Facebook brings selfie filters to Live video

Facebook’s Masks feature was launched in time for Halloween, but it is really a jab at Snapchat. Caitlin McGarry reports

In a bid to get more people using Facebook’s Live video feature, the network shamelessly snagged Snapchat’s selfie filters for its iOS app. The new feature, called Masks, so when you open Facebook, you’ll see a new mask option when you start shooting a live video from your front-facing camera. Specifically, you have to tap on the Live Video icon at the top of your Timeline, then tap the wand in the upper-left corner of the video screen, then select the Masks icon in the navigation bar at the bottom of your screen.

Facebook bought video filter start-up Masquerade in March, and now we’re seeing what the team has been up to. Between the newly launched Instagram Stories, a carbon copy of Snapchat Stories, and Facebook’s take on selfie filters, it’s clear that Big Blue is taking everything we love about Snapchat and bringing it to a much wider audience. Will that kill its rival? Probably not, especially with Facebook Masks being tied to Live video. But Facebook knows a good thing when it sees it, and if it can’t buy Snapchat, it might as well copy its best features.