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The week in social: Instagram Live, Apple Clips & plenty o' Facebook news

27 Mar 2017 Cassandra Megraw

Instagram now lets users relive their lives (videos, that is)

Last week, Instagram added to its live video streaming offering by giving users the (pretty obvious) option to save their live videos to their phones. Not ones to let good moments go to waste, the live video offering and its features are all part of the photo-sharing platform’s dedication to helping its users connect with friends and fans in an even deeper, more meaningful way… and then relive it all themselves later.

When it comes to video, Apple proves that sharing’s caring

Apple has found a way to get in on the social video craze while letting the social networks take care of the rest. The company recently announced a new Apple-made app called Clips, which takes inspiration (and features) from Snapchat, Instagram, Vine, Prisma, iMovie, and Qwiki, and rolls them and even a few newbies into one shiny new video-making app. It’s completely separate from the camera app on iPhone and iPad and allows users to create videos and then share them to the social network/s of their choice. New adopters are saying there’s pros and cons, and it seems it still needs a little work, but the new app is Apple’s ticket to remaining part of the social messaging conversation without the fuss of creating its own social platform.

The 2017 Facebook Awards are getting emotional

Facebook has just announced its 2017 Facebook Awards are now open for submissions, and that they’ll be recognizing some of the amazing creative work based upon their new emotion categories – Laugh, Cry, Wow, Love and Act. To go with the new categories, the awards’ trophies are being reimagined and guided by the heart emoji found in Facebook’s family of apps. With video being king across every category last year, we’re excited to see who takes home the love this year!

Facebook Live takes a turn for the Twitch

Attention gamers: Facebook is now throwing its weight around the gaming livestreaming ring. It recently started allowing users to go Live directly from its desktop website via their webcam, stream through professional equipment and software hooked up to a desktop and broadcast gameplay from their computer. In the past this feature has only been available to Pages, and was limited in its partnerships, but this new move sees Facebook seriously stepping up its gameplay streaming game. Your move, Twitch.

Advertisers can make their ‘collections’ known with Facebook’s latest ad format

Brands will have even more reason to advertise on Facebook considering the platform’s latest ad format – collections. According to Facebook monetization director Maz Sharafi, Collections format is focused on building a “great new shopping experience for people and to help marketers really drive discovery and sales in mobile.” Much of the collection selection (mind the rhyme) is done by Facebook based on the merchant’s preferences and on user targeting, aiming to create an experience that’s “as relevant as possible for the consumer.”

Messenger gets Message Reactions and @Mentions

Just like Facebook itself, Facebook’s Messenger now includes reactions and @mentions. Users will receive notifications about who has reacted to their content and how, as well as if someone has mentioned them in the thread. Both features have already begun rolling out and will be available globally in the coming days.