Meta has started testing advertisements on Threads — its alternative to Elon Musk’s X — an executive announced.
Launched in 2023, its debut was made eight months after Musk’s acquisition of X when changes like paid subscriptions and reduced content moderation were driving away users and advertisers.
The advertising’s introduction on Threads was expected, given that Meta derives most of its revenue from ads across its free platforms.
Instagram and Threads chief Adam Mosseri announced that they are starting a small test for ads on Threads with a handful of brands in the US and Japan.
He further said that his team would closely monitor feedback with the view to ensure they feel like Threads posts you’d find relevant and interesting.
The ads come as Meta is facing high scrutiny after CEO Mark Zuckerberg ended the company’s US fact-checking program. The program was a key tool to fight online misinformation — and relaxed content moderation rules to allow more controversial speech, similar to X’s policies.
The decision was seen as an attempt to appease President Donald Trump, whose conservative support base has long complained that third-party fact-checking on tech platforms was a way to curtail free speech and censor right-wing content.
