Instagram is introducing ads into its Explore section, continuing the trend of making the app more like its parent company’s main platform, Facebook.
Instagram announced on Wednesday that it will launch ads in its Explore section “slowly and thoughtfully” in the months to come. Explore is the part of the app where Instagram suggests content you might be interested in from accounts you don’t already follow, and where it hosts IGTV, its standalone app for longer-form videos. In a press release announcing the decision, Instagram touted the decision as an “opportunity” for advertisers “to be part of what’s culturally relevant and trending while reaching new audiences who are looking to discover something new” and said that more than 50 percent of Instagram accounts use the Explore feature every month.
Instagram has begun testing the advertisements using its floundering IGTV as a test promotion with a handful of users. Over the next several weeks it will be adding spots for other products and increasing its user exposure. Both big brands and small companies will be brought onboard. The slow rollout will occur over the course of a few months.
For now, current Facebook advertisers have to opt-in to get their spots in Explore, but eventually, ads will be placed there by default with an option to opt-out.
From the user’s side, Explore still works the same. Ads will not appear in the main grid when the tab is initially opened. They only kick in once a photo or video is tapped. Then while scrolling through content users will see the ads periodically inserted.
