@djghettoredneck let me know that BlackBerry is testing out some ads in BBM within certain Beta Zone builds of BBM. The ads are essentially in two different areas with sponsored invites and sponsored channels. The new ads sort of remind me of how Twitter is monetizing their company. The sponsored invites ads will show up in the invites section of BBM. The sponsored channel posts will show up in the updates section of BBM. The ads are really only for one version of BBM and very limited so I doubt this will intrude.
I am not sure if this is the best way for BBM to monetize itself but I doubt it will hurt. Still it will not stop people complaining that ads are coming to the platform. I just hope BlackBerry keeps it tactful. I can see sponsored channels getting some top billing as an acceptable medium. People are also okay with sponsored Tweets in Twitter so sponsored updates should work too.
