TECH CRUNCH - Apr 30 - Mobile social networking app for women, Peanut, integrates audio into its product following the success of Clubhouse. It sees its voice chat feature, which it's calling "Pods," as a way women on its app can make better connections in a more supportive, safer environment than other platforms may provide. Though there are similarities with Clubhouse in its design, what Peanut believes will differentiate its audio experience from the rest of the pack is where these conversations are taking place - on a network designed for women built with safety and trust in mind.
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Social Networking App for Women, Peanut, Adds Live Audio Rooms
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TikTok Plans Irish 'Transparency and Accountability Centre'
INDEPENDENT - Apr 30 - TikTok is to open a 'European Transparency and Accountability Centre' in Ireland. The app, which has established its European regulatory headquarters in Ireland, says that it is doing this to give policymakers a closer look at how TikTok makes wide-ranging decisions around safety, data, and privacy. It comes ahead of the appointment of Ireland's new Online Safety Commissioner, which will have substantial powers to fine or sanction TikTok and other big tech firms around content and safety issues.
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Douyin Gets WeChat-style Friend-finding Function in Social Networking Push
SCMP - Apr 30 - Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok, launched a location-based social feature on Monday that allows users to find people nearby by shaking their phones, replicating a feature almost identical to one that has long existed in Tencent Holdings' WeChat in a move widely seen as a challenge to the latter's dominance in social networking. To encourage people to try the new feature, Douyin introduced a 5-day campaign allowing users to win prizes such as KFC coupons after shaking their phones and befriending others.
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Anti-Facebook MeWe Continues Its User Growth Surge
ZDNET - Apr 30 - MeWe increases its user base as people turn away from ad-riddled social media platforms. MeWe says it does not control users' newsfeed or fill their feed with third-party ads or content and has grown almost 18M members. The platform has raised ~$23M from high-net-worth investors. MeWe's membership grew by 36% in Q1 2021 and by an average of 173% per year for the last 3 years. 50% of its traffic is outside of North America. MeWe is available in 20 languages and was recently the #1 downloaded social app in Hong Kong.
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Nextdoor App Reaching out to Potential Users by Mail
CTV NEWS - Apr 30 - Nextdoor is a hyper-local private social media that features different sub-regions within cities across the world as a way to share information and stay up to date with what's happening on their block. Based in the U.S., the company is now using mail-outs in a standard form from existing local users to get people to join the community. "If you get a letter in the mail, don't be scared, it's just me," says Nancy Lefebvre, a member of the East-Windsor group who joined the app last year.
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DCT Abu Dhabi Partners With TikTok for Destination Promotion
TRADE ARABIA - Apr 30 - The Department of Culture and Tourism - Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) partners with TikTok to showcase Abu Dhabi in a new and unique way. A newly launched channel - Visit Abu Dhabi - aims to engage content creators to showcase the best of the emirate with creativity and authenticity, reaching wider audiences worldwide and inspiring viewers to consider Abu Dhabi as part of their future travel plans.
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Telegram Adds Group Video Calls Next Month
TECH CRUNCH - Apr 29 - Group video calls will be coming to Telegram next month with what's being touted as a fully-featured implementation, including support for web-based videoconferencing. "Screen sharing, encryption, noise-canceling, desktop and tablet support - everything you can expect from a modern video conferencing tool, but with Telegram-level UI, speed, and encryption." Founder Pavel Durov announced a (text) message posted to his official Telegram channel.
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Parler Risks Charges of Selling out With Apple Return
THE HILL - Apr 29 - Parler is returning to Apple's App Store after making some changes demanded by the company. Still, the platform faces accusations of selling out to Big Tech and risks losing some of its key user bases. Parler said that some posts that will be prohibited in the App Store version of Parler would remain visible on the web-based version of Parler that has relaunched after Amazon's web hosting service pulled it in January.
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Cyworld Z Readies for Restart With Username Search and Virtual Cash Refund
PULSE NEWS - Apr 27 - Cyworld Z Co, the new owner of Cyworld (a top social media site in Korea in the early 2000s), will assist past users of once-dominant pioneering social networking sites to find their old user IDs and redeem their digital token called Dotori. Cyworld had 11M users and Dotori balance worth $3.4M when it shut down service in Oct 2019.
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TikTok Launches Music Station on iHeartRadio, TikTok Trending
THE MUSIC NETWORK - Apr 27 - TikTok is ramping up its musical push, launching a pop-up music station on the Australian Radio Network's (ARN) iHeartRadio. TikTok trending will showcase the music and artists taking off on the platform and the tracks experiencing a revival due to viral trends or rediscovery from different generations. The station will feature creators as hosts. There will also be a rotating lineup of guest hosts, including popular creators, local artists, and international stars. The companion station runs for three months.
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Clubhouse's First Sports Deal Lets User Tune Into NFL Draft Week
ENGADGET - Apr 27 - Clubhouse has struck its first major sports league deal, giving users access to NFL Draft Week. Users can join a collection of official audio chat rooms to follow the live draft picks and listen to discussions with athletes, coaches, and network luminaries. Users will sometimes be invited to the "stage" to ask questions or share their responses to the draft.
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In the New 3D Avatar AlterMe, Women Prove to Be More Creative
TECHGROUND.CO.UK - Apr 27 - AlterMe is a social community where users create 3D avatars from selfie and then tailor them to express themselves and show their interests. 67% of AlterMe users are female. They also spend double the average amount of time on refining their 3D personas.
by Daniel Tannenbaum
See full article at TechGround.co.uk
This post also appears on OnlinePersonalsWatch
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Geoff Cook - Live Streaming Video Adds Social Entertainment to Online Dating
LTR - Apr 26 - Technological innovations like live streaming video and AI will continue to improve user engagement and drive growth in the online dating industry, according to Geoff Cook, CEO of The Meet Group and General Manager Video for ParshipMeet Group. These technologies have enabled The Meet Group to significantly increase the average lifetime of its users as well as their willingness to spend. The company's live video network hosts 8.9 million viewers per month and has experienced 185% YoY growth. Through its vPaaS SDK, or video platform as a service, these positive network effects can be integrated into other dating apps. Geoff Cook discusses the benefits of broadcast video for dating apps in the latest video in the LTR Conference series.
LTR stands for Love, Technology, Relationships and the online conference covers the Internet dating and Online Social Communities space. It is for members of IDEA and OSCA.
The February LTR was kindly sponsored by RealMe, vPaaS by The Meet Group, Utopia Analytics, Tawkify, Real Gifts & Courtland Brooks.
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Instagram Brings Ads to Reels
IANS - Apr 26 - Instagram Reels is bringing ads to Reels in few countries, including India. The full-screen ads will be arriving first in India, Germany, Brazil, and Australia before landing in more countries in the coming months. The spots are similar to Instagram's ads for Stories. Ads can run up to 30 seconds, and users can interact with them the way they would with organic posts (including skipping them altogether). Ads can also include "shop now" buttons.
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A Clubhouse Bug Let People Lurk in Rooms Invisibly
ARS TECHNICA - Apr 26 - A bug is discovered in Clubhouse, which could have allowed an attacker to lurk and listen in a Clubhouse room undetected or verbally disrupt a discussion beyond a moderator's control. Moderators would be unable to mute "ghosts" hiding in and disrupting rooms. Clubhouse was not immediately responsive, and it took a few weeks to resolve the issue fully.
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