Apple set for launch: The week in socials

The week in social media

Whilst we celebrated Valentine’s Day it’s been less than ‘hugs-and-kisses’ in the media world this week with some major news reaching the surface. Outside the main channels of news, however, there’s also been some important news which I’ll also shed some light on.

  • Apple this week made two major announcements regarding their rumoured news subscription service and video streaming service. The news service is expected to be unveiled at an event on March 5. The subscription service will apparently provide readers with all-you-can-read access to all pay-walled news publications for $10 per month. However, anticipate a delay due to Apple seeking 50 per cent of the profits. Expect to hear more in the coming week.

  • The Apple video streaming service, set to be unveiled at a March 25th event, will ‘include TV shows and movies either acquired or funded by Apple. The company has created dozens of original programs so far’ but has yet to package it into a subscription-based service. The other big news alongside this is that the service will NOT include Netflix which implies that we can expect some competitive marketing campaigns from Apple when it finally does enter the video subscription market.

  • LinkedIn is finally testing LIVE video! The social platform is among the few that hasn’t already offered this feature. It’s currently being tested as part of a pilot program which has been offered to a select group of broadcasters. The company plans to eventually roll this feature out to regular users but there’s been no timeframe given. This live service follows the introduction of native LinkedIn video only two years ago and a partnership with Vimeo last year and is aimed at users looking to broadcast for specific purposes like product launches, professional question and answer sessions, conferences and similar.

  • Did you notice your personal or business Twitter and/or Instagram accounts likes and follower numbers (respectively) fluctuate drastically in the last 24-48 hours? Don’t be alarmed, people don’t suddenly hate you. Both Twitter and Instagram fell victim to a bug in the last 2 days which resulted in Tweet likes numbers dropping upon a refresh and Instagram followers being lost – as high as the millions for some celebrities. Twitter and Instagram both released statements addressing the bug and for most users the bug has been fixed so most accounts should be back to normal.

Other notable news mentions for this week: 

  • GrokStyle an Artificial Intelligence (AI) retail app has been purchased by Facebook. The app, which has since been taken off the App Store after the purchase, would help users’ product purchasing by placing the item in the frame of your camera view. Items like a table could be artificially placed in your living room so you could see how it would look. What Facebook has planned is unknown

  • YouTube is suffering a phishing problem where it’s everyday users are receiving direct messages from their favourite YouTube influencers. Unfortunately, this is a phishing scam which YouTube is investigating.

  • Google Maps have allowed testing of their augmented reality maps which will add a visual element to the live maps directions. Soon you’ll be able to see directional prompts via your phone camera looking at the real world – think street view mixed with maps.

  • Instagram is currently testing a web version of direct messages.

  • Facebook finally lets brands and publishers join Facebook groups which is a really great tool for companies to engage with groups with mutual interests.

  • FYI: Google now snares 1 in 5 dollars of ad spend, Facebook takes 1 in 10. Think about that

  • YouTube beats Apple and Netflix as the most trusted brand among millennials.

Links to click on:

See you next week