Facebook Reports Solid Fourth Quarter Results Amid Declining Time Spent On The Social Network
Mark Zuckerberg
"2017 was a strong year for Facebook  but it was also a hard one " Facebook founder and  CEO Mark Zuckerberg  said in a statement. "In 2018  we're focused on making sure Facebook isn't just fun to use  but also good for people's well-being and for society. We're doing this by encouraging meaningful connections between people rather than passive consumption of content."
 Zuckerberg  noted that the company's recent news feed changes  such as reducing the volume of viral videos  have caused time spent on Facebook to decline by about 50 million hours every day - an average of about 2 minutes per person every day.
On a conference call with investors   Zuckerberg  emphasized that time spent alone offers limited insight into the value of the social network and that  he  expects short-term drops in time on the site to make the product stronger in the long-term.
"By focusing on meaningful interactions  I believe that the time spent on Facebook will be more valuable "  Zuckerberg  said. "If people interact more  it should lead to stronger community. When you care about something  you’re willing to see ads to experience it."
Facebook’s results come just a few weeks after  Zuckerberg  announced that  the company  plans to make a year-long shift across  its  products to prioritize interactions between friends and family and reduce the prominence of unpaid posts by brands and publishers. In the near-term  the change will cause news to make up only 4% of news feed  down from about 5% currently. Facebook plans to display news sources in accordance with how users rank their “trustworthiness.”  Zuckerberg  also said  the company  plans to elevate local news in a push to help “build community.” Facebook correctly warned that the changes could lead to a decrease in time spent on the social network in the short-term. However   Zuckerberg  has said  he  sees the shift as critical to Facebook’s long-term success as a business and product.
When Facebook reported its third quarterly earnings in November   Zuckerberg  said  he  was “dead serious” about addressing the social network’s security and safety issues  ranging from election meddling to moderation issues  such as violent live videos and misinformation.  Zuckerberg  warned that the bolstered efforts “will impact” the company’s profitability.  The company  said last year  it  plans to double  its  headcount working on safety and security from 10 000 people to 20 000 people over the course of 2018  and add thousands more content moderators. (Facebook said it has 25 105 employees as of December 31  up 47% from a year earlier.)
Zuckerberg continues to emphasize video advertising as key to the future of the company’s business. Facebook recently added a “Watch” section for video shows and series  which competes with Google-owned YouTube and is intended in the long-term to foster interaction between friends  family and groups. Higher-quality content in the tab could drive stronger video ad sales over time.  Zuckerberg  also noted in Wednesday's conference call that  he  expects "Stories" -- chains of disappearing photos and videos -- to overtake posts and feeds as the most common content format across apps  and that the growth of the feature will shape how Facebook evolves its apps and business.
"2017 was a strong year for Facebook  but it was also a hard one " Facebook founder and  [TGT]said in a statement. "In 2018  we're focused on making sure Facebook isn't just fun to use  but also good for people's well-being and for society. We're doing this by encouraging meaningful connections between people rather than passive consumption of content.[TGT]noted that the company's recent news feed changes  such as reducing the volume of viral videos  have caused time spent on Facebook to decline by about 50 million hours every day - an average of about 2 minutes per person every day.
On a conference call with investors   [TGT]emphasized that time spent alone offers limited insight into the value of the social network and that  [TGT]  expects short-term drops in time on the site to make the product stronger in the long-term.
"By focusing on meaningful interactions  I believe that the time spent on Facebook will be more valuable [TGT]said. "If people interact more  it should lead to stronger community. When you care about something  you’re willing to see ads to experience it."
Facebook’s results come just a few weeks after  [TGT]announced that  the company  plans to make a year-long shift across  its  products to prioritize interactions between friends and family and reduce the prominence of unpaid posts by brands and publishers. In the near-term  the change will cause news to make up only 4% of news feed  down from about 5% currently. Facebook plans to display news sources in accordance with how users rank their “trustworthiness.”  [TGT]also said  the company  plans to elevate local news in a push to help “build community.” Facebook correctly warned that the changes could lead to a decrease in time spent on the social network in the short-term. However   [TGT]has said  [TGT]  sees the shift as critical to Facebook’s long-term success as a business and product.
When Facebook reported its third quarterly earnings in November   [TGT]said  he  was “dead serious” about addressing the social network’s security and safety issues  ranging from election meddling to moderation issues  such as violent live videos and misinformation.  [TGT]warned that the bolstered efforts “will impact” the company’s profitability.  [TGT]said last year  [TGT]  plans to double  [TGT]  headcount working on safety and security from 10 000 people to 20 000 people over the course of 2018  and add thousands more content moderators. (Facebook said it has 25 105 employees as of December 31  up 47% from a year earlier.)
[TGT] continues to emphasize video advertising as key to the future of the company’s business. Facebook recently added a “Watch” section for video shows and series  which competes with Google-owned YouTube and is intended in the long-term to foster interaction between friends  family and groups. Higher-quality content in the tab could drive stronger video ad sales over time.  [TGT]also noted in Wednesday's conference call that  [TGT]  expects "Stories" -- chains of disappearing photos and videos -- to overtake posts and feeds as the most common content format across apps  and that the growth of the feature will shape how Facebook evolves its apps and business.