Facebook’s real challenge at Clubhouse has just begun. With a series of launches entirely based on audio content, the giant of Menlo Park has decided to race towards this new frontier of social media. And it was to be expected, after Twitter, with the launch of “Spaces”, had also taken this path.
Facebook’s move came with a post signed by Fidji Simo, vice president and head of the Facebook app. “Our goal – wrote Simo – is to exploit audio in a simple and engaging way, so that it can be fully experienced in a social context”, adding that the platform will give audio creators “the opportunity to obtain profits from their work” . The novelties presented by Facebook are essentially four: there are live audio rooms on Facebook and Messenger, podcasts, a new audio post format that will be called Soundbite, tools for creating original audio in a professional way.
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Live audio rooms
The real challenge at Clubhouse is certainly the Live Audio Rooms. These are spaces for dialogue “perfect for communities to focus on topics they care about”. Initially they will be tested in groups, by public figures and by the summer they will be available for everyone. It should be remembered that about a year ago, in the midst of the pandemic, Facebook launched the “rooms”, to allow people to find themselves with group video calls. An idea that, a year later, does not seem to have been very successful. “In addition to bringing it to Facebook, we also plan to release Live Audio Rooms on Messenger this summer so that you can easily hang out with your friends, too,” explained Simo. Overall, these Live Audio Rooms will be as close to Clubhouse and Twitter Space as possible, but on Facebook.
Podcasts are coming
Instead, podcasts on Facebook arrive later. «More than 170 million people are already connected to hundreds of thousands of podcast pages on Facebook and more than 35 million people are members of fan groups around podcasts, but until now you had to leave the Facebook app to listen. these episodes. Within the next few months, you will be able to listen to podcasts directly on the Facebook app, both while using the app and when the app is in the background. And since it’s still hard to find podcasts you like, we’ll help you easily find new podcasts and episodes based on your interests, comment on them, and recommend them to your friends. And podcast creators will be able to reach and connect with new listeners, all directly from the Facebook app ». A big leap forward, therefore, which should also involve Spotify.
Soundbite
Also in the coming months will come a new way to post on Facebook: no longer just photos, texts and videos. But also Soundbite, short audio clips «perfect for recording anecdotes, jokes, poems». They will be tested in the next few months first with a group of creators. “We will start testing Soundbites over the next few months with a small number of creators and refine the product with their input before making it available to everyone. To start, we are collaborating with creators to experiment with different concepts ».