Facebook F8 2015: Here's What Happened On Day One
Today the 2015 version of Facebook's developer conference, F8 2015 that is, started with notes on IoT, Messenger, and sharing videos. The unveiling of Facebook's near future really started earlier this week with rumor that Facebook Messenger would become a platform and some keen dialer testing. Facebook also suggested (again, earlier this week) that they wanted to host the news, not just link to it. Facebook's "On This Day" also started off with a bang in-line. All came to fruition this morning in California.
Zuckerberg spoke about the future of Facebook and the future of sharing – about how we began sharing on the internet with text, moved to pictures, and were now on photos and video. In the future, he suggested, we'll be sharing immersive video through desktop computers, phones, VR headsets, and future hardware as well: Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality.
Facebook's next move is to include spherical video in Facebook's Newsfeed.
Note that at this time we do not know when this video ability will be activated.
Developers of apps rejoiced – if they like messaging – as Facebook's Messenger Platform was activated. This platform will allow "Messenger" to be integrated into apps of all sorts.
Facebook's messenger service also had extensions added to turn on Businesses on Messenger.
This service will allow consumers to contact businesses without using traditional telephone calls for customer service, and they'll be able to order goods through Facebook as well.
Facebook's big Internet of Things move was made with Parse. Using "Parse for IoT", Facebook will connect devices of all sorts using SDKs of many kinds.
On to battle every other major organization with similar Internet of Things aspirations – onward to war!
Our adventures at F8 Day 1 were crowned by a relatively lackluster VR experience in the Facebook Teleportation Station, working with Samsung Gear VR to see Facebook's HQ in Menlo Park.
This device is headed to physical store locations for the first time ever – starting with Best Buy – this Friday, mind you.
Stick around our Facebook tag portal as we return to F8 tomorrow.
Lots of news or otherwise interesting developments are waiting to be had with Oculus, Facebook news stream development, and more.