Facebook has a lot of features, and that makes it heavy to most mobile devices in the market. With 24 hours connectivity and sync, Facebook's main app and its brother apps can consume much of a phone's resources.
One of the ways to make it easier for users is by unbundling the big blue app. Facebook has separated Messenger for example, by making it its own brand standing on its own feet.
But with its increasing number of users, especially on less developed countries, Messenger is seen as a heavy app to many of them.
This is where Facebook announces Messenger Lite. It's essentially a slimmed down version of its messaging app that is optimized for basic Android devices as well as those that run on slow and unstable connections.
"Furthering our goal to empower people all over the world to stay connected, today we're launching a new app called Messenger Lite, a standalone version of Messenger for Android," said Tom Mulcahy, Engineering Manager for Messenger Lite on October 2nd, 2016.
Here Facebook hopes that the app will ease users in developing countries to enjoy its messaging service more than the original version. Coming in with less 10MB, it offers core features like sending text, photos and links.
Messenger Lite can receive stickers, but it won't allow users to download or share them through the app.
Messenger Lite is like a new cog in Facebook's machinery, aimed for people in the developing world. The company once stated that its plan was to bring the next 3 billion people online.
Facebook also owns messaging service WhatsApp, which has been popular in the developing world. But its massive influence hasn't affect Facebook's decision to reconfigure Messenger for the same market. The two essentially wants to be on top of the food chain.
The key for Messenger Lite is to make it run on older Android phones from as far back as 2009, running the Gingerbread version, and also on low-powered phones on bad connections. It also prioritizes features that people were using the most.
What Messenger Lite does, is to complement Facebook Lite which is a basic version of the social media network's mobile app. Both Facebook Lite and Messenger Lite, along with the company's Free Basic's zero-rating internet service, are in line with Facebook's quest to connect the whole world through its platform.
The Lite version of Messenger is initially rolling out to Kenya, Tunisia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Venezuela. It will be available to other countries in moments to come.