Facebook Video Downloads
Facebook’s ongoing push into developing markets will see them trial a new system to enable users to download video content from the platform, starting from July 11th.
Here’s Why Facebook Is Testing Offline Video Access In India
The download option will appear alongside the regular Like and Comment options, enabling users in areas with low connectivity to save video content while they’re in a wi-fi or otherwise connected region, in order to view it later.
The feature’s only being tested amongst a small group of users, and the wider application of such an option seems limited, but it’ll help Facebook build their audience share in such markets, which is a big deal for the platform’s future growth. As we’ve reported previously, India has potential non internet-connected audience of over 1.06 billion, a huge market for Facebook to tap into, if able.
In order to protect the rights of content creators (and as noted in the above note from Facebook), publishers will be able to opt out of the download feature and people will only be able to download original videos posted by users on personal accounts or from Pages.