Facebook denies it knowingly inflated video-viewing metrics
The company is under fire after a lawsuit alleges it intentionally provided false metrics to advertisers. What will its crisis response be, and how will this shape social media marketing?
Quantifying the reach of video has incited a war of words—including a lawsuit that’s putting another ding in Facebook’s reputation.
Executives at the social media behemoth vehemently deny allegations that it misled users and knowingly hid data about the efficacy of video ads on the platform.
The case also raises questions for social media marketers.
Facebook gives brands data about how well their unpaid posts perform, and for two years its math was off for how it calculated the average amount of time viewers spent watching videos. In 2016, addressing the problem with marketers, Facebook said that the average time was inflated by 60 percent to 80 percent, and it only impacted unpaid posts.
Become a Ragan Insider member to read this article and all other archived content.
Sign up today
Already a member? Log in here.
Learn more about Ragan Insider.