Facebook limits livestreaming ahead of tech summit

Paris - Facebook said it's tightening the rules for its livestreaming service with a "one strike" policy applied to a broader range of offenses.

Facebook toughened its livestreaming policies on Wednesday as it prepared to huddle with world leaders and other tech CEOs in Paris to find ways to keep social media from being used to spread hate, organise extremist groups and broadcast terror attacks.
Facebook's move came hours before its executives would face the prime minister of New Zealand, where an attacker killed 51 people in March - and livestreamed parts of it on Facebook.
The CEOs and world leaders will try to agree on guidelines they will call the "Christchurch Call", named after the New Zealand city where the attack on a mosque took place.
Facebook said it's tightening the rules for its livestreaming service with a "one strike" policy applied to a broader range of offenses. Activity on the social network that violates its policies, such as sharing a terrorist group's statement without providing context, will result in the user immediately being temporarily blocked. The most serious offenses will result in a permanent ban.
Previously, the company took down posts that breached its community standards but only blocked users after repeated offenses. The tougher restrictions will be gradually extended to other areas of the platform, starting with preventing users from creating Facebook ads.
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern welcomed Facebook's pledge. She said she herself inadvertently saw the Christchurch attacker's video when it played automatically in her FB feed.