Snap’s User-Generated Content Viewing Declined Year Over Year

Global time spent watching content on Snap grew year over year, “while lapping the boost in engagement we saw at the onset" of COVID-19, CEO Evan Spiegel told a Q2 call Thursday. “We have also observed a year-over-year decrease in daily time spent” watching user-generated content created by friends, “even as the number of daily viewers of that content has grown,” he said. Snap attributes this partly to declining daily posting activity “coinciding with mobility restrictions and behaviors" due to the pandemic, "which reduces the amount of content created by friends,” he said. The stock closed 23.8% higher Friday at $77.97 after Snap significantly exceeded revenue and profit forecasts for the quarter.