Facebook may put Messenger back into the main app ahead of Mark Zuckerberg's plan to merge all of the firm's messaging systems
- Screenshots show the Messenger app being reintegrated into the Facebook app
- Users could reply to chats but would need to use the standalone app otherwise
- The move supports earlier reports that Facebook will merge all of its apps
- A report in January said Facebook will link Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger
Facebook could be planning to fold Messenger back into the 'big blue app.'
Code spotted in the main Facebook app by eagle-eyed app researcher Jane Manchun Wong shows a new integrated chat function involving Messenger.
It would mean that users wouldn't have to leave the Facebook app in order to review their chat conversations.
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Facebook could be planning to fold Messenger back into the 'big blue app.' Code spotted in the main Facebook app by eagle-eyed app researcher Jane Manchun Wong shows a new integrated chat function involving Messenger
In a screenshot, the messenger icon can be seen in the upper right corner of the Facebook dashboard.
Once users click on that, it opens a separate window showing your chats and any notifications, just like the Messenger app.
Wong clarified that while users would be able to respond to Messenger chats within the Facebook app, some functions would remain off-limits.
Users would still need to use the standalone Messenger app to make calls, send photos or send message reactions, Wong said.
'For now, this new "Chats" section seems to only contain the basic chat functionalities,' she added.
Facebook angered many users when it announced in 2014 that it was forcefully migrating them over to the Messenger app.
Up until that point, the Messenger app had been optional since its release in 2011.
Messenger and Facebook's broader family of apps changed and expanded greatly in the ensuing years, with the social media giant acquiring Instagram and WhatsApp in 2012 and 2014, respectively.
Facebook's family of apps had largely remained agnostic until, earlier this year, when it was revealed by the New York Times that it was planning to link the messaging functions of all of its apps, including Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger.
The move means that all of Facebook's sprawling social media properties would be integrated for the first time.
Each of the services would remain as standalone apps, but Facebook would create a new way for users to communicate with others across the apps.
Wong speculated that the move to integrate Messenger in the Facebook app could be an early sign of this merging process.
If true, this means that Messenger would remain a standalone app.
Facebook has said that integrating all its apps would involve a 'long process' and is something that likely wouldn't roll out to all users until early 2020.
WHAT CHANGES ARE COMING TO FACEBOOK MESSENGER?
Facebook is slimming down its Messenger app to make it easier to use.
At its F8 developers conference, the firm said the Messenger app will get a simpler interface with fewer buttons to prevent it from getting too cluttered.
The app will no longer show a games and camera tab in the navigation bar.
Additionally, Facebook is rolling out new translation features into the app.
When users communicate with an international business in the Messenger app, Facebook's built-in chat bot 'M' will be able to translate responses automatically.
The Messenger app is also getting new AR Marketing features, which lets firms build augmented reality experiences directly in the app
The features will be rolling out in the US with the option to translate English to Spanish and vice versa.
In the coming weeks, all US Messenger users will be able to access the tool, before it launches in more languages and countries in the near future.
The Messenger app is also getting new AR Marketing features, which lets firms build augmented reality experiences directly in the app.
Users will be able to open the camera and use an AR filter created specifically by the business.
The feature is rolling out to a limited number of users in beta.
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