“Music on Messenger is going to be a good thing this year,” said Facebook’s David Marcus today at the company’s F8 conference. To that effect, Facebook is going to bake in Spotify – and Apple Music “very soon” – directly into Messenger.
The feature uses a new Messenger Platform tool called Chat Extensions, which essentially allow you to perform actions within Messenger you’d normally have to switch apps to try. You pick Spotify from Messenger’s app list, search for an artist or song, and then just share it right in Messenger. At no point do you need to exit your chat to browse for music in an app or webpage.
Moreover, music plays right within Messenger. Marcus wasn’t clear if there was a way to sync playback with the people you’re chatting with – that would make for a cool social experience – but perhaps that’s something the company is looking into.
Facebook didn’t mention anything about other music services, but given Chat Extensions are part of the Messenger Platform, it’s likely just a matter of other companies putting in the effort to integrate their services with the chat app.
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