Meta starts testing ads on Threads in these two countries

Threads

And so it begins. Meta has officially started testing ads on its social media platform, Threads, according to a statement from Adam Mosseri, the head of Instagram. The pilot program, launched with a select group of brands in the US and Japan, marks Threads’ first foray into advertising as the platform explores monetisation strategies.

Mosseri emphasised that the goal is to ensure ads on Threads are as engaging and relevant as the platform’s organic content. “We are making sure they feel like Threads posts you’d find relevant and interesting,” he said.

The test will involve close monitoring and evaluation before expanding the initiative to a wider audience. Meta plans to gather feedback from users to refine the ad experience and address any concerns that arise. “We know there will be plenty of feedback about how we should approach ads,” Mosseri added, highlighting the company’s intent to remain responsive to user input during the process.

“We’ll closely monitoring this test before scaling it more broadly, with the goal of getting ads on Threads to a place where they are as interesting as organic content,” added Mosseri.

Launched in mid-2023 as a competitor to X (formerly Twitter), Threads gained rapid attention for its minimalist design and integration with Instagram. However, the platform has faced challenges in retaining user engagement and still hasn’t become a formidable threat to X.

As mentioned earlier, it was a matter of time that ads started to show up in Threads. Limited to two countries as of now, one can expect Meta to expand it to other regions and markets.