Facebook introduces live audio streams in partnership with the BBC

A year into its expensive investment into live video, Facebook is adding an audio option. The company said that the feature, which is first being made available to publishers, is designed to complement video streams with a lower-bandwidth option.

Initial partners include Britain’s LBC radio, the BBC World Service, Harper Collins, and authors Adam Grant and Britt Bennett. It will be made available to everyone in 2017. Listening to live streams on iOS will require that you have Facebook open on your mobile device the entire time, Facebook said — a feature that seems likely to limit engagement among listeners. Android users can close the app and continue to listen.