A new Dropbox feature will allow you to send photos, videos and other files using Facebook’s Messenger service.
The new feature will be available on Messenger apps for both iOS and Android from launch, The deal is the first of its kind for Messenger and Dropbox is the only file sharing service to reach a deal with Facebook.
Send Dropbox files via Messenger
“We want people to communicate just the way they want to on Messenger, with everyone they care about,” said Stan Chudnovsky, Facebook’s head of product for Messenger. “Giving our users the ability to share their Dropbox videos and images in Messenger threads with just a few taps will help them bring more style and personality to those conversations.”
In order to use the new feature, tap the “more” button and choose Dropbox from the list of available sources. Now simply choose which files you want to send and click on them to send via Messenger.
Users of the messaging platform will be able to see visual files like videos, images and GIFs in the chat window, but non-visual files like documents will be sent to the Dropbox mobile app. In order for the integration to work properly you will have to download the Dropbox mobile app.
Facebook expected to push ahead with chatbot support
The Facebook F8 developer conference is just about to start in San Francisco, and it is thought that the social media giant will reveal the next generation of Messenger. One potential innovation is support for chatbots, which Facebook will be able to market to businesses for use in customer service programs.
It is thought that the future of customer service revolves around the use of artificial intelligence software that can respond to our queries. However as anyone who has tried to get a straight answer out of a chatbot knows, the technology still needs some serious work.
Facebook could be at the forefront of a customer service revolution with chatbot support, but unless the artificial intelligence is clever enough we will all be left frustrated by the interminable loops which sometimes present themselves.