Facebook Makes Its Foray Into Different Types of Audio

Ever since the Mark Zuckerberg popped up on Clubhouse two months ago, there has been little doubt that he had something up his sleeve. The social media company unveiled new audio projects, partnerships and creator tools on Monday, signaling that it wants to be a serious player in social audio and podcasting. In an interview with journalist Casey Newton on the Sidechannel Discord server, Zuckerberg laid out a five-pronged salvo into the audio space that includes new audio creation tools, an infinite scroll feature of audio clips called Soundbites, on-platform podcasts, live audio rooms like on Clubhouse and a music partnership with Spotify currently called Project Boombox. It’s too soon to call this a “pivot to audio” a la Facebook’s now-infamous algorithm change that took publishers along a disaster course of prioritized short-form video a few years back. But even if not, it’s a serious integration of a new set of media formats into its ever-expanding ecosystem. Does audio want to be social? Facebook isn’t at all alone in the social audio game. Beyond Clubhouse, there’s Twitter Spaces, Discord Stage Channels, Reddit Talk and forthcoming projects from Spotify and LinkedIn. Every major company in the social media space—save for Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube and Pinterest—has a social audio experience live or in the works. And there is no shortage of open questions about whether there’s a widespread consumer appetite for social audio now, let alone once the pandemic subsides. Reddit Previews Reddit Talk, Its Take on Clubhouse Karen Staughton, West Coast engagement director at the agency Grow, said that large platforms like Facebook “have the ability to turbo charge the engine of social audio but they also have the potential to flood it.” The social audio experiences on Clubhouse and Twitter Spaces, at least, have some element of exclusivity still, which “fosters a sense of curation, expertise, perceived quality control (whether that’s perceived or real),” she said. “Right now it’s niche, and niche is cool.” Facebook is trying to get a leg up on Clubhouse and the rest of the competition, announcing creator-focused tools and programs. The company said in a statement that its Live Audio rooms will offer captions, the ability to turn a conversation into a podcast or Soundbite and monetization options including tipping and paywalling rooms. Additionally, the company is starting a creator fund for those dipping their toes into audio on the platform. Barry Lowenthal, CEO of the agency Media Kitchen, is bullish on social audio but has little faith in Facebook’s ability to deliver for major stakeholders. “I think Facebook still hasn't repaired its brand damage from the ongoing spread of misinformation,” Lowenthal said. “I'm not sure Facebook can really launch a cool new product if it's too closely aligned with the mother brand unless it's really extraordinary, and there isn't evidence that they can do that. Reels didn't kill TikTok, and Stories didn't kill Snapchat.” Rob Pearsall, svp of biddable media at Havas Media, said Facebook’s existing content moderation woes could be exacerbated in the social audio format. “Given the scrutiny that Facebook has faced for content moderation policies, the live audio space presents a risky medium that they’ll need to be buttoned up on before a lot of brands will feel comfortable opting into ad delivery as adjacency to controversial statements in audio can be perceived as support or endorsement,” he said. In the interview with Newton, Zuckerberg touted the company's moderation practices, though he admitted not all of Facebook's current processes will be translatable to the social audio format. Since its inception, Clubhouse has also been rife with harassment and misinformation and, this week, had to shut down numerous rooms for anti-Semitic chatter. Clubhouse isn't yet monetized, but any ad-supported social audio platform will need to implement robust moderation practices if it wants to attract any brands or advertisers—let alone keep a diverse user base. Depending on the platforms Facebook says more than 170 million users are connected with podcasting pages on the platform, and now it will give those podcast creators the ability to publish directly to Facebook audiences. But the publishing world has long been wary of over-dependence on platforms like Facebook. The pivot to video may have cost hundreds of journalists’ their jobs, according to one report. Facebook says it is committed to a future that supports a burgeoning creator economy and the podcasting space, so the company’s terms may be more favorable for individual creators than media companies. In his interview with Newton, Zuckerberg said, “A big part of the creator economy is that it’s enabling individuals and it’s shifting power from some traditional institutions to individuals to exercise their own creativity. I think that’s a positive trend in the world. … I think based on your prediction [that] this is likely to work better for individual creators or small groups, I mean, I could see that playing out for sure.” Sebastian Tomich, svp and global head of advertising at The New York Times, said that platforms are most helpful when they expand publishers’ reach, including for podcasts, but he doubts Facebook’s entry into the audio space will ultimately benefit news companies. “It’s inevitable when—since they have such a big ad business and we have an ad business—in the future those things do collide like we’ve seen in every other [medium] whether it’s social video or programmatic,” he said. “Naturally, they collide.” Clubhouse Is at an Inflection Point

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Facebook Makes Its Foray Into Different Types of Audio

The social giant adds components for podcasting and social audio

Scott Nover

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