Facebook’s CEO also lays out plans to connect WhatsApp and Messenger
In a manifesto that reads like a response to Facebook’s many critics, CEO Mark Zuckerberg outlined a new focus on privacy, including a plan for encrypted messaging that would also unite communication across its various apps. He also promised less data permanence on the platform famous for its oversharing users.
Zuckerberg posted the new strategy to his Facebook page Wednesday, touching on topics that the company has signaled it would address for months, like connecting its two messaging apps, WhatsApp and Messenger, so people on both platforms can interact seamlessly.
Also, following the push into Stories, the video messages that disappear in 24 hours, Facebook will develop tools that let people set time limits so that content like photos and text posts will self-destruct.
“I believe a privacy-focused communications platform will become even more important than today’s open platforms,” Zuckerberg wrote. “Privacy gives people the freedom to be themselves and connect more naturally, which is why we build social networks. Today we already see that private messaging, ephemeral stories, and small groups are by far the fastest growing areas of online communication.”
Garett Sloane – Ad Age – March 6, 2019.