FTC Wants Instagram Influencers Transparent, Sponsorship Money To Double

By 2019, the sponsorship money that Instagram influencers pull in is on pace to more than double — from about $1 billion this year to nearly $2.4 billion.

That’s according to fresh estimates from marketing firm Mediakix.

The FTC is threatening to spoil the party for influencers if they don't do a better job of disclosing their financial arrangements with sponsors. 

Just this week, the agency said it contacted 90 or so Instagram influencers and warned them about being more transparent.

Yet with $1 billion-plus at stake, the number of brand-sponsored influencer posts on Instagram is on track to more than double from 14.5 million this year, to 32.3 million, in 2019.

That poses a problem for Instagram, because many users essentially see sponsored posts as a form of spam.

Parent company Facebook is increasingly relying on Instagram to drive revenue growth. In fact, Instagram will make up 20% of Facebook’s domestic mobile revenue this year -- up from 15%, last year -- eMarketer estimates.

That has meant more ads. Showing the extent to which the once ad-shy platform has gone commercial, Instagram even recently began rolling out full-screen, “sound-on,” auto-play ads in Stories.

As of March, Instagram's global community exceeded 600 million users.

1 comment about "FTC Wants Instagram Influencers Transparent, Sponsorship Money To Double".
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  1. Levi Jones from IZEA, Inc., April 24, 2017 at 4:34 p.m.

    Great Article! Transparency is key for both the brand and the influencer. By the way, you have the wrong social channel in your header pic...

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