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Facebook Expands Live Broadcasting Features, Opening Door For Ads

Facebook ( FB ) is bolstering its Live streaming video platform, which should provide more space for advertising to fuel revenue growth. Facebook Live is a platform for mobile-device users to broadcast live video streams on the world’s largest social network. Facebook recently expanded the Live feature to all users, following an exclusive arrangement with celebrities and other public figures. “People are letting their friends discover their hobbies. Parents are using it to share moments in their kids’ lives with their extended families. Athletes are giving people a window into their training. Chefs are bringing their fans into their kitchen,” wrote Fidji Simo, Facebook product management director, in a blog post . The new features include the ability to broadcast only to select groups, such as family. Users can also schedule a live broadcast through Facebook’s Events tab or send out invitations for people to watch. Other features include the ability to add filters that could, for instance, broadcast in black and white. Viewers can also add emoticons to the video feed in order to give a sense of how they feel at different points in the video. There’s also a page dedicated to live broadcasts that people can search. Facebook also rolled out tools that allow broadcasters to see how many people are watching their videos, either live or archived, when they watch and for how long. The tools could be especially valuable for business owners and advertisers. Facebook did not say if it would place advertising on the video feeds but didn’t rule it out. Historically, Facebook has introduced new ad-free platforms, then gradually inserted ads down the road. Speculation is rising that Facebook will open its Messenger chat service to content publishers and ads, creating a multibillion-dollar revenue opportunity and posing a growing threat to Alphabet ( GOOGL ). Facebook Live is comparable to the Twitter ( TWTR ) Periscope app, which launched last year and has logged more than 100 million broadcasts. Twitter has integrated Periscope into the Twitter app feed. The new Live features will be rolled out on the Apple ( AAPL ) iOS and Alphabet Android over the coming weeks. “We’ve been humbled by all the amazing and creative ways that people have used Facebook Live so far, and we’re committed to creating the best experience for everyone who wants to create, watch and interact with live videos on Facebook,” Simo wrote. Facebook stock was up 1% in midday trading on the stock market today , near 113.

Amazon.com Has Likely Sold 3 Million Echo Speakers To Date

Amazon.com ( AMZN ) seems to have a hit product on its hands with the Amazon Echo smart speaker. The e-commerce giant is estimated to have sold 3 million units of the device in the U.S. since it went on sale in late 2014, Consumer Intelligence Research Partners reported Wednesday. Amazon likely sold 1 million Echo devices during just the holiday shopping season in late 2015, CIRP said. Echo is a voice-responsive Internet query device and household controller, as well as a high-end streaming music speaker. Awareness of Amazon Echo among U.S. Amazon customers more than doubled during the year, CIRP said. By the end of 2015, 47% of Amazon’s U.S. customers were aware of Echo, up from 20% in March 2015, the Chicago-based research firm said. “Amazon very carefully but aggressively promoted Amazon Echo during the year,” Josh Lowitz, partner and co-founder of CIRP, said in a statement. “It dedicated Amazon.com homepage real estate to Echo, promoted it on Amazon Prime Day in July, and also advertised it heavily during the holiday shopping season. This effort paid off, as it stood out among Amazon customers.” Amazon also promoted Echo with a Super Bowl commercial this year starring Alec Baldwin. CIRP bases its findings on regular surveys of Amazon customers. In March, Amazon added two more devices that use its Alexa voice-control personal assistance, in addition to Echo. They were the Echo Dot, a smaller hands-free voice-controlled device, and the Amazon Tap, a smart portable Bluetooth and Wi-Fi speaker. Echo costs $179.99, while Echo Dot costs $89.99, and Amazon Tap costs $129.99. Amazon’s Alexa technology competes with other voice-response digital assistants, like Apple ‘s ( AAPL ) Siri and Microsoft ‘s ( MSFT ) Cortana.