The reason, however, is different from what you think

Jun 30, 2020 03:58 GMT  ·  By

Microsoft is the latest large company that has decided to pull its ads from Facebook and Instagram, but contrary to other big names that did the same thing as part of an anti-racist boycott against the social network, the software giant has its own reasons.

More specifically, a report from Axios that’s based on an internal Yammer post published by Microsoft CMO Chris Capossela reveals that the company is actually “concerned about where its ads are shown.”

In other words, Microsoft isn’t necessarily supporting the boycott against Facebook, but it doesn’t want its ads to be shown on a platform involved in hate speech and pornography scandals.

“Based on concerns we had back in May we suspended all media spending on Facebook/Instagram in the US and we’ve subsequently suspended all spending on Facebook/Instagram worldwide,” Capossela said.

“The timeline on resuming our media spending is dependent on the positive actions they take, but I expect our pause will continue through August.”

The Facebook boycott

Facebook is currently under fire for the racist and hateful content that’s published on the platform, and several large companies have joined a boycott where they’re pulling ads until the social network deals with this issue. Some of the biggest names include Unilever and Coca-Cola, with the latter suspending its ads on Facebook for a period of 30 days.

Microsoft, on the other hand, has previously used a similar approach for its ads shown on YouTube, eventually returning to the platform when the problems were resolved. The company says that it’s still working with Facebook on the whole thing.

“Our experience tells us that the most impactful means to effect genuine, long-term change is through direct dialogue and meaningful action with our media partners, including the suspension of real marketing dollars,” Capossela says.

For now, however, an ETA as to when Microsoft’s ads could return to Facebook isn’t available, as it all depends on how the social network deals with the raised problems.