Facebook announced Live Video way back in 2015 since it was the only major player at the time that didn’t have its own live video framework. They have made significant changes to it over time and now they are being reported to be working on another project.
According to the Verge, Facebook is building a standalone app that looks like Houseparty. If you don’t know about Houseparty, it is an app that was announced last year that arose from the ashes from Meerkat, a live video chatting app that came before Periscope. Houseparty allows you to have group video chats with your friends and that is what Facebook is aiming to do with this app.
Apparently the app is called Bonfire and it has ideas that are from the Houseparty app. The Bonfire name makes sense since people uIt isually gather around a bonfire to talk and it is an appropriate name for a group video chatting app.
The app is apparently targeted for a fall release, which means we will probably see it from September onwards. The publication was also able to get a statement from Facebook: “We don’t have anything to share at this time,” a Facebook spokeswoman was quoted as saying.
Facebook’s strategy has always been trying to keep up with everyone else and this move could bolster their Live Video feature. They offer both Live Video on Facebook and video chatting in both Messenger and WhatsApp, so having a standalone app that does both would be a great add-on for their 2 billion plus users.
