Facebook has introduced a new feature called Music Stories that allows users to share 30-second previews of songs and albums from Apple Music and Spotify directly within Facebook. The feature aims to capitalize on the social aspects of online music by letting users share music previews with friends even if they don't subscribe to the same music services. Music Stories may increase the amount of time users spend on Facebook if music discovery and sharing grows similarly to how news consumption has within the platform. It also gives more control over social music curation by letting individuals and brands choose what music to share rather than flooding feeds with automatic listening updates.

1. Eye On
Facebook’s Stories Have a
Soundtrack
11.16.15

2. Contents
1. Table of contents
2. Facebook to Publish “Music Stories”
3. But How Does It Work?
4. Here’s What It Means

3. Eye On: Facebook Music Stories, Vol 4, Issue 3, November 2015 © Leo Burnett /// Arc Worldwide
Eye On: Facebook’s Stories Have a Soundtrack
Facebook to Publish “Music Stories”
Music’s shift online has made an inherently social medium even more, well, social. Now, our listening devices
and services let us explore huge libraries of music – and they keep us connected. To capitalize on these
together, Facebook has introduced Music Stories, a quick way of sharing a song or album with a friend
whether they have your music service or not.

4. Eye On: Facebook Music Stories, Vol 4, Issue 3, November 2015 © Leo Burnett /// Arc Worldwide
But How Does It Work?
Currently only available through Facebook’s
iOS app, Music Stories will allow users to post
a preview link to a song or album from one of
the current streaming partners, Apple Music
and Spotify. Friends and Followers can listen
to the 30-second preview – even if they’re not
a subscriber of either streaming service –
without ever leaving Facebook, simply by
clicking on the play button located within the
Story. If the user likes what they hear, clicking
further leads to the music service’s app.
Functionality is limited to Apple Music and
Spotify for now, though Facebook expects to
include other streaming services soon.
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Eye On: Facebook’s Stories Have a Soundtrack

5. Eye On: Facebook Music Stories, Vol 4, Issue 3, November 2015 © Leo Burnett /// Arc Worldwide
Here’s What It Means
Increased Facebook Time
In 2015, logged-in Facebook has averaged 20+ minutes per
day. Music Stories are the next move in what seems like
Facebook’s plan to shift the web out of the mobile device-
controlled browser and into a Facebook-only experience. If
music consumption within the app eventually mirrors news
consumption, Facebook could become the place its nearly 900
million active daily mobile users discover and listen, making it
an even more important platform for reaching audiences.
More Curation Control
Past music service integrations have lead to undesirable
quantities of stories about what friends listening habits clogging
News Feeds. As a feature that could streamline the social
discovery process, Music Stories allows everyone, people and
brands, to play the role of social curator; you decide which
music to share with connections. That potential shift in user
behavior would be a game-changer for brands and artists alike,
allowing each to connect with music fans on a brand new level.
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Eye On: Facebook’s Stories Have a Soundtrack
Source: Facebook and Business Insider