REUTERS - Snapchat shares plunged ~40% and sparked a sector-wide selloff after a profit warning from the parent signaled tough times ahead for the once-booming digital ad industry. The company was on track to lose $15B in market capitalization, while shares of major online advertisers and social-media firms were set to lose a combine $200B in value from the rout. Snap shares closed at $12.79, lower than their 2017 IPO price of $17.
Snapchat Stocks Lose Billions After Its Parent Warning
|
These Investors Are Putting $1B Into Trump Media
NEW YORK TIMES - When former President Donald J. Trump's fledgling social media company and its merger partner announced in December that they had secured $B in additional private funds for the deal. A draft document contains the names of dozens of hedge funds and others behind the investment. The investors are mostly a mix of small to midsize hedge funds based in the US and Canada, according to the document.
|
Gen Z Social App Yubo Rolls out Age Estimating' Technology
TECH CRUNCH - Yubo, a social livestreaming app popular with Gen Zs, is adopting a new age verification technique that uses live image capture technology to identify minors using its app, in order to keep them separated from adult users. Founded in 2015, Yubo users hang out in livestreaming rooms where they can socialize, play games and make new friends. The company today has seen 60M sign-ups, which is up from the 40M it reported in 2020 when it closed on its $47.5M Series C funding round; 99% of them are Gen Z users, ages 13 to 25. Yubo is seeing increasing revenue via its à la carte premium features and subscriptions, which grew from €7M in 2019 to now €25M as of last year.
by Sarah Perez
See full article at Tech Crunch
This post also appears on OnlinePersonalsWatch
|
Uplive Is Discussing a Deal With E.Merge Technology Acquisition
SPAC ALPHA - Asia Innovations Group Ltd., the startup that operates social platform Uplive, is in talks to go public through a merger with E.Merge Technology Acquisition Corp. Any transaction is set to value the combined company at more than $2B. E.Merge is poised to begin formally canvassing PIPE, investors, for capital to support the transaction. Its company's revenue more than doubled in 2021 to ~$300M.
|
Reddit App Usage Soars 25% YoY
TRADING PLATFORMS - Reddit experienced a 25% surge in use. This is the highest number of DAUs for its smartphone app at any point in its history. Reddit is now working on expanding its feature set by taking social audio and snippet ideas from Clubhouse and TikTok.
by Edith Muthoni
See full article at Trading Platforms
|
Niantic Releases Lightship AR Platform and Social Network
THE VERGE - Niantic, the maker of Pokémon Go, releases location mapping software for AR, which it calls the Visual Positioning System, or VPS in a nod to GPS. The technology makes it so that AR experiences can be grounded to a physical location. Niantic also releases Campfire, a location-based social network that integrates with its games and future apps that use Lightship. Campfire taps Niantic accounts' list of friends to show their locations on a map if they opt in, along with nearby in-game experiences. It claims to have ~20K VPS-activated locations around the world.
|
Twitter Rebrands Its Media Website to Focus on Creators With 'Create' Hub
TECH CRUNCH - Twitter has rebranded its Twitter Media website to "Twitter Create." The website is a new hub for creators to access resources, product information and tips for getting the most out of Twitter. With this new rebrand, the company says it wants to make it easier for creators to understand how they can use Twitter's creator products and connect with other creators.
|
Candor Raises $5M to Build the Next Generation
FORBES - Candor, a professional network that encourages people to share how they work, was founded by Kelsey Bishop. The New York City-based startup has raised a $5M seed round. Candor is focused on helping people in early-stage startups. When users sign up for Candor, it'll guide them through a self-assessment process to reflect on the ideal work style. Then, users can invite people to contribute to their profile, creating a living document of how they do their best work.
|
TikTok to Launch LIVE Creator Subscriptions This Week
TECH CRUNCH - TikTok will launch TikTok LIVE subscriptions, a new program that will allow creators to generate recurring revenue via payments from their top fans. Similar to the offerings from rival streaming sites, the new service will offer subscribers a range of perks including subscriber-only chat, custom emotes, badges, and more. The program will launch into beta testing on May 26, initially with a select number of creators who have been invited to participate.
|
Instagram Rolls out New Typeface, Logo, and More in 'Visual Refresh'
TECH CRUNCH - Instagram is rolling out a "visual refresh" for its branding. The company is introducing a slightly-tweaked brighter new logo, typeface, and full-screen marketing layouts. The new typeface is called "Instagram Sans" and was inspired by Instagram's logo. As for the new logo, the gradient is now a bit more vibrant to make it feel "illuminated and alive." The launch of the full-screen marketing layouts comes as Instagram has been testing a TikTok-like full-screen home feed.
|