The verdict is out! Facebook officially announced a few hours back in their Newsroom post that they are testing a new way to watch videos (the promoted ones) in News Feed. There’s been quite a talk among sources in Menlo Park regarding this eventual rollout, but no certain decision was made. Now that it is official, social media experts around the world are busy analyzing the probable impact and efficacy that Facebook wants to drive out of their latest update to this ‘most talked about’ News Feed update in recent months. Here’s the link to Facebook’s official announcement from their Newsroom Post
It is still early to analyze how this new feature will impact marketers and businesses around the world. For the time being we will concentrate on knowing about the changes to occur soon to our News Feed.
1. All Promoted Video Ads Will “Auto-Play” – You will see all promoted video ads in auto-play mode. That is, video ads will auto-play whether you choose to play or not! All video ads will play silently as you scroll through the News Feed. Only when you “tap” (in case of smartphone and tablet users) the video or “click” on play icon, the video will appear in full screen mode and with full sound. After each play, Facebook will suggest you 2 more videos to play and watch, a system much similar to YouTube model.
2. You Can Never Opt Out of Promoted Video Ads – Now that sounds like a bummer! But then, you can always choose to ignore and scroll past these promoted video ads, much like you skip TV channels during Ad breaks!
3. See All Other Videos In Auto-Play Mode – Yes, according to insiders in Facebook Labs ‘auto-play’ functionality cannot be made selective as of now, so all videos will auto-play in silent mode and this includes videos of your friends, of people you follow and of pages you have liked. The same rule will apply here. So, once you don’t like what you’re seeing, just scroll past it.
4. News Feed Auto-play Video Ads Won’t Consume Your Data Plans – According to a statement from Menlo Park H.Q, users need not worry about News Feed videos consuming your mobile data plan. Facebook has got that covered!
So embrace this change and get ready to watch videos and promos in scores on your News Feed during this festive season! Want to watch the Facebook News Feed Auto-Play Video Ads in action right here? Click on this link.
What do you think about this new update from Facebook? Let us know. Stay connected to ITS Blog.