Facebook Live cuts out the middle man, adds its own screen-sharing feature

Facebook today added an option to share your screen directly on Facebook Live, thus eliminating the need for other software for many users.

The feature was first spotted by our own Matt Navarra:

NEW! Facebook screen sharing option on FB Live via https://t.co/Luozcvmz9G (desktop / laptop) pic.twitter.com/1CN2nsaUrT

— Matt Navarra ⭐️ (@MattNavarra) October 17, 2017

When you want to share your screen to Facebook Live, you hit the button on the Live interface that says “Share Screen,” and you’ll be prompted to allow the extension to be installed to your browser. It worked with Chrome, but the option wasn’t available in Firefox.

Once installed, you can determine what you want to share by window/application. You can even stream specific tabs.

Previously, you had to use Open Broadcaster Software in order to share your screen to Facebook Live. It was a bit of a complicated process. Now Facebook is cutting out the middle man and allowing you to screen share directly from the Live interface.

It’s hard to say how this will change the Live process, other than making it slightly easier to broadcast. I was able to use it to stream a little Overwatch without having to use my version of OBS. But making the process easier by any degree also makes it more accessible. Before, if you wanted to stream a presentation or game from Facebook Live, it required a bit more time and tinkering. Now, it’s a very simple, streamlined process.

You can see my Overwatch stream below. You’ll probably notice it’s very low-quality, but I’m not sure if that’s due to my internet or the screensharing.

It also lacks some of the customizable features of OBS, though. I can’t, for example, stream my webcam in the corner of the screen while I’m broadcasting.

Still, for those looking for a simpler way to share screens, this is very fuss-free. Just don’t expect too much out of it.