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Facebook Notify launches for smartphones

Newspapers e1465376741421

Facebook Notify launches for smartphones

A new iPhone app that aggregates news from a host of major sources has been launched by Facebook.

Called ‘Notify’, the app allows users to tailor their newsfeeds using providers such as Fox, the Washington Post and CNN from a choice of over 70.

Facebook has said that the categories available for choice include music, movies, sport, celebrities and general news. There are some slightly more esoteric ones such as exercises in mindfulness and meditation, as well as access to Getty’s picture library, which will display iconic historical images from that date in history.

Notifications of new stories will pop up on the phone’s lock screen, and can even be shared to a user’s profile from there.

Mark Mulligan, the managing director of Midia Research, an analyst company, thought the app was a smart move as Facebook was now the “jumping off point into our digital lives”. He added:

“The better a job it can do of this, the better it locks users in.

“It has seen standout success with spinning out Messenger and recognises that the more touchpoints it can develop with its users, the more it can create greater loyalty.”

Although the app is only available to US residents who use iPhones, there is speculation that it will roll out worldwide, though Facebook has yet to confirm this. Commentators note that the app is in direct competition to Apple’s news service and Twitter’s Moments, so users in other countries may expect news on this front soon. At the moment, Android users are still in the dark over whether the app will appear on their platform.

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