop, and status updates from a variety
of friends and family members. The "Suggested for You" section of the
Home tab will also display a selection of postings from users and pages that
are not part of their network.

The content in that category will be
determined by Facebook's algorithms based on the user's browsing history on
Facebook and hundreds of distinct information signals. These algorithms are
powered by Facebook's artificial intelligence technology, which is known as the
"discovery engine."

The
Facebook app will essentially behave more like the Chinese-owned social media
platform TikTok. The video-based TikTok uses algorithmic signals and viral
content to display viewers highly engaging postings without relying on
someone's network of friends or contacts, in contrast to Facebook, which has
historically connected users to material created by their friends.

The modification is a component of Meta's
campaign to increase usage of its social platforms, which also include
Instagram. In order to keep users interested and coming back to the
applications frequently, Mark Zuckerberg, the chief executive of Meta, has
recently promoted video products on Facebook and Instagram. According to
Zuckerberg, the strategy appears to be working on Instagram.

The Home
tab adheres to a well-known social media trend called "discovery,"
which essentially relies on algorithms and machine learning to recognise the
kinds of information a user may enjoy and serve it up without the person having
to actively seek it out. Along with businesses like Snap and Twitter, Facebook
is making significant investments in that field.

TikTok has become a social media hit thanks
to its focus on discovery and serving up interesting content. TikTok, which was
founded less than ten years ago, has accumulated hundreds of millions of users
in recent years. According to some estimates, young people watch TikTok for
more than 90 minutes every day, surpassing even YouTube in terms of time spent
on the app.

This has
put stress on the family of apps from Meta. Its executives are getting worried
about how many of its younger users are switching to TikTok and other emerging
social media platforms.

Executives at Facebook and Instagram have
modified their products in response to initiatives made by rival companies to
reduce attrition. Reels, a short-form, looping video service similar to
TikTok's, was launched by Instagram in 2020.

In the
past, Meta has drastically altered the functionality of its products,
occasionally upsetting its customer base. The new shifts, however, are coming
slowly and softly. The Home page will continue to be filled with updates from
friends and groups, with outside content being gradually added as influencer
videos and Reels posts increase. While TikTok has found success with that
strategy, it's unknown if Facebook users will accept the changes or even notice
them.

As the business fine-tunes the algorithms and
enhances the discovery experience, users should anticipate seeing more
short-form video and Reels under the Home tab in the Facebook app update.
Photos or articles from sites and organisations that the user does not already
follow can also be included in their home content.

By going
to the new Feeds tab, users may still opt to only read content from their
friends, family, or specific pages, so avoiding being shown random, suggested
articles. People can browse content under the Feeds tab in categories such
posts from friends, postings from groups they belong to, and posts from pages
they subscribe to, or they can view a stream of all the content aggregated and
posted in reverse chronological order.

With the Feeds tab, according to
Zuckerberg, users would still be able to decide what content appeared on the
app.

He wrote
on Facebook, "One of the most desired features for Facebook is to make
sure users don't miss friends' updates." The Home tab of the app will
still open to a customised feed where our discovery engine will suggest the
articles it believes you'll find most interesting. However, the Feeds tab will
provide you additional customization and control over your experience.

The
Facebook app update will be rolled out globally over the next week.