Meta is restructuring how videos are delivered on Facebook by consolidating Watch and Reels into a single platform.
This transition integrates short-form and long-form content into one recommendation feed, altering how videos are ranked, delivered, and monetized. The move follows engagement data showing increased preference for short-form videos, leading Meta to prioritize Reels as the primary viewing experience.
By merging these platforms, Meta aims to simplify content discovery for users while streamlining video distribution for creators. However, the shift raises concerns about whether long-form content can remain visible in a feed optimized for short-form videos.
Why Meta Is Merging Facebook’s Video Platforms
Since its launch in 2017, Facebook Watch has served as the hub for long-form videos, including episodic content and live broadcasts.
In contrast, Reels, introduced in 2020, was Meta’s response to TikTok’s rapid dominance in short-form content. These separate platforms created fragmented content experiences, requiring users to switch between tabs to find different video formats.
Meta’s goal with this merger is to create a unified video experience where short and long-form videos coexist in a single feed.
According to an official Meta blog post, “Maintaining multiple video products and services leads to a fragmented user and developer experience. Fragmentation leads to slower developer times, complicated and inconsistent user experiences, and fewer positive app recommendations. Facebook Watch and Reels on Facebook —two similar products—were functioning quite separately, which meant we couldn’t share improvements between them, leading to a worse experience across the board..”
Additionally, the shift benefits advertisers, who previously had to create separate campaigns for Watch and Reels. With a single ranking system, Meta’s AI-driven ad system can optimize placements across all video formats, potentially increasing ad reach and engagement.
Behind the Scenes: How Meta Is Restructuring Video Delivery
Merging Facebook’s video platforms required significant changes to its backend infrastructure. Several major updates have been implemented:
- Ranking Algorithm Overhaul: Watch and Reels previously had separate recommendation engines. Meta has now combined them into a single ranking model, which prioritizes fresh, engaging content while balancing exposure for different video lengths. With the UI shifting toward Reels, Meta’s new ranking algorithm also reflects this change, potentially favoring short-form content more than before.
- Backend System Integration: The two platforms had distinct mobile and server architectures. Meta’s engineering team has unified these systems, improving video delivery efficiency and reducing load times.
- User Interface Transition: The dedicated Watch tab has been removed, and long-form videos now appear within the Reels UI. This change optimizes video engagement, but some creators fear their content may receive less visibility.
- Dynamic Pagination and Freshness Optimization: Instead of fixed content structures, Meta’s AI now dynamically loads videos based on individual user behavior, ensuring relevant recommendations while optimizing server capacity.
Facebook’s new video delivery system is designed to optimize content presentation while ensuring efficiency and user engagement. At its core, the system prioritizes fresh content, ensuring that users always see the most relevant and up-to-date videos based on their interests and interactions.
Instead of relying on static feeds, the platform dynamically updates recommendations, making real-time adjustments based on engagement signals.
Rather than enforcing a fixed order of content, the ranking algorithm plays a crucial role in determining what appears first. This allows the system to tailor each user’s feed to their preferences, highlighting videos that align with their watching patterns and interests.
By letting ranking dictate visibility, Facebook ensures that content engagement remains high while minimizing exposure to less relevant material.
Efficiency is another fundamental aspect of the system. Instead of preloading large amounts of video content, Facebook only moves content from memory to the UI layer when it is needed. This on-demand approach reduces unnecessary data processing, making the platform more responsive while conserving resources.
Additionally, when content is fetched, the system ensures that the behavior remains deterministic, meaning that videos are delivered in a predictable and consistent manner without unnecessary redundancy or delays.
The final key element involves content retrieval based on clear user intent. Videos are not simply pushed to users without context; instead, the system waits for strong engagement signals before surfacing content.
Whether it’s a user scrolling through the video tab, searching for specific clips, or interacting with related media, these signals trigger the system to deliver videos in a way that feels natural and unobtrusive. This approach helps reduce content fatigue while maintaining a seamless and engaging viewing experience.
What It Means for Users, Creators, and Advertisers
For users, this change simplifies video browsing. Instead of switching between tabs, all content is now surfaced within a single feed. However, the new Reels-based UI may not be ideal for long-form content consumption.
For creators, the unified system means they no longer need to format videos separately for Reels and Watch. However, some are concerned that the ranking algorithm may favor short-form content, limiting exposure for longer videos. As a result, some creators have started segmenting their long-form videos into shorter clips to maintain visibility within the new ranking system.
Advertisers stand to benefit the most. With all video formats integrated, Meta’s AI-driven ad system can place campaigns more efficiently, improving engagement while reducing the need for separate ad strategies.
Will Long-Form Content Survive in a Reels-Dominated Feed?
Meta’s transition raises a key question: Can long-form content thrive in a system primarily designed for quick, engaging clips? Some analysts believe that Facebook’s shift toward Reels could marginalize traditional video creators who rely on in-depth content.
Merging all video content into a single feed could push Facebook further toward prioritizing short-form videos, potentially altering how users engage with and consume content on the platform.
With these changes now live, the real test will be whether long-form content can continue to engage audiences in a landscape increasingly designed for short bursts of entertainment.
