Facebook Test Subscription Service for Instant Articles

The social network will begin to test a feature that limits to 10 the number of news that can be accessed in its section Instant Articles

Facebook will try to limit the number of news that can be read for free on its Instant Articles platform for premium publishers, US media reported Wednesday.

The leading social network has become a major source of news, triggering complaints from publishers who lose control and revenue when their stories are shared for free on Facebook.

A subscription method is being created in the Instant Articles section of Facebook, where the social network has agreements with selected outlets to publish directly on the platform, according to TheStreet.

In October, Facebook will begin testing a feature that limits the number of news items that can be accessed in its Instant Articles section to 10 and guides readers to publishers’ home pages to consider subscribing, According to media reports.

Instant Articles adds news stories and quickly loads mobile pages to serve smartphone or tablet users.