TECH CRUNCH - June 22 - TikTok launches its Jump program, which expands the app's potential for third-party integrations. TikTok began beta-testing this feature in February with Whisk, a recipe-sharing app, though only select creators could use the feature. Now, Jump will start rolling out to all users with an expanded slate of partners. Third-party providers can only build Jumps after being approved through an application process.
TikTok Launches Jump, a Third-party Integration Tool
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Social Media Nasza Klasa to Close After 15 Years
THE FIRST NEWS - June 22 - Poland's precursor to Facebook and the website that got Poland online, Nasza Klasa (changed to NK.pl in 2010), is to close down for good on July 27th. The website had ~40M users and was used by over 50% of Poland's internet users. Founded and launched by four computer science students from the University of Wrocław, Maciej Popowicz, Paweł Olchawa, Michał Bartoszkiewicz, and Łukasz Adziński, Nasza Klasa went live on 11th November 2006.
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Facebook Launches Live Audio Rooms in the US
SUNDAY VISION - June 22 - Facebook launched its new chatting social network Live Audio Rooms on a limited and US-only basis. The organization of Live Audio Rooms is currently restricted to some public figures in the United States and some groups of particular interest in the social network. It also has direct access to podcasts, which can be listened to through a player already built into the app. In addition, it will allow users to turn voice chat into a podcast.
by Leland Griffith
See full article at Sunday Vision
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TikTok Emerges as a Top Source for New Music Discovery
AFP - June 22 - 80% of TikTok users use the platform to discover new music. It is largely thanks to the "For you" feed, where 56% of these discoveries are made directly through the algorithm, thus emphasizing its importance even more. TikTok claims that 4 out of 10 users have discovered new artists through the app.
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The Way We Like to Do Things at VSN.ist - All Credit to Journalists
VSN - June 22 - We believe it's not ok to re-write content from journalists. They deserve full credit. This is why we merely illuminate content, and do short culling executive summaries and then point you to their bio and content.
We link to the journalists profile, along with other articles on the company featured in the article, and we drive you, our executive readers, to the original article. It doesn't matter if you're finding the summary in your email, or social media, we're not trying to land you back at our website so you can view ads. We're sending you to the originating article so you can view their ads, or better, subscribe to their outlet. We illuminate the top news. The news you can use to make smarter and more informed decisions...and we make sure we give full credit and recognition to the amazing journalists that work so hard (on ever-tighter deadlines and budgets) to research and write the news.
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Community Platform Kutumb Raises $26M in Series A Round
YOUR STORY - June 21 - Bangalore-based startup Kutumb, a social community app platform focused on Bharat, has raised $26M in a Series A round led by Tiger Global. Kutumb was part of the fourth cohort of Sequoia's accelerator program Surge.
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Twine Raises $3.3M to Add Networking Features to Virtual Events
TECH CRUNCH - June 21 - Twine, a video chat startup that launched amid the pandemic as a sort of "Zoom for meeting new people," shifted its focus to online events and, as a result, has now closed on $3.3M in seed funding. With the funding, twine is hiring in sales and customer success, working on accessibility improvements, and expanding its platform. To date, twine has raised $4.7M.
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Spotify Acquires Podz, a Podcast Discovery Platform
TECH CRUNCH - June 21 - Spotify acquires Podz, a startup that's trying to solve the problem of podcast discovery. Podz developed what it called "the first audio newsfeed," presenting users with 60-second clips from various shows. Podz chooses a clip using its machine learning model trained on ~100K hours of audio in consultation with journalists and audio editors. Before its acquisition by Spotify, Podz raised $2.5M in pre-seed funding.
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Minds, Decentralized and Encrypted Crypto Social Network Raises $10M
VENTURE BEAT - June 18 - Minds, the crypto social network with a focus on encryption and privacy, has raised $10M from the tech freedom organization Futo. Owned by Yahoo Games founder and WhatsApp seed investor Eron Wolf, Futo is dedicated to tech and policies that control computers back to the people. Minds targets user privacy, and it is based on open source technology. It has grown to ~14M since it received a funding round in October 2018.
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Nextdoor IPO: Information to Know Before Investing
INVESTMENT U - June 18 - The Nextdoor IPO is coming sometime this year. Nextdoor is a neighborhood-based social networking platform. The company is privately held and based in San Francisco. Nextdoor is currently available in ~300K neighborhoods across 11 countries. Users can exchange information, recommendations, and advice with others in their neighborhood. Nextdoor's total number of active users increased more than 80% MoM. The company has raised ~$450M from investors. Nextdoor was worth ~$2.2B after the company's last round of funding in Sep 2019. The company is rumored to seek a $4-5B valuation when going public. But this hasn't been officially confirmed.
by Aimee Bohn
See full article at Investment U
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ByteDance Reports S$45B Net Loss for 2020
THE BORNEO POST - June 18 - ByteDance recorded a $45B net loss last year, mainly due to accounting adjustments. ByteDance also said that it suffered an operating loss of $2.1B over 2020, partly attributed to higher costs for employee compensation payments, according to the sources close to the matter. ByteDance also reported a double rise in the revenue to $34.3B over the last year, adding that some 1.9B users were active on all of its platforms.
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Instagram's TikTok Rival, Reels, Rolls out Ads Worldwide
TECH CRUNCH - June 18 - Instagram Reels lanches ads to businesses and advertisers worldwide. The ads will be up to 30 seconds in length, like Reels themselves, and vertical in format, similar to ads found in Instagram Stories. Also, like Reels, the new ads will loop, and people will like, comment on, and save them, the same as other Reels videos. The launch of Instagram Reels ads follows news of TikTok's climbing ad prices.
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Spotify Launches Its Clubhouse Rival, Spotify Greenroom
TECH CRUNCH - June 17 - Spotify launched Spotify Greenroom, a new mobile app that allows Spotify users worldwide to join or host live audio rooms and optionally turn those conversations into podcasts. The Spotify Greenroom app itself is based on Locker Room's existing code. Current Locker Room users will see their app update to become the rebranded and redesigned Greenroom experience.
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TikTok Introduces #CreativityForGood to Highlight the Bright Side
DIGITAL INFORMATION WORLD - June 17 - TikTok is now promoting itself by reportedly 'celebrating' Cannes Lions through a quite creative approach. The platform has launched a campaign going by the name of 'CreativityForGood' that aims to call attention to Tiktokers and the platform's creativity. To join the campaign, users need to create a video that focuses on one of the 4 non-profiting campaigns supporting the project or another such passionate cause. TikTok also claims to assist these non-profit organizations by providing a hefty donation of $50K.
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Swell: An Asynchronous Social Audio Platform for Meaningful Discussions
HINDUSTAN TIMES - June 17 - Swell is the first asynchronous social audio platform in India. This is different from ephemeral voice-based apps like Clubhouse because it offers users the ability to check their app whenever they want, instead of at a scheduled time. Users on Swell can upload voice posts of up to five minutes in length, along with links and images. The service also does not have any ads. It says it will generate revenue from premium tools and Swellcasts (a short podcast or a structured audio conversation). It plans to deal with the competition as well as for monetization.
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