Get ready to see ad breaks in more Facebook videos on your News Feed. The company announced on Thursday it is testing its recently launched mid-roll ads feature in on-demand video on its platform. It is also using ad breaks as an incentive to get more Live Video publishers streaming on its platform.
Last month, Recode revealed Facebook was testing video ads with select partners. These ads can be inserted into a clip after a minimum duration of 20 seconds, and at least two minutes apart for longer videos. The company is reportedly splitting ad revenue, granting publishers a 55 percent cut and keeping 45 percent for itself.
Then, during its fourth-quarter earnings call, company execs confirmed that ad-sharing would be its preferred monetization model as it ramped up video on its platform. Now, as we await for Facebook to release its planned TV app and double-down on content for its mobile and desktop video tab, it is becoming increasingly clear how ads will be presented within video.
On Thursday, Facebook announced that publishers signed up to its Audience Network ad tool for third-party websites and apps can now use it for video ads.
Facebook wants longer videos with engaging content
The company is also targeting Live Video creators as part of its new round of beta testing for its ad breaks feature. Live-streamers that have at least 2,000 or more followers, and have reached a minimum audience of 300 viewers in a recent broadcast, are eligible to insert 20 second ad breaks into each video.
From the sounds of it, Facebook is using the feature as an incentive to get creators to make longer live-streams. As the company explains, a live-stream publisher can take an ad break after broadcasting for at least four minutes. Additional ads can then be inserted after a minimum of five minutes between each break. Consequently, the longer your stream is watched by an engaged audience of 300 or more viewers, the more money you stand to make from ads. The same applies to general videos.
Facebook will notify users when they can take an ad break during the course of a live-stream. Tapping the alert will commence the 20-second ad roll.
Beyond live-streams, Facebook is allowing a handful of publishers to insert ad breaks into prerecorded clips. The feature can be applied to new videos that are being uploaded and to existing clips in the Facebook Page’s library.
For now, ad breaks are only available to creators and publishers in the United States. Facebook says the feature will be expanded to include more partners and additional countries in the future.
