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Facebook's pro-am 'Mario Tennis' tourney includes the Williams sisters
Serena Williams, Naomi Osaka and Maria Sharapova are among the tennis stars teaming up with celebrities for the tournament.
Facebook Gaming locks down another big-name streamer: Ronda Rousey
The latest big star to stream their gameplay exclusively on Facebook isn't someone who made their name on Twitch or YouTube per se. UFC trailblazer and former WWE champ Ronda Rousey will hold her first Facebook gaming stream on February 18th at 3PM PST/6PM EST.
Facebook Gaming viewership skyrocketed in 2019
Twitch has a bit less of a stranglehold over game streaming than it did a few years ago, and Facebook Gaming in particular seems to be on the rise. In December 2019, it had an 8.5 percent market share (i.e. the total time people spent watching those two services, Mixer and YouTube Gaming) compared with 3.1 percent a year earlier, according to data from StreamElements and Arsenal.gg. That represents a 210 percent increase in monthly viewership year-over-year to just over 102 million hours watched.
Facebook Gaming launches charity livestreams
Just in time for Giving Tuesday, Facebook is introducing new features for charity livestreaming on its Facebook Gaming platform. Gamers who broadcast on Facebook Gaming will be able to set up fundraising programs to raise money for a variety of worthwhile causes. A handful of popular streamers will be using the feature today, and Facebook will make it available to gaming creators in the near future.
Facebook’s Level Up is available for game streamers in 21 countries
Facebook is still continuing its assault against Twitch, as the social media giant has expanded its Level Up Program to game streamers around the world, totalling 21 countries. The Level Up Program helps streamers build a community on Facebook. Streamers that are eligible can earn some extra cash through Facebook Stars -- similar to Twitch Bits -- which are virtual goods that fans can purchase to help their favorite streamers. Level Up streamers can also unlock 1080p/60fps streaming quality, customize their dashboard and get early access to beta products and features. And much like Twitch, Facebook has a partner program that can help streamers earn additional funds and have greater reach and visibility.
Facebook's gaming hub comes to Android in limited beta
Facebook's new gaming hub is now available as a mobile app -- for a handful of people, that is. Sensor Tower and TechCrunch have noticed that Fb.gg has launched on Android in a limited beta test. It's ultimately a phone-optimized version of the portal you've seen on the web, although that's not a bad thing. It offers fast access to streams from people you follow, and gives you a chance to play Instant Games during downtime.
Facebook's 'playable ads' bring game demos to the news feed
Facebook's next foray into the gaming space is giving players a chance to try mobile games out before they download them. The social network is calling them "Playable Ads," which is fairly self-explanatory. There's a lot of advertising mumbo-jumbo in Facebook's announcement, but the key takeaway is that you'll be able to play a brief section of a given mobile title within the News Feed (from the App Store or Google Play, not a Facebook game) without actually downloading it. Google has tested similar with its Instant Apps and plenty of free-to-play titles have playable advertisements stuffed into their experiences.
Gameroom is Facebook's antiquated answer to Steam
Back in August Facebook announced its PC gaming platform as a partnership with the Unity developer toolset. There are a few more details now, and from the sounds of it, Facebook Gameroom is basically Steam from 2009, but for Facebook games -- both web and those natively built for the ecosystem. The social network is starting small: games can't be any larger than 200MB, although it will "consider" hosting games up to 500MB on a case-by-case basis, according to the service. That automatically rules out something like, say, Diablo 3: Ultimate Evil Edition's 58GB, but smaller fare like Desert Golf's 1MB size would have plenty of room to spare.
