Facebook Watch video service launches worldwide (bbc.co.uk).
Facebook’s Watch video-streaming service is rolling out worldwide, just over a year after its US launch.
With the aim of challenging YouTube, Netflix and Amazon Prime allowing product users (theweek.com, Mar. 2018) to watch a range of shows all payed for by advertising, with plans to allow “content creators” to be allowed to feature advertising breaks if certain metrics are met, with until now only select publishers had been given the opportunity since launching a year ago in the US.
F’book’s take on such a service is to capitalise on its social network status allowing viewers to interact:
“It is built on the notion that watching video doesn’t have to be a passive experience,” explained Fidji Simo, Facebook’s vice-president of video.
Seemingly allowing “a two-way conversation about the content with friends, other fans or even the creators themselves” and ability to run polls, challenges and quizzes “to boost engagement”. However, besides giving your vote in said polls some may imagine the “engagement” will be more of the arguing of the toss and trolling paradise of GoogleTube’s comments section than the engagement and interaction between the sheets or atop the sofa implicit in Netflix and chill (urbandictionary.com).
But will it succeed, with published studies suggesting it managed only a niche appeal within its first year in the US.
Of 1,632 adult Facebook users questioned, 50% had never heard of Watch, while 24% said they were aware of the on-demand service but had never used it, according to the Diffusion Group.
With another report suggesting some sampled but the platform struggled to retain their interest. But although not quite planning a budget in the realm of Amazon or Netflix as yet some original series programming involving some moderately big name stars is already underway or earmarked for the platform, such as Elizabeth Olsen in the forthcoming Sorry For Your Loss.
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