 Video calling in Messenger, which is being rolled out for both Android and iOS devices, will allow users to make video calls from one mobile phone to the other, with Facebook stating users will be able to “quickly start a video call from any conversation with just one tap”.
By pressing a video icon in the top right corner of the screen, users will be able to begin a video conversation within an existing Messenger text conversation. “Video calling will expand Messenger’s real-time communication features, enabling the more than 600 million people who use Messenger every month to reach others wherever they are, from anywhere,” Facebook stated of the new service. As reported by The Wall Street Journal, Stan Chudnovsky, Messenger head of product, said the service differs from Skype and FaceTime as it allows users to quickly upgrade conversations from texting to video within the app, in keeping with the way most users, especially younger users, now chat. Aside from data usage, the service is free, with Facebook looking to make it accessible to users around the world. “We wanted it so someone with a high-end connection in San Francisco can talk to someone with low-end Android phone in Bangladesh and have a good conversation,” the WSJ reported Chudnovsky as stating. Australia is not among the initial launch countries for the new service, however Facebook has stated it will be rolling it out to other regions over the coming months. |
