Facebook has confirmed that it is working on subscription models within Instant Articles for publishers, as was reported last month.

The social network says it will begin testing a subscription tool with a small group of publishers later this year, and are working with different partners to find the best solution for all. It is likely users will be able to read a set number of articles for free each month before being presented with a paywall.

“We are beginning to build a tool to support subscriptions within Instant Articles and plan to start testing with a small group of partners later this year. Our partners consistently identified support for subscription business models as a top priority, and we made it a priority for our teams as well,” said Campbell Brown, head of news partnerships at Facebook, in a blog post.  

“Subscriptions are not a one-size-fits-all model, and we have been working closely with several partners around the world to determine what a potential solution might look like.

“Like any new product, we’ll have to refine it over time to make sure the product works for both people and publishers on Facebook. We’ll continue to listen and welcome feedback from our partners over the coming months.”

Facebook has also begun rolling out a tool for publishers to measure how their articles perform on Instant Articles compared to their mobile web equivalents.