Google’s introduction of its latest version of Chrome OS with a new voice search feature alerted Facebook too. Facebook is about to launch a new, although an optional way of sharing what a Facebook user is listening to or watching via status updates.
Google’s search update strikes a chord at marketers and consumers that it will get easier for the end user to look for information on the Web. With Facebook’s new feature, the social media giant has taken that realization a step further by allowing its members to share social media content to their personal networks using similar voice-driven technology.
When writing a Facebook status update, users will now have the option to use their cell phone’s microphone to identify what song, movie or show is playing.
However, Facebook users must turn this feature “ON” in order for the technology to work. Once the user has enabled it, Facebook explains the process as such:
“If you’ve turned the feature on, you’ll see an audio icon moving on the screen when you write a status update. If the feature finds a match, you can then choose to add the song, TV show, or movie to your post.”
The same privacy settings apply, making it easy for the users to decide who sees the update. No sound will be stored on Facebook or the device, alleviating the worries of anxious technology users, regarding privacy and copyright issues.
However, when the user share’s what he/she is listening to, their friends will be able to see a 30-second preview of the song. For TV shows, Facebook will identify the exact season and episode, which seems to help avoid spoilers in the News Feed.
This update will help make Facebook more visual as each status improvement brings an additional multimedia social media content format into view. For musicians and TV producers, direct call to action to “download” or at the beginning of every show can spark social media chatter, this will ultimately help marketers quantify the impact of social media marketing in partnership with traditional broadcast channels.
Source: Facebook Newsroom