Instagram Users In The US Will Soon Be Seeing Ads
by Brent Dirks
October 3, 2013
That time has finally come. In a blog post today, Instagram announced that some users in the United States will be seeing an occasional ad in their feed “in the next couple of months.”
But hey, at least the obtrusive advertisements will be rolled out slowly, according to the company:
Seeing photos and videos from brands you don't follow will be new, so we'll start slow. We'll focus on delivering a small number of beautiful, high-quality photos and videos from a handful of brands that are already great members of the Instagram community. Our aim is to make any advertisements you see feel as natural to Instagram as the photos and videos many of you already enjoy from your favorite brands. After all, our team doesn't just build Instagram, we use it each and every day. We want these ads to be enjoyable and creative in much the same way you see engaging, high-quality ads when you flip through your favorite magazine.I can’t say that’s comforting for users of the photo sharing social network. Much like Facebook, though, if users see an ad they don’t like, it can be hidden. Advertising has been coming ever since Facebook purchased Instagram in early 2012. Facebook has even openly admitted that fact since last December. But that still doesn’t make it any more palatable for most users. Instagram is designed for the iPhone/iPod touch and can be downloaded now.
