Facebook ad revenue soars as user base matches that of China's population

Thursday, 30 October 2014 09:37

Facebook’s advertising revenue has grown by 64 per cent during its third quarter with mobile ads making up 66 per cent of that at $1.95bn.

The company announced its latest financial figures and revealed that its user base was now as big as the population of China with its 1.35bn users signing it at least once a month.

Despite the news, shares for the platform fell by around 10 per cent after it warned shareholders that its investments in platforms such as the multi billion dollars acquisitions such as Oculus Rift and WhatsApp would continue next year and hurt its revenue margins, with expenses expected to increase by 75 per cent.

The company also reported a 90 per cent year on year increase in profit to $806m.

Facebook also plans to expand its video advertising offering, having recently relaunched its Atlas platform in September and having also acquired LiveRail.

"Advertisers are intrigued by Facebook's latest initiatives, such as the relaunch of Atlas and the purchase of LiveRail," said Debra Aho Williamson, principal analyst, eMarketer. "These moves are indicative of an important shift that is under way at Facebook. It's becoming much more ambitious in offering digital services far beyond what the company was initially created to do as a social network."

Facebook also revealed that its daily user based had increased by 19 per cent to 864 million.

Last modified on Thursday, 30 October 2014 09:44