San Francisco - Facebook’s photo-sharing application Instagram will add advertising in Canada, the UK and Australia later this year as chief executive Mark Zuckerberg seeks to generate more sales from mobile users.
The application, which Facebook acquired for about $700 million in 2012, started to gradually introduce advertising six months ago to avoid alienating its user base, which now includes more than 200 million members.
Facebook is aiming to make more money off its international users, which make up the majority of members.
Instagram ad sales will be a key part of Facebook’s mobile strategy, which now includes several applications such as Messenger and Paper, and messaging program WhatsApp after the $19 billion acquisition closes.
“The results for advertisers have been positive -- and in some cases, well above the ad industry’s average for performance,” Facebook said in the blog post.
“We’re excited to build on this momentum, and in the coming months we will extend the same level of care and consideration as we introduce ads on Instagram to our global community.” - Bloomberg News