Meta: Instagram owner has first ever fall in sales revenue but monthly Facebook usage grows
Facebook and Instagram owner Meta had its first ever drop in sales revenue in the first time in its history.
The social media giant’s revenue stood at $28.2bn in the first three months up to June this year, down from $29bn in the same period last year, marking a one per cent fall.
The Mark Zuckerberg-owned company did however have an increase in the number of monthly users on Facebook, with an average of 2.93 month, up one per cent year-on-year, in what appears a successful bid to stave off other platforms like TikTok.
“It was good to see positive trajectory on our engagement trends this quarter coming from products like Reels and our investments in AI,” said Mark Zuckerberg, Meta founder and CEO.
“We’re putting increased energy and focus around our key company priorities that unlock both near and long term opportunities for Meta and the people and businesses that use our services.”
This comes as the firm said its expenses for 2022 will total almost £$88bn, down from initial predictions of $92bn, but it had taken steps to reduce overall expenses further.
Meta said it had reduced its hiring plans to account for rising costs and a harsher operating environment.
It said in the third quarter, thanks to “weak advertising demand”, it expects total revenue to be around $28bn.