Facebook updates video player, makes it more TikTok like

Meta-owned Facebook has announced that it is rolling out an updated video player for mobile devices, which now opens in a TikTok-like vertical window. The company says it plans to bring together “Reels, long videos and Live content all in one fullscreen, engaging experience.”

If you are scrolling through your feed in the Facebook app, Meta says you will see a fullscreen vertical video. Until now, the app showed horizontal videos depending on the device and the length of the video. However, you can always watch videos in landscape mode by flipping your phone.

It looks like Facebook has taken inspiration from Instagram, with the new video player having the same look and feel. The redesigned video player also comes with some new playback controls like the ability to go to a certain part of the video using the bottom slider and jump ten seconds backwards or forward.

Here’s a glimpse of the new video player. (Image Source: Meta)

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Meta says they have also improved the recommendations for all video lengths, so you are more likely to see videos based on your interests. Also, Facebook will now more aggressively push Reels to help creators reach the audience they were missing out on.

These recommendations will also be visible outside of the player in your feed and video tab. The new video player will be rolling out to users living in the United States and Canada followed by a global rollout in the coming months.

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While Facebook is taking a TikTok-like approach by promoting vertical content, the banned video platform seems to be testing horizontal and long-form content to compete with others in the segment.