Opinion | Mark Zuckerberg loses US$2.9 billion after announcing Facebook will prioritise friends over businesses
Facebook will now prioritise users’ friends and family, rather than news and businesses, to encourage conversation – and that has sent shares tumbling
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s fortune fell US$2.9 billion on Friday after he said users’ news feeds would focus on content created by family and friends at the expense of material from media outlets and businesses.
Shares of Facebook tumbled 3.9 per cent in New York, cutting Zuckerberg’s wealth to US$74.4 billion on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
If that decline holds through the close of trading, he will lose his place as the world’s fourth-richest person to Spanish retail billionaire Amancio Ortega.
The drop wipes out much of the US$4.5 billion Zuckerberg, 33, has added so far this year. The world’s 500 richest people gained US$1 trillion in 2017 and an additional US$17 billion in the first two weeks of 2018, according to the Bloomberg index.
The company reassured its partners that it will help them adjust to the new policy.
“We know even a small update to News Feed can be disruptive to you and your talent’s businesses, and this change will take some time to figure out,” the social network said. “As we take this journey together and focus on content that our community can connect around, we’ll work on providing you and your clients with best practices, insights, and tools to help them understand and create content that promotes these meaningful interactions on Facebook.”