Apple privacy changes wipe $278 billion market value from 4 companies

Tim Cook Source: Apple

What you need to know

A new report says Apple's privacy changes have wiped some $278 billion from the market value of four social media companies.
Meta, Snap, Twitter, and Pinterest have all seen their values plummet over the last year.
Meta's share price has fallen 24% in the last 24 hours.

A new report has revealed that four social media companies have lost some $278 billion in market value since Apple announced changes to privacy on iPhone last year.

From Markets Insider on the impact of Apple's tracking privacy changes in iOS 14:

The earnings results from social media companies on Wednesday highlighted the weakness to investors, resulting in a steep sell-off in their stocks. In Thursday trades, Meta Platforms fell 22%, Snap fell 18%, Twitter fell 8%, and Pinterest fell 11%.

Since Apple's privacy update went into effect in late April 2021, these four social media companies have erased a combined $278 billion in market value.

The report notes Meta's value has fallen by $169 billion since April 26, 2021. Similarly, Snap has fallen by $50 billion, Twitter by $26 billion, and Pinterest by $33 billion. For Snap, Twitter, and Pinterest, those losses represent around half of their previous market values, a staggering decline.

It comes after Facebook missed its Q4 earnings targets this week, and announced that it expects changes made by Apple last year to cost the company some $10 billion in revenue, sending shares in freefall on Wednesday, a trend that continued when the markets opened.

Apple made tracking users via an IDFA number an opt-in feature, as the company continues to highlight privacy as one of the best iPhone features on offer.