Microsoft announced as part of its 2023 fiscal year results that its LinkedIn division brought in about $15 billion in revenue. This week, Dan Shapero, LinkedIn"s chief operating officer, revealed a few specific numbers for the business social network, and they are pretty impressive.
In an interview with Reuters, Shapero revealed that the amount of revenue LinkedIn received from its premium subscription plans totaled $1.7 billion in 2023. This is the first time that those specific numbers have been promoted since Microsoft acquired LinkedIn in 2016. Shapero also said the number of subscribers for those premium plans went up by 25 percent in 2023, but he did not offer any info on the exact number of LinkedIn subscribers. Those plans have a starting price of $39.99 a month.
Last year, LinkedIn started adding generative AI tools for premium plans. That includes using those tools to improve the writing of job postings and user profiles, along with another AI tool that helps write content for ads.
Shapero told Reuters that 70 percent of LinkedIn"s paid subscribers have used its supported AI tools, and of that number, he claims 90 percent of those users found the tools to be useful. He added:
What we do know is that because of the uncertainty in the broader economy, there are people that are trying to make sure that they have the ability to get the best job that they can and that they"re excited about.
2023 was not a perfect year for LinkedIn. As part of Microsoft"s effort to lay off 10,000 of its workers that year, the LinkedIn division cut an unknown number of jobs in February 2023. In May 2023, it revealed it would cut 716 jobs due in part to the shutdown of its China-focused jobs app InCareer. In October 2023, the jobs hammer hit again as LinkedIn revealed it would cut another 668 team members.