Meta is bringing Messenger back to the Facebook mobile app

[midian182]

Something to look forward to: Being able to message friends from within Facebook's mobile app used to be one of its better features, but the company removed this function almost nine years ago, turning Messenger into a separate app. For those who yearn for the days of a single application where you can browse feeds and chat with friends, Meta has some good news: the two services are reuniting.

Meta made the announcement in a post celebrating the milestone of Facebook reaching an all-time high of 2 billion global daily active users. The post mostly seems focused on assuring people that "Contrary to reports otherwise, Facebook is not dead nor dying, but in fact alive and thriving."

It appears that Meta believes news of it bringing Messenger back to the main Facebook app is only worth a single sentence deep into the post. It states that the ability to access the Messenger inbox from within Facebook is being tested and that the testing will be expanded soon. We still don't know if Messenger will also be brought back to the mobile browser version of Facebook.

"Ultimately, we want it to be easy and convenient for people to connect and share, whether in the Messenger app or directly within Facebook," wrote Facebook leader Tom Alison.

When Facebook (as it was still called back then) decided to separate Messenger from the main app in 2014, CEO Mark Zuckerberg said that "our goal is to focus development efforts on making Messenger the best mobile messaging experience possible and avoid the confusion of having separate Facebook mobile messaging experiences."

Reports that Messenger was returning to the Facebook app have been around since 2019 when app researcher Jane Manchun Wong spotted testing. There have been several reports of the feature being tested in more recent times, too.

Alison writes that bringing Messenger back to the Facebook app will "make it easier for people to share what they discover on Facebook via messaging, when, where and how it suits their needs, without needing to switch to another app," which sounds like Meta is making the change to compete with TikTok, which has a built-in messaging feature.

Much of Meta's post seems to be defensively arguing against reports that Facebook has lost its crown as the number one social media site and has a reputation for being the 'old person's' platform. That's certainly the case for teens, who prefer YouTube, TikTok, Snapchat, and Instagram over the social network, though according to the New York Times, many Gen Z Instagram users are unaware that their posts are appearing on Facebook.

Permalink to story.

https://www.techspot.com/news/97874-meta-bringing-messenger-back-facebook-mobile-app.html

 

[ScottSoapbox]

Exec 1: What we need to do is separate these two things.

Exec 2: Genius!

...

Exec 1: What we need to do is combine these two things.

Exec 2: Genius!

(how corporate works everywhere)

 

[Tetr1s]

Most "intelligent" Meta move

 

[Tinckerbel]

That's one way to achieve your key performance indicators. Look at all these active people on 'Facebook'.

 

[Burty117]

I haven't had the Facebook app installed for years, only messenger but even usage of that has dropped off a cliff.

Well done Meta, you've just lost yourself a user completely

 

[Hodor]

In the meantime:
https://techcrunch.com/2022/08/11/facebook-europe-shut-down-delay/

 

[Julnor]

I haven't had the Facebook app installed for years, only messenger but even usage of that has dropped off a cliff.

Well done Meta, you've just lost yourself a user completely

FB is mostly Boomers, they kept buying other social media to force younger gens onto it, which is exactly what anti-trust regulators are supposed to prevent. They didn't do their jobs and let FB grow into a monster, and now finally they are beginning to make a token resistance.

Young people continue to want to use different platforms, and with Meta not being allowed to just buy them out, Meta's relevancy declines and fades out, which is the natural order of social media. That way it can't get too big and intrusive, a self correcting problem, that merely needed normal already made laws to work as they're supposed to.

I don't know anyone under 40 that still uses Meta.

 

[MasterMace]

They have realized that now that they gave an option for people to send messages and not use Facebook, people will opt to not use Facebook, because it has devolved into Chain Letters, Spam, and Propaganda.

 

[kiwigraeme]

I do Kahoot with extended family - I don't have FB , or even a camera on my PC - so instead of using my wifes laptop - I was thinking if I needed FB to install messenger on my phone - so I can chat with everyone - they may still apply it for awhile.
My wife's laptop wifi is iffy - so gave her a LAN connection to a mesh solution ( freebie from ISP ) - or will have to dig out my surface pro and sit near her laptop - and avoid messenger together on my devices - yay!
Just did a kahoot on dad joke punch lines 50 questions - expect high scores - but I did some tricky ones .
Used Chapgpt to help get 3 of the wrong answers - so kind of need messenger somehow

 

[psycros]

I don't know a single person who uses any messaging services except Facebook Messenger or dating apps. Even iPhone users rely on FB because its not limited to Apple's ecosystem. To Facebookers, if you're not constantly posting an edited version of your life, which seems sooo much more fun and relevant than your actual life, its like you have no life at all. Teens are using these newer platforms amongst themselves to avoid being monitored by their parents and teachers, but they all maintain sanitized FB accounts as well.

 

[kiwigraeme]

Yeah I checked - to use messenger you need a FB log in - didn't go that far - but you could probably ignore the FB part - but sure as little green apples - FB can now hook into formally jon the data the already have on you- paranoia maybe - but odds they build up data on non-FB users