• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
Tech

Facebook Is Testing This Major Change

By
Reuters
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Reuters
Down Arrow Button Icon
October 23, 2017, 7:19 PM ET

Facebook said on Monday it was testing the idea of dividing its News Feed in two, separating commercial posts from personal news in a move that could lead some businesses to increase advertising.

The Facebook News Feed, the centerpiece of the world’s largest social network service, is a streaming series of posts such as photos from friends, updates from family members, advertisements and material from celebrities or other pages that a user has liked.

The test, which is occurring in six smaller countries, now offers two user feeds, according to a statement from the company: one feed focused on friends and family and a second dedicated to the pages that the customer has liked.

The change could force those who run pages, everyone from news outlets to musicians to sports teams, to pay to run advertisements if they want to be seen in the feed that is for friends and family.

The test is taking place in Bolivia, Cambodia, Guatemala, Serbia, Slovakia and Sri Lanka, and it will likely go on for months, Adam Mosseri, the Facebook executive in charge of the News Feed, said in a blog post.

Mosseri said the company has no plans for a global test of the two separate feeds for its 2 billion users.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

Facebook also does not currently plan to force commercial pages “to pay for all their distribution,” he said.

Facebook, based in Menlo Park, Calif., frequently tests changes big and small as it tries to maximize the time people spend scrolling and browsing the network. Sometimes it makes changes permanent, and other times not.

Depending on how people respond, two news feeds could mean that they see fewer links to news stories. News has proved to be a tricky area for Facebook, as hoaxes and false news stories have sometimes spread easily on the network.

The test has already affected website traffic for smaller media outlets in recent days, Slovakian journalist Filip Struhárik wrote over the weekend in a post on Medium.

Publishers might need to buy more Facebook ads to be seen, he wrote: “If you want your Facebook page posts to be seen in old newsfeed, you have to pay.”

About the Author
By Reuters
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Success
  • Tech
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • Environment
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Health
  • Retail
  • Lifestyle
  • Politics
  • Newsletters
  • Magazine
  • Features
  • Commentary
  • Mpw
  • CEO Initiative
  • Conferences
  • Personal Finance
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map

Latest in Tech

AIOpenAI
OpenAI sees better margins on business sales, report says
By Mark Bergen and BloombergDecember 21, 2025
47 minutes ago
Innovationautonomy
Waymos froze, blocked traffic during San Francisco power outage
By Maria Paula Mijares Torres and BloombergDecember 21, 2025
54 minutes ago
Successwork-life balance
Multimillionaire musician Will.i.am says work-life balance is for people ‘working on someone else’s dream’—he grinds from 5-to-9 after his 9-to-5
By Orianna Rosa RoyleDecember 21, 2025
8 hours ago
Young banker
SuccessCareers
Is AI really killing finance and banking jobs? Experts say Wall Street’s layoffs may be more hype than takeover—for now
By Emma BurleighDecember 21, 2025
12 hours ago
InnovationDefense
Shield AI took its drones from the ‘Batcave’ to the battlefield. Now the $5.6 billion defense-tech startup’s new CEO says it’s at an inflection point
By Jessica MathewsDecember 21, 2025
12 hours ago
Gao
AIBrainstorm AI
Top AI investors say maybe it’s a bubble, but ‘bubbles are good for innovation’
By Nick LichtenbergDecember 21, 2025
13 hours ago

Most Popular

placeholder alt text
Future of Work
Meet a 55-year-old automotive technician in Arkansas who didn’t care if his kids went to college: ‘There are options’
By Muskaan ArshadDecember 21, 2025
14 hours ago
placeholder alt text
Future of Work
A Walmart employee nearly doubled her pay after entering its pipeline for skilled tradespeople. 'I was able to move out of my parents' house'
By Anne D'Innocenzio and The Associated PressDecember 20, 2025
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Economy
For the first time since Trump’s tariff rollout, import tax revenue has fallen, threatening his lofty plans to slash the $38 trillion national debt
By Sasha RogelbergDecember 12, 2025
9 days ago
placeholder alt text
Success
Multimillionaire musician Will.i.am says work-life balance is for people 'working on someone else’s dream'—he grinds from 5-to-9 after his 9-to-5
By Orianna Rosa RoyleDecember 21, 2025
8 hours ago
placeholder alt text
Success
The scientist who helped create AI says it’s only ‘a matter of time’ before every single job is wiped out—even safer trade jobs like plumbing
By Orianna Rosa RoyleDecember 19, 2025
2 days ago
placeholder alt text
Future of Work
'They'll lose their humanity': Dartmouth professor says he's surprised just how scared his Gen Z students are of AI
By Nick LichtenbergDecember 20, 2025
1 day ago

© 2025 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.