Most of us don’t like change, even when it’s good for us. Two years ago Facebook made huge changes to the way that users browse photos, but there was a huge outcry, with several petitions and Facebook groups such as “Give us our scrolling back” and “Zuckerburg doesn’t get the bigger picture”. So the folks over at Facebook changed it back, and people retreated.

This calls into question how on earth Timeline is still surging ahead. It has been described as the Zombie apocalypse of the Internet; slowly taking people unexpectedly. If you don’t choose Timeline, it will eventually choose you. With such an overwhelmingly negative response from Facebook users, one can only wonder why we haven’t got the good old days of Facebook back yet.

The answer is simple really, and not at all unexpected – money. More specifically – the money reaped from advertising. Recent experiments using eye-tracking devices have revealed that viewers are 80% more likely to look at brand photos with Facebook timeline than the old version of Facebook brand pages.  The hugeness of the cover photo means that 100% of those who took part in the experiment looked at it and on average saw it for at least 0.5 seconds. Meanwhile only 65% of viewers noticed photos on the original brand pages.

Furthermore, information that used to be basically invisible has become a focal point. Facebook moved the number of Likes, events and apps to prime top-and center territory. It now gets more attention than when it was listed on the right-hand side of the page. In the case of Good Morning America, for instance, the show’s 505,000 likes went from being disregarded by viewers entirely, to the biggest focal point on it’s Timeline.

The way that our eyes now move across Facebook compared to other interfaces means we are forced to look at everything rather than automatically flicking through and subconsciously ignoring adverts. This means the cost of advertising has gone up significantly and Facebook’s profits are through the roof as a result.

So is it really worth complaining about? Personally I don’t dislike Timeline, and if it means the profits keep Facebook up and running then it doesn’t seem all that harmful. Most of the anger comes from the inevitability of Timeline, how it will get you eventually. It has worked wonders for brands though and completely changed the way people absorb advertising.

For brands with a long history in the profession, they can tailor their Timeline to show major changes and events within the company. Furthermore the way brands can present promotions and updates have revolutionized Facebook advertising.

In a nutshell the argument comes down to the age old debate like that of the BBC and television licenses. It’s the choice between dealing with the adverts for free or paying for Facebook as a service.

Give me the advertising any day.