LONDON (dpa-AFX) - Facebook has announced that it will discontinue its Facebook News tab in the United Kingdom, France, and Germany starting in early December. This move is part of Facebook's ongoing strategy to allocate its resources to areas that align more closely with user interests, particularly short-form video content.
The decision stems from Facebook's acknowledgment that its users primarily visit the platform for social connections and exploring their passions, rather than for news and political content. According to Facebook's data, news content makes up less than 3 percent of what users see in their Facebook feeds globally.
Despite this change, other Meta products and services in these countries will remain unaffected. Users can still access news articles through shared links on the platform. European news publishers will retain access to their Facebook accounts and Pages, allowing them to post links to their stories and direct users to their websites. They can also utilize products like Reels and the advertising system to reach a wider audience while keeping 100 percent of the revenue generated from outbound links on Facebook.
While existing agreements with publishers in the UK, France, and Germany will be honored until they expire, Facebook has no plans to enter new commercial deals for news content on Facebook News in these countries. Furthermore, the company does not foresee launching new products specifically tailored for news publishers in the future.
Despite these changes, Facebook remains committed to connecting users with reliable information on its platforms. The company collaborates with independent third-party fact-checkers, certified through the non-partisan International Fact-Checking Network, to review and rate viral misinformation on its apps. Facebook has built an extensive global fact-checking network, partnering with over 90 independent fact-checking organizations across more than 60 languages. Since 2016, Facebook has contributed over $100 million to support its fact-checking initiatives, aimed at combating the spread of misinformation, and plans to continue investing in this area.
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