Facebook’s Instant Articles, which allows users to load content directly without the need to transfer to the publisher’s site, now supports 360 videos and photos.
The features renders an immersive experience, allowing users to explore more creative and engaging content that publishers and video creators share on Facebook.
“Instant Articles is a complementary canvas for 360 media. Journalists and storytellers can share richer stories and paint more vivid scenes by joining 360 content with other Instant Articles elements that publishers are using to deliver their written, filmed, and spoken narratives,” Josh Roberts, Product Manager, Facebook, wrote in a blog post.
To view 360 content, users dont need to access special features. It will appear in-line and readers will have the option to navigate by turning their device or by tapping. The experience is available for readers on all latest versions of Android and iOS.
Facebook said from today publishers can begin including 360 videos and photos in their Instant Articles. The social media giant said it plans to introduce more interactive features in Instant Articles.
Facebook rolled out 360-degree videos in News Feed last year. Instant Articles allow articles to load as much as 10 times faster than standard mobile web articles. Publishers can even serve their own ads and monitor performance through web-based analytics systems. As expected, Facebook likes saw an increase by 10% since it started using the service.