Google reports 12% rise in revenue

Friday 24 April 2015

Google has reported an increase in revenue on the same period last year, with money from advertising continuing to grow.

In the technology giant's financial results for the first quarter of 2015, Google reported total revenue of 17.3 billion dollars (£11.4 billion), a 12% rise on the same period last year.

The money earned from advertising was up to over 15 billion dollars (£7.3bn) - an 11% increase on the same period in 2014. The figures did fall slightly below analyst predictions however.

Operating income was also up from 4.1 billion dollars (£2.7bn) to 4.4 billion (£2.9bn) year-on-year.

The firm reported earnings of 6.57 dollars a share, just below analyst expectations, but showed slight growth over the same quarter in 2014, when Google reported earnings of 6.27 dollars a share. That translated into a net profit of 4.53 billion dollars (£3bn), up from almost 4.3 billion (£2.8bn) in the same period last year.

The news comes in the wake of Google announcing that it is changing how search results will appear on mobile devices in Europe, with preference being given to those sites the firm determines are "mobile-friendly".

Google's chief financial officer Patrick Pichette said: "Google's first quarter revenue was 17.3 billion dollars, up 12% year on year. Excluding the net impact of foreign currency headwinds, revenue grew a healthy 17% year on year.

"We continue to see great momentum in our mobile advertising business and opportunities with brand advertisers."

The financial results also showed Google continuing on the trend of hiring new staff, with numbers up 9,000 on this time last year.

Currency exchange rates have had an impact on Google's financials, something analysts predicted because of the strong US dollar. According to Google, had foreign exchange rates stayed the same over the last year, revenues in this quarter would have been 795 million dollars (£527m) higher.

Earlier this week, Google announced its latest venture in the shape of Project Fi, a mobile network that is beginning trials in the US.

The new network will combine mobile signal from carriers and Wi-Fi, automatically and intelligently jumping between them depending on which is the strongest. Google says the aim is to ensure users are always able to communicate with each other.