Meta India Reports INR 18,308 Cr In Gross Ad Revenue In FY23

Facebook India Online Services, the Indian arm of global social media giant Meta, reported gross advertisement revenues of INR 18,308 Cr in FY23, up 13% year-on-year from INR 16,189 Cr in FY22.

The growth rate is markedly lower than the 74% YoY expansion seen in FY22. This comes as the global advertising sector grapples with challenges amid economic downturn and a funding freeze.

In FY23, the company’s net profit surged by 19% to INR 352 Cr from INR 297 Cr in FY22. At the same time, its total revenue increased by 20% to INR 2,776 Cr from INR 2324 Cr in FY22. Also, Facebook India’s ad inventory cost decreased by 63% to INR 5,666 Cr from INR 15,120 Cr in FY22.

The firm generates its advertising income by marketing ad slots via platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. In a strategic shift in August 2022, the company transitioned from solely reselling ad inventory to adopting both a reseller and operating license model.

Following this change, the total revenue is now divided into two main categories: a gross advertising reseller revenue amounting to INR 6,120 Cr, and a separate gross advertising revenue totaling INR 12,188 Cr.

Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, is also exploring the possibility of launching an ad-free subscription plan in India by 2024. If introduced, this would mark Meta’s second subscription offering.

At present, the social media behemoth offers high-tier services such as a verified badge at a monthly charge of INR 699. This marks a substantial pivot from Meta’s initial approach of granting free, unrestricted access to its primary offerings.

According to a Redseer report, the digital advertising landscape in India is set to expand to $35 Bn by 2030, a considerable leap from its $3 Bn in 2020. This surge is likely to be fueled by the rising numbers of millennials and Gen Z individuals, who allocate a notable amount of their daily hours to digital mediums.

Furthermore, the consumer internet opportunity in India is predicted to reach an astounding $1.6 Tn by 2025, according to estimates by Inc42. Given that a substantial portion of this opportunity lies within non-English-speaking segments of the population, numerous startups have begun capitalising on regional languages to penetrate this market more deeply.

For instance, Meta was among the pioneers in introducing its platforms in various regional languages across the country. On Facebook, users can access the platform in ten languages, including Hindi, Punjabi, Urdu, Tamil, Telugu, Marathi, Gujarati, Bengali, Kannada, and Malayalam. A similar approach extends to Instagram and WhatsApp, enabling hundreds of millions of users to use these platforms in their preferred languages.