Those using Facebook in the United States are today getting Reels – which is basically the entire premise of TikTok it borrowed for Instagram over a year ago.
The Mark Zuckerberg empire launched Reels on Instagram in July last year. The company used Instagram to go after the TikTok market, just like it did with Instagram Stories to keep Snapchat at bay.
But on Friday, we woke to the news that our friends in the U.S. were going to have Reels available in the Facebook app, not just Instagram.
“We’re bringing short form, entertaining video experiences and tools that have inspired creators on Instagram to more creators and audiences on the Facebook app,” it writes in a blog post.
Facebook considers the expansion to the Facebook app as a way to give ‘creators’ extra audience potential.
“With the ability to create reels and have their Instagram reels suggested to people on Facebook, creators — whether they’re just starting out or already have a large following — will have more ways to express themselves, grow their communities and reach new audiences,” it says.
This means you can share from Instagram to Facebook. You can also find Reels in News Feed or in Groups on Facebook. Oh, and Reels on Facebook are set to be public for ‘creators’ who are over 18.
To get people keen on the feature, Facebook is also offering a new bonus program to help ‘creators’ earn money when people view their reels.
The Reels Play bonus pays eligible ‘creators’ based on the performance of their Reels. The bonus will initially be invite-only, beginning in the U.S. and potentially expanding globally over time, Facebook said.
There’s currently no timeline for bringing Reels to Australian users, so we have a little while without it, at least.