Headlines from 2023 at Meta:
- Q3 revenue equated US $34.15 billion (£26.9 billion), up 23% year-on-year (YOY).
- Instagram has approximately 1.35 billion users worldwide and Facebook has more than 3.05 billion monthly active users (MAUs).
- Threads launched in July and had more than 100 million sign-ups within five days.
Meta, the parent company behind platforms such as Facebook and Instagram, had its most profitable quarter in years. Its Q3 revenue reached US $34.15 billion (£26.9 billion) – up 23% YOY. Its income before provision for income taxes was US $14.02 million (£11.1 million).
Throughout the quarter, the company released AI Studio (which allows developers to create custom chatbots) and introduced a range of AI personas (which are in beta), portrayed by pop culture figures such as MrBeast and Kendall Jenner. The news received mixed (often negative) reactions.
As noted in its Q3 report, Facebook averaged 2.09 billion daily active users (DAUs) – up five per cent YOY – and its MAUs totalled more than 3.05 billion. Instagram is estimated to have surpassed 1.35 billion users worldwide.
In July, Meta released its X rival Threads. The platform received more than 100 million sign-ups in five days. However, the same month Meta’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg said the app had lost more than half of its users. Threads is not available to users in Europe due to EU regulations but this is expected to change this month.
In other news, Instagram introduced Broadcast Channels in the UK in September. Similar to WhatsApp, influencers can send direct messages to their followers, which they can react to but not reply.
When it comes to controversies, Meta received a €1.2 billion (£1 billion) privacy fine in May for transferring European users’ data to the US. Then in September, the business lost its Oslo court case about user privacy.
By Caroline Edwards, news and features writer for CORQ.
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