Instagram generated more ad revenue than YouTube in 2019

Instagram earned $20 billion in ad revenues in 2019 - much higher than YouTube's $15.1 billion. Instagram reportedly accounts for more than a quarter of Facebook's ad revenue in 2019. According to reports, Facebook made a total of $70.7 billion in revenue from advertising during the year. The user count of Instagram hasn't been updated since 2018 when it reported 1 billion users.

Facebook acquired Instagram in 2012 after a cash payment of $1 billion. Instagram could also be more profitable when compared to YouTube as the video sharing site shares most of its ad related earnings with creators. Also, YouTube's video-focused approach could possibly mean higher streaming costs.

Google which owns YouTube has reportedly stated it shares more than 50 per cent of ad revenue with video creators and spends heavily on video bandwidth. Unlike YouTube, Instagram doesn't share its ad revenues with users who post multimedia content on the app. In 2018, Instagram's value on paper was reportedly estimated to be above $100 billion and is certain to be above that in 2020.

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