GM to Stop Advertising on Facebook

General Motors plans to stop advertising on Facebook after the auto maker's executives determined their paid ads had little impact on consumers' car purchases, people familiar with the matter said.

The largest U.S. auto maker by sales will continue to expand its use of marketing through Facebook's pages, in which marketers can display content at no cost, these people said. The news comes at a bad time for Facebook which is expected to hold a historic initial public offering on May 18. Asked about the move, GM marketing chief Joel Ewanick said the Detroit auto maker "is definitely reassessing our advertising on Facebook, although the content is effective and important." Content refers to the unpaid Facebook pages many companies use to promote their products.