Facebook Tests Trending Topics On Mobile Site

Facebook has started a very limited test that shows trending topics to select U.S. users of its mobile website.

The test, first reported by AllThingsD, inserts a News Feed banner/widget listing popular topics that are being discussed across Facebook. Clicking the widget then shows the user what his/her friends are saying about the topic, followed by posts from strangers about it.

Facebook is sharing this official statement about the test:

Today we started running a small test that displays topics trending on Facebook. It is currently only available to a small percentage of U.S. users who use Facebook’s mobile web site (m.facebook.com) and is still in very early stages of development. We will share more details down the line if we decide to roll it out more widely.

Twitter is seen as holding the crown when it comes to where hot social conversations and topics are happening, and trending topics — much like Facebook’s recent support of hashtags — looks like it would be another Facebook effort to also be recognized as a source and host of current, popular social conversation.