Social media giant Facebook, Inc. Common Stock (NASDAQ:FB) might soon allow Direct Messages (DMs) to be part of its Messenger platform, a move that would sort of integrate multiple apps.
The company is reportedly working on integrating Messenger with DMs, a move that will allow users to receive DMs through Messenger. Sources familiar with the matter revealed that the company’s engineers are already working on the process. The Facebook app allows users to receive messages through the Messenger app but Instagram DMs are only accessible through Instagram.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg revealed a few months ago that he wanted all the platforms that exist under his company to feel more like Facebook. The idea of bringing DMs into the Messenger app might thus help him achieve that goal of tying Instagram into the Facebook fabric.
Facebook acquired Instagram in 2012 but it has since then become more popular than the Facebook app. Sources also revealed that the Instagram app interface will still look the same despite the changes to the DMs.
The move might be part of Facebook’s strategy to rebuild towards a positive image
The Facebook social platform has been losing traction and this partly to do with it’s the privacy row through which the company was accused of violating user privacy. This also painted a bad image for the company and the bad publicity may have contributed to users losing faith in the platform. The social media giant also faced antitrust investigations by the Federal Trade Commission.
Facebook’s decision to incorporate DMs into Messenger might be part of the strategy that the company wants to use to tap into the positive publicity that Instagram and Whatsapp have garnered so far. Although the company claims that the merging of Instagram DMs with the Messenger app will not affect any of the services, some critics think otherwise.
Chris Hughes, one of Facebook’s founders recently pointed out that the move will make it difficult to separate different technical aspects of the company. Zuckerberg defended the company by stating that the change is aimed at facilitating convenience and privacy. Facebook will make sure that all the chat services are encrypted.