First outlined in July by Facebook head Tom Alison, the test is designed to offer a more immersive, video-forward user experience. Alison said at the time that Meta planned to begin testing it later in the year in 'video-heavy countries' outside the U.S., though he didn't specify where. The company will explore bringing the user experience to the U.S. next year, he said. The test comes as Meta moves to make video more central to Facebook. Last year, the company said all new videos posted to Facebook would be shared as Reels, regardless of their length or format, and it even renamed the app's Video tab to 'Reels.' Meta has previously said young adults spend about 60% of their time on Facebook watching videos. India has long been a testing ground for Meta's video efforts, particularly its push into short-form video. In 2020, Instagram began testing a dedicated Reels tab in the country, months after India banned TikTok. The company also tested a Reels-first experience for some...
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