A little more than a year ago, Facebook launched its “feelings and activities” selector tool in the status bar, which enables users to post quick ‘n’ easy emoticon/phrasing combinations that express their state of mind and/or share what they are currently watching/reading/listening to. The social network claims people have since shared more than 5 billion status updates using the tool, thereby filling the world’s feeds with such dazzling “conversations” as “feeling proud!” and “drinking coffee” with a pixilated mug of beer alongside it.

Of course beyond facilitating such stimulating conversation, Facebook’s more cynical agenda was to let users more easily discuss the movies they were watching, the books they were reading, the music they were hearing and of course, the TV they were viewing. The more such items are discussed, the more they trend, and the more revenue floats Facebook’s way.

Last week, Facebook announced it is taking the tool to the next level, thereby helping funnel the narrative even more firmly toward potential revenue streams from media. A new update to the status bar includes an audio recognition feature that makes your phone’s microphone able to identify what song is playing or what show or movie is on TV. From there, inserting the media into a status update and sharing it is just a touch of the screen away.

“That means if you want to share that you’re listening to your favorite Beyoncé track or watching the season premiere of ‘Game of Thrones,’ you can do it quickly and easily, without typing,” wrote Facebook product manager Aryeh Selekman in a statement.

The feature has and will draw comparisons to Shazam, but where Shazam is about discovering something new or rediscovering something that you forgot, Facebook’s audio recognition function is about getting the word out about something you’re already digging. It’s an efficient word-of-mouth mechanism designed to get the discussion going around episodic television. It even works on live TV, including sports events, and updates automatically highlight the specific season and episode being watched, so that anyone who joins the conversation can avoid spoilers.

While Facebook has not confirmed or denied it will incorporate targeted TV (or music, movie, etc.) ads with the feature, it’s certainly laying the groundwork to do so. In advance of the the launch, the company has gone to great lengths to form extensive partnerships with content producers, including more than 160 TV networks and millions of published songs.

“Today, we’re making those conversations quicker and easier by introducing a new way to share and discover music, TV and movies,” wrote Selekman.

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