As promised, Facebook has opened Instant Articles format to all developers on Tuesday, April 12. The feature, which lets publishers show their posts to mobile users sans the distraction and slow loading, was only available to a number of publishers.
Instant Article is basically an HTML document which uses specific tags where publishers can add images, texts, slideshows, maps, video and audio captions, TechCrunch reported. It supports Facebook comments and likes. Publishers can now publish native ads as Instant Articles and distinguish them from regular content with different styling options or by adding a sponsor logo.
"Facebook's goal is to connect people to the stories, posts, videos or photos that matter most to them," the firm's product manager, Josh Roberts stated via the company's media page in February. Instant Articles' availability will enable publishers to tell great stories to people and to the world. "With Instant Articles, they can do this while retaining control over the experience, their ads and their data." Roberts added.
Instant Articles was built to solve the specific problem of slow loading times on mobile which was an unpleasant experience for viewers who read the news on their handsets. The problem affects publishers, especially those whose audience have a slow Internet connection. The feature loads stories fast and makes it possible for publishers to reach their audiences on Facebook quickly and easily.
Journalists and the media are an integral part of the social network company. Hence, Facebook commits to deliver products that will offer the best experiences to readers and publishers alike. While publishers still have full control over the look of their ads, data and stories, they can use their current web-based analytics systems to monitor traffic. They can opt to hire third-party providers as well.
Facebook's Instant Articles has system tools that are already in use so it will be easy for publishers to join. It uses Web languages, is compatible with content management systems and has standards that are easy to adopt.
CMS systems like Drupal and WordPress plug-ins are already available to automatically generate the right feed of Instant Articles.
An explanation of Facebook Instant Articles is in the video that follows: