Facebook to 'launch subscription news service'

Facebook is due to launch a subscription-based news product, it has been reported. The social media giant's news partnerships head Campbell Brown announced the plans at a conference in New York. The feature is likely to allow publishers to create a paywall on Facebook's Instant Articles and guide readers to a publisher's home page to opt for a digital subscription, according to a TheStreet report. The idea for a paywall is based on premium and metered plans and has been in the works for a while, TheStreet said, citing comments by Mr Brown at the Digital Publishing Innovation Summit. The company is widely seen as a threat to publishers as it hoovers up digital advertising revenue.