Facebook at 15: Zuckerberg, privacy, fake news and China

The issue of how to stop the spread of false information while simultaneously providing a medium for free expression remains a central problem for Facebook

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Published: 9:00pm, 6 Feb 2019Updated: 9:00pm, 6 Feb 2019

Social media giant Facebook, founded by Mark Zuckerberg along with fellow Harvard University students Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin Moskovitz and Chris Hughes, celebrated its 15th anniversary this week.

Chairman and CEO Zuckerberg, who launched the first version of Facebook from his Harvard dorm, marked the occasion with a personal post saying his aim was to build a “simple website organised around people” allowing them to connect with each other and share the things most important to them.

Here are some interesting facts and figures about Facebook:

How big is Facebook and how rich is Mark Zuckerberg?

From its humble origins, Facebook today has grown into a business connecting about 2.7 billion people with annual revenue in excess of US$40 billion, driven largely by its pioneering mobile advertising business. The 34-year-old Zuckerberg has an estimated net worth of around US$55 billion and as of 2018 was the only person under 50 in the Forbes 10 richest people list.

Facebook’s initial public offering in February 2012 was the largest initial valuation to date for a public company at US$104 billion. This was subsequently surpassed by Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba in 2014, which had an initial valuation of US$167.6 billion.