The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), in collaboration with Meta, organized a high-level workshop titled “Counter Terrorism in the Digital Age” at PTA Headquarters.
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Meta Introduces HD Video Calls, AI for Facebook Messenger
Meta has unveiled a series of significant updates to enhance the Facebook Messenger experience, introducing HD video calls, background noise suppression, and voice isolation.
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Facebook and X Face Turbulence in Pakistan
Popular social media platforms, including Facebook and X (formerly known as Twitter), are experiencing significant disturbances in Pakistan.
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Meta Launches Messenger Communities, Boosts Connectivity
Meta has introduced Communities on Facebook Messenger, a significant addition following the success of a similar feature on WhatsApp in 2022.
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Meta launches Facebook Stars- a monetization tool for Pakistani creators
KARACHI: Facebook Stars, Meta’s monetization feature for content creators is now open to all eligible creators in Pakistan to help them connect with their audiences and build a business.
Stars, a digital good that fans can buy and send to support creators, will enable Pakistani online content creators to easily onboard, check their earnings by content type, manage their goals, and access other Stars settings. This tool is available across multiple formats: Facebook Reels, Facebook Live, on-demand videos, as well as photos and text posts.
“Helping creators to build community and turn their passions into professions is a key part of our continued investment in Pakistan,“ said Jordi Fornies, Meta’s Director of Emerging Markets for the Asia Pacific region. “Today, we are thrilled to announce that Facebook Stars is open to all eligible creators in Pakistan, so more people can start earning while they grow their creativity, audience and careers.”
Earlier this year, Meta brought Reels to Pakistan, introducing short form, entertaining video experiences and tools to creators and audiences. Today Reels is the fastest-growing content format on Meta platforms globally. There are more than 140 billion Reels played across Facebook and Instagram each day.
“We are encouraged to see Meta’s contribution in supporting local businesses in Pakistan and opening up different ways for Pakistani content creators to generate meaningful, reliable revenue on their platforms. We hope the Stars program will create new opportunities to monetize and play a role in strengthening the country’s digital economy,” said Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, the Foreign Minister of Pakistan during his visit to the Meta regional office in Singapore today.
Any Pakistani creator with at least 1,000 followers online through the last 60 days who meets the following eligibility criteria will be able to begin receiving Stars from their audiences.
“So wonderful to see Stars has launched in Pakistan, giving more creators like me on Facebook and Reels the opportunity to build community and earn money through doing what we love,” said Danish Ali, Pakistani content creator. “I’m excited for creators in Pakistan to start using Stars to generate an income and build deeper connections with their audiences as they grow on Facebook.”
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Facebook launches flagship ‘Rise’ in Pakistan
KARACHI: Facebook on Wednesday launched its flagship skill development program ‘Rise’ in Pakistan to help advertising agencies and marketing professionals develop new and contemporary skills for professional success and fulfillment.
Initially launched in Brazil in 2020, Rise has now grown to 18 countries across 4 continents to supplement global efforts for economic recovery following the COVID-19 pandemic by empowering and up-skilling the advertising communities across these markets.
‘Rise’ was launched in Pakistan in an online ceremony led by Jordi Fornies, Director for Emerging Markets at Meta (formerly Facebook), with representatives from Pakistan’s advertising community, industry leaders, Facebook’s Authorized Sales Partner (ASP), students and faculty of leading universities, bloggers, and influencers in attendance.
Speaking at the launch, Reseller Partner Manager – Meta, Ali Khurshid Ahmed said, “Rise is created to help the advertising community in Pakistan to continue their journey of personal growth and professional development by developing new skills, hone old ones, or even completely pivot their careers.
He said, Rise was designed to suit the needs of all levels of experience and the program is about celebrating the resilience of the members of the advertising community, besides providing them the spark to learn, grow and thrive in their personal as well as professional lives.”
The program will span over 2 months, where the participants will have access to free online content and development sessions, including free Blueprint training and certifications under mentorship of Meta experts. In addition, they will be able to develop necessary soft skills and have the opportunity to interact with successful entrepreneurs and industry leaders to receive inspiration and guidance for success.
A number of leading universities, industry experts, bloggers and digital influencers have endorsed the program as a valuable opportunity for advertising and marketing industry professionals for career development.
The program will especially benefit those who faced difficulties with regards to employment during the pandemic. Once skilled and motivated for success, they can re-enter the market with enhanced prospects for employability and career development. Rise is equally beneficial for new entrants as well as the more experienced professionals who want to refresh their knowledge and skill to stay relevant in the market.
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Facebook changes name to Meta
Facebook at its annual developer conference announced to change the name to Meta. The company said it would better “encompass” what it does, as it broadens its reach beyond social media into areas like virtual reality.
According to BBC, the company, which announced the change at its annual developer conference, said it would better “encompass” what the firm now does. It also revealed plans for a metaverse – an online world where people can game, work and communicate in a virtual environment, often using VR headsets.
The name change follows a series of negative stories about Facebook, based on documents leaked by an ex-employee.
“The metaverse is the next frontier,” Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg said in a presentation at Facebook’s Connect conference, held virtually on Thursday. “From now on, we’re going to be metaverse-first, not Facebook-first.”
Facebook’s name change is the most definitive signal so far of the company’s intention to stake its future on a new computing platform — the metaverse, an idea born in the imaginations of sci-fi novelists, according to Bloomberg.
In Facebook’s vision, people will congregate and communicate by entering virtual environments, whether they’re talking with colleagues in a boardroom or hanging out with friends in far-flung corners of the world.
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Facebook combats child abuse material in Pakistan
Facebook in collaboration with Zindagi Trust launched a campaign in Pakistan to educate the public about the harm caused by sharing child abuse material online, and the importance of reporting it through proper channels.
This campaign follows research conducted by Facebook, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) and Professor Ethel Quayle, a world leading clinical psychologist who specializes in sex offenders, to understand why people share child exploitation content.
Researchers conducted an investigation of 150 individuals who shared child exploitative content on Facebook in July and August of 2020 and January 2021. Based on a thorough analysis of these individuals’ behaviors on Facebook, child safety experts believe that more than 75 per cent did not exhibit an intent to harm children. Instead, they appeared to share child exploitation content for other reasons, such as outrage or poor humor.
Based on this analysis, the company developed the campaign, together with child safety partners such as Zindagi Trust to encourage people to report child sexual abuse material and not share it. The campaign reminds people not to reshare this content because no matter the context it is being shared in – whether it’s outreach, condemnation or even ill humour – any sharing of child exploitation content causes further harm and is illegal.
Shehzad Roy–Founder of Zindagi Trust said, ‘It is great to see Facebook taking an initiative towards preventing the spread of online child abuse material. We must understand that child protection needs to extend to all spaces, including digital. By advocating for changes in state policy we have helped prohibit corporal punishment, introduce Life Skills Based Education (LSBE) in schools and reform performance evaluations for teachers. Now we will advocate for effective policy recommendations to safeguard children from cybercrime. However, it will be vital for government institutions and social media companies to remain engaged in this dialogue and take action.’
Speaking about the partnership, Sehar Tariq – Public Policy Manager, Pakistan— Facebook said; “Preventing and eradicating online child sexual exploitation and abuse requires a cross-industry approach, and Facebook is committed to doing our part to protect children on and off our apps. We are taking a research-informed approach to develop effective solutions that disrupt the sharing of child exploitation material. We are delighted to partner with Zindagi Trust on the campaign, leveraging their extensive experience in championing reforms for child protection.”
Program officer at Zindagi Trust, Ali Aftab shared “Child abuse content shared in Pakistan is often accompanied by captions that implore law enforcement agencies to take notice and pursue action. Our campaign will also focus on educating the community on how to report content directly to relevant local authorities. We will work with NGOs, law enforcement and government agencies to improve the efficacy of existing mechanisms so that help and support can be provided to children and their families in a timely manner.”
The campaign will be built upon videos, both instructional and informational, along with policy dialogues with key stakeholders. These dialogues aim to identify policy recommendations that can be given to the concerned government bodies as well as Facebook. However, everyone in the community has to play their part to make this effort achieve significant results.