Meta doubles down on TikTok battle with new ad features for creators

Meta is doubling down on Reels, the company’s short-form video answer to TikTok. In a blog post published today, the Facebook and Instagram parent company introduced more ways for creators to monetize on Facebook with in-video ads, in addition to other features. Creators now will be able to earn 55 percent of ad revenue from banner ads, which will show up as a semi-transparent overlay at the bottom of a reel, as well as sticker ads, which are static images that can be placed anywhere in the video. The rest of the revenue will go to Meta, which represents the same revenue breakdown as Facebook's in-stream ad program. The new monetization tools are the latest attempt from Meta to attract creators from TikTok. In December the company said it would give $35,000 to eligible creators through a Bonus Play program. Meta has committed to spend $1 billion in creator investments by the end of 2022. RSVP for Ad Age In-Depth: Unlocking the metaverse at AdAge.com/InDepthMetaverse. But it remains to be seen whether Meta's plans will be enough to pull advertisers and creators away from TikTok. During Meta’s recent fourth-quarter earnings call, executives admitted that Reels does not monetize as much as Facebook’s news feed or Instagram’s stories. In the call, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg cited TikTok as a growing threat to his company's consumer base but said he was optimistic Reels would eventually drive more revenue because of the fast growth of short-form videos. The battle for short-form video content has heated up in recent years, with Meta launching Reels in 2020. Creators currently have a couple of ways to monetize on TikTok. The app began a creator fund in 2020 with a $200 million pool to pay out creators based on how well their TikToks perform. TikTok also has a tip feature for creators, in which fans can pay them directly, but creators need to have over 100,000 followers to be eligible. Creators can also be a part of the TikTok Creator Marketplace, which helps brands find them for sponsored videos. Last year, YouTube introduced Shorts as a response to TikTok, though it doesn't yet have ads. Pinterest has integrated ads for creators to work with brands. Snapchat this month announced it would start rolling out mid-roll advertisements in popular creator stories. Subscribe to Ad Age now for the latest industry news and analysis. All of the safety features brands have come to expect will be available with the new Reels ads, including publisher lists, blocklists, inventory filters and delivery reports. Meta has also been testing full-screen and immersive ads in between Reels—similar to how TikTok ads work—since October and will roll them out worldwide in the next few months. Users will be able to comment, like, save and share these ads, or skip them. Creators who are already part of Meta’s in-stream ads program—which allows them to put pre-roll, mid-roll, or image ads on longer videos will automatically be eligible to monetize their publicly-shared Reels with ads. Meta will also test its "Stars" feature on Reels, in which the company pays creators one cent for every "star" a fan sends them. They are currently available on live videos. As for editing features, creators will now be able to make Reels up to 60 seconds long and save videos to drafts. They’ll also be able to “remix” their videos to include all or part of another Reel, reminiscent of TikTok’s duet and stitch features. Turning live or long-form recorded videos into Reels will roll out in the coming months. Meta is also making it easier to share Reels to stories on Facebook by adding a Reels label at the top of users’ feeds and showing users other suggested Reels. Meta also said Reels will now be available in more than 150 countries and will be placed in "Watch," its YouTube-like video hub.

Meta doubles down on TikTok battle with new ad features for creators

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