Meta earnings beat market expectations as ads revive

SAN FRANCISCO -- Facebook parent Meta on Wednesday beat market expectations for quarterly earnings, powered by a reviving digital ad business.

Meta reported a profit of $7.8 billion on $32 billion in revenue during the recently ended quarter, as the number of people using Facebook monthly rose to 3.03 billion.

"We had a good quarter," Meta chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said in an earnings call.

"We continue to see strong engagement across our apps and we have the most exciting roadmap I've seen in a while..."

Meta had suffered a rough 2022 amid a souring economic climate, which forced advertisers to cut back on spending, and Apple's data privacy changes, which allowed users to block ad targeting, the pillar of Meta's business.

But like the other big US tech companies, Meta's share price has had a stellar 2023 that Zuckerberg in January said would be the "year of efficiency".

"With two straight quarters of positive revenue growth and the first quarter of double-digit revenue growth since late 2021, Meta’s year of efficiency is off to a strong start," said Insider Intelligence analyst Debra Aho Williamson.

"There's a lot to feel good about when it comes to Meta right now," Williamson added.

Meta shares were up more than seven percent $320.32 in after-market trades.

In its earnings release, the company said that the number of ads on its various applications rose by 34 percent year-on-year in the second quarter.

Analysts noted the greater interest from advertisers in Reels, the video format copied from TikTok, and a less gloomy economic context conducive to marketing spending.

Meta is seeing "good progress" in bringing in money from Reels, with the video snippets played more than 200 billion times daily across Facebook and Instagram, Zuckerberg said.

VR costs

Meta's vow of austerity on spending brought an unprecedented round of cost-cutting that has seen the company lay off tens of thousands of workers since last November.

Meta said it had 71,469 employees at the end of June, a decrease of 14 percent from the same time a year earlier.

The company has faced criticism over its gamble on the metaverse, the world of virtual reality that Meta believes will be the next frontier online and led it to change its name from Facebook in 2021.

This to date has proved to be a bad bet with customers so far unenthused by the technology, even though Apple will enter the space sometime next year with the release of its expensive VisionPro headset.

Zuckerberg referred to the lackluster rate at which people are embracing the metaverse as a "somewhat sobering signal" but he remained confident it is a computing platform of the future.

The metaverse and AI remain priorities at Meta, according to Zuckerberg.

Meta said in the earnings report that it expects its operating losses at the unit responsible for VR to "increase meaningfully" in the year ahead.

The company has also jumped to take advantage of the chaos at Twitter, which has now been renamed to X.

Earlier this month Meta rushed out the release of Threads, a text-only app that saw more than 100 million downloads in just days, though the users' longterm interest remains unproven.

"We saw unprecedented growth out of the gate and, more importantly, we're seeing more people coming back daily than I'd expected," Zuckerberg said of Threads.

"Now we're focused on retention and improving the basics; I'm really happy with the path that we're on here."

On AI, Zuckerberg has chosen a different track than Microsoft and its partnership with OpenAI.

Meta instead has endorsed a more "open source" approach and made its Llama generative AI technology available to researchers and companies to adapt to their own needs.

Investors are keen to see how Meta expands use of generative AI in its products, questions on the earnings call showed.

Zuckerberg indicated in a recent podcast that his company is working on an AI platform that would allow creators and advertisers to more efficiently work together.

Agence France-Presse

8 Great Sources for Work-at-Home Jobs

If I had a buck for everyone who asked me how to successfully work at home, I’d be a wealthy woman. Assuming you have the tenacity and temperament to structure your day and stay on top of projects, the main things you need are space, tools and gigs. These eight resources will point you towards a variety of work-at-home jobs. The rest is up to you.








Media Bistro

Many people assume you can only search for jobs in the television industry on Media Bistro, but the truth is there are a number of writing gigs that are up for grabs as well. Online blogging gigs, news stories and even magazine assignments make the listings from time to time. If writing’s how you make your living, this online resource may be your ticket to work-at-home success.

 Hub Pages

 Granted, with this option you need to be willing to earn your cash through affiliate links and ad clicks, but many have found Hub Pages to be a great way to build passive income. It’s also a side gig you can start without having to front any cash whatsoever, provided you have internet access and already own your own computer. Since this option, like so many others requires you to spend a great deal of time writing, you will definitely want to research some fitness exercises you can do at your desk.

ESL Café

If English is your first language, then you may be able to pick up a part-time gig at ESL Café. Granted, many of the jobs are for overseas teaching opportunities, but a fair number are for online companies which let you teach from the comfort of your home, provided you have reasonably-fast internet services, a web camera and a headset.

Serious Teachers

Similar to ESL Café, Serious Teachers is a web site that lists employment opportunities in the field of international education. Again, there are many out-of-country positions but the database allows you to filter for online opportunities that may suit your needs. I’ve noticed that the online options listed here aren’t always the highest paying, but if you’re in a situation where you’ll be making the same as you would at a minimum wage McJob, why not work from home and use the saved time from your lack of a commute to start your own affordable small business or find other higher-paying clients?

1099 Mom

A work-at-home blog started by a veteran personal finance blogger, 1099 Mom lists professional blogging gigs on a weekly basis, along with savvy solutions for invoicing, client interactions, balancing work with family and more.

Freelance Job Openings

Heavy on listings for media-related jobs like photography, blogging, design training and copy editing, Freelance Job Openings lists only those opportunities that pay. I’ve seen everything from well-known media corporations and magazines listed on this site, to smaller copy editing gigs. If you can type like the wind and have a reasonable way with words, chances are you have a good shot at securing paying work with this resource.

Flex Jobs



Anything from newborn photography to answering support calls from home shows up on Flex Jobs, along with many keyboard-related opportunities as well. Some of the jobs listed only allow telecommuting part of the time however, so it’s important to look at the fine print before responding to a listing.

Virtual Vocations

Similar to Flex Jobs with more of a web-based focus, Virtual Vocations is a work-at-home job resource for those wishing to operate outside of traditional employment parameters. You’ll find consulting positions, field research gigs and even development and investigative contracts.

Comprehensive listings for at-home employment options can be cumbersome. This article was designed to provide a lengthy enough resource for newbies to sink their teeth into, while remaining short enough to avoid being overwhelming. Have you ever successfully landed a work-at-home job? What resources did you use?

source: financialhighway.com

Can You Make Money from Survey Sites?

Taking surveys won’t make you rich, but they can pad an otherwise strapped budget by a few dollars here and there, making that time you spend browsing the web a bit more profitable. Whether you’re looking to make a couple of quick dollars for your next vacation, or in serious need of some diaper money, we give some pointers for finding the cream of the crop – and how to avoid those that aren’t even worth visiting.

Survey Sites that Pay Cash
Ideally, you will want to earn cold, hard cash for your opinions. Considering that focus groups and market surveys earn hundreds to thousands of dollars for the companies that put together, distribute, and compile them, don’t you think your input is worth something? While companies can change their terms at any time, leaving a previously “gold standard” company with lower payouts than before, the majority of sites that pay cash seem to stay around for a while.

These sites are often hard to get into, sometimes by invitation only, and pay as little as $2 per survey (which can take 15 minutes or more to complete.) Moreover, many of them force you to qualify for a survey by completing a screening survey, which offers no compensation and can take just as long as the “real” survey. To find a list of sites that offer cold, hard cash for your opinions, browse blogs and sites that you trust for their recommendations. (Just remember, many of them get paid for any referrals they send, making the act of getting signups a more profitable endeavor than actually taking surveys from these companies.)
Survey Sites that Pay in “Points”
Even more abundant than those that really pay are those that offer points, tickets, or other virtual currency to redeem for cash, merchandise and prizes. Some sites seem to be pretty fair in their point economy, awarding enough points per survey to cash out for $2-5 per survey. Others don’t offer anything that would seem valuable: discounts on memberships, percentage off on online purchases, or other “offers” that you could easily find by visiting deal sites – no survey required. Many of the prizes you can cash out for cost a minimum level of points, requiring you to complete at least a dozen surveys before you can redeem for anything at all.
Survey Sites that Award Prizes
At the bottom of the totem pole are sites that don’t guarantee anything for your time and opinions. Instead, they offer to enter you into a random drawing for cash or merchandise in exchange for your survey. While some people have reported that this is a good way to get into low-entry giveaways with less competition than some of the sweepstakes entered online, it can take much of your valuable time to answer each survey and enter, something not everyone is willing to give up. You may be better off using your 20 minutes to enter multiple online sweepstakes through blogs, national brand sites, or Facebook.
Ways the Survey Sites Can Take Advantage
In addition to offering abysmally low compensation, if any at all, survey sites have been known to make your time worth even less by doing any number of the following:

• Requiring your earnings to reach a certain threshold (i.e. $50) before you can cash out
• Requiring payment via PayPal or other online method, or charging a fee for paper checks to be issued
• Enforcing an expiration date on points accumulated
• Sending out survey invitations as infrequently as once or twice a year
• Inviting you to a survey, only to have the survey fill up almost immediately, and having no room for your answers

There are many who have had the fortune to find quality survey sites, be qualified to answer a good number of surveys, and have been paid on time. Earnings can range from a few dollars to around $50 a month for those who are diligent. What about you? Have you found survey sites to be a legitimate way to make some extra cash?

source: financialhighway.com

'Idol' moves toward lower payouts for runners-up

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Coming in second on "American Idol" may still be a path to superstardom, but it no longer offers guaranteed paychecks worthy of the next pop idol or rock star.

Wednesday night's runner-up, 16-year-old Jessica Sanchez, doesn't have a definite shot at producing an album and could be paid as little as $30,000 in advances for recording singles, according to the "Idol" contract she and other Season 11 contestants signed earlier this year.

The agreement appears to be the first time in "Idol's" history that producers are not offering the show's runner-up an album deal that in previous years came with a guaranteed advance of at least $175,000, an Associated Press review of the Fox show's contracts reveals.

The analysis covers eight of "Idol's" 11 seasons during which contracts filed for contestants under the age of 18 were available. The contracts were reviewed by judges in accordance with a California law that requires at least 15 percent of a minor entertainer's earnings be set aside for their benefit once they reach adulthood.

The reduced royalty advance covers the period immediately following the show. In addition to recording new music, the series' winners and finalists are obligated to perform in a concert tour and lend their likeness to a Walt Disney World Resort attraction in Florida.

If Sanchez is given an album deal following the show, she will receive the same $175,000 bonus that Lauren Alaina was paid after placing second in the show's 10th season. But 19 Recordings Inc., which has the option to handle the albums and recordings of Idol contestants for several years after they appear on the show, has replaced a guaranteed album deal for the runner-up with a staggered "Development Period" that requires less music and pays out less in advances.

Sanchez could be paid as little as $30,000 if she is asked to perform four single songs, or $60,000 if she records an "EP" of between four and 10 songs.

Representatives for 19 Recordings Inc. and "American Idol" producer FremantleMedia declined comment. They also have not disclosed which recording deal would be offered to Sanchez.

"It makes sense. You can't continue to offer the same sorts of rewards and incentives when the program was averaging 25 to 30 million (viewers), and (now) the finale is barely breaking 20 million," said Northwestern University assistant professor Max Dawson, who teaches a course on reality television. Wednesday's finale was the lowest-rated final show for "Idol" in its history.

"These contracts don't pay off," he said, contrasting the long list of "Idol" alumni who have been dropped by record labels with those who have thriving careers. "It seems like the successes that people like Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood have had are the flukes."

He noted that the recording industry has shifted toward single song sales in recent years, and even established artists are struggling to sell full albums. "I wouldn't be surprised, quite frankly, if this is the direction they head with the winners," Dawson said.

Buyers purchased nearly 1.3 billion single songs last year as opposed to 331 million albums, said Dave Bakula, Nielsen's senior vice president of analytics for SoundScan. He noted that there have been some successful "Idol" runners-up, but producers appear to be giving themselves more flexibility with how they develop artists in different genres.

"Idol" winner Phillip Phillips will receive the same $300,000 advance given to last year's winner, Scotty McCreery, upon completion of his first album, according to the contracts. Finalists who placed third and lower could receive deals to record singles, EPs or full albums, with the lowest advance amounting to $24,000 if they complete their commitment to record up to four single songs.

Higher advances are paid if 19 Recordings agrees to produce more albums, with Phillips eligible to receive up to $800,000 for a six-album deal.

The advances are paid and later deducted from the singer's song royalties.

"As the music industry is changing, it makes sense for 'Idol' to change as well," Dawson said.

Despite the contract reductions, there are more opportunities for recent "Idol" contestants to earn money than their predecessors. Phillips will be paid $200,000 for his Disney attraction work and Sanchez will rake in $50,000 for her appearances. Both are also set to get a cut of merchandise profits.

No matter what recording deal Sanchez is offered, she already has heavyweight Hollywood representation. In March, a judge approved a deal in which she will be represented by Creative Artists Agency for future television, personal appearance and other employment deals.

source: philstar.com