Facebook does indeed face some serious longterm issues that Creative Labs, and recent purchases of Instagram and WhatsApp, are designed to solve. Its growth has flatlined in the United States and slowed markedly around the world. Engagement is falling with minutes spent on Facebook down 6% in the last year. Facebook demographics are going in the wrong direction: young teens and 18-24-year- olds are losing interest, joining niche social sites. A Piper Jaffray Teen Market Research report found 23% of teens claimed Facebook was their most important social network, while 26% chose Twitter. Creative Labs and the strategy of developing stand-alone apps that are linked to Facebook, but not integrated into its mobile app, may be a solution for these issues. But recent experience suggests that Facebook might be better off using its big checkbook to buy already market proven apps like Instagram and WhatsApp rather than trying to develop its own apps.