Facebook is currently testing a feature where people can have five profiles connected to a single account. The feature would allow people to use different profiles for different groups they would like to connect with.
How will it work?
For instance, one profile for friends, another for co-workers, a separate one for family and relatives, one more for the business they may run- so on and so forth. Users would be able to switch between profiles in a few clicks.
What is Facebook saying?
Leonard Lam, Facebook spokesperson, wrote in an email to TechCrunch, “Anyone who uses Facebook must continue to follow our rules.” The additional profiles would not require the user’s real name. They can choose any unique username or profile name without special characters or numbers in it. However, Facebook said, people should continue using their real names in the main profile.
What stays the same?
The company would stick to its policies for the additional profiles as always. The users would not be allowed to misrepresent their identities in the additional profiles and cannot impersonate others. If any additional profile is slapped with a violation, the whole account will face the impact.
Why do the rules remain the same?
According to Facebook, this rule will prevent abuse on its platform across various profiles. If anybody is found violating the company’s policies from any of the profiles, the system will recognize the profile and take action against it or the account as a whole. The action taken could be removing the additional profile or all profiles that include the main account as well.
Available only to main profile
Some parts of Facebook are only available to the main profile like using Facebook Dating, creating, and managing a Page. The additional profiles would not change the way it reports user metrics.
What is new?
Facebook did not allow users to have multiple accounts but introducing additional profiles change the status a bit. This feature is a way to drive engagement and encourage people to post and share more content.
Facebook does not want to remain a place to share just updates but wants people to go deeper into things they care about or want to learn more about. Although Facebook Groups are already catering to this aspect to a great extent but having additional profiles could make it more inclusive and comprehensive.
Why the change?
Facebook’s intention of shifting from single profiles comes from a place of competition with platforms like TikTok. It wants to retain its users and also attract new ones. Sadly, Facebook reported a decline in daily users for the first time in the last quarter of 2021 but fortunately reported an increase in the first quarter of 2022.
