Though Facebook has developed into a veritable source of intriguing video content, the site’s wealth of other features can all too easily distract from it. It is likely for this reason that Facebook has seemingly just started testing a new feature where a playing video can stay in place during newsfeed scrolling.
Though Facebook has not openly confirmed that it is test-driving this peculiar feature, The Drum reports that it has been noticed by users of the social media site’s iOS app. The feature, apparently currently available to only “a select number” of this app’s users, adds a button that can be clicked to ‘pop-out’ a video. This video can then automatically follow as the user scrolls up or down the newsfeed.
Screenshots showing the feature in action have already been posted to social media – including the below screenshot published by tech news site The Next Web‘s Matt Navarra to his Twitter page.
Facebook is testing a pop-out video viewer which you can move anywhere on screen to watch whilst scrolling newsfeed pic.twitter.com/WpcCCq4mID
— Matt Navarra | 🚨 #StayAtHome (@MattNavarra) September 2, 2015
As the limited roll-out of this feature has only just caught widespread notice, the testing has probably only just got underway – meaning that it remains far from a foregone conclusion that Facebook will fully adapt this pop-out video function. Negative reaction could yet lead Facebook to abandon the idea or develop it into something rather different. Let’s just wait and see…