In a move that has the potential to shake up the industry, Facebook has launched a new advertising network that will serve ads to third-party mobile apps.
The service, Audience Networks, will allows mobile-app developers to insert ads into their software, with Facebook sharing in the revenue. Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s chief executive, said this is the first time that the social media giant has helped app developers monetise “in a serious way on mobile.”
Facebook currently has more than one million advertisers and can target users based on a treasure trove of data. However, it will face stiff competition from Google’s AdMob service which already allows advertisers to display ads via third-party mobile apps.
The news, which was announced at the social network’s F8 developers conference, comes as Facebook reports a huge surge in mobile ad revenue, which was up 82% year on year, according to the company’s latest financial results.
However, some have already expressed concerns about the amount of data that Facebook will be sharing with advertisers, and the threat to user privacy.
Lara O’Reilly, senior reporter at MarketingWeek magazine, told the BBC: “Facebook will have to make sure from the outset that it sets some stringent guidelines as to exactly the type of data that it shares with advertisers.
“This is moving away from the Facebook platform, where people feel a little bit more comfortable with targeted advertising, onto mobile app screens, which people can feel are very personal.”
Following Facebook’s acquisition of instant messaging service WhatsApp earlier this year, critics were quick to voice concerns regarding data misuse, with some saying that ‘Facebook’ and ‘privacy’ “look uncomfortable next to one another.”
