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Facebook, Instagram chatter: By the numbers

The discussion ranges from questions about Instagram's actual value to whether or not the popular indie photo-sharing app had sold out.
Written by Rachel King, Contributor

Facebook's $1 billion purchase of Instagram on Monday stirred up plenty of chatter as soon as the news broke.

The discussion ranges from questions about Instagram's actual value to whether or not the popular indie photo-sharing app had sold out. Let's take a look at some of the initial responses. That breaks down to the following opinions:

  • 5 percent expressed that they were were in favor of the purchase itself
  • 4 percent expressed that they were looking forward to the collaboration
  • 3 percent expressed general positive sentiment towards the news

For starters, apparently only 12 percent of Twitter users expressed positive sentiment about the acquisition, according to social media analytics firm Crimson Hexagon.

Nevertheless, that doesn't mean the rest of those tweeting about the merger had negative things to say. Actually, 52 percent of the related tweets expressed were neutral, with users either expressing shock over the acquisition or simply sharing news of the announcement.

Out of the remaining 35 percent of naysayers, the backlash ranged from general disappointment in Instagram to users threatening to delete their accounts.

Nevertheless, there is room for evidence that at least Facebook made the right decision here.

According to marketing research firm Experian Hitwise, Instagram received more than 10 million total U.S. visits during March 2012, making it the third most popular sharing site in the United States behind Flickr and Photobucket. Furthermore, the total visits to Instagram have increased by more than 1,000 percent since December 2011.

There might be initial outrage now and threats to delete Instagram accounts, but so long as both companies manage to retain Instagram's core identity and market that brand consistently, they'll likely ride out the storm well enough.

Chart via Crimson Hexagon

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