Facebook users around the globe can now do more than “like” a post. They can love it, laugh at it or feel angered by it. The social network rolled out “Reactions” – an extension of the “Like” button – worldwide on Wednesday, to allow users to express sadness, wow, anger, love and laughter. In a video accompanying a blog post, the five new buttons appear as animated emoticons that pop up when the “Like” button is held down on mobile devices. The buttons appear on desktops when users hover over the “Like” button. Facebook launched a pilot of “Reactions” -which allowed users to select from seven emotions including “Angry”, “Sad”, “Wow” and “Like” – in Ireland and Spain in October. The “Yay” emoticon, which was present in the pilot launch, was not seen in Wednesday’s video .

“People wanted to express empathy and make it comfortable to share a wider range of emotions,” Zuckerberg wrote on his Facebook page.

Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg said in September the company was thinking of adding a “dislike” button, which spearheaded a debate over whether it would increase cyber bullying and negativity on the site. In October, the company said it would expand its signature “Like” button with various reactions.

Source: Reuters