Moreover, the latest quarter also underscored another “first” for Facebook — that is, the company’s quarterly net income surpassed the $1-billion mark for the first time.
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This is a massive jump, even for Facebook, which saw a 52 per cent increase in revenues throughout the final few months of 2015.
Fourth-quarter sales at Facebook Inc. rose to a record US$5.84 billion, beating estimates by analysts.
If Reactions catches on, it could provide a massive lift to Facebook’s revenue, which relies on getting users to notice ads by showing them ads based on personal interests.
“Certainly economic uncertainty in the broad macroeconomic environment affects all businesses, it affects our clients, it affects us, but that said we think we’re really well positioned to continue to take advantage of and double down on the shift to mobile which is happening”, Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg said.
Of the $5.6 billion Facebook rings up from ads, those shown on mobile devices represented about 80 percent of its total haul.
“We continue to invest in better serving our community, building our business and connecting the world”, he posted. Engagement is also trending in the right direction, as the company reported 1.04 billion daily users, a 17% increase.
Facebook was expected to report earnings of 68 cents a share, excluding certain expenses, up from 54 cents a year ago, according to S&P Capital IQ.
“It signifies the importance of what they’re providing to advertisers”, he said.
Monthly active users (MAUs): 1.59 billion, an increase of 21% year-over-year – vs. expectations of 1.58 billion. This year, as Facebook tries to expand in developing countries, the company’s executives expect more growth.
Facebook’s acquisition of the Oculus Rift headset, part of the virtual-reality technology that it bought for $2 billion in 2014, could open another lucrative market.
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The only possible thing that was disappointing is one that has nothing to do with how successful Facebook is going, but one of disclosure: once again there was no breakdown on where the additional revenue is coming from, something that many Facebook followers and investors would love to see. Size is a crucial variable to watch in the social-media business, because a bigger platform means more attractive content and more opportunities for interactions, so users attract each other to the big and popular social networks.
