Yahoo Finance Facebook to introduce 'time well spent' features for smartphones
Facebook is to embrace the "time well spent" movement to encourage people to monitor the amount of time they spend on social media with new tools for the Facebook app.
Facebook is now working on a feature that will let users monitor their time on its app and set time limits, after announcing the social media giant would focus on more "meaningful interactions" on its site earlier this year.
The feature, revealed by developer Jane Manchun Wong, will show the amount of time users spend on Facebook each day, give users the ability to set daily time limit reminders and change notification setting from the site.
The new tools follow a similar feature from Facebook-owned Instagram, which announced it would launch a usage insights tool to show users how much they use the picture sharing app.
Facebook is working on "Your Time on Facebook" which could help users to manage their time spent on Facebook app.
Instagram is also working on helping users to improve their digital wellbeing: https://t.co/y38mV3RtqB
as previously spotted: https://t.co/D26M9RuSxGpic.twitter.com/YqSyH0fpII— Jane Manchun Wong (@wongmjane) June 22, 2018
It is just the latest new feature social media giants have adopted in response to user concerns about overuse of social media and addiction.
Former Silicon Valley engineers launched an initiative called Time Well Spent, a movement that aims to improve the way apps are designed to prevent smartphone addiction and the battle for user attention.
Facebook said it was "always working on new ways to help make sure people’s time on Facebook is time well spent", according to TechCrunch.
Tech rivals including Apple and Google have both introduced time management features this year. Apple announced at its annual developer conference new features to limit users time on certain apps, including parental controls that parents can add to children's phones. Google, meanwhile, will launch a data centre to show users how much time they are spending on apps in its Android P update this year.
The Telegraph has launched a campaign to force tech companies to take more responsibility over how children use their apps and devices. The Duty of Care campaign has seen politicians and health officials speak out to put pressure on Silicon Valley's biggest companies.
