Facebook rolls out 'On this Day' feature to bring back memories from past years

In an attempt to compete with Timehop, Facebook has rolled out a new feature which will set you back in time. Termed as ‘On This Day’, this feature enables users to see what all they had posted on a given date in the previous years. The company had apparently started testing this feature a few years ago, but announced it officially this year. This feature will be rolling out globally on the web and mobile soon. Facebook Newsroom stated that a user might see past status updates, photos, posts from friends and other things which they shared or had been tagged in, either a year or two ago and so on. Giving a nostalgic feel, this feature will simply refresh a fond memory. It is being said that to avoid any painful memory, Facebook will avoid showing posts from people who have died or from people who were in a relationship with the user earlier and have changed their statuses now. [caption id=“attachment_260532” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]  Image: Facebook Newsroom[/caption] Facebook tells  TechCrunch that the company has no plans to monetize this feature, but claims that it would still drive user engagement and lock-in with Facebook’s News Feed, where people see ads. While Facebook will only bring up memories from its site, Timehop can pick up memories from Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Foursquare, Flickr, Dropbox, iPhoto or even our phone gallery. The report further added that, Timehop CEO Jonathan Wegener did not seem worried with Facebook’s new feature. He said that, “My general feeling is that this is awesome validation that we’re doing something worth doing”. He added that, “One of our investors put it really nicely that if Facebook isn’t playing in your space, you’re probably not doing something worth doing.” To try out this feature, users will see an option to view the ‘On This Day’ page on their Facebook homepage. From here, they will have the option to see the content posted by them in the past years and will also be able to share it with their friends. Users can also sign up for notifications so, they are reminded to check the feeds every day.