Skip to main content

Facebook is rolling out Live video on desktops in response to user demand

Facebook Live has been conspicuously missing from the desktop version of the platform since its launch at the start of the year.

Popular demand, however, has forced the social network to expand the livestreaming feature. In fact, Facebook has already quietly begun rolling out desktop Live video to select users. The company confirmed the news in a statement to SocialTimes: “We’re starting to roll out the ability for people to broadcast live on Facebook from their desktop or laptop.”

Recommended Videos

The wider launch of the feature reportedly comes on the back of requests from vloggers, journalists, and general fans of Live video. Facebook claims the desktop version is currently only available to a “small percentage” of users with more set to receive the feature “in the coming months.”

The company added that Facebook Live video on desktop supports both peripheral cameras, in addition to built-in cameras on laptops.

Additionally, Search Engine Journal spotted a video of a lucky user who already has access to the feature. Delilah Taylor shared a Facebook Live clip recorded from her desktop in which she discusses the random appearance of a “Live Video” button within the status composer.

“When I first clicked live video it didn’t do anything,” Taylor says in the video. “You’ve got to put in a comment and then you hit next, and when you hit next it will bring up a secondary screen, which kind of looks like a Google Hangout screen, and you can adjust your camera and microphone … Then you hit ‘Go Live.’”

The process of naming your broadcast before going live — what Taylor describes as “putting in a comment  — has always been part of the streaming process on Facebook Live for mobile. Taylor does make reference to one major difference from the mobile version: the ability for broadcasters to type comments during the livestream.

The expansion of Live video doesn’t come as too much of a surprise considering Facebook began rolling it out on its Windows 10 app in May, consequently allowing users to broadcast from a Windows desktop or laptop. However, launching the feature on its desktop site will help introduce it to an even larger audience.

Saqib Shah
Saqib Shah is a Twitter addict and film fan with an obsessive interest in pop culture trends. In his spare time he can be…
Paramount+ adds Live Channels for ‘effortless’ entertainment
Paramount+ SpongeBob Universe Live Channel.

What could be easier than firing up your favorite streaming video service and picking something to watch? According to Paramount+, the answer is a new collection of so-called "live" channels based on Paramount's most popular entertainment properties. The feature, called Live Channels, launches on December 9 and includes more than 15 linear streaming channels like Star Trek, Survivor, and SpongeBob Universe.

“Even in the era of on-demand, there is clearly a strong consumer appetite for reimagined linear channels that provide effortless, lean-back entertainment,” said Tom Ryan, president and CEO of ViacomCBS Streaming, in a press release.

Read more
Twitter is facing its own outages as Facebook users flock to other sites
A Twitter logo graphic.

When Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram all went down, the groundswell of people rushing to other platforms to continue their social posting and messaging -- likely to poke fun at Facebook, frankly -- was intense. So much so, it seems, that Twitter is also experiencing problems.

Everyone's favorite doomsday watchlist Downdetector shows many reports of issues with Twitter, and staff members here at Digital Trends are seeing intermittent problems loading tweets -- both on the timeline and from individual links. So far the issue doesn't seem universal, and content usually loads after a handful of page refreshes, so we can hope this is a little blip and not the start of a larger problem.

Read more
How to try YouTube’s new video download feature for desktop
Digital Trends' Youtube channel on a Macbook.

At present, downloading a YouTube video on desktop means heading to one of many websites offerings such a service. The design of most of these sites, with their flashing ads and intrusive pop-ups and numerous links to who knows where, can leave you feeling a bit queasy at the best of times. It’d be so much easier if YouTube offered the same service without all of the potential pitfalls.

Well, the good news is that the Google-owned video streaming giant is now doing just that. But take note: At the moment it's only available to YouTube Premium subscribers (who can already download videos using YouTube’s mobile app) and runs until October 19, but cross your fingers and the company might soon make it a permanent feature and roll it out to one and all.

Read more