【】

Twitter's apps will no longer have a dedicated tab for Moments.

In its place, the company is adding a new tab called "explore," which surfaces a wider variety of content, including trending topics, live video and, yes, Moments.

This is a change that Twitter has been toying with for some time. As Mashable first reported last fall, the company began testing a version of the feature in October. It would seem that test went well as Twitter is no making the change official.

SEE ALSO:Twitter's complicated relationship with developers just got worse

Notably, Twitter has moved the placement of the tab, putting it directly next to home, rather than in the center where Moments used to be. The new version will also prominently feature Twitter's live broadcasts. Also included: an "explore all" section where users can browse Twitter by topics like sports and entertainment.

The change is rolling out to Twitter's iOS app now and is set to hit Android "in the coming weeks," according to the company. We expect Twitter will also eventually bring it to its website as well, though the company hasn't said much about a desktop version of the feature.

While Twitter says the change is part of its "continued efforts to make it easier to see what’s happening," there's no question that the update will place less emphasis on Moments as the company shifts toward live video.

Launched in 2015, Moments, was once billed as Jack Dorsey's plan to save Twitter. But Moments, like so many of Twitter's ideas before it, never had the impact the company had hoped. Though Moments has expanded to new countries and languages in recent months, it's clearly less of a priority than before.

Mashable Light SpeedWant more out-of-this world tech, space and science stories?Sign up for Mashable's weekly Light Speed newsletter.By signing up you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.Thanks for signing up!

Several employees have left the Moments team as of late.

Twitter added, after publication, that the team isn't changing in size. They are still producing the same number of Moments as prior to the tab change, which is about 250 per day.

Tweet may have been deleted

Twitter isn't giving up on curation, but it's clear that Moments is given less of a priority. As one former employee told Mashable, "They want to give live its own time to shine."

Twitter has invested more in "live" or "followable" Moments, which users can choose to follow. Selected tweets appear in their timelines. Twitter created followable Moments for the Olympics, the presidential election and several sports games.

Now, with the new explore tab, Twitter can push users to one place for content discovery, putting live video front and center. In a blog post Thursday, the company hinted that it may soon add other types of content, too.

"We will continue to listen to your feedback to make Explore even better, based on your thoughts and some ideas we have up our sleeve!"

Additional reporting by Kerry Flynn.

UPDATE Jan. 26, 2017 6 p.m. EST: This story was updated to include a statement from Twitter.

---

Featured Video For You

---

J.K. Rowling weighs in hard on the Donald Trump/Meryl Streep feud

---

TopicsTwitter