Facebook launches new 360-degree videos with exclusive Star Wars clip

Facebook  has teamed up with the special-effects team behind the new Star Wars movie The Force Awakens to launch the social media site's new 360-degree videos, which will begin rolling out on its News Feeds from today.

With the goal of placing "more immersive content" in its users' feeds, the company launches today in an attempt to keep pace with its main rival in online video, YouTube, which has been in the 360 video space for some time now. In March last year, Facebook purchased  Oculus VR, the company behind the Oculus Rift headset, for $2bn (£1.3bn). And it is expected that Facebook's 360 video will support the still-unreleased Oculus Rift headset, which aims to create a more immersive experience.

An exclusive clip from the team behind The Force Awakens was among the first 360-degree videos to be posted on Facebook. In a collaboration between Lucasfilm's Industrial Light and Magic'' X-Lab and Facebook, users can scan 360-degree views of a speeder ride across the spectacular, junk-strewn landscape of the planet of Jakku, which features in the upcoming The Force Awakens. The scene was featured in the recent second trailer for the movie

You can watch the 360 video here

At the moment, such 360 videos require complex shooting set-ups to achieve the 360 effect. But Facebook  expects the technology to improve to the point where it will become widely used on its site. According to the company: "In the future, imagine watching 360 videos of a friend's vacation to a small village in France or a festival in Brazil - you'll be able to look around and experience it as if you were there.”

See the official Facebook page on the new videos for more.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens is due to be released in Europe on December 16th