Facebook pushes for stand-alone messaging service, launches Messenger web app
Almost two years ago Facebook had come up with a dedicated Messenger app for its mobile devices and eventually forced users to download the application by shutting out the chat option from the native Facebook application.Facebook today announced a standalone version of its Messenger services for web browsers and the good part is it doesn’t require users to download anything. The new Facebook messenger can be accessed by pointing your web browser to Messenger.com and logging in to your Facebook account.The new web client will ensure that users are not distracted by the their feeds and serves the sole purpose of connecting the users for one on one conversations naturally making it a rival for messaging service like Skype which still to the traditional application only model. The Facebook Messenger web app also has a popup notification feature that will alert users of notifications.
Facebook Messenger has a total of 600 million users and the number of users is undoubtedly set to increase due to the web version. Messenger Web will help the non-mobile users with uniform experience across multiple platforms. The web app will also enable Facebook to provide a uniform experience for Messenger apps across mobile and desktop platforms, which would benefit third-party developers.
The Messenger site sports the usual uncluttered white background and a two pane windows menu. The left column shows off the previous chats with the friends and clicking on any of the conversation will open the chat in the left panel.