Facebook is testing charging some users who want to post more than two external web links a month.
Several users in the UK and the US have received notifications stating they must have a Meta Verified subscription, which starts at £9.99 a month, to share more.
Meta, Facebook’s owner, said it was carrying out a ‘limited test to understand whether the ability to publish an increased volume of posts with links adds additional value’ for subscribers.
The trial seems to apply to Facebook pages and profiles using Professional Mode, which includes features that allow users to monetise content.
Users shared screenshots of notifications that read: ‘Starting 16 December, certain Facebook profiles without Meta Verified will be limited to sharing two organic [ie free] posts per month.
‘Subscribe to Meta Verified to share more links on Facebook, plus get a verified badge and additional benefits.’
Social media analyst Matt Navarra said the move highlights the company’s push to generate revenue across more parts of its platforms.
He told the BBC that ‘it isn’t really about verification’, instead the trial is about locking important and useful features that many creators and businesses need to keep growing and maintaining their reach.
While news outlets are not part of the trial, it could still affect newsrooms and other media publishers by limiting some users’ ability to share their content.
Media organisations suffered a major decline in web traffic following Meta’s 2023 move to push news lower in feeds and prioritise video and viral short-form content.
Mr Navarra added: ‘If you’re a creator or a business, I think the message is essentially if Facebook is a part of your growth or traffic strategy, that access now has a price tag attached to it.
‘And that’s new in its explicitness, even if it’s been the direction of travel for a while.’
In September, Meta announced Facebook and Instagram users could pay to avoid seeing adverts.
Web users would be charged £2.99 a month and mobile phone users £3.99 a month for the privilege, it said.
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