FACEBOOK VENTURES INTO MUSIC

Facebook will introduce a new music destination in Facebook Watch Saturday for music videos and playlists, opening a new channel for social experiences around music.

The music program was started in India and Thailand and comes to the States via partnerships with Sony Music Group, Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group, Merlin, BMG, Kobalt and others. In the coming weeks, exclusive video premieres will be held on Facebook for music from J. Balvin, Karol G, Sebastian Yatra, Alejandro Fernandez and Calibre 50.

The new destination will offer music videos sorted by genre, artist and mood, as well as themed playlists such as Hip Hop MVPs, Trailblazers of Pop and New This Week. Videos can be commented on and shared across News Feed, Groups, and Messenger. As more videos are added, more features related to music sharing and discovery will be added.

“Artist/fan connection on Facebook is deeper and more authentic because of tools like Stories, Live, and custom AR effects,” said Tamara Hrivnak, Facebook’s VP of Music Business Development and Partnerships. “Official music videos are re-born in that setting—they become part of the way people express identity and mood and bring a new dimension to the artist storytelling that happens on our apps every day.”