According to a report by Reuters, Facebook’s 2009 revenue figure is likely to be as high at $800 million, with a solid profit figure in the tens of millions of dollars.
Only six years old, Facebook continues to stride the social media planet like a colossal anteater, hovering up new users in the tens of millions every month. With nearly half a billion users today, Facebook still insists a public share float is not one of its priorities.
This is likely to be a smokescreen. An IPO should be one of Facebook’s top priorities now that it’s beginning to earn some money.
Earlier the company predicted its 2009 revenues would be somewhere around the $500 million mark. Downplaying its revenues in public and then unveiling a figure far beyond expectations is one of the best ways to whet investor appetite.
US brands such as AT&T Inc, Ford Motor Co and Blackberry-maker Research in Motion all advertised on Facebook during the first quarter of 2010.
The companies that currently fund Facebook include Sky Technologies, Microsoft Corp., and venture capitalist funds such as Accel Partners and Meritech Capital Partners. Another big investor is Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-shing. All will, no doubt, be very happy with the forthcoming revenue results and will certainly be salivating over the prospect of an earlier-than-expected IPO.

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