Facebook Live now has more ways for your friends to join in
Facebook continues to develop its Facebook Live streaming service with the announcement of two new features designed to make streaming alongside friends easier — be you audience or host.
The first of the additions Facebook Live is working on is the ability to chat with friends alongside a stream, which it calls, "Live Chat With Friends."
Instead of having your comments lost in a sea of randos shouting over each other on the same stream, Live Chat With Friends lets you invite folks to a private conversation thread so you can gab about the same live video in peace.
The second feature is called "Live With," which allows you to drop a line to a friend the next time you go online with your own Facebook Live airing.
During a stream, you can invite a guest from among your viewers to join in via a picture-in-picture or side-by-side video feed, depending on your device's camera orientation.
Not only does this make a conversation between two individuals easier on Facebook Live, but we can see "calling in" viewers being a useful addition for hosting seminars, special guest appearances, or events that require audience participation.
Facebook is currently testing out Live Chat With Friends and Live With for mobile devices "in several countries," and is expected to roll out both features later this summer.