Social networking giant Facebook has recently introduced a new app that allows its users to create a series of short video clips.
The app is called Lasso and has been designed to compete directly with TikTok, an app that recently merged with hit application Music.ly, a viral 15-second video app.
Lasso allows users to record themselves lip-syncing and dancing along to music, which is essentially the same as TikTok. Lasso also lets the user record short videos similar to those that appeared on Vine, before that was taken offline. According to Facebook, Lasso is a standalone app for creating short-form, entertaining video content. It believes that the app has plenty of potential and will help the company appeal to the younger generation once more.
The launch was an under-the-radar affair, with no official release statement, as the company tries to win back a number of teenage users, the age category that has become the most troublesome for Facebook. In the past couple of years, a large number of teenage users have left or stopped using the site, which became a big concern for the company as this was once the demographic over which it had the biggest hold.
In 2014, around 71% of youngsters stated that they used the social network, but just four years on, that figure has tumbled to just over 50%.
Those who wish to use Lasso can access the app through Instagram, or they can create an account through their Facebook profile. The user will have to authorise Lasso to access their Facebook profile, as well as videos and photos.
After the initial set up, users are then free to explore the content on the app. Content on Lasso automatically plays as you scroll past it, in the same way that most social networks currently present video content. Hashtags appear on the app and feature prominently at the bottom of each clip. Like Twitter and Instagram, it is possible to filter content by hashtag.
Furthermore, any videos recorded through Lasso can be shared to both Facebook and Instagram, and can be uploaded to either the main feeds or as Stories.
Lasso is available on both Android and iOS devices and already has a library of content, similar to what was on the old Facebook Watch during its initial launch. However, whether the app will be a success or not is a waiting game, as some believe the challenge has come too late, since TikTok has already been around for two years.
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