Facebook is going all-in on short-form videos. After flirting with the idea in Lasso, a TikTok clone tested in select markets, and recently adding a similar feature called Reels to Instagram, the company is exploring a new place for this TikTok experience: the big blue app.
The company confirmed to ProWellTech that it is testing short-form videos in the Facebook app in India, its largest user market. In the current avatar, "Short Videos" has a dedicated section within the news feed. At the top is the "Create" button, tapping which requires Facebook Camera to start, and users can browse videos by swiping up.
"We are always testing new creative tools so we can learn how people want to express themselves. Short format videos are hugely popular and we are looking for new ways to provide this experience for people to connect, create and share on Facebook," she said. a Facebook spokesperson at ProWellTech.
Matt Navarra, a social media consultant, first revealed the existence of the new test.
The test comes as Facebook continues to cash in on the absence of TikTok, the ByteDance owned by an app that was banned from India in late June. Facebook launched Reels in India last month, weeks before rolling it out in dozens of additional markets. A source familiar with the matter said Facebook's daily service engagement in India has increased by more than 25% since the TikTok ban.
Dozens of local startups, including Twitter-backed ShareChat and Times Internet's streaming services Gaana and MX Player, have launched standalone apps or built-in features to replicate the social experience that TikTok has provided users in recent weeks. Local apps claimed to have added tens of millions of new users over the period.
Youtube has also rolled out a similar feature, still in testing, to more users in India in recent weeks.
The urgency in Facebook's attempt to woo users with short-form videos comes as TikTok is planning ways to re-enter the market. ByteDance is engaged with the Indian conglomerate Reliance Industries will sell shares in TikTok's local business, ProWellTech reported earlier this week.
