Facebook users will be the stars of the social network’s latest advertising product. The site will soon launch “Sponsored Stories.” Companies will be able to pay for users’ endorsements to show up as ads on the site. If you’ve used Facebook to check into a particular store or if you’ve “liked” the page of a particular coffee shop (Starbucks gets lots of shout-outs in the video and promotional material describing the service), that company can pay to have your interaction with their brand show up on your friends’ pages.
It’s a brilliant idea: Organic advertising for companies. A payday for Facebook. The downside? Users are going to freak out a bit. It’s not just a privacy issue. Facebook users likely won’t be happy about the fact that they’re not getting paid for their “celebrity endorsement.”