Facebook Axes Its “Like” Button

Social media giant Facebook has ditched its thumbs up “Like” button to replace it with a new share option intended to help people share more engaging content on the Internet.

The move affecting the platform’s most iconic feature was announced by Facebook software engineer Ray C via the network’s developer blog. The redesign concerns the buttons placed below news articles and retail items. People on Facebook will be still able to give a “thumbs up” while they are on the social platform.

The “Like” button, which is clicked more than 22 billion times a day across more than 7.5 million websites, will be redesigned together with the Share button. The new share options were introduced on Thursday, and will reach all users in the coming weeks.

Facebook said the new share options were already gaining huge interest, and those still using the old buttons will have them automatically updated soon.

According to social business correspondent Eileen Brown, the need for a button redesign has been evident for some time, and it is good to see that Facebook has recognised it. In many cases, the Like button is just not appropriate, for example, liking news about disasters like hurricanes or plane crashes. Giving a “thumbs up” to such information upsets many users, but in the past there was just no other option, Brown told media marketing company The Drum.