Facebook announced support for 360-degree videos in its News Feed, enabling users to view and engage with 360-degree video content and giving content creators another outlet for uploading new camera technology’s immersive video experience.
With companies like YouTube already on board the 360-degree video content train, it was only a matter of time before the social media giant also supported the technology. Facebook may not have been the first to the party, but it certainly provided a lot of content with its launch, offering exclusive videos from Star Wars, Discovery, GoPro, LeBron James & Uninterrupted, NBC's Saturday Night Live, and VICE for your 360-degree viewing pleasure.
360-degree cameras record all angles of a scene and allow viewers to pan and rotate the perspective of the camera to watch it from different angles. Desktop navigation is accomplished by dragging your mouse across the video, and on a mobile device, this can be done by either dragging a finger across the screen or by turning the device on its side. The advent of 360-degree cameras also effectively enables more applications for VR devices such as the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive, which offer an even more immersive experience for viewing 360-degree video content.
For now, the company is offering support for the new feature on only mobile devices with Android 4.3 or later (with iPhone support in the coming months) and the latest version of the Facebook app, and desktop or notebook systems using Chrome or Firefox. 360-degree videos aren't viewable using Safari, iOS or Internet Explorer (tough break, Apple users).
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