Since these revelations, Meta has recognized having to adapt in the face of new difficulties. It must be said that in recent years, this mastodon has recruited in quantity, creating thousands of jobs per year. It would have more than doubled its workforce since 2018 to reach nearly 80,000 employees, as recalled by the wall street journal. However, there are no plans to proceed with layoffs for the time being.
The repercussions of war
The reasons for this caution are manifold. Meta growth has never been so low. Even if they remain substantial, its profits fell by 21% in 2021. And the year 2022 promises to be difficult.
Revenue is impacted by the war in Ukraine. The group no longer earns income in Russia since the blocking of its services by Moscow. And advertising demand has also been sluggish across Europe and other parts of the world since the start of the conflict. “We believe the war has introduced additional volatility into an already uncertain macro landscape for advertisers”Chief Financial Officer David Wehner said when releasing results last week.
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User disaffection
There is also some user disaffection. Last February, Facebook admitted to losing daily active users for the first time. The situation has since improved, but subscriber growth has stalled. The multiple scandals that have tainted Meta in recent years surely have something to do with it. But it is above all TikTok and its immense success with young people that overshadows it.
Finally, the new privacy policy imposed by Apple on applications under iOS 14.5 also poses a problem for Meta. User consent is now required for them to be targeted for advertising. And the vast majority of them disable tracking. Meta estimates that it will lose $10 billion in ad revenue this year.
Sources: Business Insider, The Wall Street Journal