Twitter users benefit from greater rich media features
Posted on Jun 21, 2012 by equimedia
Twitter has taken steps to improve its rich media offering, which will allow users to enjoy a more interactive experience.
The social media site has partnered with a number of online content providers to give its users previews of news stories from The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Time and others.
Previews will be included in expanded tweets with links to articles in by the news providers and will also have the Twitter accounts of the author and publisher attached on occasion.
Additionally, tweets containing links to BuzzFeed and TMZ will display photos and graphics.
Twitter users can also watch moments from TV shows like BET's 106 and Park, and play video from the social media site's new partners.
In its blog, Twitter claims that the introduction of better rich media is an "easy way to discover content".
However, the updates have been a bug bear for some users who have synced up their Twitter and Facebook accounts so the tweet appears on the rival site.
Some rich media has not appeared on Facebook, including the addition of a hashtag or user name in a tweet, it has been claimed.
Nonetheless, Robert Weeks, spokesperson for Twitter, told Mashable: "We have fixed many issues with the Twitter for Facebook integration, including the ability to post to Facebook pages, and added some new features. To update the connection, just disconnect your Twitter and Facebook account in your Twitter profile settings and then reconnect."
According to Mr Weeks, this will add rich media experiences to the first photo, URL, @mention or #hashtag in the cross-posted tweet.
The updates will allow users to engage with more content through one platform, boosting interaction for the site and integrating more calls to action.
Partners affiliated with Twitter's update will also be able to track their performance through new rich media strategy.
