Discord plans to introduce sponsored ads for revenue, contradicting previous stance

According to [The Wall Street Journal], (https://www.wsj.com/tech/discord-to-start-showing-ads-for-gamers-to-boost-revenue-bf5848b9), Discord is reportedly planning to introduce sponsored ads as part of its revenue-boosting strategy, despite previous resistance to such a move. The company, which has already seen its annual revenue climb to $600 million, is planning to hire over a dozen ad-sales staff to facilitate this new initiative.

The proposed ads will be tailored to users' specific details such as location, age, and gaming habits and are expected to appear in the bottom left corner of the app screen.

However, in a nod to CEO Jason Citron's past concerns about user comfort and privacy, Discord intends to allow users to disable these ads in their settings. The company stresses that it does not scan or read users' messages and this new move represents a significant shift in Discord's monetization strategy which could potentially affect the user experience. The official announcement regarding the implementation of sponsored ads has yet to be made by Discord.