Meta Reports Slowest Growth Since Its Inception; Meta Stock Rose In After Hours Trading on Metaverse Expansion

Six months after it rebranded itself, Meta, formerly Facebook, recorded its slowest quarterly growth since it went public in 2012.

For the first quarter of 2022, Meta experienced just 7% in terms of revenue.

However, the Reality Labs division of the firm that builds virtual and augmented reality infrastructure and software performed better than expected. According to the earnings report, the total revenue of the unit amounted to $695 million, surpassing the figure expected by the analysts of $683 million.

On Wednesday, CEO Mark Zuckerberg during Meta’s earnings call said it’s going to invest heavily in its metaverse venture. The digital ecosystem of the Meta, Horizon Worlds is scheduled to launch on the web in the ongoing year. It will enable users to sell virtual assets and experiences.

Zuckerberg said that their other priority is to create the metaverse economy and help creators make a living for themselves in the metaverse. The billionaire adds that the company aims to better itself at monetizing than others in the space.

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Over the course of the first quarter, Meta claims to cater to 3.64 billion monthly users for its group of apps which includes Facebook, Messenger, Whatsapp, and Instagram. It has experienced a 6% year-over-year increase.

In addition to its plans to dive into the metaverse and creator economy, Meta also intends to enhance its Reels advertising options since competition among video-based social media apps has increased shares Chief operating officer at Meta, Sheryl Sandberg.

While answering a question during the earnings call, Sandberg said that Meta is still looking into regulatory risks related to privacy and data protection.

According to Sandberg, the real challenge for the industry is the regulatory environment.

Sandberg explains that the firms think that they are well placed to fulfill requirements through working closely with regulators along with doing things “in our technology like privacy-enhancing technologies, to do more with less data, but we expect this to continue to be a significantly challenging time not just for us but across our whole industry.”

After the release of the earnings report, the Meta stock which is down by 48% year-to-date, was trading around 19% higher during after-hours trading.

Andrew is a blockchain developer who developed his interest in cryptocurrencies while his post-graduation. He is a keen observer of details and shares his passion for writing along with being a developer. His backend knowledge about blockchain helps him give a unique perspective to his writing