Taking a page from Snapchat, Facebook launched Stories on Tuesday. This new feature will allow people to share a sort of "digital slideshow" of photos and/or videos that will disappear after 24 hours, according to USA Today. Wow, that sounds familiar—oh wait, it's just like Snapchat.
Facebook’s Newsroom said Tuesday that “[Facebook] want[s] to make it fast, fun and easy for people to share creative photos and videos with whomever they choose, for however long they choose—and the more we share with each other, the more open and connected our community can be.”
In a social media era where photos and videos are becoming the go-to way of connecting with one another, this could get people to spend more time on the popular social media site—and even draw people away from Snapchat.
Jan Dawson, chief analyst with Jackdaw Research, told USA Today, “if Facebook gets this right...[they] could increase time spent and stickiness for its own products, while putting another dent in Snapchat’s user growth."
According to TechCrunch, there will be a camera icon in the top corner of the Facebook app, and you can take photos and even add effects.
Newsroom says that the “Facebook camera is packed with dozens of effects like masks, frames and interactive filters that you can apply to your photos and videos." It added, "Reactive effects let you interact with dynamic objects—like falling snow—and style effects apply an artistic filter to your video in real time, letting you turn your everyday selfie into a Picasso-style work of art.”
But wait—they're still not done copying Snapchat! According to TechCrunch, Facebook is also introducing Direct, which is similar to Snapchat’s direct messages feature; people will be able to reply directly to their friends' stories and share their photos and videos with their friends.
Although the News Feed will still be the main Facebook feature, according to USA Today, this photo and video sharing will definitely be playing a new role.