Meta Tests New Facebook Interface That Shows Videos Instead of the Feed

Meta is testing a new opening interface for the Facebook app with some users in India. When accounts included in the test open the app, they see full-screen videos instead of the News Feed. This puts the Reels section front and center. According to the company, the change will make watching videos more convenient.

The plan for the new interface was first announced in July. At the time, the company said the test would begin toward the end of the year outside the US, in countries where interest in video is high. Users can opt out of this interface and have the app open with the News Feed again. The classic feed will also remain as a separate section. Meta plans to test this interface in the US next year.

The change is part of a plan to make video Facebook’s primary type of content. The company announced last year that all new videos uploaded to the platform would be shared as Reels, regardless of their length or format. The Video section in the app has also been renamed Reels. Young adults spend about 60 percent of their time on Facebook watching videos.

India has previously been one of the main countries where the company has tested its short-form video features. In 2020, Instagram began testing a separate Reels section there. This happened several months after TikTok was banned in India. Last year, some Instagram users in India and South Korea were directed straight to the video section as soon as they opened the app.

Video viewing figures are also high in India. At least 97 percent of respondents in a study commissioned by the company said they watch videos on these platforms every day. Among members of Generation Z, 89 percent use Reels daily. Advertising tools show a Facebook audience of more than 400 million in India. By this measure, the country is considered the platform’s largest market.