What to know

  • Mark Zuckerberg said TikTok caused a dramatic slowdown in Meta’s growth.
  • Users now spend almost twice as much time on TikTok as on Facebook.
  • Meta faces increasing competition from platforms like YouTube and TikTok.
  • Zuckerberg highlighted that changing media trends have shifted user engagement away from Meta’s platforms.

Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, has acknowledged that the rise of TikTok led to a significant slowdown in the growth of Meta’s platforms, including Facebook and Instagram.

He explained that as TikTok gained popularity, users began spending much more time on the app, which directly impacted the time they spent on Meta’s services. According to recent data, people now spend nearly twice as much time scrolling on TikTok as they do on Facebook, marking a notable shift in user engagement patterns.

Zuckerberg made these remarks during Meta’s ongoing antitrust trial, where he emphasized that TikTok’s emergence changed the competitive landscape for social media.

He stated that Facebook’s growth "slowed down dramatically" as TikTok became more popular. This shift demonstrates that Meta is no longer the only dominant player in the market, as platforms like TikTok and YouTube have attracted users with richer media formats, especially video content.

He also noted that Meta did not consider acquiring TikTok’s precursor, Musical.ly, due to concerns about its connections to China. Instead, ByteDance acquired Musical.ly, which later became TikTok and quickly grew into a major competitor. Zuckerberg pointed out that competition is not limited to TikTok; YouTube and other platforms are also drawing users away from Meta’s core products.

These developments come as Meta faces a historic antitrust case, with regulators arguing that Meta’s previous acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp were intended to neutralize competition.

However, Zuckerberg’s recent statements highlight that the social media landscape has changed, with new competitors like TikTok significantly affecting Meta’s user engagement and growth.

Overall, Zuckerberg’s comments underscore the challenges Meta faces in retaining user attention as social media preferences evolve and new platforms capture the interest of younger audiences.

Via: techcrunch