Discord, the social messaging platform catered to gamers, has detailed its plans to show users ads.
In the coming week, Sponsored Quests will display in the bottom-left corner of the platform. They also come with tasks for users to complete in-game while streaming to unlock rewards, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal.
As long as at least one person is watching a Sponsored Quest stream, the streamer will be eligible to receive a Discord Gift, which often takes the form of Nitro Subscriptions. Viewers will have the opportunity to take on the quest themselves.
Advertisers will target users based on their gaming habits, age and location. Users will have the option to turn off ads in their settings.
Discord intends for Sponsored Quests to come from game developers and publishers. CEO Jason Citron has told the press that Discord will not depend on ads like other social media platforms do.
However, Discord is only starting to build a paid media offering. It’s hiring for more than a dozen ad-sales positions, according to The Journal’s report.
In January, Discord laid off 17% of its staff, or 170 people, saying that it over-hired during the pandemic, when time spent gaming was at an all-time high.
Previously, Discord has relied on Nitro Subscriptions, which grant the ability to stream in higher resolutions and upload large files, as one of its primary revenue streams. Its decision to introduce ads comes as it’s quadrupled its annual revenue to $600 million since 2020.
Advertising on a tight-knit, communal messaging platform comes with a unique set of challenges. Users, especially those used to a platform that’s been ad-free for years, aren’t used to seeing ads in a space where they’re building and maintaining connections with friends. Sponsored Quests may have a harder time gaining acceptance as they put the onus on users to advertise to each other on stream.
However, users have been seeing Quests for the past year. Millions of users have opted in and completed them in that time, according to a blog post from March 7.
This story first appeared on PRWeek U.S.
