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Facebook News feature launches in UK

FACEBOOK News, the social network’s dedicated section for news content, is launching in the UK.

The UK is the second market to get Facebook News, which launched in the United States last year.

Several major news publishers, including Channel 4, Sky News, and The Guardian have signed deals with Facebook to provide content.

It comes as the tech industry’s relationship with the media comes under increased scrutiny.

Google last week threatened to pull out of Australia if forced by law to enter commercial agreements with news publishers – something about which Facebook has also expressed concern.

And French publishers recently agreed a deal with Google on how a new EU copyright law about news excerpts should be applied.

Facebook News is the social network’s own attempt to address the long-running friction between it and news publishers, as advertising spend has increasingly moved to the large tech firms instead of individual news outlets.

The new feature is set to go live on Tuesday afternoon, Facebook said.

‘Personalised’ news

The new feature is a dedicated tab within the Facebook mobile app, accessible by tapping the three-line icon for more options.

The tab features a mix of major daily news stories and “personalised” news selected for each reader based on their interests, as decided by Facebook’s algorithm.

Facebook says it pays publishers “for content that is not already on the platform”, and says the feature will also provide publishers with new advertising and subscription “opportunities”. – bbc.com