Facebook has introduced the auto-playing videos for iOS app after testing the feature for three months. Users currently have no option to disable the feature completely but can choose to play the videos in the wi-fi mode, which will save cellular data.
Facebook, the world's largest social network, has just updated its flagship iOS app to include auto-playing videos in users' News Feed. The updated app will not just play videos from advertisers but any video uploaded by friends will play automatically. The feature is finally on after the company announced that it was testing an auto-playing feature for News Feed on mobile three months ago.
Facebook-owned Instagram also got a tweak in October that removed the option to stop videos from playing automatically on the service. The photo sharing service introduced an option to upload 15-second videos in August, and has gained good response. The implementation of the feature into Facebook iOS app gives clear indication of the company's intentions to introduce video ads sooner. It was reported last month that Facebook has pushed the launch of video ads to sometime next year.
The new feature has currently debuted in iOS app but according to a report from TechCrunch, the social networking giant will expand its reach to the Web as well.
The new auto-play feature can easily upset several users but at the end of the day Facebook is looking to monetize its service on a large scale. The auto-playing videos from advertisers engage users. If some ads can actually impress then their effort pays off for both Facebook and advertisers.
How does the new feature work?
When a user is browsing through the News Feed and comes across a video, it starts playing automatically, which up until now needed users to tap on it. But Facebook has muted all auto-playing videos and if users are interested in the video, they can tap on it to turn up the volume and watch in full screen. But there is no way users can get away completely from the latest introduction.
How to stop the "auto-play" feature from draining your cellular data?
That is the most concerning factor among most users who have capped data limits. Facebook understands that and has a new setting that allows users to disable auto-play when the phone is using 3G or 4G LTE. Under the Facebook's settings section in the iOS Settings app, users can choose the videos to play automatically only on Wi-Fi.
The update is rolled out to all users, which also includes some bug fixes, and is available in the App Store for free.
