Originally released by Facebook in 2015, Instant Articles are HTML documents designed to help load news stories more quickly than standard mobile websites. However, the tool is scheduled to reach the end of life in April of next year.
In a statement to Sara Fischer of Axios, a spokesperson for Meta confirmed the move, stating:
“The number of posts with links to news articles in Facebook’s Feed is less than 3% at present. We’ve said before that businesses shouldn’t overinvest in areas not aligned with their customer’s preferences.“
By investing in virtual content instead of news content on its apps, Meta is transitioning from investing in news content on its apps. According to Meta, Facebook users consume a greater amount of visual content comprised of short videos than news articles, which negatively impacts the use of Instant Articles. Modern devices that load news articles at lightning speeds are responsible for this increase in internet speeds.
The ball had already been set in motion earlier this year when Meta cut the payments that were usually made to US publishers for their content to be featured on the News tab. In light of the fact that support for the platform is set to end in six months, publishers have ample time to review their strategies and develop a viable solution that will suit their needs. Users who click on links to news articles on Facebook will be redirected to the publisher’s website once support for Instant Articles is discontinued.
Meta and Microsoft partnered last week to bring VR experiences to consumers and businesses with the Quest Pro.
