VKontakte Mobile application

The main articles are:

• Social media
• Mobile apps

2023

Availability of voice acting of all messenger functions

VKontakte on November 30, 2023 presented an update to the mobile version, which makes it more accessible to blind users. It has become easier for people with visual impairment to log in to VKontakte, in the company's products and partner services. They got access to the main functions of video and audio calls and navigation through the sections of the mobile version of the social network. All updates have been tested by visually impaired testers.

In the mobile version of VKontakte, voice acting of all functions has become available. messenger Improved accessibility for people with visual impairment in profile, notifications and news feed. They have become more convenient to work with modal windows, added headers that make it easier to navigate sections, and a hotkey that allows you to open a global search.

Шаблон:Quote 'author = said Ekaterina Kochneva, VKontakte Social Project Manager.

Business Promotion with VK Ads

mobile application Vkontakte You can now launch business promotion through using technology. VK Ads This was announced on March 30, 2023 by the company. VK (formerly Mail.ru Group) Setting up a campaign with smartphone will take a few minutes. Algorithms platforms increase promotion efficiency and reduce the cost of targeted actions: site events, sales, subscribers and reactions to posts.

In the VKontakte application interface, users can control the advertising of communities, individual posts and sites. In the near future, it will be possible to promote goods and services from stores on the social network from a smartphone. As before, you can run ads from a mobile application in three ways:

• click on the "Promotion" button under the description of the public;
• click on the "Promote" button under any post in the community;
• go to the services tab and open the Advertisement widget.

To promote, you do not have to understand a large number of advertising formats and features of the platform. It is enough to select a target, upload all images and videos, add text or generate it automatically. The system adapts them to the available VKontakte promotion formats, on other VK projects and in the advertising network in order to cover the maximum number of target users.

Platform technologies will help you effectively manage advertising. The cabinet user needs to specify what budget he is ready to spend on promotion per day. Algorithms already trained on thousands of campaigns will show ads to users who are more likely to take the action they need to do business. You can monitor the results and adjust the promotion both in the VKontakte mobile application and in the desktop version of VK Advertising.

2022

Deepfake User Experience

On November 24, 2022, representatives of VKontakte announced the availability of the Deepfake function for users of the social network.

According to the company, you can use the tool in the VK Clips editor - both in a separate application and in the "Clips" tab inside the VKontakte mobile application. The technology also appeared in a special mini-application, with which "Deepfake" can be published in VK Clips and in VK Video. The result can be shared with friends in private messages or downloaded to your device. Read more here.

Privacy mode "Personal space"

On October 14, 2022, VKontakte presented for users the ability to enable the "Personal Space" mode - a special set of settings that allows you to temporarily limit the circle of communication.

According to the company, the function is designed to help in protecting personal space, countering bullying, and creating a comfortable environment. The "Personal Space" mode can be turned on and off independently in the privacy settings - with one button. Seven days after activation, the mode is automatically turned off, if necessary, at the moment you need it, you can turn it on again.

When you turn on the "Personal Space" mode, the privacy settings of the page will change for a week: only friends can write to the user, and only friends of friends can send requests to friends. At the same time, the user's profile will become closed, and only friends will be able to add it to chats and mark it in photos.

Such temporary measures will be especially relevant for those who have faced unwanted attention. Users who left complaints about offensive materials from ill-wishers in their profiles will be automatically offered algorithms to try this function.

You can choose privacy settings at your discretion - prohibit all strangers from writing messages, close all comments on your page, or hide the games you play. However, we know that not everyone can adjust their profile so carefully. Here the "Personal Space" mode comes to the rescue - it allows you to turn on all the necessary settings with one button. told Ekaterina Kochneva, head of Charity of Vkontakte direction

In addition, users with the "Personal Space" mode will be able to meet special thematic materials and recommendations in the news feed to improve mental health. The project partners - including Dagger magazine, the Shalash charity foundation and the online psychological assistance service YouTalk - will tell you how to cope with anxiety, uncertainty and stress.

Creating personal covers for users using artificial intelligence

On October 10, 2022, VKontakte presented the opportunity to install a personal cover in a personal profile. It will help to generate artificial intelligence personally for each individual user - based on an analysis of interests and hobbies from publicly available page information, publications, photos and community subscriptions. You can also install the cover yourself - for example, add your favorite photo.

To create a cover using a neural network, no effort is required from the user: just go to the "Cover from VKontakte" service and press the button to generate an image. When the personal cover is ready, the user will receive a notification. It remains only to select one of the four options generated in different styles, and click the "Install Cover" button. The image will automatically be added to the user's profile with the thematic hashtag VKontakt16 - the result can be shared in the publication or through private messages.

For the 16th anniversary of VKontakte, the team presented another way of expressing themselves for users - the ability to set the cover in the profile. Together with digital avatars vmoji and other ways personalisation of personal pages, everyone will be able to show their individuality even brighter. The team is infinitely passionate about ensuring that users have additional tools that allow them to demonstrate their interests, hobbies, individuality to friends and subscribers, draw attention to creativity, services and services, noted Marina Krasnova, CEO of VKontakte.

Users of the web version of VKontakte and the current versions of the mobile application will gradually have the opportunity to add a cover to their profile. The presented function has become another element of one of the largest updates in the history of VKontakte, announced in 2022: among the updates - the design of the tape, personal profile and communities, which will soon become available to users.

Disappearing from the App Store

On September 27, 2022, it became known that application the Russian social network VKontakte had disappeared from the application store. App Store When you go to the appropriate page, the shopping section displays a notification that the connection to the App Store has failed.

Also, the applications "VK Music," "VK Play," "VK Admin," "VK Clips" and "VK Messenger" disappeared from the store. In addition, Apple has removed Mail and Mail.ru Cloud. The Odnoklassniki application is still available for download.

The press service of the company confirmed that Apple has blocked several applications of the holding and as of September 2022 they are not available in the App Store.

The corresponding request was sent to Apple by the Ministry of Digital Development.

At the same time, VK applications are still available in the Google Play app store.

VK services installed on users' smartphones continue to work as usual^[1].

Running widget view

VKontakte has launched an application for sports fans "Running" - this is another mini-application inside the "Health" platform, which helps running fans interact, unite in a community of interests, as well as take part in online competitions. VK announced this on September 12, 2022.

The rating system of the mini-application allows VKontakte users to compete with friends in real time, perform sports challenges and receive awards from the service. In addition, all detailed running statistics are collected in Bega: distances for different periods, average pace, pulse and calories spent - thus, it is even more convenient for users to monitor their running activity.

In the application, you can also share routes, set individual goals for yourself and participate in mass "challenges." With the help of social mechanics, the social network plans to build the largest running community in the country from among the multi-million audience on VKontakte.

Шаблон:Quote 'author = said Evgenia Zibareva, VKontakte Business Development Director.

According to OMI, more than 38% of Russians regularly make runs. After the pandemic and the cancellation of offline races, a trend appeared in the world to hold online events - virtual races with the participation of real athletes from different countries and cities. As of September 2022, about 20% of running activity continues to persist online: this is a huge audience that needs a technological and convenient tool for systematizing online activities.

At the start, the national payment system Mir became a partner of the Running service: it linked running events from offline with a new mini-application. Thanks to this, on September 18, users from any city will be able to virtually join the Moscow Marathon through the VKontakte Running application and get a chance to win sports prizes or 100,000 rubles.

{{quote 'author = said Natalia Peisakhovich, Marketing and Communications Director of the Mir Payment System. | We see that running culture is becoming more and more popular among the Russian community. It is important for the Mir national payment system to support those who like to play sports and contribute to the development of this area. One of the best ways to popularize running is to create communities with athletes of different levels of training: from novice runners to professionals, for example, using the Running service from Vkontakte.}}

The VKontakte Health platform for September 2022 includes several self-care services: for example, with their help, you can track your activity during the day, train, monitor nutrition, fight bad habits, as well as control symptoms and order medicines. 8 million people use various mini-applications and widgets in Health every month.

Community Design Update - Next Step in Global Mobile App Update

VKontakte on September 8, 2022 presented additional opportunities for content creators, including an office with advanced statistics for video authors and updated monetization tools, and also showed an updated community design - the next stage of the global update of the mobile application.

{{quote 'author = said Marina Krasnova, CEO of VKontakte, VK Video and VK Clips. | Together with the authors of the content, we created publics. For September 2022, tens of millions of people discuss the life of their cities in them, share their creativity, learn news from the public, find interesting music, memes, acquaintances and useful life hacks. Publics have also become an effective tool to get started or monetize content. For eight months of 2022, with the help of our tools, the authors earned 3 billion rubles. The VKontakte capabilities that we have prepared will help develop communities and share information even more efficiently and easily,}}

Communities have become digital hubs for creativity, discussion and content sharing. VKontakte made sure that each author could fully show individuality and personalize the appearance of the public, but at the same time navigation was understandable and easy for visitors when moving from one community to another.

The focus is on the "content showcase." Fresh and relevant materials are shown in the most noticeable place, the rest of the media content - in one touch on the nearest tabs. For example, an artist can put photos or goods first, a music group - their tracks, and a video blogger - fix clips or videos on the "showcase." At the top there is a laconic information section that will adapt to the user's needs: subscribers will be able to quickly switch to content, and the new audience will see a compact description to familiarize themselves with the community and subscribe to it.

Alexander Tobol, CTO VKontakte, VK Video and VK Clips, shared that the social network develops ML content recommendations in such a way that they are effective assistants for authors in the issue of audience involvement:

Taking into account the trend towards a high speed of information consumption, our technology team is preparing a different concept of recommendations - it includes ML-adaptation of content taking into account "clip thinking." Already at the beginning of September 2022, VKontakte neural networks generate different covers for videos for viewers with different interests and patterns of behavior. In the future, algorithms will help involve users in long content using short formats - for example, introducing long video through an automatically created short clip trailer or drawing attention to a longrid using short squeeze text. All the design changes that we have prepared are also aimed at increasing the power of end-to-end recommendations and ultimately giving happiness to users, anticipating their needs and responding to how they evaluate this or that content.

VKontakte and VK Video presented another advanced analytics tool for video bloggers, professional content creators and copyright holders - the author's office. In the VK community Video started accepting applications for participation in public testing of the beta version of the cabinet. Based on feedback and open testing results, the team plans to expand the tool's capabilities.

The author's office will allow novice video makers and experienced video studios to deeper study the needs and tastes of their audience, analyze the reaction of viewers to video content in order to increase the involvement and activity of subscribers. The new tool allows you to view statistics on all downloaded video content and individual videos, including data on the number of views, unique viewers, viewing duration, retention and engagement, audience structure, monetization information.

Compared to 2021, income increased by 78% in the partner program, by 214% in VK Donut and by 55% on the market platform. In the year since the launch of the video monetization program, more than 12 thousand communities have joined it.

In addition to the paid VK Donut subscription, users have the opportunity to send one-time donations - to thank for the content or support the project without a regular subscription.

You can send such a donation directly in the comments to the publication. VKontakte also announced an update to the partner program: authors who will publish stories and clips more often will have the opportunity to increase earnings. Previously, the company tested the connection of these formats to the calculation of payments: according to the results of the experiment, the average earnings of authors in August increased by 9%, including among novice content creators. In addition, VKontakte announced the start of experiments to expand limits for direct and native advertising in communities.

A section with a personal selection for each viewer will appear in the stories. The algorithm will automatically select stories based on the interests of the user and his friends, and will also help authors expand their audience. In addition, it will be possible to attach external links and configure privacy for individual stories.

VK Clips announced the launch of mobile broadcasts, an improved vertical video editor and the ability to publish clips in the web version of VKontakte: professional creators will be able to download materials in high resolution Full HD and with 60 FPS support.

Personal profile design update: It has become a hub for self-expression in the digital world

VKontakte on August 29, 2022 presented the next stage of a large update of its mobile application. The updated profile provides ample opportunities for self-expression and simplifies the exchange of information taking into account the high speed of content consumption in our world.

The focus is on individuality. In the updated profile, you can easily demonstrate your interests and hobbies to subscribers, share creativity. All changes are due to the request for high communication speed, the desire of users to quickly immerse themselves in the main thing, so the updated design includes simplicity, ease of interfaces, as well as instant access to publishing and viewing a variety of formats. content A wide range of VKontakte tools, including special digital avatars, vmoji will help everyone to form a comfortable virtual space for communication and expression in the virtual world, taking into account personal needs, Marina Krasnova, CEO of VKontakte.

The VKontakte profile becomes a center of self-expression and a full-fledged digital business card, helping to develop a personal brand. The main thing is to quickly see the basic information about the user, it is easy to go to contacts and detailed description. The profile owner will be able to add widgets with additional services for subscribers. For example, an illustrator can offer the audience a service for quickly ordering T-shirts with their print directly from the profile. Managing your personal profile and editing your information has also become easier and more intuitive.

Each profile is individual - design options depend on the author's desire and goals. You can decorate the profile with an atmospheric photo or a view from the window, or you can talk about your hobbies or share your creativity - for example, upload a picture with your favorite football team as a cover or an invitation to an exhibition of your own paintings.

The authors have the opportunity to quickly access the publication of a wide variety of content formats available on VKontakte. With a single button, you can instantly go to create a record, history, post a photo, video, clip or start broadcasting. Fresh and current content will automatically be shown in the profile in the most visible place, subscribers will be able to see the rest of the formats on the tabs. If the artist often posts his works, then it is visual content that comes to the fore - subscribers will see his paintings, and in the profile of the leader of the music group - fresh tracks.

The first stage of a large-scale update: changes in the design of the tape, the main screen of the application

On August 9, 2022, VKontakte announced that it had announced one of the largest updates to the mobile application in the history of the social network. It will affect several key products at once, and will also become the foundation for the progressive development of the platform - in particular, the launch of experimental functions related to NFT and Web 3.0. The updated design will receive the main screen of the application with the tape, the "Services" section, the user and community profile.

The vector of the company's development is to always be a relevant, technological and aesthetic tool for communication and exchange of any formats of content. In 2022, we strengthened our position, attracted even more people to the company's products and set a record for attendance - 100 million active users per month. The big update of the application combines many years of experience and is a reflection of how the company sees the future of VKontakte, laying the foundation for the implementation of our planned progressive functions and the implementation of updated advanced technologies. Also, the update will be a response to requests from users who joined the platform in 2022 and prefer a simple interface with an emphasis on content, noted Marina Krasnova, CEO of VKontakte.

The update will take place in several stages and will be available to all users within a few months. The VKontakte team shared the details of the first stage and presented an update to the design of the tape, the main screen of the application. Details of the next stages, which relate to the "Services" section, profile and appearance of communities, promise to disclose later.

The tape received an updated design with a focus on bright media formats and the need for users to receive information at a high speed. It pays special attention to aesthetic presentation and deep involvement in content, primarily - publications of friends and communities that are most in demand by the user.

Updated content design: Media content will look brighter and more engaging, as if from the cover. The update is based on the maximum visual simplification of interface elements, as well as the unification of formats for high-quality viewing of posts on any devices. The tape provides three options for the aspect ratio - 1:1, 3:4 and 4:3. Thanks to the unification of proportions, several images will be lined up in a neat grid, and their top is adapted taking into account the variety of screen sizes in user devices, this will increase the interest of the audience and reach the authors.

Updated visual accents: a fresh approach to working with text content for the convenience of users: short posts will be displayed directly in the feed, longer ones - open completely by touching the screen. Additional investments also received a minimalistic design.

The author comes first: in posts that are made in communities on behalf of users, and a photo of the author will be displayed in reposts - this will emphasize the participation of subscribers in the life of the community.

Like marks - two touches: to evaluate the publication, now it is enough to make a double touch in any part of the post. At the same time, you can not hesitate to put reactions in front of your subscribers: when scrolling the tape under the recordings, it will not be displayed which of the friends reacted to this or that publication. Both innovations will allow authors to receive a greater response from the audience.

The results of internal experiments showed that the updated design of the tape and the approach to displaying content increase user engagement and contribute to the growth of coverage. As part of testing, VKontakte will experiment with individual elements to create an ideal interface for running on all users.

Add an auto-number determiner based on intelligent algorithms and Big Data

February 21, 2022 social network "" Vkontakte reported that VKontakte will mobile application now be able to warn about unwanted telephone calls. This is how the social network takes care of users and protects them from spam attempts at fraud and other dubious calls. The service does not require access to, to the Internet works in the background and is available free of charge on and. iOS Android

The automatic number determination service instantly checks incoming calls with its own database of organizations - it is formed on the basis of an analysis of a large amount of data on suspicious telephone activity and user feedback. In real time, all information is carefully checked using algorithmic machine learning. If the algorithm finds a match, the application marks the call as spam or shows the name of the company and the scope of its work - for example, delivery of goods.

The algorithm refers to unwanted calls from fraudsters, collectors and suspicious organizations, as well as "dumb" calls. You can enable the function in the application settings in the "Number identifier" section.

VKontakte takes measures to improve the accuracy of the determiner: the service invites users to share feedback if the number is not yet in the database, but the algorithm has recorded suspicious activity - for example, unusual duration or frequency of calls. The relevance of the data also ensures the segmentation of the service number database: it varies by region and includes the phones of local companies and local branches.

"Users of" VK Calls "at any time are absolutely free of charge all premium video conferencing functions. However, classic calls are still in demand. Therefore, we help to avoid unwanted incoming calls, and in the future we will be able to connect VKontakte users with cellular subscribers, forward calls and implement other SIP telephony functions - in integration with mobile operators. This is a step towards a seamless switch between classic telephony and internet calls, "- says Marina Krasnova, CEO of VKontakte, VK Video and VK Calls.

The automatic number determination service was developed by the "VK Calls" team - platforms for video conferencing without restrictions on the duration of the call and the number of participants. So the platform continues to strengthen multi-level call security protection, expanding it beyond the social network.

VK Calls offers many technological solutions for multi-level call security protection. For example, thanks to the "Waiting Room" function, you will be able to enter the conference only after the organizer approves the application. Another measure concerns calls from communities - the function is available exclusively to administrators of verified publics. At the same time, users can flexibly manage settings - for example, receive calls only from the communities to which they are subscribed.

Creating a neural network to form the "Current" tape

On February 16, 2022 social network , "" Vkontakte announced that it had created, neuronet which is able to analyze millions of posts every second and automatically forms a tape with trends and a picture of the day "Actual." It is based on a special one: algorithm it finds and defines topics with a high potential for citation and discussion, and then automatically groups records in a convenient form by thematic plots. With the formed feed, it will be easy for readers to stay up to date with important events and make their own opinion about what is happening, and for authors, communities and - media to receive additional coverage and a new audience.

From February 16, everyone will be able to test "Actual": the tape will be available mobile application social networks in and by direct link. The VKontakte team will develop the product and closely monitor the experiment and feedback. At the first stage, the algorithm analyzes the most relevant and noticeable records from communities and users. The depth of view of sources and the number of topics will gradually expand.

The algorithm not only analyzes and predicts the discussion of different topics, but also takes into account the interests of each person when forming a tape. The format of the plots helps to quickly get acquainted with the topic, and if desired, immerse yourself in a selection in more detail, study different opinions and go to the community or to the site of the original source.

"Relevant" collects posts not only from the media, but also from publics, bloggers and other users: reviews of films, opinions about new products from the world of technology and games. Malicious materials and inaccurate information are filtered by spam analysts: they promptly consider complaints about content.

"Every day" VKontakte "creates millions of publications, these are quite different formats, topics and opinions from authors of any scale. As part of the experiment, we present an approach to content analysis, which is based on machine learning technologies created by the VKontakte team. We believe that the Current trends feed will become a point of growth in the audience's attention to authors who are focused on covering events that are taking place and are being discussed at the moment. "Relevant" will help you quickly learn about the topics and events discussed in the country and the world, "- says Marina Krasnova, CEO of VKontakte.

2021

Adding the service "VK Dating"

On November 22, 2021, VK announced that the VK Dating service in the Services tab has become available in the VKontakte mobile application and will soon appear in other products of the VK ecosystem. It will help to find a couple for friendly or romantic communication. In addition, with the help of "VK Dating" you can express sympathy for a person right in his profile "VKontakte," as well as get acquainted with the help of coincidence mechanics by musical preferences.

You can express your feelings using the "Sympathy" button in the "VKontakte" profile of the person you like. The confession is anonymous - the name will be revealed if the recipient also sends sympathy or acquires a premium subscription in VK Acquaintances.

Also a feature of "VK Dating" was the search for people with similar musical tastes. The service compiles a list of artists whose tracks the user listens to on VKontakte most often. It can be edited manually so as not to immediately admit that it is playing on the replay, or to add performers whose sympathy is long-term. In addition, algorithms unite users by age, distance and various interests: from books and choreography to surfing and blogging.

"We know many examples when the relationship began on VKontakte - with sending a song to a personal," like "marks in the photo, confessions through anonymous opinions. For 15 years, millions of people met thanks to the social network. We see an audience request for the development of tools with which it will be easier to find an interlocutor or a couple - therefore, we launch "VK Dating" and make it possible to express secret sympathies right in the profile. "VK Dating" is more than a dating service: in the future we plan to add matchings for communities and meetings, so you can find a friend to go to a concert, festival or lecture on art, discuss your favorite books or even meet a business partner. It is important for us that it is a service in which you can meet "your" person, "- Vladimir Makhov, product manager of "VK Dating."

Finding a couple in "VK Dating" is absolutely free. However, there are additional paid features:

• superlike allows you to add a comment to sympathy - for example, immediately compliment or describe your emotions;
• premium subscription allows you to see the names of everyone who sent sympathy, return to the already viewed questionnaires, like without restrictions, put five super likes a day.

The VK Dating service was created on the basis of the Lovina application, which VKontakte launched as an experiment in 2019. "VK Dating" will take a number of features from Lovina and completely replace this application.

Adding Personalization in Navigation and Services

Social network Vkontakte will begin to adapt more strongly to each user - personalization will appear in navigation and "Services," and the side menu will become available from any tab. Changes to the interface will take place in several stages. Algorithms machine learning will be used to personalize knowledge about the interests and needs of a particular person, his activity in various services and features of using a social network. This was VK announced on October 27, 2021.

The bottom menu will be able to offer other services and take into account the interests of a person: adapt to his needs - including using machine learning algorithms - and change depending on the change in user preferences. For example, those who often watch videos, shows and films may have a "Video" tab in the bottom menu - direct access to the VK Video platform, which combines more than 250 million pieces of content from VKontakte, OK and other platforms. Active listeners of music tracks can see in the bottom menu a quick transition to VKontakte Music, lovers of communication - "Friends" or "Communities" sections.

The side menu in the updated version of the application will allow you to instantly go to your VKontakte profile or its settings - you can manage your VK ID (formerly VK Connect) account, VK Combo subscription, VK Pay card, set up notifications or the appearance of the application. You can open the side menu from any tab - just click on your avatar in the upper left corner of the screen. In addition, this menu will provide a quick transition to global search on VKontakte: communities, music, records, people, video content, ads and other sections.

The second tab, called "Services," will also receive personalization to help the user quickly move to the relevant mini-applications. This section has become a conduit for a huge number of products, services and services that appear on the open platform VK Mini Apps. The growth of their number made it necessary to personalize the showcase of "Services." For example, lovers of an active lifestyle will be able to get quick access to the VKontakte Steps service, cashback connoisseurs - to the VK Checkback mini-application, and those who are actively looking for work - to the VK Work service.

Шаблон:Quote 'author = said Marina Krasnova, CEO VKontakte.

Most features will be available immediately after installing version 7.0, which will appear in the App Store and Google Play. The second tab and the appearance of the side menu will be gradually updated with users over several weeks.

Earlier, CEO and CTO of the social network VKontakte and VK Video Marina Krasnova and Alexander Tobol presented the video platform VK Video. Its active daily audience was 40 million people. VK Video combines key technologies within a single video platform: for example, adaptive streaming, a cross-platform player with a fast first frame, 4K quality. Also among the updates are updated monetization formats, solutions to increase revenue from In-Stream video and video engine quality, neural network technology for auto-improving image quality in NeuroHD video.

Native adaptive video streaming technology with scalable architecture

VKontakte on August 20, 2021 announced the restart of the video platform - there are a number of current technologies as part of the updates. The proprietary adaptive video streaming technology with a scalable architecture completely removes restrictions on the simultaneous number of viewers connected to one broadcast, and provides viewing on networks with an unstable connection and on weak devices.

The updates also affected the quality of the picture. Now users can watch videos and live broadcasts in high quality, which 4K will be appreciated by streaming to the network media players Chromecast and AirPlay. The function will appear on platforms, and in iOS Android the desktop version of VKontakte. Chromecast technology allows you to stream video from mobile devices to the screen or computer. With TV AirPlay, users iPhone iPad will either be able Mac to watch videos from their devices on the TV screen using either a Apple TV third-party AirPlay-enabled device.

High-quality videos take up more space, so VKontakte Video now supports downloading "heavy" files up to 256 GB in size. This will open up opportunities for professional and semi-professional authors, as well as owners of ultra-high definition digital cameras.

The VKontakte Video team paid special attention to the adaptability of video streaming technology - 7 video quality parameters up to Full HD and 4K will appear in the video player settings, between which the viewer can switch if desired. By default, the player includes the function of automatic quality selection, its task is to adapt to the characteristics of the device and the speed of the Internet connection, select the maximum possible quality personally for the viewer and provide the best user experience while watching videos and live broadcasts.

Another long-awaited opportunity for users will be the Picture-in-Picture format - it will allow, without interrupting video or live streaming, to continue navigation in the VKontakte mobile application on iOS and Android or in other applications on a smartphone. To do this, the video player can be minimized into a mini-window - a new button is implemented for this function.

{{quote 'author = said Alexander Tobol, CTO of VKontakte and Mail.ru Group's unified video and call platform. |

We see a steady increase in the consumption of video content by our users, so we make watching videos not only convenient, but also available in the best quality in any networks and on any devices. We completely restarted the video platform: we changed the architecture to scalable, removed the limit on the number of online viewers in broadcasts, changed the formats and protocols for delivering video content. This launch is the next logical step after the previously presented technologies for distributing videos, broadcasts and calls. We are now focused on new technologies in the field of content delivery and consumption: by the end of 2021 we are planning several more major changes,}}

Earlier, VKontakte announced that 4K resolution will appear in group video calls: users will be able to display the screen in ultra-high quality. The function for August 2021 is already available in the iOS application, and then will appear on other platforms and in all Mail.ru Group products that use uniform calling technologies.

Ability to share content in high quality during group video calls

On June 29, 2021, VKontakte announced a function for exchanging content during group video calls: users will be able to display the screen in 4K resolution. So the participants in the call will be able to see the materials that are presented to them in high quality. This is especially true during a pandemic, when people, if possible, reduce the number of social contacts, but at the same time want to comfortably hold working or personal meetings.

The function of showing the screen in 4K resolution is provided to users free of charge. For June 2021, it is already available in the iOS application, and then will appear on other platforms and in all Mail.ru Group products that use unified call technologies. The maximum quality of the so-called screenshot will be limited only by the capabilities of the user's device.

Group calls on VKontakte unite up to 128 people. Showing the screen in high resolution will help their participants discuss work projects, present reports to management, partners and customers. The function is also useful for online educational events: the material is easier to explain clearly. In addition, with a joint view of the screen, participants in the call can show photos and videos to friends right during the conversation.

Шаблон:Quote 'author = said Alexander Tobol, CTO of VKontakte and Mail.ru Group's unified call platform.

In VKontakte calls, all the usual functions of paid corporate services for video conferencing and even more are presented for free: there are no restrictions on the duration of the conversation, you can join the call by clicking on the link with the invitation - even without a profile on the social network. A screen demonstration, recording and broadcast of the call are also available. You can use the service on any device - smartphone or laptop.

In addition, intelligent noise cancellation works in VKontakte calls. Participants in the online meeting will hear each other even when neighbors suddenly started repairs or the street buzzes around and cars rush around. For silence "in the hall," the administrator can turn off the microphones of all participants and choose whether they can turn them back on. If a participant wants to speak up or ask a question, they can write in a chat or "raise their hand."

Adding Marousya Voice Assistant

On May 26, 2021, VKontakte announced that it had added a voice assistant to the application. With Marusya, many VK services are becoming more accessible and more convenient.

Marusya's voice assistant becomes one of the important unifying elements of the entire VK ecosystem. Along with a single VK Connect account, VK Pay payment service and VK Combo subscription, Maroussia will provide a seamless user experience and improve navigation on various ecosystem projects.

Marusya helps to work not only with the social network, but also with other services that are part of the ecosystem: read the Mail, tell the latest news or weather forecast, order food or a taxi. Marusi also has her own skills - she knows how to answer questions about everything in the world, set reminders and record purchases, play games, manage a smart home, pick up music to the mood, look for recipes and just chat with the user.

VKontakte Marusya can be found in the "Services" tab. To start a dialogue, just click on the voice assistant icon. Over time, Maroussi's skill set will increase.

Voice technologies expand the capabilities of familiar mobile application interfaces. There are many situations for the user in which it is inconvenient to look at the screen or you need to quickly get an answer to the question. He can drive, cook, walk down the street or carry a child in his arms. Speed and convenience require the development of technologies in understanding user speech, meaning and context, as well as preparing the right answers by services.

Also, any user or company can create skills for Marusi, including for use in the VKontakte application. For example, business owners can train a voice assistant to order items from their VK stores.

{{quote 'author = said Anna Artamonova, VP Ecosystem Products. |

Voice assistant integration is an important strategic step in the development of the VK ecosystem: we make it more accessible and functional for users. Thanks to voice technologies, it will be more convenient for people to discover the potential of the ecosystem, and communication with Marusya will make this experience more personal. Marusya will develop, offering more and more opportunities,}}

A single VK Connect account will provide access to all VK ecosystem services. Users can already pay and earn cashback with the VK Pay platform, receive discounts and great deals with VK Combo and use their favorite services on the VK Mini Apps platform.

Marusya's voice assistant for May 2021 is already available in a separate application for Android and iOS, in the smart Capsule column, in the Mail Mail.ru super application, the Atom browser and in partner devices.

Introduction of intelligent noise cancellation technology into the video call service

On February 9, 2021, it became known that VKontakte, Odnoklassniki and Mail.Ru Mail introduced intelligent noise cancellation technology into the video call service. Now background noise will not interfere with communication: this technology of a single Mail.ru Group call platform optimizes sound quality without additional equipment.

As explained, another option appeared in VKontakte video calls - "Improving the features of the face." Real-time filters align skin tone and make facial features clearer. "Facial enhancement" along with virtual backgrounds available on VKontakte video calls will help you feel comfortable at online meetings, even when the call is taken by surprise. Technologies are based on deep machine learning methods and neural networks: they recognize the face during a video call, build a mask at key points and process each frame.

Earlier, VKontakte launched free video calls for study, work and communication: more than 100 participants, no time limits and the ability to join a conversation without a profile on the social network. Event organizers will also benefit from the function of broadcasting and recording a video call. It will help to more effectively conduct lectures, conferences, master classes and joint live broadcasts. Read more here.

2020

Ability to create video call broadcasts

VKontakte users can now create broadcasts of their video calls, and thanks to the emerging role of administrator, it is better to moderate communication. The company announced this on December 15, 2020. The added features will allow you to more effectively hold lectures, conferences and other events, attract the attention of a wider audience, and at the same time control online meetings well.

The broadcast of the call can be launched from your computer and from the latest version of the VKontakte mobile application. It is available for any video call - whether there are two participants or all 128. However, thanks to the live broadcast, it will be possible to attract even more people to communicate, because an unlimited number of viewers can watch and comment on it.

The function is convenient to use for conferences, master classes, concerts, fan meetings and other events. For example, you can add those who paid for or won the competition to the call and offer to personally ask questions to speakers or star guests. Other viewers will be able to watch the event and discuss it in the comments. So the broadcast will be meaningful and interactive.

It will not work secretly from the interlocutors - a Live icon will appear on their screens.

The organizer controls the privacy settings and chooses who will see the broadcast: only the participants in the call, also his friends or all VKontakte users. In order for more viewers to join the broadcast, you can create a broadcast and make an announcement in advance. The recording of the broadcast is saved in the "Video" section, so even those who missed the live broadcast can watch it.

VKontakte video calls are well suited for study or work: the duration is not limited, there is a screen demonstration, and up to 128 participants can join the call - and even without a profile on the social network, just by link.

To maintain the effectiveness of meetings it was easier, the role of administrator appeared in VKontakte calls. This is an interlocutor who has the same settings as the creator of the call. It is the organizer of communication who appoints administrators, and this can be as many people as you like - it is obvious that it will not be easy for one person responsible to keep track of the hundred people who want to ask a question.

It is more convenient to moderate an online event with administrator mode than a face-to-face meeting: for silence "in the hall," now it is enough to turn off the microphones of all participants and choose whether they can turn them back on. If the participant wants to ask a question, he will be able to write it in a chat or "raise his hand" - then the administrator will give him the opportunity to speak. In addition, now the speaker's video can be fixed on the main screen - this will help avoid accidental switches between the screens of the participants and control what is going on the air.

Alexander Tobol, Technical Director of VKontakte:

The VKontakte video conferencing platform makes the service available to a large audience - we build technical solutions in such a way that the quality of calls and broadcasts is as possible regardless of the user's Internet connection or the power of his device. Most heavy operations are performed on the server, so the load on the smartphone when calling for four or 128 people differs little. Our users can fully focus on content by sharing work or training materials.

Launching group video calls for 128 people

VKontakte September 10, 2020 announced the launch of group video calls for 128 people for joint study, work and leisure. All the usual features of paid corporate services for video conferencing and even more are presented here for free: there are no restrictions on the duration of the call, you can join the conversation anonymously even without a profile on the social network, and a screen demonstration is also available. You can use the service on any device - smartphone or laptop, and you don't have to install additional applications.

Group video calls allow you to communicate even with those who are not registered on VKontakte. The link with the invitation to the call can be shared outside the social network. If the interlocutor does not have a VKontakte profile or does not want to show a personal page, then to add it to the call, it will be enough for him to follow the link and indicate his name.

With the help of video calls, it is convenient to hold long conferences, meetings, training sessions and friendly meetings. The person who speaks is determined automatically - participants will see his close-up. You can also switch to the grid with all interlocutors and pin to the main screen of any of them. The creator can easily control the call: add and remove participants, turn off and turn on microphones.

Everyone in the conversation has access to a screen demonstration, as well as the ability to "raise their hand" to be given the word. The service will warn if the user has a poor Internet connection or starts talking, forgetting to turn on the microphone. Another advantage of the service is an incoming call. It will eliminate the need to search and send a link with an invitation to the meeting or separately call late participants.

To exchange files or record the progress of the meeting, a chat is provided - all interlocutors are automatically added to it. The correspondence will remain after the call: all materials and messages will remain available, and the discussion can continue at any time.

The service is based on the company's own developments: server conferencing technology and adaptive technology for ensuring better communication quality - with an increase in the number of interlocutors, it automatically changes the P2P connection to a group conference. Among the technological innovations is a real-time algorithm that reduces the load on the user's device and network without losing sound and video quality.

Another addition is virtual AR backgrounds with 360 ° technology, which are available when communicating mobile application using VK. The interlocutors can choose both branded VKontakte backgrounds and other images: moons, The Chinese walls, the Egyptian pyramids,,, and London New York Sydney uninhabited islands.

Marina Krasnova, VKontakte Product Director:

{{quote 'In 2020, tools for collaboration, study and communication became extremely in demand: at the end of the second quarter of 2020, the number of VKontakte calls increased by 45% compared to the same period in 2019. Therefore, we focused on the development of conference calls. VKontakte video calls will help companies and educational institutions effectively conduct lectures, conferences, meetings, presentations. In calls for 128 people, you can gather large teams and even several school classes - free and without time restrictions. }}

Checklists widget view

VKontakte September 1, 2020 presented the mini-application "Checklists." With its help, users can fix good habits or get rid of harmful ones - it is enough to create a goal and mark their progress in the calendar. The service is implemented on the VK Mini Apps platform - it opens right in the VK application and is completely free.

In the mini-application, you can specify your own goal or choose from the suggested ones. For example, instill the habit of eating right, doing exercises or reading. Or vice versa - give up coffee, smoking or fast food. Then you need to choose a deadline for achieving the goal and record your successes in the calendar every day.

For each checklist, you can set up reminders that will be sent to private messages. So the mini-application is suitable so that you just don't forget about something: for example, call your mother or drink a pill at a specific hour.

To increase motivation and get the support of friends, the user can publish stories or records of his progress directly from the widget. For example, how many days in a row goes to training or does not drink alcohol. This will make it easier to move towards the goals set.

The widget works in the VK application and the desktop version of VKontakte: vk.com/checklist

On the VK Mini Apps platform, as of September 1, 2020, there are already more than 20 thousand active mini-applications, and during the period of self-isolation, a record for a monthly audience was broken - 36 million people.

Job Search Section Appears

On August 24, 2020, it became known that the "Work" section appeared on VKontakte. In it, you can publish a resume and respond to vacancies that are selected individually for each user. The section was launched along with the Worki service, which was previously presented in VK as a mini-application based on the VK Mini Apps platform.

As explained, in the desktop version of VKontakte, this section is available directly in the menu, and in the VK mobile application - in the "Services" tab, along with ordering food, calling a taxi and shopping.

The job tape in the "Work" section is formed on the basis of open information from the user's profile and his geolocation. In total, algorithms take into account more than 200 parameters - and offer options to which the applicant is likely to respond. You can also select vacancies using filters: preferred professions, distances to the place of work, salary, type of work - for example, part-time or rotational method, as well as many others. Tips from Worki will also help you find the right employment faster: they will give advice on how to fill out a questionnaire and how to use the service.

In separate tabs, users will find vacancies that they have postponed and responded to. They can also reread their resume and change it - just go to the "Summary" tab. When the applicant responds to the position, a dialogue is created for him and the employer in VKontakte messages. There you can ask additional questions or agree on an interview date.

With this section, employment will become easier: you can look for suitable employment directly on the platform. told Alla Arshevskaya, product director of Worki service

VKontakte has friends, music, communities, taxis, food, shopping. And now - and job search. Thanks to a single VK Connect account, which we launched in June 2020, one click is enough in the "Work" section to automatically fill out part of the resume. At the same time, the list of vacancies adjusts to the user, starting from open information in his profile - and shows the most suitable options above. told Anton Tsivarev, VKontakte Application Development Director

Music Recommendation Update

Vkontakte July 13, 2020 presented the format of recommendations in the music section. In the "For You" tab, users have access to two playlists: tracks in them are selected individually and regularly updated. The recommendations of songs and artists are made taking into account the interests of users, their genre preferences, listening history and possible musical sympathies.

The tab "For You" is fully devoted to personal recommendations. There are 100 tracks in two playlists: the "Today" selection is updated every day, and the "Week" offers songs based on those that the user listened to in the previous days.

In the "Musicians for You" block, the user will find artists that he will surely like. You can also return to recently listened songs in the section. Soon there will be notifications in the block about the upcoming concerts of your favorite bands and artists. The update for July 13, 2020 is available in the web version of VKontakte and the mobile application for iOS, and in the coming days will appear in Android users.

Andrey Kapitanov, head of the VKontakte Music team:

{{quote 'Content on the platform becomes as personalized as possible - the user receives exactly what is in his interests, finds useful for himself. Recommendations move to a separate tab and continue this trend. The VKontakte music platform is developing: it helps users to open names that they will definitely like, and offers songs that will become their favorite. }}

VKontakte music is available for free in the web version and open mobile application. Users with a subscription can listen to tracks without ads, as much as they like in the background, as well as offline - using the BOOM application. In the unified music ecosystem of the Mail.ru Group, as of July 2020, over 3.5 million active paid subscribers.

Start Group Video Calls

On May 18, 2020, VKontakte announced that group video calls can now be arranged on the social network. At the start, up to 8 people can communicate in them at the same time. Users right on the social network will easily celebrate birthdays, hold planning sessions, join online training or discuss educational projects. They can also communicate with their favorite authors - for example, the winners of the VK Fest competition will take part in a group call with the Kiskis group.

The feature is available in the latest version of the VK mobile application. To start a conversation, you need to open a suitable conversation, press the handset icon and choose who to invite to the call from the chat. You can add an interlocutor right during communication.

Any user can already receive calls, and the ability to create them will appear in the entire VK audience in the coming days.

Video calls are the only way to hold meetings with colleagues, see loved ones and participate in online classes while maintaining the mode. self-isolations We will quickly increase the functionality of the service so that in the fall in group video calls it is possible to easily organize classes for an entire class or student group, - says Vyacheslav Shebanov, head of the VKontakte messenger team

VKontakte also launches a competition, the winners of which will join the group video call with the Kiskis group. To take part, you need to publish a story with a question to the musicians and the hashtag# zvoninemolchi by 20:00 on May 19. The authors of the most interesting questions will personally ask their performers. The number of stories from each participant is not limited. The results of the competition will be published in the VK Fest community.

In tete-a-tete mode, VKontakte users can call up by video or without it since 2018. The feature is available in the VK mobile app. The call initialization system builds optimal routes for calls, eliminates delays and increases connection stability. According to the results of the first quarter of 2020, the monthly number of VKontakte calls increased by 24% compared to the same quarter of 2019 - to 64 million per month.

AppGallery Availability

As it became known on March 30, 2020, the company Huawei announced that the official mobile applications social networks Vkontakte Schoolmates and are now available to users in the app store. AppGallery More. here