Snap reduces overseas losses as revenue doubles
Snapchat parent firm Snap has narrowed its international losses, as sales from advertising and its Spectacles gadget doubled.
Its UK-based entity, which manages all territories outside the US, reported a loss of $312.8m in 2018, down from $447m a year earlier.
Meanwhile revenue, which Snap said is “substantially” created by sales of its advertising products, rose to $403.7m last year from $203.6m in 2017.
Tools include Snap Ads and sponsored content, such as sponsored versions of Geofilters and its popular augmented reality Lenses.
Filings published on Companies House today also showed the company splurged $7m in research, development and engineering outside the US last year, more than doubling 2017’s $3.4m.
It follows a buoyant set of quarterly results from the parent group in July, having boosted user numbers and revenue as new Lenses took off.
The number of daily active users on Snapchat rose to 203m in three months to 30 June, up from 190m in the previous quarter. However the company has yet to turn a profit, posting group loss of $255m.
The social media firm faced a tough 2018, after a botched redesign caused users to flee Snapchat and a number of executives left the company. Competition also grew as Instagram launched its own time-limited Stories feature and improved direct messaging.
Its share price also took a beating, dipping to an all-time low of $5 per share in December. As of today’s filings, first reported by the Telegraph, Snap’s shares are down 17 per cent from its market debut in March 2017.
A spokesperson for Snap did not respond to a request for comment.
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