As Facebook Hits 27 Million UK Users, Its Affiliate Instagram Drops By Half Worldwide To 7.6 Million

Despite reports that Facebook lost 600,000 users in the UK last month, Nielsen has released figures confirming that the social media giant hit 27 million monthly active users in the past week. Meanwhile, their new affiliate Instagram has lost almost half its daily active users worldwide in the wake of changes to its terms and conditions.

According to Nielsen, a global market research company, two thirds of the UK population use Facebook – that’s 27 million – 19 million of whom access the site on mobile devices. 26% of Facebook users access the site via a tablet device and are most active in the evening, while smartphone users are active at midday.

There is an almost 50/50 gender split, with women claiming the extra 1% from their male peers, while users are relatively evenly split across all ages, with 25% under 25 and 30% over 50.

Perhaps the most interesting statistic from a business perspective is that a whopping 62% of people access Facebook while they are watching TV. This suggests that during the advertising breaks, when television broadcasters earn most of their advertising revenue, people are turning their attention away from the box and onto Facebook.

If 66% of the UK’s population is on Facebook and 62% of those users access Facebook while they watch TV, then television advertising could be losing up to 40% of its audience to Facebook, where social media advertisers are benefiting from the influx of traffic during commercial breaks.

Nielsen’s data also reveals the power of friend recommendations for businesses on Facebook: of the 37% of users who ask for product advice on Facebook, 16% act on that advice, while 23% have tried a new restaurant or bar after it was recommended by a friend on Facebook.

Facebook has also released a brand new tool for UK Businesses on Facebook: the Retail Centre has video tutorials, information about how other European retailers use Facebook, success stories and a “cheat sheet” guide to retail success.

Any company can register immediately by entering a name, a phone number and an estimated monthly marketing budget. Businesses new to Facebook can even request a free consultation on how best to use the service.



Facebook is not having such success in all its endeavours, however: AppStats, the Facebook applications metrics site, has released figures illustrating that Instagram has lost about half its daily active users since changing its terms and conditions, from 16 million to 7.6 million.

Instagram changed its Privacy Policy last year after being purchased by Facebook. Instagram made the changes not only to further its integration with Facebook, but also in an attempt to monetise the service.

"Instagram does not claim ownership of any content that you post on or through the service”, reads one new paragraph in the terms and conditions. “Instead, you hereby grant to Instagram a non-exclusive, fully paid and royalty-free, transferable, sub-licensable, worldwide license to use the content that you post on or through the service."

The policy changes allow Instagram to use images posted by its uses in advertising on the site without prior consent, as well as on their new parent site, Facebook. There was public outcry, with many Instagramers decrying the change as an invasion of their privacy and a theft of their personal and intellectual property.



In an attempt to appease its users, Instagram posted further information on their blog:

"Our updated privacy policy helps Instagram function more easily as part of Facebook by being able to share info between the two groups. This means we can do things like fight spam more effectively, detect system and reliability problems more quickly, and build better features for everyone by understanding how Instagram is used."

However, the damage was already done and, despite Instagram’s assurance that the policy updates were for the best, it didn’t change the fact that the picture sharing service wis still featuring its user’s photos in adverts without their consent.

"To help us deliver interesting paid or sponsored content or promotions,” reads another paragraph in Instagram’s Terms of Use, “you agree that a business or other entity may pay us to display your username, likeness, photos (along with any associated metadata), and/or actions you take, in connection with paid or sponsored content or promotions, without any compensation to you."

It is no surprise then that many of Instagram’s users are using the service less.

An Instagram spokesperson, however, has disputed AppStats’ figures:

“This data is inaccurate,” they said. “We continue to see strong and steady growth in both registered and active users of Instagram.”

The difference between these two opinions is that Instagram are measuring the increase in monthly active users rather than daily active users, so although people are using the service less, more people appear to be using it.

Instagram's Privacy Policy changes will come into effect this Saturday.

Do you use Facebook during the commercial break? What about Instagram? What do you think of its new Privacy Policy?

Contact us on Twitter or leave your comments below.


Will Sigsworth

Follow us @SocialMediaF & @WillAtSMF

www.socialmediafrontiers.com