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Facebook already has three platforms that surpassed the 1 billion user mark; its main platform, WhatsApp, and Messenger. Soon, it’s about to count Instagram on that exclusive list and unlike its two messaging platforms, Facebook actually has a lot to gain from the high-performing social network. For starters, it is a lot easier to monetize, which will only add to the rising profits of Facebook that some analysts are predicting.
As of its most recent announcement, Facebook revealed that Instagram currently has about 700 million users, The Motley Fool reports. 100 million of those users were added over the course of a little over four months, which is astounding even when ignoring the accelerated rate of new registrations.
Based on past performance, Instagram is actually adding more users even faster, with the previous 100 million taking six months and the 100 million before that taking nine months. While it would be astonishing for the platform to acquire those kinds of user numbers in a week down the road, it’s undeniable that Instagram is becoming a great asset for Facebook.
What really makes Instagram a gold mine for Mark Zuckerberg’s main brand is the fact that it can be monetized via ads a lot easier than either Messenger or WhatsApp. Facebook is still trying to figure out how it is going to make money off of those platforms, but Instagram presents no such challenges. This will make turning a profit a lot easier.
Speaking of Facebook’s profits, the social network is set to release its quarterly earnings report in a few days, with several analysts predicting that the news won’t be good. However, Joe Albano over at Seeking Alpha believes different and writes that Facebook will actually surpass revenue expectations.
Albano believes that the doom and gloom predictions are a result of using nonsensical comparisons to estimate how Facebook is performing so far. In fact, he thinks that the social media site’s cashflow is so strong that it might be undervaluing its stocks, which he is then encouraging investors to buy.
