Facebook tests new autoplaying videos with sound for iOS users

Posted:
in iPhone
Facebook on Tuesday began a limited test of new video autoplay technology for its mobile app, including a version that begins playing audio automatically as a person scrolls past a clip in their News Feed.




At the moment the test is limited to some app users in Australia, but a portion of those people will hear audio from all forms of video -- including ads and live streams -- by default, as long as their iPhone or iPad isn't muted, Mashable noted. Another group has audio off unless they tap an icon in the bottom right of a clip.

Both groups are being presented with an initial pop-up message explaining controls. For people with audio on by default, they can choose to silence video for each clip individually, or by toggling an "always off" option in the app's Settings menu.

Audio-on autoplay is unlikely to make it into widespread release, as even Facebook's own data suggests that 80 percent of people react badly to having sudden sound playing from video ads. Indeed the technology could create problems for people browsing Facebook in public spaces, especially given the unfiltered nature of live video.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 26
    Yet more reasons to not use the app. 
    zroger73bdkennedy1002goodbyeranchericthehalfbeemobiuspscooter63lostkiwispacekidstevenozpotatoleeksoup
  • Reply 2 of 26
    lkrupplkrupp Posts: 10,557member
    Oh god no!
  • Reply 3 of 26

    Yet more reasons to not use the app. 
    Even more reasons to avoid Facebook like the plague.

    WTF are they thinking?


    zroger73macseekerlostkiwitmay
  • Reply 4 of 26
    apple ][apple ][ Posts: 9,233member
    What a disgusting company.

    I will never be on Facebook. In certain places in Europe, you can get arrested for merely posting on Facebook, if you write a post that the Gestapo disapproves of. Facebook has partnered with the Gestapo to make sure that only certain speech is allowed.

    I would definitely be arrested and charged if I was on Facebook in one of those fascist EU countries.

    But I'm not, so they all can go and bite me! Zuckerburg can go eat a turd.

    I'd like to see Facebook follow in the path of Gawker.
    bdkennedy1002macseeker
  • Reply 5 of 26
    SoliSoli Posts: 10,035member
    Yet more reasons to not use the app. 
    I like their app. It's their website I find to be a poor experience. Even after they moved to HTML5 video, their live videos still require Adobe Flash, so I get a "missing plugin" notice everytime I happen to click on one of those notifications form Safari on macOS.
    potatoleeksoup
  • Reply 6 of 26
    tzterritzterri Posts: 110member
    It better not stop the music I'm listing to in order to play the sound from a movie.
    spacekid
  • Reply 7 of 26
    apple ][apple ][ Posts: 9,233member
    sog35 said:
    Thus at is very core Google and Facebook are trash companies that plague the poor and uneducated
    True.

    Also, sexual predators love Facebook. I read that Facebook live streamed a live, underage rape the other day.

    Shouldn't Zuckerberg be in jail for contributing to the rape of a minor?
  • Reply 8 of 26
    All that is going to make me do is keep on scrolling past it.
    williamlondon
  • Reply 9 of 26
    hexclockhexclock Posts: 1,243member
    Annoying. Nobody wants this. 
    williamlondonpscooter63
  • Reply 10 of 26
    brucemcbrucemc Posts: 1,541member
    Not on FB, but peruse Instagram the odd time.  It did this by default, until I saw the setting to turn it off.  Was very annoying to me, and I am sure the people around me.  Can't imagine why FB thinks this is a good idea.
    williamlondon
  • Reply 11 of 26
    SoliSoli Posts: 10,035member
    apple ][ said:
    sog35 said:
    Thus at is very core Google and Facebook are trash companies that plague the poor and uneducated
    True.

    Also, sexual predators love Facebook. I read that Facebook live streamed a live, underage rape the other day.

    Shouldn't Zuckerberg be in jail for contributing to the rape of a minor?
    Don't be an asshole. Saying that Zuckerberg should be in jail because live streaming exists on FB is like saying Tim Cook should be in jail because it was done with an iPhone. Furthermore, you take the heartbreaking story of someone being raped into a platform to push your anti-Zuckerberg agenda, whilst ignoring service like Periscope. Shameful.

    Don't be an idiot. At this point you should understand what the word live mean in live streaming.

    Don't be ignorant. You've already stated "I would definitely be arrested and charged if I was on Facebook" so you're clearly aware that FB does a good job of tracking its users identity, and yet you then claim that "sexual predators love Facebook" and suggest that live streaming on FB is where you can see an 24 hour rape channel without consequence to the person streaming. You're more likely to find to elicit material in iCloud because people take photos and videos with their iPhone which is then uploaded to iCloud. 
    edited August 2016 Roger_Fingasfastasleepnolamacguy
  • Reply 12 of 26
    jungmarkjungmark Posts: 6,926member
    No!  If they want to auto play video, pay me for the data usage. 
  • Reply 13 of 26
    SoliSoli Posts: 10,035member
    jungmark said:
    No!  If they want to auto play video, pay me for the data usage. 
    In the app, at least, it can be disabled. I hope they offer the same feature on their webpage, but I'd also like to see that offered in Safari as a basic feature.

  • Reply 14 of 26
    larz2112larz2112 Posts: 291member
    They tested autoplay videos on the app a while ago and it was NOT well received, especially by those who have a limited monthly data plan. You think they would have learned their lesson. What's even worse is the autoplaying video advertisements which are used on the Apple Insider site. My laptop uses a MiFi network with a monthly data cap, so I need to manage how much I download. No matter how many times I click on the "Don't show video ads" button, they continue to show up. It's pretty frustrating.
  • Reply 15 of 26
    SoliSoli Posts: 10,035member
    larz2112 said:
    They tested autoplay videos on the app a while ago and it was NOT well received, especially by those who have a limited monthly data plan. You think they would have learned their lesson. What's even worse is the autoplaying video advertisements which are used on the Apple Insider site. My laptop uses a MiFi network with a monthly data cap, so I need to manage how much I download. No matter how many times I click on the "Don't show video ads" button, they continue to show up. It's pretty frustrating.
    In your case, I would recommend not using the app and installed AdBlocker Plus for Safari in iOS. Not only will it stop videos in ads—which are already extremely annoying—but reduce the general excess of the standard bloat and speed up loading times.
  • Reply 16 of 26
    stevenozstevenoz Posts: 314member
    Soli said:
    Yet more reasons to not use the app. 
    I like their app. It's their website I find to be a poor experience. Even after they moved to HTML5 video, their live videos still require Adobe Flash, so I get a "missing plugin" notice everytime I happen to click on one of those notifications form Safari on macOS.
    Use Google's Chrome browser instead of Safari when on macOS for Facebook's site. It's got a safer sandboxed Flash component so you can still play Flash files even though Flash is not installed on your Mac.
  • Reply 17 of 26
    fastasleepfastasleep Posts: 6,408member
    jungmark said:
    No!  If they want to auto play video, pay me for the data usage. 
    Hey guys, instead of the faux outrage as the auto playing videos have been present for many months now, you can just go into your app's general settings and go to Video and Photos > Autoplay and you have three choices:

    - Autoplay on wifi and cellular
    - Autoplay on wifi only
    - Don't autoplay

    The only difference is they're all silent by default, and as stated in the article the feature they're testing would allow you to go back to mute by default. Otherwise the videos would behave more like Vine where you'd hear the audio as you scroll past a video. Big effing deal. 
    Solisingularitypotatoleeksoup
  • Reply 18 of 26
    nolamacguynolamacguy Posts: 4,758member
    apple ][ said:

    I will never be on Facebook. In certain places in Europe, you can get arrested for merely posting on Facebook, if you write a post that the Gestapo disapproves of. Facebook has partnered with the Gestapo to make sure that only certain speech is allowed.

    I would definitely be arrested and charged if I was on Facebook in one of those fascist EU countries.
    hmm that sounds an awful lot like a load of horse shit. what countries are these?
    edited August 2016 fastasleepsingularity
  • Reply 19 of 26
    apple ][apple ][ Posts: 9,233member
    apple ][ said:

    I will never be on Facebook. In certain places in Europe, you can get arrested for merely posting on Facebook, if you write a post that the Gestapo disapproves of. Facebook has partnered with the Gestapo to make sure that only certain speech is allowed.

    I would definitely be arrested and charged if I was on Facebook in one of those fascist EU countries.
    hmm that sounds an awful lot like a load of horse shit. what countries are these?
    Multiple. The extreme leftist and radical company Facebook has teamed up with the authorities in certain countries, to censor speech that it doesn't like.

    Germany, Denmark, Netherlands, Scotland, and more.

    POLICE ARREST BRITISH MAN FOR “OFFENSIVE” FACEBOOK POST ABOUT MIGRANTS


    http://www.infowars.com/police-arrest-british-man-for-offensive-facebook-post-about-migrants/
  • Reply 20 of 26
    apple ][ said:
    I would definitely be arrested and charged if I was on Facebook in one of those fascist EU countries.
    Probably best if you stay right where you are then
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