The advertising business helped Facebook to jump in sales

The advertising business, which was in full swing during the Corona crisis, helped Facebook to jump in sales. From January to March, revenues climbed 48 percent to almost $ 26.2 billion, as the world's largest Internet network announced after the US market closed. Income nearly doubled to $ 9.5 billion in the first quarter. Around the globe, more and more companies advertise via Facebook because they can only reach their customers online who shop from home due to exit restrictions and closed shops. Facebook generates 97 percent of its sales with advertising. The jump in sales in the first quarter was well received on the stock market. The Facebook share rose after the hours of trading almost seven percent. The company, which was founded in 2004, was extremely cautious for the rest of the year. In the current quarter, sales are expected to stagnate or increase slightly. In the second half of the year, however, it could go "significantly" down. On the one hand, this is due to the rapid growth in the comparison period. On the other hand, Facebook is concerned about the latest iPhone operating system from Apple with stricter data protection rules. Users have to agree to the so-called tracking of online activities, which is likely to lead some to refuse, which in turn means less data for personalized advertising. Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg has already accused Apple of acting anti-competitive. In order to continue to grow in the future, Zuckerberg has now announced that it will "continue to invest aggressively", including in virtual and expanded realities and e-commerce. The network, which includes the platform of the same name, Whatsapp, Instagram, Oculus and Giphy, now has 2.85 billion active users per month, ten percent more than a year ago. This means that more than every third resident in the world is registered with the US group, which now employs more than 60,000 people.