Reddit Hails Advertisers With Announcement Of Video Ads

Reddit is using video to appeal to its brand partners. Last week, the Wall Street Journal reported that the self-proclaimed “front page of the internet” is rolling out video ads that will be sold through a self-serve platform and by the Reddit sales team.

The video ads, which will appear within Reddit discussions, are notable because the popular hub of crowdsourced content does not let users upload their own videos through an in-house player. “It’s really exciting for us because Reddit does not currently host video,” Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian told The Wall Street Journal. “It made a lot of sense and we had a lot of advertisers asking us for it, so we built it.”

A few early partners have helped Reddit test out its new offering. “Advertising clients have been asking for video since the Reddit ads platform launched,” said Reddit exec Ben Miller. “We are thrilled by the reception from our entertainment partners like Universal Pictures and A24 Films, who were the first to test the new format.”

Given Reddit’s popularity — it is currently the fourth-most trafficked site in the United States, according to Alexa.com — its new video ads could be very useful for advertisers, though the WSJ’s report speculates that “brand safety,” which has been a hot topic in 2017, could be a potential issue for Reddit. Many of the site’s users have reacted negatively to attempts to clean up some of its more hateful subreddits, and an increased ad platform could lead to more clashes in the future. Still, there should be plenty of partners who will be excited about the prospect of running videos next to Reddit content.