Facebook announced recently it will introduce video ads on its mobile iPhone and Android apps. For now, that advertising service will be marketed primarily to other app developers. Facebook mobile video ads might show a video demonstrating how another application works, for example.
In an announcement on the official Facebook Developer Blog, software engineer Radu Margarint wrote:
Potential customers will be able to click play to watch a video featuring your mobile app before installing the app. Video creative has proven to be an effective way to drive engagement in News Feed, and we look forward to helping developers use their video creative to find new app installs.
Advertisers will bid for the new video ads on a cost per action basis. This means advertisers will pay only when a customer downloads and installs their app.
It’s uncertain how this bidding concept might eventually apply to other products and services. However, the new feature suggests Facebook is actively pushing toward more ad revenue from its mobile presence.
Facebook Acquires Mobile Analytics Company Onavo
Another indication that Facebook is tooling up to become more of an asset to mobile marketers is its recent acquisition of mobile data analytics company Onavo.
Announcing the plans last week on the official Onavo blog, co-founder and CEO Guy Rosen wrote:
Three years ago, we started Onavo with the goal of helping today’s technology consumers and companies work more efficiently in a mobile world. We developed the award-winning Onavo mobile utility apps, and later launched Onavo Insights, the first mobile market intelligence service based on real engagement data.
TechCrunch reports the purchase price might be between $100 and $200 million.
The social networking giant will likely use Onavo’s mobile analytics technology to further enhance its own recently updated Facebook Page Insights tool.
Image: Facebook
Shawn,
It’s about time, really. More people access their FB from smartphones/tablets more than ever, so it’s a logical strategy to push, IMO…
Makes sense and I’m interested to see how it goes. If they’re only videos for app downloads, they could be quite relevant (since Facebook knows you’re on a phone). I’m not opposed to relevant ads.
Thanks for the post. Mobile is definitely changing the way of doing business. Check out these figures I recently found: According to a study conducted on 2013 by PewInternet, 91% of American adults have a cell phone, and 56% have a smartphone. 28% of cell users own an Android; 25% own an iPhone; 4% own a Blackberry, while 34% of American adults have a tablet computer. Cheers!