Facebook profit falls ahead of IPO

Facebook’s profit fell to $US205 million even though revenue increased during the first quarter, as it increased its marketing expense ahead of its IPO.

The company updated its regulatory filings to show profit fell from $US233 million, even though revenue rose to $US1.06 billion. And while $US872 million of that came from advertising, that’s slightly down from the $US943 million it made in the December quarter.

The result comes just days after a report indicated Facebook is set to go public in mid-May.

The regulatory filing also shows Facebook paid $US300 million in cash for Instagram, with the rest to be paid in 23 million shares.