Privacy, Poor Management, and Sex Scandals Can’t Touch the Duopoly’s Ad Growth—Yet

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While Google and Facebook have yet to report fourth-quarter earnings, those reports loom as major signals of the durability of Big Tech, especially its advertising juggernauts, in the face of perhaps unprecedented criticism over privacy, diversity, and transparency.

Analysts expect that the earnings reports, far from confirming the consequences of bad corporate practices, will show instead that, as online commerce continues to skyrocket in importance, so too will Google and Facebook’s prosperity grow, Bloomberg reported.

Analysts predict that Google and Facebook will report record earnings for the fourth quarter, which of course includes the holidays, the annual boon for retail and thus also for the digital ad giants who help retailers reach customers online. Particularly resistant to the dour times of late is Facebook’s Instagram, on which advertisers are doubling YOY spending, hoping to capture the attention of the much-coveted digital-first generations who flock to that social platform.

It will likely take a significant downturn in spending or overall economic well-being for Big Tech to feel some major financial pain. And while great for Google, Facebook, Amazon, and Apple, that’s got to be concerning for industry watchdogs wondering whether these businesses are too entrenched in digital search, advertising, and commerce to be challenged—because the past year was not hot for Silicon Valley, and yet the presses keep printing dollars.

Joe Zappa is Street Fight’s managing editor.

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Joe Zappa is the Managing Editor of Street Fight. He has spearheaded the newsroom's editorial operations since 2018. Joe is an ad/martech veteran who has covered the space since 2015. You can contact him at [email protected]