8 ms·

Facebook set to finally launch auto-play video ads in news feeds

27 points by shawndumas 13y ago

chris_wot 13y ago
I think that when they do this, I will delete my Facebook account. Or at the very least, not log into it.
- throwwit 13y ago
  If anything things like this are a reason... http://www.fastcompany.com/3023263/work-smart/the-surprising-ways-social-media-posts-bias-hiring-managers http://www.fastcompany.com/3023263/work-smart/the-surprising... Facebook has gotta start looking out for it's user's interests.
  - chris_wot 13y ago
    The only reason people use Facebook is because other people use Facebook. It's not even because of the technology. This could be done by someone else (it would take time to get to the same scale). If more people remove themselves from it, then it will eventually fail.
Nursie 13y ago
$2 million per day to really annoy a whole load of people... Advertisers get ever more desperate to reach audiences but we've seen before that this arms race ends with ads so intrusive that people start to block them routinely. It might drive people away from FB, or it might make ad blocking more mainstream. It'll be interesting to watch.
- tokenizer 13y ago
  OR, people won't care, and you and I are the small minority who bother to block them or boycott said websites,
  - Nursie 13y ago
    I don't boycott facebook, and I don't think other people will either. But it will drive more to adblocking, I'm sure of it. Not everyone, sure, but more.
    - tokenizer 13y ago
      I do, I was just saying what you're saying. Changes like this are annoying, and a few people will reject the change. That said, As long as theres no sound and the ad is to the side of the actual content/app, its not that big of a deal. I use adblocker for all sites except grooveshark, which uses a video ad with no audio. Dont mind it that much...
rfnslyr 13y ago
For all those thinking that you can't delete your facebook because you will lose connections: Delete it and watch how much you don't care. Get their emails/phone numbers, call them once in awhile, grab a coffee.
- k-mcgrady 13y ago
  A simpler idea is to stop using your account but leave it active. Make it a glorified address book. Every now and then you can check in and accept friend requests if necessary. I know a few people who use it like this (not because they dislike Facebook but just because they spend very little time at a computer). It seems to work for them. They get the benefits without the constant ads and stream of info they don't care about. Of course if privacy is your concern this isn't a good suggestion but otherwise it's a happy medium.
  - bluecalm 13y ago
    Exactly what I am doing. Gotta log in from time to time to check if they haven't changed the email given as contact to facebook one again though :)
  - JTon 13y ago
    I both agree with and practice this approach. It works very well for me. The features I use exclusively are messages and events. It's the path of least resistance for many of friends outside my core circles to contact me.
  - nilkn 13y ago
    Oddly enough, Facebook is finally starting to live up to its under-promising name: a digital yearbook that I occasionally thumb through when I'm curious about an old friend but otherwise let sit collecting dust. Really exciting and controversial stuff doesn't happen much on Facebook anymore, at least not on my news feed. People are too concerned about maintaing their constructed image. My friends with babies use it as a family album. My friends trying to go into acting or modeling practically use it as an online professional portfolio. A lot of my coworkers are connected on Facebook, which naturally limits the extent of their expression; they might appear to be great friends, and to a large extent they are, but if one of them is mad about work they for sure can't post it to Facebook.
k-mcgrady 13y ago
I've got the graph search but still (even after signing up to the 'waiting list' on day one) haven't got the 'new' design. I wonder if this means I won't get the video ads...
- beaumartinez 13y ago
  Is your language "English (US)"? I think that was necessary for Graph Search.
  - k-mcgrady 13y ago
    I changed it to US which got me graph search. Still no new design though.
deleted 13y ago
[deleted]
hapless 13y ago
It's about time. Facebook's ad inventory has historically been worthless. It doesn't matter how precisely you target the ads if you don't have the attention of the audience. Facebook had none of the "intent-harvesting" opportunities of search ads: they were just sticking text in the middle of the content you actually wanted to read. Facebook ad inventory needed to be more like TV. Like Facebook, television advertising has no "intent-harvesting," but it has pretty good targeting. The nature of TV ads gives them a chance to engage the viewer. Using full-motion video ads, with or without audio, gives advertisers a fighting chance for your attention. The ability to interrupt might be enough to make Facebook's valuation work.
- minimaxir 13y ago
  The funny thing is that with the current implementation of auto-play ads on the mobile FB apps, the moment I see a video animating from Instagram, I scroll past it even faster because it's distracting and usually not worth the 15 seconds.
- basicallydan 13y ago
  I admire your decision to separate yourself from the user experience angle of this and focus on it from a business perspective. Nevertheless, I hope that this little decision will be enough to put a lot of people off of Facebook because I'd rather see something like this fail than for an application I used to use as an example of pretty good UX and model of simplicity succeed with ad advertising technique normally lumped together with pop-up ads and fake buttons on download sites. In short, to use a simple, easy to understand phrase: auto-play video ads are lame. That said, I'm willing to be proven wrong. Maybe they'll come up with some way to make it unintrusive, but that isn't really the point, is it?
- kfcm 13y ago
  As a business owner, I do my best not to antagonize those who use my services. Auto-play video? Not only distracting and annoying, but a drain on batteries. I think Facebook will find this drives people away.
- JulianMorrison 13y ago
rcfox 13y ago
The article mentions that the ads will only load over WiFi. How do you do that? Is it functionality specific to mobile apps?
- TheSOB888 13y ago
  Well, yeah. The article says "so as to not use the users' data plans", so this seems like it's a mobile feature.
- josefresco 13y ago
  The source of our WiFi is increasingly being capped as well so I'm not so sure this is even an acceptable approach. Just because I have WiFi single doesn't meet I have an unlimited amount of bandwidth to load your crappy video. Detecting WiFi is a clever hack that works for right now, but for those using cell wifi routers, cell hot spots or with crappy ISPs that have a low cap it won't matter.
  - bentcorner 13y ago
    I know in Android you can mark a wifi AP as a hotspot to make apps throttle. I don't know about iOS or WP though.
- bmelton 13y ago
  It's an API available via the Android and iOS SDKs, respectively. How to detect the network connection type on Android: http://stackoverflow.com/questions/2802472/detect-network-connection-type-on-android http://stackoverflow.com/questions/2802472/detect-network-co... How to detect the network connection type on iOS: http://stackoverflow.com/questions/7938650/ios-detect-3g-or-wifi http://stackoverflow.com/questions/7938650/ios-detect-3g-or-...
johnclass 13y ago
Has there been any study on the effectives of video ads. Just wonder how many people close tabs because of video ads; At least I do.
mschuster91 13y ago
Adblock Plus takes care of the ads already, and I wouldn't be surprised if it also spares me the video ads.
- droopyEyelids 13y ago
  Looks like you missed the part about everyone moving to 'mobile'
  - mschuster91 13y ago
    So what? There are numerous adblockers available for Android and jailbroken Crapple phones - and I'm sure that if the ads are to be loaded over cellular data, users will revolt. Most people these days live on metered connections, and I surely would rather kill the FB app than have it drain my data coverage.
    - anonymouscowar1 13y ago
      Can you suggest a good one for Android? I am missing ABP sorely.
      - renata 13y ago
        AdAway is what I use. https://f-droid.org/repository/browse/?fdid=org.adaway https://f-droid.org/repository/browse/?fdid=org.adaway
alisnic 13y ago
"finally"?
- JonnieCache 13y ago
  They were supposed to launch in october or something, and it got pushed back.
- JetSpiegel 13y ago
  One step closer to total irrelevance. Also known as MySpacing.
RexRollman 13y ago
Auto plating videos and animated GIFs are the bane of my Internet browsing. Luckily, both are easy to stop with Firefox.
- ConceptJunkie 13y ago
  Back when animated ads were the thing - maybe they still are, I don't know - I quickly realized it was difficult for me to read an article with a monkey bouncing back and forth right next to it or there was an epilepsy-inducing banner telling me I was the 1000000000000000th visitor. It's not even a matter of being annoying, but of literally degrading the value of the content of the site. Back when I couldn't block the ad outright, I would simply resize the window and scroll it off-screen. I used to use hostfile-based ad blocking and then started using AdBlock when it came along. The thing is, I'm not opposed to ads on principle or anything. I'm just opposed to ads that wreck the product being provided in exchange for the ad. It's like "Sure, I'll let you use my site, but I get to punch you in the head in exchange." There are plenty of sites I've disabled AdBlock on, although I figure the odds of an ad on any random site being relevant or interesting to me is about 10000 to 1. I spent a while with AdBlock off on Facebook and thought the ads being shown me were really pathetic given how much Facebook should know about me and be able to target me. But in general, I'm only opposed to ads when they ruin whatever they are being used to monetize. It's one reason I stopped watching broadcast TV now that ads consume 1/3 of the actual viewing time. Autoplaying videos definitely fall in that category, and I normally keep my computer muted anyway because the last thing I want is some stupid website blaring noise at me. I only unmute the computer if I'm specifically going to watch a video or listen to something. And let's face it, these ads will all be for banks or cars or some stupid political candidate using the movie-trailer-voice guy to tell me that so-and-so eats puppies and kittens, etc., etc. It's all just useless noise.
benmorris 13y ago
I can't blame them for doing it but I'm sure it will lead to me using facebook less. I probably won't close my account but just use the site less. My newsfeed is increasingly annoying as it is.
pavanred 13y ago
The only place I actually find myself watching a video ad is in Hulu, where Hulu provides me an option of watching a video ad now in return of uninterrupted streaming of the content I wanted to watch, which I guess seems fair to me. I guess that would work better, if you are provided the option of auto-playing video ads in your news feed, or watch one or two video ads for uninterrupted access to the news feed, say for every half hour of usage.
PhasmaFelis 13y ago
...Facebook has ads? Thank God for you, AdBlock.
- viraptor 13y ago
  If you need a rush of adrenaline one day, try turning it off and visiting some well-known news sites... I was pretty sure the machine I saw it on (parents' computer) was infected. Then realised my parents really need adblock.
salient 13y ago
With any luck, this will be the last major step that will cause Facebook's fading into irrelevance.
stefan_kendall 13y ago
Auto-playing user videos are almost certainly worse than whatever targeted ads I'm going to see.
pcharles 13y ago
I HATE this.

27 points by shawndumas 13y ago

chris_wot 13y ago

I think that when they do this, I will delete my Facebook account. Or at the very least, not log into it.

throwwit 13y ago
If anything things like this are a reason... http://www.fastcompany.com/3023263/work-smart/the-surprising-ways-social-media-posts-bias-hiring-managers http://www.fastcompany.com/3023263/work-smart/the-surprising... Facebook has gotta start looking out for it's user's interests.
- chris_wot 13y ago
  The only reason people use Facebook is because other people use Facebook. It's not even because of the technology. This could be done by someone else (it would take time to get to the same scale). If more people remove themselves from it, then it will eventually fail.

Nursie 13y ago

$2 million per day to really annoy a whole load of people... Advertisers get ever more desperate to reach audiences but we've seen before that this arms race ends with ads so intrusive that people start to block them routinely. It might drive people away from FB, or it might make ad blocking more mainstream. It'll be interesting to watch.

tokenizer 13y ago
OR, people won't care, and you and I are the small minority who bother to block them or boycott said websites,
- Nursie 13y ago
  I don't boycott facebook, and I don't think other people will either. But it will drive more to adblocking, I'm sure of it. Not everyone, sure, but more.
  - tokenizer 13y ago
    I do, I was just saying what you're saying. Changes like this are annoying, and a few people will reject the change. That said, As long as theres no sound and the ad is to the side of the actual content/app, its not that big of a deal. I use adblocker for all sites except grooveshark, which uses a video ad with no audio. Dont mind it that much...

rfnslyr 13y ago

For all those thinking that you can't delete your facebook because you will lose connections: Delete it and watch how much you don't care. Get their emails/phone numbers, call them once in awhile, grab a coffee.

k-mcgrady 13y ago
A simpler idea is to stop using your account but leave it active. Make it a glorified address book. Every now and then you can check in and accept friend requests if necessary. I know a few people who use it like this (not because they dislike Facebook but just because they spend very little time at a computer). It seems to work for them. They get the benefits without the constant ads and stream of info they don't care about. Of course if privacy is your concern this isn't a good suggestion but otherwise it's a happy medium.
- bluecalm 13y ago
  Exactly what I am doing. Gotta log in from time to time to check if they haven't changed the email given as contact to facebook one again though :)
- JTon 13y ago
  I both agree with and practice this approach. It works very well for me. The features I use exclusively are messages and events. It's the path of least resistance for many of friends outside my core circles to contact me.
- nilkn 13y ago
  Oddly enough, Facebook is finally starting to live up to its under-promising name: a digital yearbook that I occasionally thumb through when I'm curious about an old friend but otherwise let sit collecting dust. Really exciting and controversial stuff doesn't happen much on Facebook anymore, at least not on my news feed. People are too concerned about maintaing their constructed image. My friends with babies use it as a family album. My friends trying to go into acting or modeling practically use it as an online professional portfolio. A lot of my coworkers are connected on Facebook, which naturally limits the extent of their expression; they might appear to be great friends, and to a large extent they are, but if one of them is mad about work they for sure can't post it to Facebook.

k-mcgrady 13y ago

I've got the graph search but still (even after signing up to the 'waiting list' on day one) haven't got the 'new' design. I wonder if this means I won't get the video ads...

beaumartinez 13y ago
Is your language "English (US)"? I think that was necessary for Graph Search.
- k-mcgrady 13y ago
  I changed it to US which got me graph search. Still no new design though.

deleted 13y ago

[deleted]

hapless 13y ago

It's about time. Facebook's ad inventory has historically been worthless. It doesn't matter how precisely you target the ads if you don't have the attention of the audience. Facebook had none of the "intent-harvesting" opportunities of search ads: they were just sticking text in the middle of the content you actually wanted to read. Facebook ad inventory needed to be more like TV. Like Facebook, television advertising has no "intent-harvesting," but it has pretty good targeting. The nature of TV ads gives them a chance to engage the viewer. Using full-motion video ads, with or without audio, gives advertisers a fighting chance for your attention. The ability to interrupt might be enough to make Facebook's valuation work.

minimaxir 13y ago
The funny thing is that with the current implementation of auto-play ads on the mobile FB apps, the moment I see a video animating from Instagram, I scroll past it even faster because it's distracting and usually not worth the 15 seconds.
basicallydan 13y ago
I admire your decision to separate yourself from the user experience angle of this and focus on it from a business perspective. Nevertheless, I hope that this little decision will be enough to put a lot of people off of Facebook because I'd rather see something like this fail than for an application I used to use as an example of pretty good UX and model of simplicity succeed with ad advertising technique normally lumped together with pop-up ads and fake buttons on download sites. In short, to use a simple, easy to understand phrase: auto-play video ads are lame. That said, I'm willing to be proven wrong. Maybe they'll come up with some way to make it unintrusive, but that isn't really the point, is it?
kfcm 13y ago
As a business owner, I do my best not to antagonize those who use my services. Auto-play video? Not only distracting and annoying, but a drain on batteries. I think Facebook will find this drives people away.
JulianMorrison 13y ago

rcfox 13y ago

The article mentions that the ads will only load over WiFi. How do you do that? Is it functionality specific to mobile apps?

TheSOB888 13y ago
Well, yeah. The article says "so as to not use the users' data plans", so this seems like it's a mobile feature.
josefresco 13y ago
The source of our WiFi is increasingly being capped as well so I'm not so sure this is even an acceptable approach. Just because I have WiFi single doesn't meet I have an unlimited amount of bandwidth to load your crappy video. Detecting WiFi is a clever hack that works for right now, but for those using cell wifi routers, cell hot spots or with crappy ISPs that have a low cap it won't matter.
- bentcorner 13y ago
  I know in Android you can mark a wifi AP as a hotspot to make apps throttle. I don't know about iOS or WP though.
bmelton 13y ago
It's an API available via the Android and iOS SDKs, respectively. How to detect the network connection type on Android: http://stackoverflow.com/questions/2802472/detect-network-connection-type-on-android http://stackoverflow.com/questions/2802472/detect-network-co... How to detect the network connection type on iOS: http://stackoverflow.com/questions/7938650/ios-detect-3g-or-wifi http://stackoverflow.com/questions/7938650/ios-detect-3g-or-...

johnclass 13y ago

Has there been any study on the effectives of video ads. Just wonder how many people close tabs because of video ads; At least I do.

mschuster91 13y ago

Adblock Plus takes care of the ads already, and I wouldn't be surprised if it also spares me the video ads.

droopyEyelids 13y ago
Looks like you missed the part about everyone moving to 'mobile'
- mschuster91 13y ago
  So what? There are numerous adblockers available for Android and jailbroken Crapple phones - and I'm sure that if the ads are to be loaded over cellular data, users will revolt. Most people these days live on metered connections, and I surely would rather kill the FB app than have it drain my data coverage.
  - anonymouscowar1 13y ago
    Can you suggest a good one for Android? I am missing ABP sorely.
    - renata 13y ago
      AdAway is what I use. https://f-droid.org/repository/browse/?fdid=org.adaway https://f-droid.org/repository/browse/?fdid=org.adaway

alisnic 13y ago

"finally"?

JonnieCache 13y ago
They were supposed to launch in october or something, and it got pushed back.
JetSpiegel 13y ago
One step closer to total irrelevance. Also known as MySpacing.

RexRollman 13y ago

Auto plating videos and animated GIFs are the bane of my Internet browsing. Luckily, both are easy to stop with Firefox.

ConceptJunkie 13y ago
Back when animated ads were the thing - maybe they still are, I don't know - I quickly realized it was difficult for me to read an article with a monkey bouncing back and forth right next to it or there was an epilepsy-inducing banner telling me I was the 1000000000000000th visitor. It's not even a matter of being annoying, but of literally degrading the value of the content of the site. Back when I couldn't block the ad outright, I would simply resize the window and scroll it off-screen. I used to use hostfile-based ad blocking and then started using AdBlock when it came along. The thing is, I'm not opposed to ads on principle or anything. I'm just opposed to ads that wreck the product being provided in exchange for the ad. It's like "Sure, I'll let you use my site, but I get to punch you in the head in exchange." There are plenty of sites I've disabled AdBlock on, although I figure the odds of an ad on any random site being relevant or interesting to me is about 10000 to 1. I spent a while with AdBlock off on Facebook and thought the ads being shown me were really pathetic given how much Facebook should know about me and be able to target me. But in general, I'm only opposed to ads when they ruin whatever they are being used to monetize. It's one reason I stopped watching broadcast TV now that ads consume 1/3 of the actual viewing time. Autoplaying videos definitely fall in that category, and I normally keep my computer muted anyway because the last thing I want is some stupid website blaring noise at me. I only unmute the computer if I'm specifically going to watch a video or listen to something. And let's face it, these ads will all be for banks or cars or some stupid political candidate using the movie-trailer-voice guy to tell me that so-and-so eats puppies and kittens, etc., etc. It's all just useless noise.

benmorris 13y ago

I can't blame them for doing it but I'm sure it will lead to me using facebook less. I probably won't close my account but just use the site less. My newsfeed is increasingly annoying as it is.

pavanred 13y ago

The only place I actually find myself watching a video ad is in Hulu, where Hulu provides me an option of watching a video ad now in return of uninterrupted streaming of the content I wanted to watch, which I guess seems fair to me. I guess that would work better, if you are provided the option of auto-playing video ads in your news feed, or watch one or two video ads for uninterrupted access to the news feed, say for every half hour of usage.

PhasmaFelis 13y ago

...Facebook has ads? Thank God for you, AdBlock.

viraptor 13y ago
If you need a rush of adrenaline one day, try turning it off and visiting some well-known news sites... I was pretty sure the machine I saw it on (parents' computer) was infected. Then realised my parents really need adblock.

salient 13y ago

With any luck, this will be the last major step that will cause Facebook's fading into irrelevance.

stefan_kendall 13y ago

Auto-playing user videos are almost certainly worse than whatever targeted ads I'm going to see.

pcharles 13y ago

I HATE this.