Facebook expands live video streaming to Android, 30 new countries for iOS

By Steve Pak / 1456538520
(Photo : Facebook) Facebook will roll out its Live video-streaming service to Android soon, and add 30+ countries for iOS.

Facebook is expanding its live video-streaming feature to Android smartphones and tablets in the United States within the next week. It will also expand Facebook Live for iOS to over 30 more countries around the world. The company just increased its original availability that included celebrities and users of the world's largest social network with verified profiles.

Mark Zuckerberg's company recently opened Facebook Live to all iOS device users in the US. Facebook fans can use Live to broadcast themselves to the world by tapping the status update box, hitting the Live Video icon, then choosing friends and family they want to share the video with.

Facebook's feature is like Twitter's Periscope. However, the former does not require a special mobile app but is instead built into the Facebook client, according to VentureBeat.

The social media giant shared that over half of people who watched live streams did it on Android devices. That was when it was only available on iOS.

Facebook's CEO Zuckerberg announced Live's expansion to Android at a Q&A session in Berlin, Germany on February 26, Friday. During the town hall meeting Zuckerberg was asked how he would help Twitter turn around its business.

However, Facebook's chief executive also talked about the features of Facebook Live. He explained how celebrities and politicians could use the mobile tool to broadcast live to thousands of people.    

Facebook Live is part of Facebook's move in recent months to add more real-time content to its News Feed. It announced that the average time spent watching video is three times higher for live-streamed clips than non-live clips, according to The Verge.

In other Facebook Live news this year's Academy Awards will only be streamed live for mobile devices via the social network's feature. That includes events before, during, and after the awards show.  

The unfiltered live streams will include footage from the red carpet, the awards presentations, and backstage on February 28, Sunday.

Live streaming video will be hosted by the Academy's Facebook page. Its 2.1 million followers will get a mobile notification when the video is broadcasting.

Here's how to live-stream on Facebook: