As an increasing number of people consume news on mobile devices, Facebook has launched a new tool to help publishers create fast and interactive articles on the social network.
It currently takes an average of eight seconds for standard mobile web articles to load, however the development hopes to speed this up tenfold, while also giving publishers “control over their stories, brand experience and monetisation opportunities.”
Dubbed ‘Instant Articles’, the tool will include a number of interactive features that allow publishers to “bring their stories to life in new ways,” including a zoom-in and explore function, auto-play videos, interactive maps and audio captions.
In a blog post, Facebook’s product manager, Michael Reckhow, said that publishers will be able to sell ads in their articles and keep the revenue, or alternatively they can choose to use Facebook’s Audience Network to monetise unsold inventory.
They will also be able to track data and traffic through comScore and other analytics tools.
“Fundamentally, this is a tool that enables publishers to provide a better experience for their readers on Facebook,” said Facebook’s chief product officer Chris Cox.
“Instant Articles lets them deliver fast, interactive articles while maintaining control of their content and business models.”
BBC News and the Guardian are the first UK media companies to sign up to the initiative, while other international publishers include BuzzFeed, the New York Times, National Geographic, NBCNews, The Atlantic, Bild and Spiegel.
The first articles are due to be published in the coming months.
“It is great to see Facebook trialing new ways for quality journalism to flourish on mobile,” said Tony Danker, international director, Guardian News & Media.
“The Guardian is keen to test how the new platform can provide an even more engaging experience for our readers. It is then vital that, over time, Instant Articles delivers recurring benefit for publishers, whose continued investment in original content underpins its success.”
