AFTER THE SUCCESS of its auto-play videos (and it telling users that they will be seeing more of them), Facebook is now trying to muscle in on YouTube’s turf by talking to some of its biggest content producers.

The service has been encouraging them to share their videos on Facebook, and test it to see how well they do, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Some companies like Disney’s Maker Studios and Collective Digital Studio (responsible for the ‘Annoying Orange‘) have already experimented with putting their main shows on Facebook.

The company has been experimenting with distribution for at least six months and has also discussed how advertising might be incorporated into these videos.

Currently, those uploading videos use Facebook to promote them but prefer people to watch on YouTube and other platforms where they can generate ad revenue more easily. In recent months, Facebook has been trying to popularise video on its site, which will allow it to introduce ads and generate more revenue.

Although there are concerns whether Facebook users, who were only recently exposed to video content on the site, would tolerate seeing pre-roll ads before video content is shown in these feeds.

It’s expected that an ad product will be rolled out by the end of the year.

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