NEWS & INSIGHT
SOCIAL MEDIA’S LUCRATIVE, YET COMPLEX LANDSCAPE REVEALED IN NEW REPORT
to a complex landscape where businesses are not only seeking to grow their reach and offerings, but also adapting to changing user demands in an increasingly stringent regulatory environment. “These business moves will continue to shape the future of social media and influence both user behaviour and the competitive dynamics of the market,” explained OBS Business School professor Santiago Giménez, who led the report. The growth of social media advertising, meanwhile, has been aided by the ability of platforms to reach hyper-segmented audiences and the increasing sophistication of ad targeting tools, as outlined in the report. Globally, it estimates last year’s investment in social media advertising at $207.1 billion, growth of nine per cent compared with the previous year. A specialist online education provider, OBS Business School recently welcomed 1,400 attendees to L’Auditori in Barcelona for the graduation ceremony of 2,800 students from 44 different countries, with 11,000 following the event on YouTube. TBD
social media networks, although this varies by age and gender. In terms of time spent, they are most used by women aged 16‑24 and least used by men aged 55-64. In addition, their hold on populations varies by region, with 82 per cent of people in Northern Europe known to use social media networks, compared to 71 per cent in the US and 66 per cent in South America. Alongside current statistics and data, the OBS report tackles the business side of the social media market’s evolution, advising on recent mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and the economic outlook for advertising. In particular, its M&A analysis points
SCHOOL OBS Business School COUNTRY Spain
T here are currently more than five billion social media network users globally, representing 62 per cent of the world’s population, according to a new report from OBS Business School that highlights the ubiquity of these interactive platforms. On average, these users spend two hours and 23 minutes per day on
“There are currently more than five billion social media network users globally, 62 per cent of the global population”
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Business Impact • ISSUE 3 • 2024
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