Pay 11.99 dollars per month (11.20 euros) for a subscription to Facebook or Instagram? This is the original proposal made on Sunday February 19 by Mark Zuckerberg, the boss of Meta, the parent company of the two social networks. For this price, you will be entitled to an account ” checked “ including “a blue badge, additional protections against identity theft by accounts impersonating you and direct access to customer service”, listed the founder on his Facebook account. Future subscribers are also promised “increased visibility” of their content on the platforms, for example in search results, comments or recommendations, added the company, specifying that this novelty would first be available in Australia and New Zealand, then rolled out gradually.
This sales pitch is interesting, because it is unprecedented: for Mark Zuckerberg, opening up to paying is about conversion. Born in 2004, Facebook has long claimed, on its registration page: “It’s free and always will be. » In 2011, the company vigorously denied a “rumour” switching to paying. More recently, Mr. Zuckerberg brandished free as a standard for providing a democratic service, accessible to as many people as possible. One way to react to criticism of its targeted advertising model, formulated by Apple, presented as an elitist company, which sells overpriced products and imposes a 30% commission on sales of applications on its iPhones (on the latter , the subscription to Facebook and Instagram will be more expensive, 14.99 dollars per month).
water in his wine
If Meta is watering down its wine, it is because of its recent economic difficulties: in 2022, Facebook lost users, then the company saw its turnover drop, before the management announces the dismissal of 11,000 employees. Still profitable, Facebook and Instagram have been hit hard by the economic downturn and Apple’s restrictions on user ad tracking. The Irish Data Protection Authority has also requested changes to its targeting model.
More broadly, Mr. Zuckerberg’s change of footing illustrates the trend towards the hybridization of economic models: the social networks Twitter and Snap have also launched paid subscriptions, as has the video platform YouTube, while the services of video Netflix or Disney + start advertising.
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