LinkedIn surpasses $3 billion in ad revenue

LinkedIn surpassed $3 billion in advertising revenue within the last 12 months, its parent Microsoft announced Tuesday.

Why it matters: LinkedIn's ad business is slightly bigger than that of other social media giants, like Snapchat, which brought in $2.8 billion in the last 12 months.

Details: In total, Microsoft says LinkedIn is growing its ad business nearly three times faster than its competitors in the business-to-business digital ad market.

• LinkedIn's ad revenue arm, called "LinkedIn Marketing Solutions," increased revenues by over 60% year-over-year. LinkedIn's total revenue increased 16% for the quarter.
• Its growth was fueled by increases in engagement, which was in part driven by new products, such as LinkedIn "Stories" and livestreams.

By the numbers: In total, Microsoft says conversations on the platform increased by 43% last quarter and the amount of content shared increased by 29%. The number of hours spent on LinkedIn Learning, LinkedIn's education content program, increased 80%.

The big picture: LinkedIn brought in roughly $2 billion in ad revenue in 2018. While its ads business is growing rapidly, it's still just a small part of Microsoft's total revenue.

What's next: Microsoft's CFO Amy Hood says LinkedIn's ad business should benefit from a positive outlook for digital advertising for the year.