Meta, the parent company of Facebook, has initiated a test that introduces a paywall for link-sharing among creators on its platform. This new feature will restrict how many links a creator can share each month based on their subscription to the Meta Verified service. Under this pilot scheme, creators without a Meta Verified subscription will be limited to sharing links in only two organic posts each month.
The test was confirmed by a spokesperson for Meta, following a notification sent to creators participating in the trial. According to social media consultant Matt Navarra, the notification indicated that “certain Facebook profiles without Meta Verified, including yours, will be limited to sharing links in 2 organic posts per month.” Currently, this limitation affects an unspecified number of creators and pages that utilize Facebook’s “professional mode.” Publishers are not impacted by this test at this time.
Implications for Creators
This development raises significant concerns among creators and publishers who rely on Facebook to drive traffic to their external content. A spokesperson for Meta stated, “This is a limited test to understand whether the ability to publish an increased volume of posts with links adds additional value for Meta Verified subscribers.” Despite this assertion, the potential shift in link-sharing dynamics could have a considerable impact on those who depend on the platform for visibility and engagement.
Many creators have expressed frustration over Meta’s customer service features, which are already restricted to Meta Verified subscribers, starting at $14.99/month. If link-sharing becomes another premium feature, it could exacerbate dissatisfaction within the creator community.
While Meta downplays the implications of this test, the company’s shift towards monetizing link-sharing could alter the landscape for creators who view Facebook as a crucial tool for audience engagement and content dissemination. The full impact of this trial will be closely monitored by industry observers, as it could set a precedent for how social media platforms manage content sharing in the future.
As this test progresses, creators and publishers will be watching closely to see how it affects their operations on the platform. For now, the potential changes pose a challenge to those who have built their audiences and businesses around Facebook’s existing sharing policies.
