Meta says it is making Reels the best way for creators to get discovered, connect with their audience and earn money Meta has expanded the availability of Facebook Reels for iOS and Android to more than 150 countries across the globe. It has also introduced monetisation opportunities to help creators earn money, new creation tools and more places to watch and create Facebook Reels. "Watching video is half of the time spent on Facebook and Instagram, and Reels is our fastest-growing content format by far. We’re focused on making Reels the best way for creators to get discovered, connect with their audience and earn money. We also want to make it fun and easy for people to find and share relevant and entertaining content," the company said in a blog post. In September 2021, the company launched Reels on Facebook for iOS and Android in the US. "Since launching in the US, we’ve seen creators like Kurt Tocci (and his cat, Zeus) share original comedic skits, author and Bulletin writer Andrea Gibson offer a reading of their published poetry, Nigerian-American couple Ling and Lamb try new foods and dancer and creator Niana Guerrero do trending dances, like the #ZooChallenge," the company said. In terms of opportunities for creators to earn money for their reels, Facebook said the Reels Play bonus program, which is a part of its $1 billion creator investment, pays eligible creators up to $35,000 a month based on the views of their qualifying reels. "These bonuses have helped creators like Jason the Great fund their Reels creation and better understand what types of content works on Facebook. In the coming months, we’ll expand the bonus program to more countries, so more creators can get rewarded for creating reels that their communities love." Facebook Reels is also being opened for creators to earn money through ad revenue share and fan support. Currently, creators can earn monetise their content through products like in-stream ads and Stars. "We’re also building direct monetization options for Facebook Reels through ad revenue share and fan support. We’re expanding tests of Facebook Reels Overlay Ads to all creators in the US, Canada and Mexico, and to more countries in the coming weeks," the company said. Facebook Reels Overlay Ads will start with two formats: banner ads that appear as a semi-transparent overlay at the bottom of a Facebook Reel and sticker ads - a static image ad that can be placed by a creator anywhere within their reel. These non-interruptive ads enable creators to earn a portion of the ad revenue. "Any creator in the US, Canada and Mexico who is part of our in-stream ads program is automatically eligible to monetize their publicly-shared reels with ads. By mid-March, these tests will expand to creators in nearly all countries where in-stream ads are available. Creators can learn more about overlay ads on our Meta for Creators blog. We’ll also begin testing Stars on Facebook Reels in the coming weeks, so that people can buy and send Stars while watching reels to support creators. Both overlay ads and Stars are designed so that as more people view and engage with Reels on Facebook, creator payouts can grow," Meta said. The company is launching brand suitability controls, including Publisher Lists, Blocklists, Inventory Filters and Delivery Reports for Banner and Sticker Ads in Facebook Reels in every region they are available. This, it added, will give advertisers more control over how their ads appear in places they don’t consider suitable for their brand or campaign. "Additionally, we’ve been testing full-screen and immersive ads in between Facebook Reels since October of last year, and will roll them out to more places around the world over the coming months. Just like with organic content on Facebook, people can comment, like, view, save, share and skip them."