Audio within social media became an object of desire for tech companies after Clubhouse led the way for conversations. Now Facebook, after a few months after Mark Zuckerberg spoke on the subject, has just launched Live Audio Rooms, its platform focused on this element that will gradually reach more users.
The company announced that for now, the new option to generate conversations will only be available to some public figures or verified creators, within the United States, who have the iOS operating system. This means that Android users will not be able to create conversations, but they will be able to enter them.
Within this audio platform, a host will have the possibility of inviting up to 50 people to speak and also, there is no listening limit within the conversation, which represents a differentiator in relation to Clubhouse, since it has a limit for the audience.
Among other features of Live Audio Rooms is the generation of live subtitles, notifications when someone joins the room or the ability to “raise your hand” to take the floor.
While the audience will have the possibility to react with “Like”, as happens in conventional live broadcasts. In addition, there will be public and private group chats, which will depend on the configurations that the administrators run.
In terms of content monetization, users will be able to support their creators through Stars, which can be purchased during the conversation and used at any time. Upon awarding the Stars, the listener will move to the “Front Row” section, where it will be highlighted to the host.
It should be noted that hosts will also have the ability to select a non-profit organization or reason to raise funds, in order for people to donate directly to that cause. This is also a different option from Clubhouse, where there is no space where people collect money directly in the application.
To have information on when a meeting will start or if one is already in progress, Facebook users will receive alerts in the news section of their app and can even sign up for a reminder. Also, the function will be implemented within the groups of the platform.
On the other hand, the company founded by Zuckerberg announced the arrival of podcasts on its platform, where they can be listened to through a mini player or on the full screen. They will have several controls and even the playback will continue with the screen off.
Within this new functionality, users will be able to react, comment, mark and share their favorite episodes. Likewise, the company explained that by the end of the summer they will have automatically generated subtitles, as well as an option to generate clips of the content.
This last option is relevant, since it ties in with the company’s claim to generate Soundbites, a product for sharing short audios, which would complete the Facebook audio ecosystem, whose podcast service will not be based on other apps, such as Spotify, but which will be a native podcast streaming app.
Facebook’s decision to enter the podcast market is not fortuitous. According to financial analytics firm Finbold, advertising revenue in the United States alone is projected to exceed the $ 1 billion mark for the first time in 2021, to $ 1.34 billion.
This figure represents a growth of 59.9% compared to the revenues of 842.3 million dollars registered last year. In 2019, revenue stood at $ 708.1 million, while in 2018, US podcasts attracted $ 479.1 million in ad revenue.
In addition, by 2022, revenues are expected to reach 1.7 billion dollars and from 2023 the advertising revenue of the sector is expected to reach 2.18 billion dollars, which represents a growth of 64.70% compared to the projection of 2021.
