Although Facebook has been increasing for months from one crisis to the next fall, the business of the world’s largest Online network, thus no damage. Even in Europe, the users jumped high number to the end of the year, after having declined slightly.

In the Christmas quarter, Facebook increased its sales in the year-on-year by 30 percent to 16.9 billion dollars (14.8 billion euros). The number at least Once a month, active users grew within a period of three months, in the usual Tempo of around 50 million to approximately 2,32 billion. Daily 1.52 billion users come to Facebook.

to include an estimated Total draw is now around 2.7 billion people on at least one App in the group, including WhatsApp and Instagram. The group announced that it will make in the future much stronger in the foreground, instead of the previous information to the users of the core Facebook platform. WhatsApp and Instagram each have more than a billion users.

founder and chief Mark Zuckerberg confirmed plans to bring the chat services WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger, as well as the communication function of the photo-platform Instagram on a common technical platform. Also, the use of encryption should be extended, he said in a conference call with analysts. Currently, only WhatsApp uses the default end-to-end encryption, the content is only for the sender and the recipient is visible in clear text. The Considerations were still at an early stage, it was more of a project for the year 2020 and later. Especially in Europe, privacy advocates see a merging of data from different services as a Problem.

the Bottom line is that Facebook generated in the last quarter, a record profit of almost $ 6.9 billion. A comparison with the 4,27 billion dollars profit a year ago is not meaningful because at the time, the one-off levy on foreign countries squeezed profits in the Wake of the US tax reform of the Income. Facebook had at the end of the quarter cash reserves of 41 billion dollars.

The stock reacted to the better-than-expected Numbers with a Plus of more than eleven percent in after-hours trading on Wednesday. This should show the relief of investors, after Facebook scandals, among other things, due to Data and problems in the fight against the Manipulation and Propaganda is so strong in the criticism like never before. Only on Wednesday there were new Negative headlines, because it was announced that Facebook had acquired with a market research App access to the nearly all traffic from study participants.

In Europe had Facebook at the end of the year 381 million monthly active users. In prior quarters, the number of users had declined from 377 to 375 million, Facebook was justified, inter alia, the conversion by the EU data protection regulation. In the United States by the users of stagnated number 242 million. The strongest growth occurred in India, Indonesia and the Philippines, it said.

The average revenue per user to be submitted within three months of 6.09 to 7.37 dollars. He is one of the highest in the United States and Canada with 34,86 dollars per user. In Europe, Facebook is coming to the proceeds of 10,98 dollars per user.

Facebook has warned yet again that the sales will slow down growth this year is likely to be. Because the users of the so-called Stories would be more popular, especially in the case of Instagram, pictures and Videos for a day for friends. In the case of Instagram, about 500 million users to access the Stories. This function was not developed with advertising as well as, the Facebook Newsfeed on the main platform. Meanwhile, two million of the seven million advertisers from Facebook Ads in Stories, formats switched.

Facebook had at the end of the year 35.587 employees – 42 percent more than a year earlier. The Online network had hired numerous new Employees, to delete the unauthorized content.

dpa