On January 11th, Facebook announced some big changes to its news feed algorithm. By adjusting the way they rank content, Facebook has promised users they’ll be seeing a lot less public content and a lot more from their family and friends.
Despite a noble goal of creating “meaningful conversations”, these changes will inevitably curb the way users view public content, and the announcement has sent the publishing world into freefall. Not only will publishers have to work harder for their reach, they also stand to lose hard won audiences and their investments with them.
Despite calls from Rupert Murdoch to introduce ‘carriage fees’ similar to the ones already in place amongst cable network providers in the US, the issue remains in limbo with how publishers will be adapt to the new model.