How we interact with social media is something that keeps changing with time, from simple text formats in the beginning to the introduction of multimedia, like photos, videos and now reels. This is an ever-evolving landscape, and companies are usually pushing towards a newer medium every time to keep the audience engaged.
With that said, Facebook seems to be making a new move when it comes to interaction with its interface. We are used to the feed format, but now it seems that Facebook is switching things a bit. The company is now focusing more on taking the Reels format to the forefront, basically short-form video content.
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This new experience is currently being tested in India, according to reports, and users are now being shown the Reels feed first instead of the usual Facebook feed they are familiar with.
Reel-First Experience On Facebook?
According to a report from TechCrunch, some users in India are now seeing the Reels-first interface, and Meta is trying to bring the short-form video content to the centre of its business now, but the normal feed is still available, and users in the test can opt out and go back to the normal interface; that option is available a separate option.
Meta Has Been Hinting At This Change
This is not sudden, and Meta had hinted at this plan in July, which was highlighted by Tom Alison, suggesting Facebook will become more video-focused, especially in countries where video consumption is high. He said, “People are showing us they want more immersive, visual, video-forward experiences, and video is where conversations are happening, communities are forming, and even commerce is starting to take place." Adding further, he said, “So later this year, we’ll begin testing a reimagined experience that puts a subset of people who we think want more video on Facebook into full-screen video the moment they open the app.”
Adding more to his statement, he also said, “People will have the option to opt out and go back to a Feed-first experience if they choose, and Classic Feed will always be available as the second tab in the app, just one click away."
When Alison spoke about the test earlier, he did not disclose where it would be rolled out. He only confirmed that Meta was looking at bringing the experience to the US sometime next year. India now seems to be the first country where the company has publicly been seen trying it.
That move is hardly surprising. Video already plays a huge role in how people in India use Meta's apps. The company says 97 per cent of people it surveyed in the country watch videos on its platforms every day. Reels are particularly popular among younger users, with 89 per cent of Gen Z respondents saying they watch them daily.
Meta has been leaning further into this behaviour on Facebook too. In 2025, the company announced that videos uploaded to Facebook would be published as Reels, whether they were short or long and regardless of the format. Around the same time, Facebook's Video tab was renamed Reels, further signalling where the platform was heading.
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India's importance to Meta's Reels push is not new. Instagram started testing a dedicated Reels tab in the country back in 2020, shortly after TikTok was banned. The company later went a step further, testing an interface in India and South Korea that took some users straight into Reels when they opened Instagram.