Meta is preparing to test a version of Facebook that opens directly into a full-screen video experience instead of the conventional news feed layout.
The company said the experiment, scheduled to begin this fall in selected “video-heavy” markets, will place eligible users into a TikTok-like interface immediately upon launching the Facebook app. Users participating in the trial will be able to switch back to the traditional News Feed, while Meta evaluates how the redesigned experience affects engagement.
Tom Allison, the Meta executive overseeing Facebook, said the company is building a “reimagined experience” for users who increasingly consume video content. Meta indicated that a broader rollout, including the United States, could follow in 2027 if the test delivers the desired results.
Reasons For Redesign
The proposed redesign is less about replicating TikTok’s interface than responding to changing patterns of user behaviour and digital advertising economics.
For years, Facebook’s competitive advantage rested on its social graph, the network of relationships connecting friends, relatives and communities.
User behaviour has however evolved with many users spending considerably more time consuming content than publishing it. As original posts from personal networks become less frequent, platforms increasingly depend on recommendation systems to fill users’ feeds with content from creators they have never followed.
Rather than ranking dozens of posts from friends, artificial intelligence now selects from billions of pieces of content to maximise viewing time and engagement.
Video Remains digital advertising’s growth engine
Video commands premium advertising rates, attracts higher engagement and competes directly with television advertising budgets that continue migrating toward digital platforms.
Longer viewing sessions generate additional advertising inventory while recommendation algorithms improve the relevance of commercial content shown alongside organic videos. For Meta, strengthening Facebook’s video proposition is both a product decision and a revenue strategy.
The company has already invested heavily in Reels across Facebook and Instagram in response to TikTok’s rapid global growth. Making video the default Facebook experience would represent the logical extension of that strategy.
Wider Industry Transformation
Facebook’s latest experiment mirrors changes already underway across major social media platforms. TikTok built its global success on an endless stream of recommended videos rather than a follower-first model.
Instagram has progressively expanded algorithmic recommendations through Reels, while X increasingly directs users into continuous video viewing experiences.
Across the industry, platforms are converging around a common principle: personalised recommendation systems now matter more than users’ social networks.
If Meta eventually deploys the redesign globally, Facebook would move further away from its original identity as a platform centred on personal relationships and community interaction.
Instead, it would become another participant in an attention economy where success depends less on facilitating conversations between friends and more on delivering a continuous stream of personalised entertainment.
