Facebook Canvas, a.k.a. Instant Articles for brands, officially launches
Facebook’s take on Instant Articles for advertisers is here.
The social network officially launched Canvas today, a full-screen, video mobile format that is intended to engage people more than a regular video ad. And, similar to Instant Articles, Canvas ads load 10 times faster than a standard mobile website.
Brands have been tinkering with Canvas ads on Facebook for the past few months, with Carnival Cruise Lines being one of the first. Carnival told Digiday that 50 percent of people who opened its Canvas ad watched the video to the end.
Gatorade, Michael Kors, Wendy’s and Target have also used Canvas. They and others have said that people actually engage with their ads, getting as much as 50 percent more clicks than a regular ad.
Notably, Facebook is charging companies the same price as a regular News Feed ad.
The Canvas team did an amazing job making this happen. Here's what a Canvas Ad looks like pic.twitter.com/gZBmAKA3D2
— Ben Cunningham (@codeblue87) February 25, 2016
Facebook has been rapidly expanding mobile ads, which accounted for a staggering 80 percent of its $5.6 billion revenue in the last quarter. So, this new unit is good news for brands because people remember them and better news for Facebook because it keeps people using the social network.
More in Media
What now for TikTok creators after the latest ban delay, with Alyssa McKay
If TikTok were to eventually be banned in the U.S., McKay explains how easily Snapchat and Instagram Reels could fill the void for her.
‘We have our understanding of what we accept or what we don’t accept’: Kick’s co-founder talks creator push and growing pains
March 2025 was Kick’s biggest month ever. However, some livestreaming creators remain reluctant to join Kick due to its relatively loose approach to content moderation.
The real AI challenge for WPP isn’t scale, it’s control
Daniel Hulme, WPP’s chief AI officer, is focused on developing frameworks for how agentic systems will interact without risky or conflicting behaviors.