A report from The Wall Street Journal indicates that the team at Snapchat is set to introduce a new service this November called Snapchat Discovery, which could open up non-vanishing revenue for the site.
This move, which will introduce monetization to the service, will allow publishers to include ads, video clips and other content with their pictures, expanding on the available services.
With the introduction of the new service, Snapchat is looking to increase its worth, which was already valued at $10 billion, according to investment talks previously held with the Alibaba Group back in June. The site has grown since then in terms of user count, with an increase of more than 50 percent since last year. Some 27 million users now use the site, compared to 11 million from the same time period the year before.
A number of brands interact with Snapchat’s site, including the likes of Groupon with an array of giveaways, as well as promotional partners like AT & T, Wendy’s, General Electric and Sour Patch Kids. InStyle has also recently taken part, revealing its cover for its September issue exclusively through the site.
This is just the latest monetization step for the company, as it previously announced that it was looking for a way to introduce in-app purchases to the service last year. No word yet on when those features are set to launch, but they shouldn’t be far off from the launch of this new initiative.
What do you think? Could such a change to Snapchat’s services be beneficial in terms of how promotional partners benefit and how users post their daily content? Or does it change the basic premise of the site so much that it could be considered a turn-off for its large audience? Only time will tell, but it’s sure to generate some interest either way…
Source: Adweek
