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Facebook, Jay-Z, Diddy, Mary J. Blige, Black Panther, March for Our Lives | Ep. 123

Facebook has come under fire from the business community and some politicians for allowing access to users’ information without informed consent

This episode of What’s The 411 consists of QUICK TAKES of topical news and discussions about British supermodel Naomi Campbell, Mary J. Blige, Amber Rose, 21 Savage, Alicia Keys, and Black Panther becoming the highest domestic-grossing superhero film of all time.

Journalist, Kizzy Cox, and comedian Onika McLean had fuller discussions about:

  • Facebook coming under fire from the business community and some politicians for allowing companies to gain access to its subscribers’ personal data without informing their subscribers about how their data will be used, not allowing subscribers to opt-out and confirming that the data was used properly.
  • Diddy and Jay-Z starting an uproar with the announcement of their collaboration to develop a “Buy Black App”.
  • The proliferation of “No Manspreading” advertisements on subways and buses in New York City and elsewhere. The new regulation has sparked a debate on social media.
  • The student-organized March for Our Lives march in Washington, DC, which featured younger than high school aged students Yolanda Renee King, the grand-daughter of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and 11-year-old Naomi Wadler who had everyone talking in the days following the march.
  • Business moguls P-Diddy and Jay-Z teaming up to develop a "Buy Black" app

Photo of the Week:

Our Photo of the Week is a photo of a man taking “manspreading” to an exaggerated level.

Motivational Quote of the Week:

Our Quote of the Week comes from the award-winning actress, Angela Bassett:

“Old enough to know better. Young enough not to care. Experienced enough to do it right.”

Facebook’s 2014 Q3 Earning Call: Shows You Can’t Please Everybody

Facebook (NASDAQ:FB) held its 2014 Q3 earnings call on Tuesday and although the social media giant's numbers were impressive, Wall Street was not exactly thrilled.

Facebook's growth slowed from 3.125 percent last quarter to 2.27 percent this quarter. In after-hours trading, Facebook's stock was down 9.76 percent. Additionally, Facebook broke out the financials of its $22 billion WhatsApp acquisition for the first time, and they were a little disappointing. WhatsApp brought in just $15 million in revenue in the first half of 2014 despite having 600 million users.

Ouch!

And, what about the teen metric?

Mum was the word, the world's social connector refused to break out any data about usage levels of teens. Anecdotal evidence says that teens are abandoning Facebook for apps like Snapchat. When asked about engagement for different demographics, Facebook's CFO David Wehner said the company had nothing to report on specific cohorts of users.

So what's the good news?

Facebook's billion user march! Each month, 1.35 billion people log into Facebook; 864 million are daily active users, which is up from 829 million in the second quarter of 2014. If you prefer percentages as a metric, 64% of monthly active users log on to Facebook every day.

Revenues? How about $3.2b in total revenue and $766 million in free cash flow in the third quarter.

Advertising. Facebook turned in a 247% increase in ad prices.

If you are a company without a mobile strategy, you better get moving.

Over a billion users, 1.12 billion users to be exact, use Facebook mobile each month which is up 250million since last year and 703 million use Facebook mobile each day, a 40% growth year over year. Mobile is 66% of ad revenue up from 49% during the same time last year. If these numbers about mobile don't move you, chances are your business could go the way of the Dodo bird.

Facebook by the Numbers

Facebook (NASDAQ:FB) held its 2014 Q3 earnings call on Tuesday and we thought it would be good to look at Facebook by the numbers:

  • 1.35 billion monthly active users as of September 30, 2014, an increase of 14% year-over-year.
  • 864 million Daily Active Users on average for September 2014, an increase of 19% year-over-year and up from 829 million in the second quarter of 2014
  • 703 million Daily Active Users on average for September 2014, an increase of 39% year-over-year
  • 1.12 billion Mobile MAUs as of September 30, 2014, an increase of 29% year-over-year.
  • $3.2b in total revenue for third quarter of 2014, an increase of 59%, compared with $2.02 billion in the third quarter of 2013. Excluding the impact of year-over-year changes in foreign exchange rates, revenue would have increased by 58%.
  • Free cash flow for the third quarter of 2014 was $766 million
  • Advertising revenue grew 64% for the third quarter of 2014,
  • Mobile advertising revenue represented approximately 66% of advertising revenue for the third quarter of 2014, up from approximately 49% of advertising revenue in the third quarter of 2013.
  • 700 million people use Facebook groups every month
  • 1 billion engagement every week between public figures and their Facebook fanpage fans
  • 1 billion video views a day in September 2014
  • 30 million active Facebook fan pages
  • Instagram has 200 million users, goal is to get to 1billion in short term
  • Average Instagram user spends 21 minutes per day on the app
  • Whatsapp has 600 million monthly active users, on track for 1billion
  • 1.5 million total advertisers on Facebook
  • 3 billion links have been created through Facebook applink
  • Price per Facebook ad increased 247% due to higher quality
  • Total advertising impressions declined 56% year over year
  • Payment volume from games decreased 2% year over year
  • Users respond 20% faster on FB messenger app versus native FB messenger
  • 8300 employees up 40% since last year

Facebook's numbers are impressive and the standouts are video and mobile. Facebook's mobile numbers show that marketers need to have a mobile strategy for their business. With Facebook groups probably becoming apps, page owners may want to consider creating groups, otherwise going forward the only way to talk to all of your fans on Facebook may only be through ads. Unless, of course, Facebook bans brands from creating groups.

Mark Zuckerberg on a List of “10 People Who Don’t Matter”

It's hard to believe, but there was a time when CNN's Business 2.0 had Facebook's founder, Mark Zuckerberg, on its list of "10 People Who Don't Matter."

Yes, that's right, CNN's Business 2.0, a magazine that once lived as part of CNN Money, listed Zuckerberg as No. 10 on that list. The article also dismissed Netflix as a passing fad; thanks to Mashable for digging up this story.

The article also proclaimed MySpace as the most important player in the social media game, calling the network, the "80-million-user gorilla," whose success Facebook was simply chasing.

In entrepreneurship, timing is everything. So we'll give Zuckerberg credit for launching his online social directory for college students just as the social-networking craze was getting underway. He also built it right, quickly making Facebook one of the most popular social-networking sites on the Net. But there's also something to be said for knowing when to take the money and run. Last spring, Facebook reportedly turned down a $750 million buyout offer, holding out instead for as much as $2 billion. Bad move. After selling itself to Rupert Murdoch's Fox for $580 million last year, MySpace is now the Web's second most popular website. Facebook is growing too - but given that MySpace has quickly grown into the industry's 80-million-user gorilla, it's hard to imagine who would pay billions for an also-ran.M

Well what a difference a decade makes; we all know what happened to MySpace.

One lesson here for aspiring entrepreneurs is to be careful from whom you take advice. Imagine if Zuckerberg had followed the advice of CNN's Business 2.0.

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