Facebook on Thursday said it will roll out the stripped down version of its social media platform, Facebook Lite, to more countries including developed ones, to attract users struggling with slower mobile data connections.
Facebook Lite, presently available in over 100 countries, was launched in 2015 targeting developing markets and designed to work in areas with slower or limited Internet connections.
The new rollout will now be available to users in more countries, including the United States, Canada, Australia, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Ireland, and New Zealand.
"We've seen that even in some developed markets people can have lower connectivity, so we want to make sure everyone has the option to use this app if they want," the company said.
The app will be available for download from Thursday.
Last month, Facebook Lite received the social network's Safety Check feature. "In many areas around the world, networks can be slow and unreliable. This can be even more challenging after a crisis, when communication is critical," the company had elaborated.
Facebook Lite got the Reactions feature back in July last year, letting users react to posts with emojis like Love, Haha, Sad, Wow, and Angry.
In February last year, Facebook had said the Lite app had 200 million users. The company hasn't revealed any further usage figures since then.
Written with inputs from Reuters
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