September 09, 2011
It seems that Facebook is destined to reach new heights this year, an undertaking that is unsurprising considering that year over year they have beaten the odds to make more money than the previous year and outstrip competitors in every arena they enter. Despite the fact that the company is still private, meaning that they don’t have to disclose financial statements, it seems that somehow the numbers always leak out. And while they were said to have earned $1.2 billion in the first three quarters of 2010 (with $355 million of that being pure profit), it seems they’re on track to double their earnings this year, having allegedly pulled in $1.6 billion as of the end of the second quarter (with an incredible $500 million said to be profits). Is there an IPO in Facebook’s future? Investors are keeping their fingers crossed.
In truth, and IPO is speculated to be just around the corner, with stock in the mammoth social networking service rumored to hit the market next year. The company is currently said to have a net worth of around $80 billion (up an estimated $30 from the beginning of 2011), which puts them in a pretty good position to benefit from an IPO. Of course, that’s assuming that no one comes along to steal their thunder, as Google seems intent on doing.
Although Google has thus far operated in a different sphere of the worldwide web, dominating search engine traffic, it seems that they are ready to expand – and they apparently have their sights set on Facebook’s little corner of the net. They recently launched Google+, a social network that seeks to both expand and improve upon the successes of rival Facebook. Although the venture pulled in only an estimated 20 million users in the first month (a small number compared to Facebook’s overwhelming tally of over 750 million subscribers), the effort was deemed a success largely because the trial was invite only. What could they have done if they’d opened it up to everyone?
Facebook should understand the fickle nature of social media fans; after all, they capitalized on that very thing when they went up against the previously dominant MySpace by indiscriminately poaching their members. So why wouldn’t Google do the same? They would, and they will. Although Facebook is doing well and continuing to grow, branching out into games, music, and other venues, they are still like the bratty little kid playing catch-up with big bro Google, which pulled in a reported $9 billion in the second quarter alone.
That said, Facebook continues to make financial gains, which is never a bad thing when it comes to business. And their ongoing growth, expansion, and success has got some of the biggest players in the investment market eyeing them, ready to swoop in and pay for a piece of the pie upon IPO. While they’re never likely to challenge the likes of Google on their home turf (search engines) they will probably continue to dominate at the social networking game. Fans of Facebook can take that to their online banks.
