Twitter (NYSE:TWTR) Rolls Out Money Making ‘Moments’

$TWTR, $TWX

Twitter Inc. (NYSE:TWTR) wasting any time making money from its newest feature dubbed ‘Moments.

‘The new product, which debuted 2 weeks ago as a way to track big events as they happen, will get its 1st advertiser this weekend.

Twitter will give advertisers a Channel on Moments for 24 hrs, where they can curate Tweets, video and other content. The 1st users of Promoted Moments will be backers of the new movie Creed, from MGM, Warner Bros, a unit of Time Warner (NYSE:TWX). and New Line Cinema.

Promoted Moments fits squarely within the trend for native advertising, which delivers promotions that look like other content so that they are less easily ignored by  ad-weary Internet users. The new initiative resembles what Twitter is already doing with promoted Tweets.

The difference is that advertisers will be able to incorporate many more photos, videos and Tweets to build a comprehensive story.

“Promoted Moments will have all the features of a Moment you see right now, and instead of curators creating the moment, it will be a brand,” said Matt Derella, Twitter’s vice president of revenue for North America.

“The real estate they get is going to be really prominently displayed.”

Mr. Derella said Twitter expects to have 1 Promoted Moment each day. Moments are premium real estate on Twitter’s app, complete with video options, which generally translates into higher ad rates. Mr. Derella did not disclose how Promoted Moments will be sold.

The new initiative comes as Twitter faces slower revenue growth. Analysts estimate that sales rose 55% to $560-M in the latest Quarter. That compares with revenue growth of 61% in the prior frame.

Twitter is set to announce quarterly earnings on 27 October.Twitter is hiring curators to ensure the quality of Moments, including former New York Times editor-at-large Marcus Mabry.

Thursday, the app featured several sections on news, from Hillary Clinton’s testimony on Benghazi to pop singer Adele’s upcoming album.

Advertisers will “get this incredible engagement with people coming to see what’s happening in the world, and get this really rich canvas to tell that story,” Mr. Derella said.