Tag: apps

  • This Week in Apps: Meta\’s paid verifications, Instagram\’s founders\’ new app and Spotify\’s AI DJ

    This Week in Apps is a weekly series from TechCrunch that recaps the latest news in the mobile OS, mobile applications, and the app economy. The app economy hit a snag in 2023, with consumer spending dropping for the first time by 2% to $167 billion. However, downloads are still growing, up 11% year-over-year in 2022 to 255 billion. Consumers are also spending more time in mobile apps than ever before, with hours spent in 2022 growing 9% to 4.1 trillion on Android devices alone.

    Meta announced a new feature to sell its blue verified badge to customers, taking a play from Elon Musk’s Twitter playbook. The badge comes with other features like improved impersonation protection and direct access to customer support, plus more visibility through upranked posts. It’s initially rolling out to Australia and New Zealand.

    Instagram’s co-founders unveiled their news app, Artifact, to the public, no sign-up required. It now includes a social feature, allowing users to upload their contacts to see when articles are becoming popular with people in their network. It also has a stats feature that shows users their news reading habits, plus feedback controls to better personalize the news reading experience.

    Spotify launched an AI DJ to personalize the music listening experience for its users. It will deliver a curated selection of music alongside AI-powered spoken commentary about the tracks and artists users like, using a “stunningly realistic voice” based on Spotify’s Head of Cultural Partnerships Xavier “X” Jernigan. The feature is leveraging Generative AI through the use of OpenAI technology to create the commentary.



    Source link

    Join our Facebook page From top right corner.

  • This Week in Apps: Meta\’s paid verifications, Instagram\’s founders\’ new app and Spotify\’s AI DJ

    This Week in Apps is a weekly series from TechCrunch that recaps the latest news in the mobile OS, mobile applications, and the app economy. The app economy hit a snag in 2023, with consumer spending dropping for the first time by 2% to $167 billion. However, downloads are still growing, up 11% year-over-year in 2022 to 255 billion. Consumers are also spending more time in mobile apps than ever before, with hours spent in 2022 growing 9% to 4.1 trillion on Android devices alone.

    Meta announced a new feature to sell its blue verified badge to customers, taking a play from Elon Musk’s Twitter playbook. The badge comes with other features like improved impersonation protection and direct access to customer support, plus more visibility through upranked posts. It’s initially rolling out to Australia and New Zealand.

    Instagram’s co-founders unveiled their news app, Artifact, to the public, no sign-up required. It now includes a social feature, allowing users to upload their contacts to see when articles are becoming popular with people in their network. It also has a stats feature that shows users their news reading habits, plus feedback controls to better personalize the news reading experience.

    Spotify launched an AI DJ to personalize the music listening experience for its users. It will deliver a curated selection of music alongside AI-powered spoken commentary about the tracks and artists users like, using a “stunningly realistic voice” based on Spotify’s Head of Cultural Partnerships Xavier “X” Jernigan. The feature is leveraging Generative AI through the use of OpenAI technology to create the commentary.



    Source link

    Join our Facebook page From top right corner.

  • This Week in Apps: Meta\’s paid verifications, Instagram\’s founders\’ new app and Spotify\’s AI DJ

    This Week in Apps is a weekly series from TechCrunch that recaps the latest news in the mobile OS, mobile applications, and the app economy. The app economy hit a snag in 2023, with consumer spending dropping for the first time by 2% to $167 billion. However, downloads are still growing, up 11% year-over-year in 2022 to 255 billion. Consumers are also spending more time in mobile apps than ever before, with hours spent in 2022 growing 9% to 4.1 trillion on Android devices alone.

    Meta announced a new feature to sell its blue verified badge to customers, taking a play from Elon Musk’s Twitter playbook. The badge comes with other features like improved impersonation protection and direct access to customer support, plus more visibility through upranked posts. It’s initially rolling out to Australia and New Zealand.

    Instagram’s co-founders unveiled their news app, Artifact, to the public, no sign-up required. It now includes a social feature, allowing users to upload their contacts to see when articles are becoming popular with people in their network. It also has a stats feature that shows users their news reading habits, plus feedback controls to better personalize the news reading experience.

    Spotify launched an AI DJ to personalize the music listening experience for its users. It will deliver a curated selection of music alongside AI-powered spoken commentary about the tracks and artists users like, using a “stunningly realistic voice” based on Spotify’s Head of Cultural Partnerships Xavier “X” Jernigan. The feature is leveraging Generative AI through the use of OpenAI technology to create the commentary.



    Source link

    Join our Facebook page From top right corner.

  • Popular Android apps\’ Play Store privacy labels don\’t match up to their claims, Mozilla says

    Consumers are increasingly concerned about their privacy and want to make informed decisions when downloading apps. Google\’s Data Safety labels were introduced to bring more transparency to the Android marketplace, but a new study by Mozilla suggests that the labels are misleading, with popular apps like TikTok and Twitter sharing user data with advertisers and platforms despite claiming not to do so. Google and Apple have been accused of creating app store monopolies and need to take action against apps that provide false information about data sharing. To ensure customers are given accurate information, standardized data privacy systems should be adopted across platforms.



    Source link

    Join our Facebook page
    https://www.facebook.com/groups/www.pakistanaffairs.pk

  • Popular Android apps\’ Play Store privacy labels don\’t match up to their claims, Mozilla says

    Consumers are increasingly concerned about their privacy and want to make informed decisions when downloading apps. Google\’s Data Safety labels were introduced to bring more transparency to the Android marketplace, but a new study by Mozilla suggests that the labels are misleading, with popular apps like TikTok and Twitter sharing user data with advertisers and platforms despite claiming not to do so. Google and Apple have been accused of creating app store monopolies and need to take action against apps that provide false information about data sharing. To ensure customers are given accurate information, standardized data privacy systems should be adopted across platforms.



    Source link

    Join our Facebook page
    https://www.facebook.com/groups/www.pakistanaffairs.pk

  • Popular Android apps\’ Play Store privacy labels don\’t match up to their claims, Mozilla says

    Consumers are increasingly concerned about their privacy and want to make informed decisions when downloading apps. Google\’s Data Safety labels were introduced to bring more transparency to the Android marketplace, but a new study by Mozilla suggests that the labels are misleading, with popular apps like TikTok and Twitter sharing user data with advertisers and platforms despite claiming not to do so. Google and Apple have been accused of creating app store monopolies and need to take action against apps that provide false information about data sharing. To ensure customers are given accurate information, standardized data privacy systems should be adopted across platforms.



    Source link

    Join our Facebook page
    https://www.facebook.com/groups/www.pakistanaffairs.pk

  • Popular Android apps\’ Play Store privacy labels don\’t match up to their claims, Mozilla says

    Consumers are increasingly concerned about their privacy and want to make informed decisions when downloading apps. Google\’s Data Safety labels were introduced to bring more transparency to the Android marketplace, but a new study by Mozilla suggests that the labels are misleading, with popular apps like TikTok and Twitter sharing user data with advertisers and platforms despite claiming not to do so. Google and Apple have been accused of creating app store monopolies and need to take action against apps that provide false information about data sharing. To ensure customers are given accurate information, standardized data privacy systems should be adopted across platforms.



    Source link

    Join our Facebook page
    https://www.facebook.com/groups/www.pakistanaffairs.pk

  • Metomic helps prevent employees from sharing sensitive data in SaaS apps

    [

    As more companies shift to work-from-home or hybrid environments, it becomes increasingly important to make sure that employees aren’t sharing sensitive information with others who aren’t supposed to see it. This is even more essential for companies working with contractors and outside firms.

    This has traditionally fallen under the purview of data loss prevention software (DLP), but Metomic, an early stage startup wants to update DLP in a modern SaaS context without getting in the way of people doing their jobs.

    Today, the company announced a $20 million Series A investment.

    “So with Metomic we help companies protect sensitive data in SaaS applications. So we help them make the best use of the most collaborative apps like Slack, Google Apps, JIRA and Notion without accidentally exposing sensitive information to the wrong people, both within the organization and externally,” company co-founder and CEO Rich Vibert told TechCrunch.

    “Most importantly, we do this without getting in the way of employees doing their jobs. That’s sort of our key secret sauce to this.”

    He says they look at things like access levels and data retention times to limit who can see sensitive data. “We’re not just blocking data going from one place to another like a lot of DLP tools might do. We’re really working out a way to prevent the risk that occurs when the sensitive data is shared,” he said.

    The idea is to empower employees to make sensible decisions, so they think twice about who they share data with.

    He says that what companies consider sensitive, depends on their business. “So sensitive takes so many different flavors, right? You’ve got personal data like your customers’ phone numbers, and all the way through to federal income statements and balance sheets internally. So we’ve got a whole set of off-the-shelf classifiers, we call them, which are automatically looking for these things.” The startup also lets customers define their own sensitive data types.

    The company launched in 2018 in England, and currently has 20 employees, all based in the U.K. He expects to use some of the money from the raise to open a presence in the U.S. He says that while there are more qualified people applying for jobs right now, it’s still a challenge for a startup to find quality engineers, designers and product people.

    Regardless, as he builds the company, he is working to build a diverse team. “Diversity across the board has been something that we’ve thought about from day one, and again, that hasn’t changed one bit. It’s a challenge for every startup. We’re certainly not immune to that, and it’s something that you have to really have at the forefront of your mind when hiring,” he said.

    The Series A investment was led by Evolution Equity Partners with participation from Resonance and Connect Ventures.



    Source link

    Join our Facebook page
    https://www.facebook.com/groups/www.pakistanaffairs.pk

  • Digital lending companies: SECP working with Google, Apple to remove unauthorised apps

    اسلام آباد: سیکیورٹیز اینڈ ایکسچینج کمیشن آف پاکستان (SECP) ڈیجیٹل قرض دینے والی کمپنیوں کی جانب سے پیش کردہ غیر مجاز قرضہ ایپس کو ہٹانے کے لیے گوگل اور ایپل کے ساتھ فعال تعاون کر رہا ہے۔

    ذرائع نے پیر کو یہاں بزنس ریکارڈر کو بتایا کہ جنوری 2023 کے دوران کل 58 غیر مجاز ایپس کو ہٹانے کے لیے گوگل کو اطلاع دی گئی تھی۔

    پاکستانی صارفین کے لیے پرسنل لون ایپس کی مستقبل میں لسٹنگ کے لیے ایس ای سی پی کی درخواست کے جواب میں، گوگل نے اپنی پالیسیوں پر نظرثانی شروع کر دی ہے۔ گوگل سے کہا گیا ہے کہ وہ اپنے پلیٹ فارمز کو صرف لائسنس یافتہ اداروں تک محدود رکھے، ہندوستان، فلپائن، کینیا، نائیجیریا اور دیگر ممالک کے لیے اپنی پالیسیوں کے مطابق۔

    ایس ای سی پی کے اعداد و شمار کے مطابق کمیشن کو جولائی 2021 سے جنوری 2023 تک لائسنس یافتہ ڈیجیٹل قرض دینے والی کمپنیوں کے خلاف کل 1,171 شکایات موصول ہوئی ہیں۔

    پیر کے روز مرتب کیے گئے ایس ای سی پی کے اعداد و شمار نے انکشاف کیا کہ ایس ای سی پی کو موصول ہونے والی تقریباً 99 فیصد شکایات کو حل/ بند کر دیا گیا ہے اور تمام حقیقی شکایات کی صورت میں ریلیف دیا گیا ہے۔

    ایس ای سی پی کے اعداد و شمار میں مزید کہا گیا کہ 31 اکتوبر 2022 تک، ان لائسنس یافتہ ڈیجیٹل اداروں نے 4,254,201 قرضوں میں 60.13 بلین روپے تقسیم کیے، جس کے نتیجے میں اوسطاً 14,135 روپے فی قرضہ قرضہ حاصل ہوا۔

    ذرائع نے مزید بتایا کہ جولائی 2022 سے اب تک ڈیجیٹل قرض دینے والی کمپنیوں کی غیر مجاز ایپس کے خلاف کل 108 شکایات موصول ہوئی ہیں۔ اس سلسلے میں، متعلقہ مقامی ریگولیٹرز (یعنی پاکستان ٹیلی کمیونیکیشن اتھارٹی (پی ٹی اے)، فیڈرل انویسٹی گیشن ایجنسی (ایف آئی اے) اور اسٹیٹ بینک آف پاکستان (ایس بی پی) کے ساتھ رابطے کے علاوہ، ایس ای سی پی نے گوگل اور ایپل کے ساتھ بھی رابطہ کیا ہے۔ غیر مجاز ایپس کو ہٹانا۔

    جب ایس ای سی پی کے پاس رجسٹرڈ ہونے والی قرض دینے کی درخواستوں کی تعداد میں اضافے کے بارے میں پوچھا گیا تو ذرائع نے بتایا کہ مائیکرو فنانس کمپنیوں کے طور پر لائسنس دینے کے لیے کچھ درخواستیں زیر عمل ہیں۔ مزید برآں، لائسنس یافتہ NBFCs اب صرف ایک موبائل ایپلیکیشن چلا سکتے ہیں۔ اس کے علاوہ، موبائل ایپس چلانے والی تمام NBFCs یا ایک نئی ایپ لانچ کرنے کی منصوبہ بندی کرنے والوں کو PTA سے منظور شدہ سائبر سیکیورٹی آڈٹ فرموں سے SECP کے 2022 کے سرکلر 15 کی تمام ضروریات کی تعمیل کے حوالے سے ایک سرٹیفکیٹ جمع کرانے کی ضرورت ہے۔

    لائسنس یافتہ ڈیجیٹل قرضہ دینے والی NBFCs کی طرف سے مس سیلنگ، پرائیویسی کی خلاف ورزیوں اور جبری وصولی کے ہتھکنڈوں کے بارے میں بڑھتے ہوئے خدشات کے جواب میں، SECP نے ڈیجیٹل قرض دینے کے معیارات مقرر کرنے کے لیے سرکلر 15 جاری کیا ہے جو کہ ڈیجیٹل چینلز/موبائل کے ذریعے قرض دینے کی سرگرمیاں شروع کرنے والی نان بینکنگ فنانس کمپنیوں (NBFCs) پر لاگو ہوتے ہیں۔ ایپلی کیشنز (ایپس)۔

    سرکلر کے تحت، تقاضے قرض لینے والے کو قرض کی تقسیم سے پہلے کم از کم لازمی انکشافات اور کلیدی حقیقت بیان (KFS) کی فراہمی کو متعین کرتے ہیں۔

    غیر لائسنس یافتہ ڈیجیٹل قرض دہندگان کی حوصلہ شکنی کرنے کے لیے، لائسنس یافتہ ڈیجیٹل قرض دہندہ کو اپنے قرض دینے والے پلیٹ فارم/ایپ (ایپ) پر اپنا پورا کارپوریٹ نام اور لائسنس کی حیثیت ظاہر کرنے کی ضرورت ہوگی، اور اس بات کو یقینی بنانا ہوگا کہ کوئی بھی اشتہار اور اشاعت منصفانہ ہو اور اس میں شامل نہ ہو۔ گمراہ کن معلومات.

    اس کے علاوہ، SECP نے موجودہ NBFC شکایات کے ازالے کے فریم ورک کے اوپر اور اس کے اوپر ایک جامع شکایات کے ازالے کا طریقہ کار بھی بیان کیا ہے۔

    مزید، ڈیٹا کی رازداری اور رازداری کو یقینی بنانے کے لیے، ڈیجیٹل قرض دہندگان کو قرض لینے والے کی فون بک یا رابطوں کی فہرست یا فوٹو گیلری تک رسائی کی اجازت نہیں ہوگی، چاہے قرض لینے والے نے اس سلسلے میں رضامندی دی ہو، ایس ای سی پی حکام نے مزید کہا۔

    کاپی رائٹ بزنس ریکارڈر، 2023



    Source link

  • This Week in Apps: Twitter alternative winners and losers, BeReal declines, iOS web apps to get notifications

    Welcome back to This Week in Apps, the weekly TechCrunch series that recaps the latest in mobile OS news, mobile applications and the overall app economy.

    The app economy in 2023 hit a few snags, as consumer spending last year dropped for the first time by 2% to $167 billion, according to data.ai’s “State of Mobile” report. However, downloads are continuing to grow, up 11% year-over-year in 2022 to reach 255 billion. Consumers are also spending more time in mobile apps than ever before. On Android devices alone, hours spent in 2022 grew 9%, reaching 4.1 trillion.

    This Week in Apps offers a way to keep up with this fast-moving industry in one place with the latest from the world of apps, including news, updates, startup fundings, mergers and acquisitions, and much more.

    Do you want This Week in Apps in your inbox every Saturday? Sign up here: techcrunch.com/newsletters

    This week’s theme seems to be a decline in growth for some much-buzzed-about apps, including a group of Twitter alternatives, AI photo apps and even the BeReal. Let’s dive in.

    How are the Twitter alternatives faring now?

    \"Concept

    Image Credits: Bryce Durbin / TechCrunch

    Was there a Twitter exodus or just a Twitter pause? Did it even matter? This week, TechCrunch dug into new data in order to take a look at how a range of “Twitter alternatives” have fared in the months following Elon Musk’s acquisition of the popular microblogging network, now that the burst of new installs driven by his takeover has tapered off. The data indicates that many apps continue to grow to a lesser degree while other apps have seen growth decline. But it also shows that Twitter itself was never significantly impacted, at least in terms of new app installs.

    Of course, app installs is only one window into this data. But private companies don’t often share figures related to active usage, so tracking consumer demand through app downloads is one way to determine market interest. What’s interesting here is that we found Twitter installs have trended back up after earlier declines. Downloads grew from 16.6 million installs in October to 18.6 million in November as Musk took over, then dropped in December to 16.9 million. Last month, they again jumped back to 18.6 million installs, giving Twitter the same 24.8% growth rate it had in November.

    Meanwhile, other Twitter alternatives have seen drop-offs in growth. While our report examined Reddit and Discord, neither of these seem to have had their fortunes directly tied to Twitter’s ups and downs, as it turned out. Other alternatives like Hive, GETTR and Tribel have seen their growth slow. Tribel, for instance, only added 1,100 new downloads in January. Tumblr certainly had a November bump driven by the Twitter exodus as well but is still up slightly higher in December (510,000 installs) and January (480,000) compared with September and October.

    Mastodon’s installs were down quite a bit from November’s peak of 2.9 million monthly downloads. It still managed to gain 180,000 new installs in January — that’s 169,000 more installs than it had in September 2022. So it’s not in decline yet.

    If anything, the biggest boost to the wider Twitter alternative app ecosystem hinges on new user awareness of the Fediverse and Mastodon. Even if the Mastodon app itself hasn’t transformed into a dominant force, it’s early days. Fediverse growth could ultimately be a trend that plays out over a longer period of time than just a few months post-Twitter acquisition, as more apps join the decentralization movement.

    Web apps will get to act more like real apps on iPhone

    One of the more notable changes coming out of the iOS 16.4 beta is the news that Apple will now allow mobile web applications to function more like native applications by providing them access to iOS’s push notification system. That means web apps that get added to a user’s Home Screen can request permission to receive push notifications if the user opts in — for instance by tapping on a subscribe button to receive updates, as a post on the WebKit blog explains. This would then allow the end user to manage their push notifications for the app in their Settings, just as they would for any other native iOS or iPadOS app.

    The notifications would work just like native notifications, too, appearing in all areas where you’d expect to see them, like the Notification Center, Lock Screen and on a paired Apple Watch. The web apps’ icon can also display a badge with a badge count and will work with Focus Modes. What’s more, users can even add multiple versions of the same web app to their Home Screen, each with their own settings — something that can be useful for separating work and personal use of some apps or multiple accounts, the post notes.

    Push notifications tied to web browsers is not new technology, but it’s interesting to see Apple embrace the feature now that it’s under pressure to demonstrate that it’s not engaging in anti-competitive behavior. With this change, the company can point to web apps as an alternative to its App Store, claiming they have the same ability to target and reach iPhone and iPad users as native apps do.

    Are we still Being Real?

    \"\"

    Is the shine wearing off BeReal? Interesting data out this week from Apptopia (via Business of Apps) indicates that BeReal may have already peaked. The app is estimated to have hit 20 million daily active users in October 2022, but that’s since dropped to 10.4 million. In addition, its monthly downloads fell from 12 million in September 2022 to 3.3 million in January, the report noted, citing data from AppMagic.

    TechCrunch previously reported there were indications that BeReal wasn’t gaining enough ground to maintain its high ranks after going viral. The app in October was said to be seeing only 9% of its Android users open it daily. The app demands little of its users’ time — its push notification prompts a one-time use per day, and the majority weren’t even giving it that. Some may have felt that data was unfair or unhelpful, particularly given BeReal’s traction with U.S. teens and young adults, most of whom are on iPhone. But in combination with the new data, it’s perhaps more of a concern.

    The company has faced challenges as its once-daily notification gimmick has been ripped off by Instagram, Snapchat and BeReal. Meanwhile, the app itself has remained unchanged. There’s nothing to addict or re-engage users — which is kind of the point. The founders’ goal is to create a new type of social experience that doesn’t demand huge chunks of time and strives for authenticity. But they also haven’t laid out a vision for its future, despite a $60 million Series B — a number that suggests a grand plan should be in store or at least monetization. It’s not a lifestyle business, after all. It’s unclear where BeReal is going next at this point.

    The AI photo app trend has fizzled

    Speaking of apps in decline, that’s where the AI photo app trend has ended up.

    Over the past several months, AI-powered photo apps had been going viral on the App Store as consumers explored AI-powered experiences like Lensa AI’s “magic avatars” feature and other apps promising to turn text into images using AI tech. But new data indicates consumer interest in AI photo apps has fallen as quickly as it rose.

    At their height of popularity, the top AI photo apps topped 4.3 million daily downloads and ~$1.8 million per day in consumer spending via in-app purchases. As of this past week, the same group of apps saw only around 952,000 combined downloads and around $507,000 in consumer spending, and the numbers continue to fall.

    Consumers seemed to respond to the ethical concerns being raised around the apps. As TechCrunch had reported at the time, some people began to leave comments on AI photos and profile pictures posted on social media to tell people not to use an app that steals from artists. This backlash likely quelled some of the demand for AI art. After all, it’s not much fun to use an AI pic for your profile if you’re essentially being accused of theft when doing so.

    Apple

    • Apple released iOS 16.3.1, iPadOS 16.3.1 and macOS Ventura 13.2.1 to patch a WebKit vulnerability. On its security update page, Apple wrote that it “is aware of a report that this issue may have been actively exploited.
    • Apple released iOS 16.4’s first beta, which brings a number of new features, including 31 new emojis like the pink heart and shaking face; the ability for web apps on iPhone and iPad to access push notifications and display badges; support for rich content previews of Mastodon posts in iMessage; and new features for Apple Podcasts including a new “Channels” section and CarPlay updates.
    • The first macOS Ventura 13.3 beta was released as well, along with tvOS 16.4 and watchOS 9.4.
    • Apple is making it easier for registered developers to install iOS betas by allowing them to register their accounts in order to be opted into a new option that lets them install betas directly from Software Updates. The system will replace the profiles previously required. But this change means only registered developers can install the developer beta — those who aren’t registered can only install the public beta instead.
    • Apple officially released iOS 16 adoption figures, demonstrating it’s higher than iOS 15 with 81% of all iPhones from 2019 and on running the newest software. In addition, 72% of all iPhones are running iOS 16. Not as many iPads have updated, though, as only 50% of all iPads are running iPadOS 16, while 53% of those introduced in the last four years are.

    Google/Android

    • Google said a small percentage of Android 13 devices will be enrolled in the beta trials of its new privacy sandbox, an interest-based ad-targeting system. Initial ad partners for the trial include TechCrunch’s parent Yahoo, mobile games maker Rovio, mobility firm Wolt, cross-platform games engine Unity and mobile marketing platforms AppsFlyer, InMobi Exchange and Adjust.
    • Google announced that Play Games Services (PGS) is rolling out next-generation Player IDs. With this change, says Google, “the first time a user plays a game, they will always be assigned a unique next-generation Player ID that will remain consistent regardless of the device or platform a user plays a game on, but which will vary from game to game.”
    • Samsung’s Galaxy S23 Android phone’s new Message Guard feature is said to prevent zero-click exploits via messaging apps.

    Social

    • At its investor day, Snap announced that Snapchat now has 750 million+ monthly active users, up 25% from April 2022 and noted 150 million of those users are in North America. Among a bevy of metrics it shared, it also said its Snapchat+ $3.99/month subscription now has 2.5 million subscribers. The company said it would focus more on its Direct Response ads business going forward, invest in AR and continue M&A. It spoke little about its Spectacles and declined to answer a question on how the latest in AI would impact its business.
    • TikTok may be developing a paywalled product where creators could charge $1 or more for videos. It’s also said to be working on a revamped Creator Fund which would pay creators with 100,000+ followers.
    • Popular Mastodon client Ivory got something Twitter users waited eons for: an edit button.
    • Twitter began allowing cannabis ads on its platform in U.S. states where it’s legal. The ads will promote brands and offer info but not facilitate direct sales. The move comes after many larger Twitter advertisers put their campaigns on pause, forcing Twitter to recoup its business elsewhere.
    • Instagram launched Instagram Channels, a broadcast chat feature that allows creators to share public, one-to-many messages with fans and followers. The feature supports both text and images and is initially available to creators in the U.S.
    • TikTok added new dedicated feeds alongside its For You and Following feeds that let users browse videos by categories like  “Sports,” “Fashion,” “Gaming” and “Food.”

    AR

    \"Snap

    Image Credits: Snap

    • Snapchat said it’s adding ray tracing support to its AR Lens Studio for developers globally. The technical capability allows for realistic renderings of light and shine on AR artifacts. Snap is partnering with Tiffany & Co. to let users try on and purchase bracelets using AR using this new feature.

    Commerce

    • Following Facebook, Instagram will shut down its live shopping feature on March 16, 2023 to instead put its focus on ads that allow users to discover businesses and Shops on the app. With the change, Instagram users will no longer be able to tag products while livestreaming — a capability that has been broadly available to U.S. businesses and creators since 2020.
    • Meanwhile, TikTok has more brands testing out its own in-app commerce features with TikTok Shop in the U.S. While the tests have been underway since November, TikTok confirmed more companies like PacSun, Revolve and Willow Boutique, as well as beauty brand KimChi Chic, are now on board, follow an Ad Age report.

    Media and Entertainment

    • Big news in the world of YouTube as Susan Wojcicki announced she’s stepping down as YouTube CEO after nine years. The exec, Google’s 16th employee, has worked at the company for nearly 25 years, having led YouTube through the launch of new products like YouTube Premium YouTube TV, and other creator products and services, as well as through challenges around moderation issues and increased lawmaker scrutiny of Big Tech.
    • Spotify was caught in a backlash after audiobook narrators discovered a clause that let Apple use audiobooks from Findaway Voices to train its synthetic voices. Spotify acquired Findaway in June 2022. Apple launched audiobooks narrated by synthetic voices just last month.
    • TikTok is launching TikTok Trivia, a livestream trivia quiz game that has a $500,000 prize pool. The game will be hosted daily between February 22 and 26 and will be open to users in the U.S. aged 18 or older. During the first three days, TikTok Trivia will have two live sessions per day that are each an hour long. The first session will begin at 8 p.m. ET, and will have 12 questions. Winners split a $30,000 reward. The second session is at 9 p.m. ET., and winners split a $70,000 reward. After completing “survival rounds” the last group standing will split a $100,000 reward.

    Gaming

    • China’s games industry shrank for the first time in years, according to the country’s top gaming industry association. The market grossed 265.9 billion yuan ($39 billion) from video gaming sales in 2022, a 10.33% drop year-over-year. The decline was due to a number of factors, including its video game crackdowns, pause on issuing permits and the now lengthier process to become compliant.
    • The Google Home app can now control the Xbox Series S or Series X, allowing the app to serve as a touch remote for the console.
    • The Information reported on how Amazon’s Luna gaming service is losing steam, noting that its library has shrunk by about 30% since October, and dozens more titles were on track to exit in the weeks ahead.
    • Roblox is testing a tool that lets players use natural language to create or change the appearance of their avatars and environment.

    Dating

    • Match-owned dating app Hinge rolled out its new $50/month subscription called HingeX, which offers continually boosted profiles, getting likes seen first, enhanced recommendations and all the other perks of the next tier down, Hinge+ (previously Hinge Preferred).
    • Relationship app Flamme, previously known as Sparks, introduced a new AI-powered Ask Me Anything tool which caters to couples looking to introduce new and fun experiences to their lives, and also improve communication in their relationship.
    • TechCrunch rounded up a new group of dating app startups, CandidDitto and IRLY, that are incorporating video in different ways, including for profiles, calls and even as a sort of TikTok for dating.
    • Dating app installs have fallen, Sensor Tower reported around Valentine’s Day. Download levels returned to those seen in 2019 and 2021, and then dropped further in 2022, making last year the lowest number of installs over the past four years, even as revenues grew, peaking at $374 million in gross revenue in Q1 2022. Social discovery apps, however, have been a more dynamic group with most of the top 10 swapping places from 2021-2022.
    \"\"

    Image Credits: Sensor Tower

    Etc.

    • Tile introduced a new anti-theft mode that requires biometric data, a government ID and new Terms of Service that allow the company to share users’ personal info with law enforcement. The changes are meant to serve as a deterrent to the criminal use of trackers for things like stalking and theft. But the company says it won’t wait for a subpoena to turn over data to police — which may deter consumer adoption too.
    • Two-year-old crypto app Bakkt is shutting down on March 16. The company had partnered with Starbucks, Best Buy and Choice Hotels on its efforts to tie crypto with digital assets, like gift cards, loyalty points and airline miles.
    • Google Photos’ app began crashing after the release of iOS 16.3.1, requiring a quick update to fix.
    • Google rolled out new features including partial custom tabs and auto-filling passwords to make in-app browsing on Android a better experience.
    • Reddit is reportedly looking to IPO later this year, The Information said, but it will likely be worth less than the $15 billion it had hoped for when it originally filed in Dec. 2021.
    • Firefox for Android gained an extension that allows users to listen to articles read aloud, and others for hiding email addresses and removing tracking elements before sharing a URL.
    • The Wall Street Journal offered an update on the Department of Justice’s antitrust investigation against Apple, noting the government had now added more litigators to the investigation and increased its consultations with companies related to issues at hand in recent months.
    • The Washington Post featured an interview with TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew who’s trying to convince U.S. lawmakers that TikTok is not a national security threat.
    • Singapore-based neobank Aspire raised $100 million in Series C funding from investors including Lightspeed, Sequoia Capital SEA, PayPal, Tencent, LGT Capital Partners, and others. Over the past 12 months, the startup tripled its annualized TPV to $12 billion and now reaches over 15,000 businesses in Southeast Asia.
    • Triller closed on its acquisition of influencer marketing firm Julius for an undisclosed sum. New York-based Julius had raised a total of $23.8 million. It’s unclear how Triller has the funds after dealing with multiple lawsuits from UMG, Sony Music and Verzuz in recent months.

    \"\"





    Source link