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#FridaySocial – Twitter #GoLive, Facebook formatting and Snapchat in space

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Our #FridaySocial is a weekly round-up of the key social media news stories from the previous seven days.

Let us know your thoughts in the comments or via Twitter – @Umpf/ @amybyard

Twitter testing ‘Go Live’ Periscope button for Android

In the face of mounting competition from Facebook Live, Twitter is testing an integration of Periscope on Android so that users can create a new a Periscope live video straight from the tweet composition screen.

Upon clicking the button, mobile users are sent to the separate Periscope app, but the new button does help bridge the gap between this and the Twitter feed.

Over time, all users are expected to have the ability to start a Periscope broadcast from Twitter.

GOLIVE

NASA takes Snapchat to the International Space Station

NASA is winning at Snapchat, with a ‘snap-happy’ takeover of the International Space Station.

In celebration of the ISS’ 100,000th orbits around the globe, NASA brought Snapchat to space in order to share with the world what it looks like to live up inside the ISS through NASA’s Live Story programme.

The Snapchat series is called ‘Day in Space’ and you can still view the videos by following NASA’s official Snapchat account.

https://twitter.com/NASASocial/status/705502762398846976/photo/1

Facebook releases first live-action VR film

Facebook has launched its first live-action virtual reality experience called Here and Now.  The short film transports users to a busy Grand Central Station in New York, where the 360 video plays out a series of real-life sequences.

The video is now available on Gear VR devices through the Oculus Video app (and via the Gear VR store), but for those who don’t have a headset, you can watch it as a 360 video on Facebook.

VR

Twitter to drop photos and links from 140-character limit

It’s a change that’s been long-awaited: Twitter could stop counting photos and links as part of a tweet’s 140-character limit in the next two weeks.

The news comes as Twitter’s CEO Jack Dorsey continues to experiment with ways to keep the social platform relevant in the face of stagnant user growth.

Earlier this year, Twitter considered extending its 140-character limit to 10,000.

The move was welcomed by Twitter users.

Facebook tests new text formatting options in event status updates

Facebook is testing a bold, italic and underline formatting button in event status updates.

It’s a small update compared to more recent additions, but this newest tweak has begun rolling out. When drafting an update, users are given the below option to format text.

Format