Facebook updates Messenger with Message Requests, attempts to kill phone numbers

Facebook is starting to roll out a new way for people to contact you without needing your phone number. All they’ll need is your name and Facebook Messenger. As a consequence of such action, your message inbox will be consolidated so that you won’t have that “Other Folder” anymore, and you can accept or ignore new requests without the sender noticing.

In a post by Messenger head David Marcus, shown below, only those messages you receive from those you’re connected to on the social network or whose contact you have on your synced mobile device will be routed right to your inbox. Everything else will be pending — minus the spam requests.

The rapid shift towards Messenger is rather pronounced. Facebook wants the service to be the main place you go to not only communicate with your friends, but also businesses, and to get things done. The addition of Message Requests will likely be helpful as Facebook’s Messenger platform begins to evolve to bring in more businesses and integrate with third-party services.

The introduction of Message Requests will likely cause people to worry about their privacy, mostly because they’re afraid of unwanted harassment by people who want to connect for random reasons. However, a benefit of this could be that message handling is now more streamlined, so that it’s identified as either a message from a contact (yes) or a stranger (no) and will be queued up for you thusly.

Some people probably are afraid to deal with pending requests out of fear that an “ignore” will signal to the sender that they saw it and issued some kind of response. With the update, there’s nothing more than just sliding to ignore.

As Facebook seeks to better connect the billions of people around the world, it’s also trying to change the way we behave digitally. Right now when we meet up with someone, we might ask for their phone number or email address. In some cases, we’re also adding them on Facebook. But why not combine the two and have a more intimate conversation? Facebook’s Message Requests will facilitate that, but without relying on someone to go through their friend requests and accept you. Now you can cut to the chase and instantly communicate right through Facebook Messenger.