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Facebook's parent company, Meta, is conducting a limited test where profiles without a Meta Verified account could be restricted to posting just two links to other sites per month.

The Trial's Parameters

This pilot program currently involves a selection of Facebook profiles using Professional Mode features, which is often used by content creators to earn money from their posts. While news organizations are not part of this test, the broader impact could be significant.

"Beginning 16 December, certain Facebook profiles without Meta Verified will be restricted to posting two free posts per month."

A History of Retreat

This move follows years of Meta deliberately retreating from hosting news content. Industry analysts point out that after ending deals to pay publishers and blocking news links in Canada, Meta has made it clear that news is not a priority.

Publishers previously faced a massive drop in website visitors following a policy change last year to de-prioritise news in favor of short-form and engaging video. While traffic had been recovering in 2024, it remained down by approximately half compared to the previous year.

The Push for Subscriptions

The new test is seen as part of a wider effort to encourage users to subscribe to Meta Verified. This subscription service ranges in price from £9.99 to almost four hundred pounds monthly and offers extra features like a blue checkmark and improved account protection.

• A company representative said: "This is a limited test to understand whether the ability to publish an increased volume of posts with links provides extra benefit for Meta Verified subscribers."
• Some experts suggest this shift towards monetization may be linked to Meta's costly investments in other areas, like the metaverse and artificial intelligence.

A Potential Silver Lining?

It is worth noting that earlier in the year, Meta stated it would take towards a more personalized approach for news and politics. Subsequent analysis indicated this may have led to more news content showing up again for some users.

For example, traffic from Facebook to certain newspaper websites was said to increase significantly in the early months of this year.

In the end, this trial underscores the continuing struggle between giant tech networks seeking fresh income sources and publishers that rely on them for traffic and audience reach.