Facebook forced to change Sponsored Stories

Fri 22 June 2012 14:00, Tamara Yadvichuk

A couple weeks ago I wrote about Facebook Sponsored Stories – ads which can appear in the news feed of Facebook users and their friends. Well, it turned out that Facebook had to change their advertising service to settle a lawsuit.

Sponsored stories on Facebook can be a strong marketing tool as they appear as an endorsement from a friend who is in some way connected to the advertised brand. For example, if I liked the Facebook page of Starbucks, my friends may see Sponsored Stories from this page in their newsfeed with my name and profile picture just like in any other post.

There may be problems, however. The thing is that to determine whose friends may see Sponsored Stories Facebook first needs to find users interested in the featured product – those who like its Facebook page, mention it in their posts and comments, etc. And while some of them are genuine supporters of the brand, others could have used it to make a joke such as this one, – and in fact don’t want to be seen as endorsers of the product.

A lawsuit filed against Facebook by five users claimed that such practice of turning Facebook members into involuntary endorsers is illegal. Last month the case was settled, and its recently revealed details showed that Facebook agreed to give users more control over the Sponsored Stories promoted using their name.

Besides that, the social network agreed to donate $10 million for the charitable cause of educating people on safe usage of social media and to pay the same amount for the fees of plaintiffs’ attorneys’.

So, dear facebookers, if you like joking around on Facebook, beware of the dangers of mentioning ‘sensitive products’ – one day you might find yourself recommending your friends to use something you don’t entirely appreciate!

<Additionly launches private beta...

Special Feature for Duanwu Festival>

Comment

Indian Alliance Focuses on Onlin...

Mon 13 May 2013, Seema Sanghavi

0 comments

Indian Alliance Focuses on Online Video Viewers

With a current size of 43 million viewers, India’s Internet video consumption market is growing at a very fast pace. To take advantage of this large market, 2 In...... read more

Fed Up with Ads on Social Networ...

Wed 8 May 2013, Seema Sanghavi

0 comments

In case you haven’t noticed, advertisements on social media sites are becoming more and more prevalent. The companies that advertise on your favorite social netw...... read more

Are Facebook Users on the Decline?

Tue 7 May 2013, Seema Sanghavi

0 comments

There seems to be a lot of news lately about a decline in Facebook users. According to Uproxx, the social network lost 6 million visitors from the USA last month. The ...... read more

Facebook Eases Investor Concerns

Thu 2 May 2013, Seema Sanghavi

0 comments

Despite concerns over the company’s ability to sell adverts on mobile devices, Facebook has reported an increase in mobile advertising revenues this past quarter...... read more