Out of respect for the mourning period in Thailand, Facebook has temporarily stopped running ads in Thailand, and stopped the ability for advertisers to purchase ads in the country.
The ad ban period is a week long and ends on Thursday.
Radha, a Facebook advertising representative, told Coconuts that, “Out of respect for the passing of Thailand’s King Bhumibol Adulyadej, we’re temporarily not showing ads in Thailand.”
“We expect to turn all ads back on [by] Oct. 21. Ads will continue to run in any other locations. This has not been done very frequently. We assess the process based on the dynamics of the situation and keeping in mind the cultural sensitivity and the impact and aftermath it has on a nation.”
Last year, Thailand had 37 million registered Facebook users, which made it the ninth largest Facebook population anywhere in the world.
The people of Thailand are also the most active on the out of all Southeast Asian nations. According to Bangkok Post, Thais spent an average of 2.35 hours daily on Facebook last year, which is more time than they spend watching TV.
Editor’s Note: This article has been edited on Oct. 19. Coconuts previously received an e-mail response from Facebook that the advertisements would be turned back on on Oct. 20. Facebook later corrected their response that the correct date is Oct. 21.
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