Facebook Live, Facebook’s live video feature for celebrities, journalists and other public figures, is adding a new feature today: a subscribe button.
The button, which will appear in the top right corner of live videos, will give Facebook users the ability to be notified when broadcasters go live on the social network. So no more fear of missing out when your favorite celeb or politician fires up a live video on Facebook.
Launched in August, Live is Facebook’s VIP-focused answer to Periscope and Meerkat. Access to the feature is limited to people who have access to the iOS Mentions app. In September, the company loosened the reins on access slightly but still isn’t opening it up to marketers or Facebook Pages.
In today’s announcement about the new subscribe button, Facebook also released some stats about how live video is being received. A number of public figures — including Kevin Hart, Ian Somerhalder and Donald Trump — have had live audiences of more than 200,000 people, the company said. And Vin Diesel pulled in an audience of more than one million.
“Live is like having a television studio in your pocket, and since launch, we’ve been inspired by all the ways that Live has been used around the world,” Facebook’s Vadim Lavrusik and Peter Yang wrote in a blog post. “More than 60% of broadcasters are from countries outside the US, with Brazil, Taiwan and Italy among the top countries for Live broadcasters.”
Unlike Periscope and Meerkat, live video on Facebook is viewable later. That means videos like the Univision anchor Jorge Ramos’ interview with Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson are still available for viewing now:
I’m interviewing GOP candidate Dr. Ben Carson. Posted by Jorge Ramos on Thursday, November 5, 2015
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