Messenger is introducing a bunch of new features based on
the holiday season, including new AR effects, Soundmoji options featuring
Taylor Swift’s album, and a new option of bill-splitting within group chat
threads.
The interactive AR features are part of the new group
effects for video calls and can be accessed by multiple people in a group video
chat. Messenger has collaborated with some of the high-profile influencers from
other apps for these effects, like King Bach, TikTok star Bella Poarch and Zack
King. Of course, this is part of Facebook’s attempt to attract young users to
its platform; something that it has been lacking.
For a similar purpose, Facebook has added new Soundmoji options featuring the world’s favorite artist Taylor Swift and her new album Red. Soundmojis are Messenger’s emoji characters with audio snippets that can be played by users when they receive a message with a Soundmoji.
Lastly, Messenger’s latest group chat option of bill-splitting,
which is being tested, is meant to allow users to share the cost of bills and
expenses amongst themselves in a simpler manner. The option will provide users
with the ability to automatically divide the full cost among the participants
of a chat. Moreover, the calculated payments will be facilitated directly in
the app via Facebook Pay, hence making it easier to manage bill-splitting
arrangements.
All in all, except for the bill-splitting feature that is a
handy tool, the rest are small additions, but are effective for Facebook’s
influence in the world of latest trends, especially among young users.
Messenger’s new AR effects and Soundmojis are now available
to all users.
