On April 12, Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s founder and CEO acquired Instagram for a billion dollars. Instagram was founded two years ago and only employed a handful of people. These facts leave many IT professionals and financial analysts wondering how Instagram is worth so much in such a short period of time. For now, there isn’t a clear answer as to why Zuckerberg and Facebook’s corporate officers fought tooth and nail to acquire Instagram. It has, however, been made public that multiple companies sought to purchase this small startup including Facebook’s competition, Twitter and venture capital companies that have backed powerhouses such as Google and LinkedIn.
The Scoop on Instagram
Instagram is a photo sharing program with popular applications for smart phones. Initially only available to Apple products, Instagram released applications for Android phones and cameras. Currently, Instagram has over 30 million active users and hundreds of millions photos have been uploaded since the company launched in 2010. Instagram allows users to manipulate the appearance of photos with borders and filters in a high-resolution format. Easily identifiable by web users, Instragram photos mimic the look of Polaroids.
Some techies and analysts speculate that Facebook acquired Instagram to tap into the mobile user market. However, Facebook currently boasts over 850 million users. These types of acquisitions with hefty price tags are new; for example, Google purchased YouTube for 1.6 billion in 2006. Eventually, the real reason behind purchasing Instagram will come to light in the future.
Instagram for Dentists
It certainly can’t hurt dentists to use Instagram—especially if they routinely upload photos to social media networks like Facebook. Instagram does improve the look of a photo from an artistic standpoint. Dentists who focus on cosmetic dentistry may benefit from using this service to convey the artistry behind cosmetic dental work.
If you’re interested in using Instagram or other social network platforms, we suggest calling the experts at Modern Dental Practice Marketing. For more information, contact Jill at (972) 781-8861