London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Aug 05, 2025

Facebook owner Meta in first ever sales fall

Facebook owner Meta in first ever sales fall

The owner of Facebook and Instagram was hit by a fall in advertising sales in the three months to July which caused the first year-on-year revenue decline in the firm's history.

Meta's total revenue slipped 1% to $28.8bn (£23.7bn), but the company fended off a decline in users.

Analysts fear the company's growth may have peaked after years of large gains.

Rivals such as TikTok have eroded its popularity, while more firms are competing for ad spending.

Meta, which typically commands more than 20% of the global ad market, warned investors that ad sales were likely to fall again in the months ahead, as e-commerce spending falls from its pandemic boom and companies worried about inflation and the war in Ukraine spend more cautiously.

Meta boss Mark Zuckerberg said the firm would reduce its hiring "steadily" over the next year, a response to the downturn and the company's plans to shift investment into new areas, including its virtual reality platform, Horizon, in a bet that the so-called metaverse is its best prospect for growth.

Those plans have drawn scrutiny from regulators, including the Federal Trade Commission, America's consumer watchdog, which said it would sue to block Meta's acquisition of the virtual reality fitness company Within Unlimited, which owns the app Supernatural, over monopoly concerns.

Any payoff from those plans remains years away, with Meta's struggle to increase its users a sign of limited growth in the years ahead, said Angelo Zino, senior equity analyst at CFRA Research.

"Essentially it's now become a low-to no-growth company," he said.

Earlier this year, Facebook reported its first ever decline in daily users.

In response, the company, which also owns WhatsApp, recently shifted its algorithms on Instagram and Facebook to act more like TikTok, recommending posts to users from outside the base of accounts they follow.

The moves have drawn outcry from users, perhaps most prominently celebrity Kylie Jenner, who shared a post with her more than 360 million followers on Instagram this week saying "Make Instagram Instagram again. (stop trying to be Tiktok I just want to see cute photos of my friends.) Sincerely, everyone".

Kylie Jenner has criticised the changes Meta has made to try to compete with TikTok


But the changes may be helping.

In June, the company said 1.97 billion people logged into Facebook on average each day, up from 1.96 billion in March; and 2.88 billion into one of its apps daily, up from 2.87 billion in March.

Mr Zuckerberg said he was pleased by signs that people were spending more time on the firm's apps, but profits in the quarter still dropped 36% to $6.7bn.

He said the firm would continue to invest, though at a slower pace than planned.

"We face a number of challenges in the near term, but the investments we're making should give us...advantage over the long term," he added.


'Challenging conditions'


Meta, whose number two in command Sheryl Sandberg in June announced plans to leave the company, is not the only firm facing challenges.

Alphabet, the parent company of Google and YouTube, this week reported its slowest revenue growth since the pandemic hit in 2020, with executives repeatedly warning investors that the firm was feeling the impact of economic "uncertainty".

Twitter also reported an unusual fall in revenue, while Snap warned of "incredibly challenging" conditions after its weakest quarter ever, sending shares plunging 25%.

"When you look at the ad space right now...growth is deteriorating at a very fast pace, much faster than most people had anticipated," Mr Zino said.

Meta's reliance on small and medium-sized businesses - which are "spooked" about the economy - makes it particularly vulnerable to any market slowdown, said Nikhil Lai senior analyst for performance marketing at Forrester Research.

The company's fine-tuned model for targeting adverts was also disrupted last year when Apple overhauled its privacy settings.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Elon Musk Receives $23.7 Billion Tesla Stock Award
Texas House Paralyzed After Democrats Walk Out Over Redistricting
Mexican Cartels Complicate Sheinbaum’s U.S. Security Talks
Mark Zuckerberg Declares War on the iPhone
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
China Tightens Mineral Controls, Curtailing Critical Inputs for Western Defence Contractors
OpenAI’s Bold Bet: Teaching AI to Think, Not Just Chat
Tesla Seeks Shareholder Approval for $29 Billion Compensation Package for Elon Musk
Nvidia is cutting prices on its RTX 50-series graphics cards after sales slowed and inventories piled up
Ghislaine Maxwell Transferred to Minimum-Security Prison Amid Ongoing DOJ Discussions
U.S. Tariffs Surge to Highest Levels in Nearly a Century Under Second Trump Term
Matt Taibbi Slams Media for Role in Russiagate Narrative
Pilots Call for Mental Health Support Without Stigma
All Five Trapped Miners Found Dead After El Teniente Mine Collapse
Ong Beng Seng Pleads Guilty in Corruption Case Linked to Former Singapore Transport Minister
BP’s Largest Oil and Gas Find in 25 Years Uncovered Offshore Brazil
Italy Fines Shein One Million Euros for Misleading Sustainability Claims
JPMorgan and Coinbase Unveil Partnership to Let Chase Cardholders Buy Crypto Directly
Declassified Annex Links Soros‑Affiliated Officials and Clinton Campaign to ‘Russiagate’ Narrative
UK's Online Safety Law: A Front for Censorship
Nationwide Protests Erupt in Brazil Demanding Presidential Resignation
Parents Abandon Child at Barcelona Airport Over Passport Issue
Mystery Surrounds Death of Brazilian Woman with iPhones Glued to Her Body
Bus Driver Discovers Toddler Hidden in Suitcase in New Zealand
Switzerland Celebrates 734 Years of Independence Amid Global Changes
U.S. Opens Official Investigation into Former Trump Prosecutor Jack Smith
Leaked audio of Canada's new PM Mark Carney admitting the truth about the Net Zero agenda: "We're gonna make a lot of money off of this."
China Enforces Comprehensive Ban on Cryptocurrency Activities
Absolutely 100% Realistic EVO Series Doll by EXDOLL (Chinese Company) used mainly for carnal purposes
World Economic Forum founder Klaus Schwab: "In this new world, we must accept... total transparency. You have to get used to it. You have to behave accordingly. But if you have nothing to hide, you shouldn't be afraid."
Meet Mufti Hamid Patel, head of Office for Standards in Education in Pakistan
George Soros tells the World Economic Forum: "President Trump is a con man and the ultimate narcissist, who wants the world to revolve around him."
Hamas are STARVING the hostages.
Decline in Tourism in Majorca Amidst Ongoing Anti-Tourism Protests
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
Poland Begins Excavation at Dziemiany After New Clue to World War II‑Era Nazi Treasure
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Threatens Canada with Tariffs Over Palestinian State Recognition
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Trump Sues Murdoch in “Heavyweight Bout”: Lawsuit Over Alleged Epstein Letter Sets Stage for Courtroom Showdown
Germany Enters Fiscal Crisis as Cabinet Approves €174 Billion in New Debt
Trump Administration Finalizes Broad Tariff Increases on Global Trade Partners
J.K. Rowling Limits Public Engagements Citing Safety Fears
JD.com Launches €2.2 Billion Bid for German Electronics Retailer Ceconomy
Azerbaijan Proceeds with Plan to Legalise Casinos on Artificial Islands
Former Judge Charged After Drunk Driving Crash Kills Comedian in Brazil
Jeff Bezos hasn’t paid a dollar in taxes for decades. He makes billions and pays $0 in taxes, LEGALLY
China Increases Use of Exit Bans Amid Rising U.S. Tensions
×