Key announcements from the Facebook F8 Conference
Dating
Facebook recently launched its biggest ever marketing campaign, a series of ads that centre around the tagline “Here together”. Zuckerberg’s aim, “to get back to what made Facebook great in the first place”, is certainly a theme that applies to Facebook’s upcoming dating and relationships feature. In a move set to rival the likes of Tinder and Bumble, Facebook will soon allow people to create a dating profile that is separate from their Facebook profile. The social network will then find users potential matches based on their interests, mutual friends and dating preferences. Little further details have been shared on Facebook’s new dating feature, which will start testing later this year. Tinder currently has around 50 million users, but the seamlessness of being able to essentially be on a Tinder equivalent while also active on Facebook could be enough to make Mark Zuckerberg’s creation the new go-to for singletons.AR (Augmented Reality)
The popularity of AR continues to grow rapidly and it’s clear that Facebook are doubling down on it across the platforms that it has. This includes:- Instagram - The AR camera platform was announced last year, and it will now be used across Instagram as well. From face filters to world effects, the AR Studio allows users to create unique and interactive experiences.
- Messenger - These camera effects will also be seen across Messenger. This will be huge news to brands who will be able to get valuable, instant feedback on purchases and much more. There is also the option for developers to build things like walkthroughs of new products and allowing people to virtually try things on.
- Facebook Lite - The three-year-old app for Android is also getting the AR push and they’re hoping to use third-party developed experiences across the app.