Facebook Moments now supports live videos - Android users can now stream, too
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Facebook is driving pretty hard to the basket in trying to bolster its video offering.
In the last week, Facebook has expanded its live video streaming to users of the Facebook app on Android. This feature is now available in more than 30 countries and will roll out to even more nations in the next few weeks.
The social media giant has also improved Facebook Moments, its private photo-sharing application, to support video sharing. More than 400 million photos have been shared on Moments since its debut in June 2015, and 100 million of those were in the last month.
Facebook has also promoted Moments via its News Feed, a strategy it does not often use. This has surely helped with Moments' traction, and the inclusion of video should only help further.
Finally, Facebook recently announced the creation of a social virtual reality team, which offers another indication of the company's plans to promote VR video content in the mainstream, note Margaret Boland and Robert Elder of BI Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service.
Video content has become the centerpiece of Facebook's digital strategy as it tries to topple YouTube as the go-to destination for content creators to post video ads. And the plan has started to work, as more producers are publishing on Facebook than ever before.
Facebook announced in its fourth-quarter earnings report that users were watching 100 million hours of video each day. And in October, the number of native videos from media companies on Facebook soared 350% year-over-year, according to Socialbakers data shared with BI Intelligence.
Facebook and Snapchat have been leading the way in the shifting landscape of mobile video. YouTube has long been the dominant player in this space, but other contenders are stepping up to challenge for the crown. So what does the future of mobile video hold?
Margaret Boland, a research analyst for BI Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service, has compiled a detailed report on mobile video that takes a look at how short-form mobile video has exploded. The report examines how YouTube, the historically dominant force in short-form video, was slow to implement a mobile video strategy, opening the door for new players —namely Facebook and Snapchat — to emerge.
It also takes a look at how winners will begin to emerge in distinct video content categories. YouTube, for instance, will rely heavily on its homegrown YouTube stars to distinguish its video library and drive loyalty. Facebook will become the go-to place for brands and media companies to engage with the largest audience. And Snapchat will utilize its live-events coverage and exclusive content to promote video communication among younger mobile audiences.
Here are some key takeaways from the report:
- The rise in mobile video viewing can be attributed to several factors: an increase in overall time spent on mobile, the convenience of on-demand viewing, a preference for digital video viewing, and the increased availability of mobile video content.
- As video becomes mobile-first, YouTube's hold on the short-form video industry is waning. The number of videos that are uploaded to the platform per month has remained stagnant over the past year, according to Socialbakers data shared with BI Intelligence.
- Facebook is in the best position to upset YouTube as the go-to place for brand and media companies to upload videos and for users to watch these videos. Although Snapchat may not be competing with Facebook and YouTube on video volume, the app is changing how consumers, brands, and publishers are using mobile video for communication, news and entertainment, and live-event coverage.
In full, the report:
- Maps out the rise of mobile video viewing and lays out the main drivers of this trend.
- Examines why YouTube's hold on the short-form video industry is waning as viewers migrate to mobile viewing.
- Illustrates the dramatic increase in the number of videos that brands and media companies are publishing to Facebook over the past year.
- Forecasts the number of videos that US brands and media companies will publish to both Facebook and YouTube in 2016.
- Explains how Snapchat is able to compete with larger video platforms and is changing how brands, media companies, and consumers are using mobile video.
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