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| Twitter puts video ads at top of users' timeline feeds | Twitter puts video ads at top of users' timeline feeds |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| Twitter has told marketers they can now place video ads near the top of people's timeline feeds. | Twitter has told marketers they can now place video ads near the top of people's timeline feeds. |
| It says the First View feature will give their clips "premium placement" on users' devices. It is initially being rolled out to the US ahead of a global launch. | It says the First View feature will give their clips "premium placement" on users' devices. It is initially being rolled out to the US ahead of a global launch. |
| The announcement comes on the eve of the company's latest financial results. | The announcement comes on the eve of the company's latest financial results. |
| One expert said the move might help boost Twitter's profits in the short-term but was likely to backfire. | One expert said the move might help boost Twitter's profits in the short-term but was likely to backfire. |
| "The reason why Facebook has been so successful of late is that it has been able to put sponsored posts and videos into people's feeds," commented Richard Holway, chairman of the TechMarketView consultancy. | "The reason why Facebook has been so successful of late is that it has been able to put sponsored posts and videos into people's feeds," commented Richard Holway, chairman of the TechMarketView consultancy. |
| "But Twitter is a different affair as people typically spend a much shorter time looking at each post, and putting intrusive videos at the top of their feeds, making it more cluttered, is going to upset a lot of people." | "But Twitter is a different affair as people typically spend a much shorter time looking at each post, and putting intrusive videos at the top of their feeds, making it more cluttered, is going to upset a lot of people." |
| Unlike normal ads on the platform - which algorithms target at specific users - a First View video will be shown to everyone within a region or country who uses Twitter over a 24-hour period. | Unlike normal ads on the platform - which algorithms target at specific users - a First View video will be shown to everyone within a region or country who uses Twitter over a 24-hour period. |
| That makes it a potentially more effective way to build mass awareness of a product over a short period of time. | That makes it a potentially more effective way to build mass awareness of a product over a short period of time. |
| But another company watcher also expressed doubts about the idea based on the examples Twitter had posted online. | But another company watcher also expressed doubts about the idea based on the examples Twitter had posted online. |
| "The whole point of in-feed ads is that they should seamlessly roll through and not interrupt your experience," said Sarah Vizard, Marketing Week's news editor. | "The whole point of in-feed ads is that they should seamlessly roll through and not interrupt your experience," said Sarah Vizard, Marketing Week's news editor. |
| "Brands will love [First View] as it sits across the top of the page and everyone will see it, but for the users themselves, they will think: 'It takes over most of the feed. I came here to see what the people I follow are posting and to find information, and to get to that I now have to clear the ad.'" | "Brands will love [First View] as it sits across the top of the page and everyone will see it, but for the users themselves, they will think: 'It takes over most of the feed. I came here to see what the people I follow are posting and to find information, and to get to that I now have to clear the ad.'" |
| Twitter results | Twitter results |
| Twitter is due to post its full year's earnings after the US markets close. | Twitter is due to post its full year's earnings after the US markets close. |
| The loss-making firm's shares are trading about 69% lower than where they were a year ago, partly because of concerns that its user figures are not growing fast enough. | The loss-making firm's shares are trading about 69% lower than where they were a year ago, partly because of concerns that its user figures are not growing fast enough. |
| Last month the Recode news site reported that the service had cut the number of ads being shown to some of its most active users as part of an effort to keep them engaged. | Last month the Recode news site reported that the service had cut the number of ads being shown to some of its most active users as part of an effort to keep them engaged. |
| More recently, the hashtag #RIPTwitter began trending on the service after Buzzfeed reported that the platform planned to change the order tweets were presented in. | More recently, the hashtag #RIPTwitter began trending on the service after Buzzfeed reported that the platform planned to change the order tweets were presented in. |
| However, the firm has since clarified that users do not need to use the new tool. | |
| "When you open Twitter after being away for a while, the tweets you're most likely to care about will appear at the top of your timeline - still recent and in reverse chronological order," it explained in a blog. | |
| "The rest of the tweets will be displayed right underneath, also in reverse chronological order, as always. At any point, just pull-to-refresh to see all new tweets at the top in the live, up-to-the-second experience you already know and love. | |
| "To check it out now, just go into the timeline section of your settings and choose 'Show me the best Tweets first'... and you can easily turn it off in settings." | |
| The firm's chief executive Jack Dorsey is expected to be asked about other plans to make Twitter more user-friendly during a conference call with analysts after its earnings announcement. |