Facebook is testing audio and video calling in its main app, 7 years after moving the messaging functionality to Messenger.
Facebook is testing the integration of voice and video calls into its main application. © Chinnapong – stock.adobe.com
After creating Messenger in 2011, then separating the messaging part from its main application in 2014, Facebook now wants to test the functionality of voice and video calls directly from the application.
Voice and video calls only
For this first phase of testing, Facebook has chosen to transfer only the calls to the main application. The company told The Verge that “To get the full messaging, audio and video calling experience, people should keep using Messenger.”.
The company hasn’t said whether other Messenger features will return to the main app in the future, though Connor Hayes, Messenger’s director of product management, told Bloomberg that “You will begin to see a little more over time”.
Minimize back and forth between Facebook and Messenger
Although the feature is just a test, Connor Hayes also said that this feature is intended “Reduce the need to go back and forth between the main Facebook application and its Messenger service”. This first step forward however shows that Facebook is gradually starting to reconsider Messenger as a service and no longer as a completely standalone application.
Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook, points out that the integration of the company’s messaging services is a benefit for users, as it saves time and reduces the number of applications to download. This statement also refers to the recent merger of Instagram and Messenger messaging.
The social media has made it clear that the test phase has been started for some users in several countries, including the United States.
Receive all digital news by email