It's an admission that hasn't gone unnoticed. During a recent court hearing, Mark Zuckerberg acknowledged that users are spending less time on Facebook and Instagram. A trend that, while not precisely quantified, confirms what many already suspected: Meta's two iconic platforms are struggling to retain attention in a disrupted digital landscape.
Growing pressure from TikTok
Faced with TikTok's meteoric rise, Meta is forced to rethink its strategy. The Chinese network, with its short and highly engaging formats, massively appeals to young people, becoming a central place for content consumption - where Facebook and Instagram, although still very popular, are struggling to keep up.
This isn't the first time Meta has faced competition of this type. We remember its unsuccessful attempts to buy Snapchat, then its efforts to copy its features. But this time, the gap is widening, and the very nature of usage is evolving.
Conversations are shifting to intimacy
Another major change highlighted by Zuckerberg: the shift of interactions towards private messaging. Messenger and WhatsApp are becoming the preferred areas for exchanges, far from the public arena of news feeds. A significant shift, which reflects an increasingly strong quest for confidentiality among users.
This shift in usage is not insignificant. It weakens engagement on parent platforms, while making content monetization, historically linked to public spaces, more complex.
Have networks become too crowded?
The very structure of traditional social networks now seems to be problematic. On Facebook in particular, social graphs extend to Excess: former colleagues, distant acquaintances, brands followed one day out of curiosity... This accumulation ends up diluting interest, blurring the news feeds and discouraging participation.
Some observers believe that this phenomenon contributes to the erosion of usage, particularly among younger people, who are looking for more authentic or targeted spaces.
An opacity which raises questions
While Zuckerberg confirms the trend, he remains evasive about the precise data. No figures have been released to quantify the decline in usage. This caution raises questions: is this a simple communication strategy or a lack of real internal visibility?
The lack of transparency fuels speculation, particularly among analysts and investors, who are struggling to assess the exact trajectory of the group. Meta, for its part, seems to want to keep control of the narrative, even if it means maintaining a certain vagueness about the reality of its commitment.
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