This article in Reuters discusses an important A/B test on Facebook that looks at splitting the NewsFeed into two tabs, kind of like Gmail (if user desires) will split your emails into two or more tabs. The Facebook Newsfeed underwent the most drastic changes some years ago when they started courting advertisers and allowing them to insert messages into a space that were previously used by friends and relatives. The Newsfeed because one of the most popular areas for advertisers on Facebook; news organizations generate substantial traffic through referrals from Facebook.
Insertion of sponsored content into a personal space results in the need to balance conflicting objectives. Ads from advertisers and messages from friends are competing for the valuable real estate.
If you were to listen to the reporters in the Reuters article, Facebook does not care one bit about advertisers. The only thing it cares about is the experience of users from whom it does not directly derive any revenues. This is particularly odd because Facebook's business model is entirely dependent on advertising. if I were an advertiser, I would be highly suspicious about the split Newsfeed. It's rather likely that when my ads are separately held in a side tab, Facebook users might not open those ads. I almost never click on the Gmail tab that holds the commercial emails.
How did the journalist write a thousand words without addressing the impact of the split Newsfeed test on advertising income? Only he can tell you.
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