06

This was roughly based on an actual comment made by one of the Facebook users, who had joined in the conversation surrounding the Internet-based drama Sorry For Your Loss, on the day it premiered exclusively on the video-streaming service, as part of the social network’s effort to deliver quality video content to audiences who are increasingly selective about what, when, with whom, and how they watch. Of course, the latest service comes after other video-streaming sites and services in the market.

I almost wanted to reply to the comment, which helped form the basis of this post. At least I know I’m not alone. Well, the only way for me to get used to the online platform, which was opened up to all users across the world at the end of August 2018, was to experience it by testing and playing around with the feature/service on at least two devices.

The featured image that comes along with this post is roughly what Facebook Watch will look like on an Android-powered smartphone if you go into Facebook Watch via the Facebook app. The video-streaming service can also be accessed from the laptop, desktop, tablet, as well as Facebook’s separate TV app that has to first be downloaded by the user.

Based on my experience in using Facebook Watch to date, mainly to watch the series, I noticed a number of things:

1. Watching a particular television-like show? You’ll find a short description detailing each episode, as well as the overall synopsis of the story. Future episodes are also accessible. Or if you’re watching a popular video of a shorter duration, a short description of the video will be available.
2. When using it on my smartphone, there’ll be a Watch List that is a compilation of ‘Popular Videos I Might Be Interested In’ based on my past activity and ‘Liked’ Pages, as well as ‘Videos That My Friends Are Watching’. Having recently shared a video related to the book–turned-TV adaptation Fresh Off The Boat, Facebook Watch used the data to recommend me another video related to the American sitcom.

Perhaps a comment that hit home was one about the availability of subtitles, especially because the user had accessibility issues.

Are there subtitles? Where’s the ADA compliance in this case? (ADA in this context means Americans With Disabilities Act, which I had learnt – as part of my previous work – from analysing information from news articles, press releases and other sources that highlighted socio-economic issues in the US).

By far, this is the only way to get subtitles (I managed to get mine in the English Language).

3. To get subtitles to whichever video you intend to watch, hover over to the settings and look for captions and turn it on. By default, closed captions are turned off, which is why I felt a level of disconnect from Facebook Watch. I had only learnt this by the end of Episode Three of the much-debated series. In most cases, I am able to get by without subtitles, but there are situations where some subtleties and colloquialisms can be challenging for me to immediately catch. This is where subtitles come in handy. Personally, I feel that subtitles should be automatic and available from the point of dialogue, without having to make the user wonder and go around searching, clicking/tapping, sometimes aimlessly. In fact, based on the comments by those watching, many are also looking for subtitles, with some even asking for subtitles in a language other than the English Language. It’s good to see those behind the official page, where everything related to the series is laid out, attempting to respond accordingly to as many comments as possible.
4. Once you’re done watching an episode, the video will be marked with a ‘Watched’ label. But say, you’ve watched a video mid-way and completely forgotten about it, the video will somehow be marked with a ‘Continue Watching’ label. There’s also an option to ‘Save’ videos for you to watch at your own time and pace. The ‘Save’ option is more visible via my smartphone, as compared to the laptop.
5. The existing features on Facebook: ‘Liking’, ‘Commenting’, ’Sharing’, ‘Reacting’, ‘Following’, ‘Creating a Page’ and ‘Joining a Group’ are extended to Facebook Watch. Users who find it more comfortable sharing information and viewpoints in a members-only group can opt to do so.

Until next time, folks! I need to pick up from where I left off with Sorry For Your Loss.

Note: Facebook comments were paraphrased (without affecting the intended meaning) to protect user privacy.