Facebook Video Ads Explained
Users will have some control to filter or ignore the video ad. The video will run silent until the user actively chooses to watch it. Then the video will expand to full screen view with volume. Ignored completely, the user supposedly can just scroll right on past the ad without issue or anything further involved.
For those who want to take advantage of the new tool right away, a format approach will be necessary. Not all videos will work. Personal videos from non-commercial pages are supposedly given first priority. Music creators and bands come in second. Even those have to follow certain rules; the video has to be on Facebook’s page versus a link from YouTube or similar.
As for marketers and advertisers, the immediate launch of the new tool will formally make them wait. Granted, a marketer might use a personal account here or there, but for the most part commercial activities will have to wait for the second wave of the tool functionality before being able to use it in Facebook. Ironically, while the approach seems to be anti-business and anti-profit, it makes perfect sense. By having thousands upon thousands of amateur users test and use the system in its first beta version, bugs can be found and eliminated quickly by simple large use demand. This a far faster way to develop a professional marketing tool for commercial users than via internal testing.
Facebook also probably wants to get users used to seeing video first before letting them be bombarded with commercials and ads. Adoption of a new format for the masses is far easier when everyone willingly takes the pill.