Ad Spending

Advertising is what makes the world go ’round eh? From the Facebook Ads article by Jessie Hempel found on CNNMoney;

“Facebook Ads follows an Oct. 24 announcement that Microsoft (MSFT) will take a $240 million equity stake in the site, valuing Facebook at $15 billion. The company is private and does not disclose numbers, but it is widely reported that Facebook earned a profit of $30 million this year on $150 million in sales. With a $15 billion valuation, that translates into 500 times earnings.

Industry analysts have long wondered how the startup plans to make money. Until now, Facebook’s advertising opportunities have been limited to banner ads that run down the side of pages and smaller ads that appear in newsfeeds. Advertisers can also pay to sponsor groups. Facebook’s move today ups the ante in the fast growing area of brand advertising on the Web. Ad spending on social networks in the United States alone will reach $900 million this year, according to online advertising research company eMarketer. That figure is expected to jump to $2.5 billion by 2011 as advertisers move brand advertising dollars online.”

Wow… so I guess my friend Bogdan’s little site – AdlandPro – isn’t so big after all.

j/k (Yes, it’s an affiliate URL)