Could Facebook Adopt a New Revenue Model?

By Daniel Sparks – Feb 24, 2014 at 4:25PM

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Facebook's new board of directors member hates ads. What does this mean for Facebook?

When Facebook (META -0.52%) announced last week it was acquiring WhatsApp for $19 billion, it also appointed the company's CEO of just 55 employees to the social network's board of directors. Will WhatsApp co-founder and CEO Jan Koum bring a convincing case for new approaches to revenue? After all, WhatsApp has despised ads and instead opted for a simple $1 per year subscription model.

Given that Facebook is already one of digital advertising's biggest names, the company's main platform is not likely to ditch ads. But as the company is bringing a stream of new apps to market with the new Facebook Creative Labs initiative, it's possible Koum's subscription model could see the light of day in future Facebook projects.

Fool contributor Daniel Sparks discusses the possibility of Facebook adopting a WhatsApp-like subscription model in the video below.

Daniel Sparks has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Facebook. The Motley Fool owns shares of Facebook. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.