While overall social network user numbers are rising slowly in the UK, there’s much greater movement in terms of the platforms being used.

Meta gained a strong hold over the US social media app rankings last year, with Instagram, WhatsApp, Messenger, and Facebook all boasting the highest numbers of downloads, according to Apptopia. Messaging app Telegram broke into the top 10 this year, as did relative newcomer BeReal.

Just as Facebook became the platform that defined millennials’ social media experience, TikTok is cruising toward a similar status for Gen Z—but it’s taking a different route.

As social media grows more “lean-back” than “lean-in,” it’s settling into an era of more modest growth defined by short-form video consumption, stabilizing time spent, and ongoing challenges with Apple’s AppTrackingTransparency.

The social audience remains massive: This year, for the first time, roughly two-thirds of the US population will use a social network at least monthly, per our estimates

On today's episode, we discuss the significance of Facebook's 2 billion daily active user milestone, what's contributing to continued negative growth, and what to expect from the metaverse this year. "In Other News," we talk about how much Reels and YouTube Shorts are creeping up on TikTok's short video lead and how Americans feel about where social media is headed. Tune in to the discussion with our analyst Debra Aho Williamson.

After surviving Q4, Meta tries to refocus its business: An emphasis on efficiency all but ensures more cuts will come in 2023.

Francophones in Canada’s second-largest province have been slower to adopt digital devices and services compared with the rest of the country. But the latest data reveals the increasingly digital lives of Quebecois in 2023.

The number of social network users in Europe is still growing. But the relative strength of major platforms is shifting, as Facebook continues to lose market share. Instagram and Snapchat will be the biggest winners in 2023.

The social media landscape is shifting. Economic challenges, new competition, and governmental scrutiny are pushing the major global platforms in different directions.

Dazzled, dazed, and confused by ChatGPT: Its creators were unsure about releasing a technology they’re now warning about as adoption skyrockets. Legislators respond to alarm bells with mixed messages.

The UK is seeing stagnant social network user growth. But while reach remains huge, marketers should look at how their target markets are spread across platforms because this is where the real change is happening.

Nearly 80% of the world’s internet users are on social media. This landscape is still dominated by Meta in most markets, but use and ad spend is shifting away from Facebook and toward TikTok. Here are five charts capturing the worldwide state of social.

Shutterstock jumps on AI bandwagon with generative image tool: But considering investment in the technology, it maybecome table stakes faster than anyone predicted.

Facebook and YouTube will still be the top US social media platforms for buying ads or monetizing content this year, though their dominance is eroding, according to October 2022 polling by Integral Ad Science.

Our latest forecast for social network users in Canada highlights a reshuffling of the top five platforms in 2023. Twitter will fall to fifth place, while TikTok will surge into the No. 3 position.

It’s easy to be pessimistic about the state of social media in 2023. But while challenges will persist, the shifting landscape will also give rise to more opportunities for marketers to reach social audiences.

Facing signal loss and challenging macroeconomic conditions, advertisers are pumping the brakes on social network ad spending. But social video is shining through the gloom.

Elon Musk’s reign over Twitter stirs chaos and user losses in Asia-Pacific. The region is propping up Facebook user growth that is flagging in most of the world. And TikTok is looming large among marketers as its popularity skyrockets.

Instagram’s new Quiet mode offers an olive branch to parents and regulators as the Biden administration vows to go after Big Tech for “put[ting] our children at risk.” All social platforms can sense a new era of accountability, and they’re making active moves to stay on regulators’ good side.