Theeeeeey’re heeeeere! Facebook introduces video ads

Facebook has been experimenting with video ads for quite sometime. This month they are formerly launching streaming ads fir a small number of users. The ads will start automatically, be defaulted without sound, and even appear in the mobile version. According to The New York Times:

“The video ads, if poorly received, could risk that growth, but they also present a tremendous opportunity. Digital video advertising spending is expected to hit $4.15 billion by the end of this year, a 23 percent increase over last year, according to the market research company eMarketer. YouTube has the biggest slice of that spending, at about 20 percent.”

Indeed, the new feature could be a boon for Facebook. A single 15 second ad is reportedly going to cost between $1 and $2.5 million. With the online video ad market reaching $4.15 billion this year, perhaps nobody has a better chance of cornering the market than Facebook.

For more on this new feature, see the following video:

Discussion Questions:

1.  Will users tolerate video ads on Facebook? Why, or why not?

2.  How might video ads on Facebook affect other forms of media, like network television? Could advertising dollars moving online hurt TV?

3.  What is Facebook trying to do, according to the articles linked above, to minimize the inconvenience of the new streaming ads?