If you use an iOs or Android app for Facebook, you may have noticed a new icon under certain content from pages that you do not follow. If you see an icon that looks like a rocket ship under an article in your Facebook feed, then you are one of Facebook’s test subjects.
Claiming that users are looking for an easy way to explore new content they haven’t yet connected with, Facebook is testing this method of presenting content to users based on what Facebook thinks the users might find interesting. It is thought that this feature is a way to increase engagement, as the trend lately is for users to share fewer personal updates.
With organic reach dropping for Facebook Pages posts (due to algorithm changes by the platform), many Page owners have had to increase their ads on Facebook to maintain their presence. Organic reach could be improved by tweaking the algorithm, but this would cost them ad revenue. A second news feed might be a way for brands to increase their reach with popular content without affecting the primary news feed. A second feed would also give brands an opportunity to connect with new Facebook users.
Facebook has almost reached its peak ad density – meaning the platform has reached the maximum number of ads that can be shown to users in its news feed. Although nothing has been said in public about using the second news feed for ads, it is certainly a possibility.
Downsides to a second news feed include disrupting Facebook's initiatives against “fake news” and annoying users by being too aggressive at introducing new content.