Facebook 2012: Placing Ads In User News Feeds

 

          Facebook will feature its Sponsored Story ads in users’ News Feeds per January 2012. This will greatly increase brand presence in Facebook. Mark and the rest of his gang did not meet their 2011 revenue targets and will have to show new revenues before Facebook’s expected IPO.
 

Sponsored stories are Facebook’s most buzzed-about ad product and carry the promise of high rates because they have the built-in endorsement of a friend.

They were introduced in January 2011 and currently appear on the right-hand column of Facebook pages, surfacing actions taken by Facebook friends around a brand’s content.
Mobile users won’t see any sponsored stories during the rollout, but Bloomberg reported that Facebook is planning its first foray into mobile advertising by late March 2012.
Sponsored stories in news feeds were cited as a possible route for Facebook to generate revenue from its 350 million active mobile users.
Like Google, Facebook wants to become the leading ad operating system for the internet. And like Google Ad Sense Facebook might next deliver sponsored story-like ads on third-party sites.
Even on TV shows streamed online. TV? Yes with over 800 million users worldwide, Facebook TV could be massive. So if you had great expectations of Social TV, so do we.
Facebook TV might be large scale version of Pseudo.com, the Web TV company launched by Josh Harris in already 1993. Back then, Josh and his Pseudo Station already had many Web TV Channels in the fields of Music, Art, Culture, R&B etc.
So I can really advice you to order the Award winning documentary We Live In Public. Great story about the brilliant but crazy visionary Josh Harris. You really might want to see this film, so check the trailer here…
With Facebook aiming for 1 billion users, Facebook TV with channels like travel, gaming, snowboarding, music etc, could easily reach and engage massive passionate global audiences.
So think nonlinear with me for a while. Facebook TV’s Travel station could reach and engage 50 to 100 million users a month. This would mean that lower budget travel and tourism companies can finally target that audience. On TV, a global travel or tourism campaign is simply for the very deep pockets only.
I understand that rights and IPR’s are a must have in several cases. And that great content will still be the king.
So if Facebook would start a F1 Facebook TV channel, a channel that could engage around 100 million Formula 1 fans, that would depend on the rights. But if the F1 freaks create part of the content, who could stop them?
And in many other cases we see so many topics and activities that could be massive of Facebook TV. How about a Facebook TV channel for Foodies? Or for cooking fans?
A Web TV channel for football fans or skaters? A channel for runners, powered or sponsored by Nike?
TV has mostly been local, expect for a few. And we have many other ideas on Facebook TV, which we might reveal to you in 2012…
And in Europe with have local languages and local cultures. And most media companies say this makes it international TV impossible. But what if the new world is flat?
What if Gen-Y does not care about the old rules of engagement that were once invented by old linear thinking men AKA Yesterday’s Media Moguls?
So most will indeedd see countries with borders. But a few of us might just see: markets with opportunities.
And Mark and the rest of his gang, might disrupt the future TV market with groundbreaking ideas. Based on nonlinear but very disruptive ideas. You might want to follow The Connected Society theory in the “the new” King’s Speech…

How do you see the development of advertising within global leading platforms like Google, YouTube and Facebook? Will we get more and more intrusive ads and pre-rolls online in 2012?
Will Web TV and Social TV offer brands some brand new opportinities to reach and engage passionate audiences?
Please share your thoughts in the comments below. Or share this article with relevant peers.
For more insights follow Igor Beuker on Twitter.

Written by Igor Beuker