Facebook makes $6.1 billion in quarterly profit
Despite data scandals and ongoing criticism of its handling of manipulative web content, Facebook earned brilliantly in the third quarter and gained users. Net income climbed 19 percent year-on-year to $6.1 billion, the Internet giant announced Wednesday after the U.S. stock market closed in Menlo Park, California.
Revenues grew 29 percent to $17.7 billion, driven by booming advertising revenues. The number of monthly active users increased by eight percent to 2.45 billion. Facebook thus clearly exceeded expectations.
The share initially reacted with a significant price increase after trading hours. The online network is actually under heavy pressure - ahead of the next US presidential election, there are renewed accusations that Mark Zuckerberg's company is not doing enough to combat the spread of propaganda and fake news.
Facebook also continues to pursue the issue of data protection: Because of the Cambridge Analytica scandal, the group has now accepted a fine of 500,000 pounds (around 640,000 Swiss francs) in the UK after all, as the British Data Protection Commission ICO announced in London. (SDA)
