Following recent discussions with a number of major media companies, Facebook may start to allow external news articles to be hosted within its news feeds.
According to The New York Times, the new format, if the talks come to fruition, would mean that rather than clicking on a post and being taken to an external source, the articles of contributing news suppliers would feature on the social media platform.
It is believed that the benefit of doing so for the media firms is that they will have access to a wider range of web traffic, while it appears that Facebook will also make a deal with them concerning the advertising revenue coming from ads running alongside the content.
It was reported that a trial of the new media service could take place over the coming months, with Buzzfeed, National Geographic and The New York Times being the first to contribute content.
For social media users, this type of news format could make the process of consuming content appear more seamless, which is something Facebook has publically stated that it wants to achieve. This could also speed up the delivery of articles, which it has been claimed can lead to added traffic and enhanced user satisfaction.
While many of the online news providers may prove reticent to stop diverting traffic back to their own sites, Facebook’s 1.3 billion active monthly users may make it worth the risk. Furthermore, as the social platform is already one of the leading sources for publishing traffic, many consumers have come to expect quality content on its news feeds.
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