Facebook Messenger gets the dislike button we’ve been waiting for

The dislike button something a lot of Facebook users have been asking for but it isn’t coming to the main app, instead it shows up on Messenger. The social media giant is testing out reactions with a small group of users. And aside from including the usual reactions you can do for Facebook posts, there’s also the thumbs up and thumbs down (a.k.a. dislike) options. However, Facebook says this is more of a “no” button than dislike.

Reactions option can be activated when you hover over messages sent in a thread. You can tap the emoji button and select the reaction you want to make. This shows what statement you are reacting, too, which will come in handy if you’re in a group thread and delayed responses cause confusion about the conversation. It is similar to Slack’s Emoji Reactions and the recently-added Tapback emoji on iMessage.

Source: Tech Crunch

YouTube looking to kill unskippable 30-second ads starting 2018

YouTube is finally taking away the unskippable 30-second video ads we see on its service. The downside is it’ll be happening starting next year. The streaming service acknowledges how unpopular these ads are, especially for data-capped mobile users, and are pushing towards new shorter format ads. One example is the six-second unskippable ad it launched last year.

The move, which won’t appease advertisers, is seen as one way to keep people on its service. According to Callum McCahon, strategy director for Born Social, "I’m reading this as a signal that YouTube is very worried about Facebook. We know that video is right at the very core of Facebook’s roadmap. Their video offering is becoming ever more attractive to brands by the day, and YouTube is panicking."

Source: Campaign

Facebook close to hitting 2 billion users, earns 50% more in 2016

If you thought there wasn’t more room for Facebook to grow on the internet, then you’re wrong, the social network is getting really close to hitting the two billion user mark. At the end of 2016, the company has over 1.86 billion people checking Facebook at least once a month. As Quartz reports, that greater than the population of North and South America as well as Europe combined. The number of users is up from 1.79 in the previous quarter and up from 1.59 billion from the previous year.

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Xiaomi's Hugo Barra will now spearhead Oculus VR

Former Googler and Xiaomi executive Hugo Barra exited the Chinese company recently stating that life in China, 'had taken a huge toll on my life.' Citing that he misses Silicon Valley, Barra said he'd take an advisory role at Xiaomi. Now we find out, via Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook, that Barra will head Facebook's VR initiatives and is being tasked to take Oculus VR into the mainstream. Zuckerberg made the announcement showing his and Barra's avatars hanging out together in VR space.

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