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Topline Facebook, the world's largest social media company, posted results for its best first quarter ever Wednesday afternoon, shattering Wall Street expectations thanks to surging advertising revenues despite heightened competition from the likes of Google and threats on the regulatory front. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is worth an estimated $112 billion. NurPhoto via Getty Images Key Facts Menlo Park, Calif.-based Facebook reported revenue of $26.1 billion in the first quarter, 48% more than the $17.7 billion it pulled in the first quarter of last year and nearly $3 billion more than analysts expected. Net income also smashed expectations, hitting $9.5 billion, or $3.30 per share—well above average analyst expectations of $2.33 per share and nearly double income of $4.9 billion in the first quarter of last year. Facebook’s monthly active users jumped about 50 million, meaning a record-breaking 2.85 billion people used the social network in the last month of the quarter.  A slew of analysts upped their Facebook price targets this week in anticipation of the better-than-expected earnings report,  » Read More

by: Talia Naquin Posted: Apr 28, 2021 / 11:21 AM EDT / Updated: Apr 28, 2021 / 12:38 PM EDT ASHTABULA COUNTY, Ohio (WJW) – The Ashtabula County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a double shooting. Deputies responded to the 2700 block of Russell Rd. in Saybrook Township shortly before 2 p.m. Tuesday. According to a press release from the sheriff’s office, two men were fighting in an argument that stemmed from Facebook. According to deputies, one man drove to the other male’s residence and fired two shots toward the home. A female was shot in the leg. The male resident then fired six rounds at the suspect vehicle. The other man was then also shot. Both the people who were shot are being treated at the hospital. The sheriff’s office has not named the parties involved or said what charges may come from the shooting. The press release does not state what the argument was about on Facebook.  » Read More

The Facebook logo is displayed on a mobile phone in this picture illustration taken December 2, 2019. REUTERS/Johanna Geron/IllustrationFacebook (FB.O) Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg said Tuesday the company will build new features starting with Instagram for content creators to earn money from recommending products on the app and a marketplace to help connect brands with influencers.While speaking with Adam Mosseri, head of Facebook-owned Instagram, during a livestreamed video, Zuckerberg also said the social network will launch "creator shops" as part of the ecommerce push.The announcements are part of Facebook's effort to serve the "creator economy," in which social media influencers, journalists and others are earning money directly from their fans on platforms, including Clubhouse, Patreon, Substack and YouTube.Facebook will build an affiliate program that will let creators earn a cut of sales from the products they recommend, Zuckerberg said.A Facebook spokeswoman declined to say how much creators will earn or the timeline to roll out the features.The new marketplace to connect creators with brands will help more users with mid-sized followings earn money,  » Read More

U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-DE), chairman of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology, and the Law, speaks with U.S. Senator and ranking member Ben Sasse (R-NE) during a hearing of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology, and the Law, in Washington, D.C., April 27, 2021.Al Drago | Pool | ReutersExecutives from Facebook, Twitter and Google-owned YouTube testified before Congress on Tuesday about the ways their algorithms influence users and sometimes serve harmful misinformation.The hearing before the Senate Judiciary subcommittee on privacy and technology highlighted a key feature of the social media platforms that has amplified some of the most serious harms lawmakers have been seeking to address through a wide swath of bills.Algorithms are essentially the formula social media platforms use to decide what information to surface to people using an app or website. While both Facebook and Twitter have introduced more choice for users around whether they want to view a curated timeline of content on their feeds or not,  » Read More

Facebook has claimed it is now a ”a very credible competitor” to broadcast TV and other ad-supported video media channels, as it touts a ”new era” of in-stream video inventory to brands.Ian Edwards, global connections planning director at Facebook, told The Drum that the platform’s in-stream video content (video ads that play before other video content) reaches 2 billion people every month. “Facebook is now a very credible competitor and option for video advertising, especially given that 2 billion people watch in-stream eligible videos every month,” he said.”In addition, 70% of in-stream standalone video ad views are completed globally. The beauty of our in-stream video ad placement is the ability to target relevant audiences in an easy and innovative way. With new features such as Video Topics, this means that advertisers can now be even more specific with their topic targeting than on other channels.”Facebook expanding in-stream capabilitiesFacebook has expanded its topic targeting options as it moves into a ’new era’ of in-stream video.  » Read More

GDP growth of 6%-7% will be very positive for Facebook Inc (NASDAQ: FB), according to Karen Firestone of Aureus Asset Management. The Thesis: Speaking Monday on CNBC's "Squawk Box," Firestone said Facebook and the tech sector, in general, underperformed from September to March while investors turned toward reopening plays. She expects Facebook to be one of the biggest beneficiaries of the coming advertising boom as consumers spend more money. Related Link: Could Apple Take A Bite Out Of FB Ad Revenues? Facebook Prepares To Open The Books On Q1 Earnings: Facebook sells for 22-times next year's earnings estimates, Firestone said, adding that she likes the stock at its current price.  Facebook reported on Jan. 27 fourth-quarter earnings per share of $3.88 and revenue of $28.07 billion. The company is set to report first-quarter earnings after the close on April 28. The average EPS estimate for the first quarter is $2.36. FB Price Action: Facebook was higher by 0.8% to $303.75 at last check Monday.   » Read More

By Gary Bass | April 25, 2021 at 1:30 PM CDT - Updated April 25 at 1:30 PM VAN ZANDT COUNTY Texas (KLTV) - Following a five-month investigation, two Grand Saline area residents have been charged with arson in connection with a fire that destroyed a home at 1514 County Road 4601 on Thanksgiving Day of 2020. Brandon Lee Harrison, 28, of Kemp, and Carl Gene Klump Jr., 30, of Grand Saline, are still being held in the Van Zandt County jail. Harrison has been charged with arson with intent to damage a habitation or place of worship, theft of property between $2,500 and $30K, burglary of a building, possession of a controlled substance between 1 and 4 grams, four counts of unlawfully carrying a weapon, possession of marijuana less than 2 ounces, and possession of a controlled substance. Brandon Harrison (Source: Van Zandt County Jail website) (Source: Van Zandt County Jail website) Klump has been charged with possession of a controlled substance between 1 and 4 grams,  » Read More

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Chris Mayhew, Cincinnati Enquirer Published 2:59 p.m. ET April 24, 2021 | Updated 2:59 p.m. ET April 24, 2021CLOSECrossroads Church's censored column about Facebook blocking an Easter video was over one advertisement that was mistakenly blocked due to human error according to a representative for the social media company.The Oakley church's nearly hour-long video posted on Youtube was never blocked, a Facebook spokesperson said, noting that the issue was quickly corrected.A human error, not an algorithm, improperly flagged a snipped cut of the longer video being used as paid content, the spokesperson said. Other short advertisement videos were approved by Facebook."It was one ad of many that successfully ran that wasn’t approved, which we later approved after the church appealed it through our regular reporting channels," said the Facebook representative.The church claimed the platforms flagged the videos for violence in a post on its website. A column on the church's website claims "Facebook and YouTube censored our Easter video.""We had to make a few small tweaks to our online Easter service to use the video in the way we hoped on some social media channels," Kyle Ranson,  » Read More

Photo-sharing platform Instagram has started showing advertisements in their 'Reels' feature. The organisation has started testing advertisements in the feature in select nations like India, Brazil, Germany, and Australia, showing them in the middle of regular content posted by users. As reported by Mashable, advertisements in Instagram Reels can be as long as 30 seconds in length and will have a similar vertical and full-screen design as regular uploads on 'Reels'. This is like how Instagram implemented ads in their Story feature, but, in contrast to Instagram Story advertisements, the ads in Instagram Reels can be commented on, liked, saved and also shared. The social media giant Facebook has also uncovered that in the coming weeks, it will begin testing custom sticker advertisements on Facebook Stories among a handful of creators and advertising partners. These stickers will permit makers to adapt their Accounts as they will get a cut of revenue from sales generated by them. They will be planned by brands and makers will have the opportunity to utilise them in their accounts howsoever they like for maximum engagement.  » Read More