2012–2013: IPO, lawsuits, and one billion active users

Further information: Initial public offering of Facebook

In March 2012, Facebook announced App Center, a store selling applications that operate via the
website. The store was to be available on iPhones, Android devices, and for mobile web users.[78]

Billboard on the Thomson Reuters building welcomes Facebook to NASDAQ, May 2012
Facebook's initial public offering came on May 17, 2012, at a share price of US$38 ($45.00 in 2021
dollars[28]). The company was valued at $104 billion ($123 billion in 2021 dollars[28]), the largest
valuation to that date.[79][80][81] The IPO raised $16 billion ($18.9 billion in 2021 dollars[28]),
the third-largest in U.S. history, after Visa Inc. in 2008 and AT&T Wireless in 2000.[82][83] Based
on its 2012 income of $5 billion ($5.9 billion in 2021 dollars[28]), Facebook joined the Fortune 500
list for the first time in May 2013, ranked 462.[84] The shares set a first-day record for trading
volume of an IPO (460 million shares).[85] The IPO was controversial given the immediate price
declines that followed,[86][87][88][89] and was the subject of lawsuits,[90] while SEC and FINRA
both launched investigations.[91]

Zuckerberg announced at the start of October 2012 that Facebook had one billion monthly active
users,[92] including 600 million mobile users, 219 billion photo uploads and 140 billion friend
connections.[93]

2013–2014: Site developments, A4AI, and 10th anniversary

On January 15, 2013, Facebook announced Facebook Graph Search, which provides users with a
"precise answer", rather than a link to an answer by leveraging data present on its site.[94]
Facebook emphasized that the feature would be "privacy-aware", returning results only from
content already shared with the user.[95] On April 3, 2013, Facebook unveiled Facebook Home, a
user-interface layer for Android devices offering greater integration with the site. HTC announced
HTC First, a phone with Home pre-loaded.[96]

On April 15, 2013, Facebook announced an alliance across 19 states with the National Association
of Attorneys General, to provide teenagers and parents with information on tools to manage social
networking profiles.[97] On April 19 Facebook modified its logo to remove the faint blue line at the
bottom of the "F" icon. The letter F moved closer to the edge of the box.[98]

Following a campaign by 100 advocacy groups, Facebook agreed to update its policy on hate
speech. The campaign highlighted content promoting domestic violence and sexual violence against
women and led 15 advertisers to withdraw, including Nissan UK, House of Burlesque, and
Nationwide UK. The company initially stated, "while it may be vulgar and offensive, distasteful
content on its own does not violate our policies".[99] It took action on May 29.[100]

On June 12, Facebook announced that it was introducing clickable hashtags to help users follow
trending discussions, or search what others are talking about on a topic.[101] San Mateo County,
California, became the top wage-earning county in the country after the fourth quarter of 2012
because of Facebook. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the average salary was 107%
higher than the previous year, at $168,000 a year ($198,293 in 2021 dollars[28]), more than 50%
higher than the next-highest county, New York County (better known as Manhattan), at roughly
$110,000 a year ($129,835 in 2021 dollars[28]).[102]

Facebook joined Alliance for Affordable Internet (A4AI) in October, as it launched. The A4AI is a
coalition of public and private organizations that includes Google, Intel and Microsoft. Led by Sir
Tim Berners-Lee, the A4AI seeks to make Internet access more affordable to ease access in the
developing world.[103]
The company celebrated its 10th anniversary during the week of February 3, 2014.[104] In January
2014, over one billion users connected via a mobile device.[105] As of June, mobile accounted for
62% of advertising revenue, an increase of 21% from the previous year.[106] By September
Facebook's market capitalization had exceeded $200 billion ($229 billion in 2021 dollars[28]).[107]
[108][109]

Zuckerberg participated in a Q&A session at Tsinghua University in Beijing, China, on October 23,
where he attempted to converse in Mandarin. Zuckerberg hosted visiting Chinese politician Lu Wei,
known as the "Internet czar" for his influence in China's online policy, on December 8.[110][111]
[112]

2015–2020: Algorithm revision; fake news

As of 2015, Facebook's algorithm was revised in an attempt to filter out false or misleading content,
such as fake news stories and hoaxes. It relied on users who flag a story accordingly. Facebook
maintained that satirical content should not be intercepted.[113] The algorithm was accused of
maintaining a "filter bubble", where material the user disagrees with[114] and posts with few likes
would be deprioritized.[115] In November, Facebook extended paternity leave from 4 weeks to 4
months.[116]

On April 12, 2016, Zuckerberg outlined his 10-year vision, which rested on three main pillars:
artificial intelligence, increased global connectivity, and virtual and augmented reality.[117] In July,
a US$1 billion suit was filed against the company alleging that it permitted Hamas to use it to
perform assaults that cost the lives of four people.[118] Facebook released its blueprints of
Surround 360 camera on GitHub under an open-source license.[119] In September, it won an Emmy
for its animated short "Henry".[120] In October, Facebook announced a fee-based communications
tool called Workplace that aims to "connect everyone" at work. Users can create profiles, see
updates from co-workers on their news feed, stream live videos and participate in secure group
chats.[121]

Following the 2016 U.S. presidential election, Facebook announced that it would combat fake news
by using fact checkers from sites like FactCheck.org and Associated Press (AP), making reporting
hoaxes easier through crowdsourcing, and disrupting financial incentives for abusers.[122]

Oculus VR headset[123]
On January 17, 2017, Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg planned to open Station F, a startup
incubator campus in Paris, France.[124] On a six-month cycle, Facebook committed to work with
ten to 15 data-driven startups there.[125] On April 18, Facebook announced the beta launch of
Facebook Spaces at its annual F8 developer conference.[126] Facebook Spaces is a virtual reality
version of Facebook for Oculus VR goggles. In a virtual and shared space, users can access a
curated selection of 360-degree photos and videos using their avatar, with the support of the
controller. Users can access their own photos and videos, along with media shared on their
newsfeed.[127] In September, Facebook announced it would spend up to US$1 billion on original
shows for its Facebook Watch platform.[128] On October 16, it acquired the anonymous
compliment app tbh, announcing its intention to leave the app independent.[129][130][131][132]

In October 2017, Facebook expanded its work with Definers Public Affairs, a PR firm that had
originally been hired to monitor press coverage of the company to address concerns primarily
regarding Russian meddling, then mishandling of user data by Cambridge Analytica, hate speech on
Facebook, and calls for regulation.[133] Company spokesman Tim Miller stated that a goal for tech
firms should be to "have positive content pushed out about your company and negative content
that's being pushed out about your competitor". Definers claimed that George Soros was the force
behind what appeared to be a broad anti-Facebook movement, and created other negative media,
along with America Rising, that was picked up by larger media organisations like Breitbart News.
[133][134] Facebook cut ties with the agency in late 2018, following public outcry over their
association.[135]

In May 2018 at F8, the company announced it would offer its own dating service. Shares in
competitor Match Group fell by 22%.[136] Facebook Dating includes privacy features and friends
are unable to view their friends' dating profile.[137] In July, Facebook was charged £500,000 by
UK watchdogs for failing to respond to data erasure requests.[138] On July 18, Facebook
established a subsidiary named Lianshu Science & Technology in Hangzhou City, China, with $30
million ($32.4 million in 2021 dollars[28]) of capital. All its shares are held by Facebook Hong.
[139] Approval of the registration of the subsidiary was then withdrawn, due to a disagreement
between officials in Zhejiang province and the Cyberspace Administration of China.[140] On July
26, Facebook became the first company to lose over $100 billion ($108 billion in 2021 dollars[28])
worth of market capitalization in one day, dropping from nearly $630 billion to $510 billion after
disappointing sales reports.[141][142] On July 31, Facebook said that the company had deleted 17
accounts related to the 2018 U.S. midterm elections. On September 19, Facebook announced that,
for news distribution outside the United States, it would work with U.S. funded democracy
promotion organizations, International Republican Institute and the National Democratic Institute,
which are loosely affiliated with the Republican and Democratic parties.[143] Through the Digital
Forensic Research Lab Facebook partners with the Atlantic Council, a NATO-affiliated think tank.
[143] In November, Facebook launched smart displays branded Portal and Portal Plus (Portal+).
They support Amazon's Alexa (intelligent personal assistant service). The devices include video
chat function with Facebook Messenger.[144][145]

In August 2018, a lawsuit was filed in Oakland, California claiming that Facebook created fake
accounts in order to inflate its user data and appeal to advertisers in the process.[21]

Aerial view of Meta HQ in Menlo Park, California

In January 2019, the 10-year challenge was started[146] asking users to post a photograph of
themselves from 10 years ago (2009) and a more recent photo.[147]

Criticized for its role in vaccine hesitancy, Facebook announced in March 2019 that it would
provide users with "authoritative information" on the topic of vaccines.[148] A study in the journal
Vaccine[149] of advertisements posted in the three months prior to that found that 54% of the anti-
vaccine advertisements on Facebook were placed by just two organisations funded by well-known
anti-vaccination activists.[150] The Children's Health Defense / World Mercury Project chaired by
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Stop Mandatory Vaccination, run by campaigner Larry Cook, posted
54% of the advertisements. The ads often linked to commercial products, such as natural remedies
and books.

On March 14, the Huffington Post reported that Facebook's PR agency had paid someone to tweak
Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg's Wikipedia page, as well as adding a page for the global head of
PR, Caryn Marooney.[151]