PROTOCOL - Neeraj Arora and Michael Donohue, who served as WhatsApp's CBO and engineering director, respectively, started HalloApp in late 2019, dubbing it the "first real-relationship network." HalloApp has no ads. It also has no algorithmic feed and doesn't allow group chats with more than 50 people. The app only allows users to connect with users who are stored in their phone's contacts. Every message sent is encrypted. Launched in Nov 2020, the app has been downloaded 225K times across iOS and Android.
HalloApp, Privacy-focused Ad-free Social Network
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The Company Buying Truth Social Warned Investors About Trump's Past Business Failures
BUSINESS INSIDER - The company buying Trump's social network Truth Social warned investors about his past business failures. In a filing, Digital World noted the bankruptcy of Trump Taj Mahal and failure of Trump Vodka. The blank-check firm is engineering a merger with TMTG, the company that owns Truth Social.
by Isobel Asher Hamilton
See full article at Business Insider
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Elon Musk Says Twitter Deal 'Cannot Move Forward' Until He Has Clarity on Fake Account Numbers
CNBC - Elon Musk said his $44 billion purchase of Twitter will not move ahead until he has more clarity on how many accounts are fake. Twitter estimated in a filing earlier this month that fewer than 5% of its monetizable daily active users during Q1 were fake or spam accounts. But Musk estimates that ~20% of the accounts on Twitter are fake or spam accounts and he's concerned that the number could be even higher.
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Meta Begins Testing Optional End-to-end Encryption in Quest's VR Messenger App
TECH CRUNCH - Meta is testing end-to-end encryption in Quest's VR Messenger app. With the rollout of this test, the company is launching optional end-to-end encryption for Messenger's one-on-one messages and calls in VR. The test is rolling out as part of the new v40 software update. With v40, users are also able to make payments with a 3DS-enabled credit card in VR, including the 3DS authorization step.
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Can Uable Stand out as a Teen Social Networking App?
FORBES INDIA - Uable, a teenage social networking app, was born of the belief and insight that teenagers are capable of doing anything, and was launched in Sept 2021. Co-founded by Saurabh Saxena and Vasavi Kandula, Uable is an online platform where teenagers can engage with each other, create content, learn, find internships, play games, and shop, among other things. Uable provides 20 clubs, or virtual communities, which they can join, depending on their interests. With 250K users and 500K downloads, Uable provides opportunities for teens to take on challenges, win reward points in terms of 'U-coins' and spend them at the 'U-store', an in-app store with ~200 products from brands.
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SpiritualTech Startup Rgyan Raises $200K in Seed Funding
FREE PRESS JOURNAL - Rgyan, an online spiritual community platform, had recently raised $200K in Seed funding from angel investors. Spirituality, an inseparable part of millions of people worldwide, helps in increasing a sense of peace and balance in the physical, mental, and emotional aspects of their lives. Rgyan which was started in 2018 as a blogging/classified platform has now ~3K articles listed through its website with 3-4M annual active users.
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Twitter CEO and Elon Musk Clash Over Bot-battling Metrics
TECH CRUNCH - Twitter CEO, Parag Agrawal, in a thread pointed out that spam and bots are serious problems that all social media platforms contend with, and more importantly they are an evolving and "dynamic." The problem of figuring out whether an account is automated, semi-human, benign, violating, etc is non-trivial yet millions of accounts are actioned in some way, and as on other platforms, usually, before they even do anything. Elon Musk responded with a poo emoji.
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TuneCore Partners With 'Disruptive Music Discovery App' Ayoba
MUSIC IN AFRICA - Global music distributor TuneCore partners with Ayoba, a South Africa-based social networking app that provides free music, games, news, entertainment, instant messaging, voice and video calling, and other content. The deal could benefit TuneCore musicians whose music is distributed to Ayoba. The digital distributor says it takes ~48 hours for music to go live on Ayoba. The platform then pays out monthly after the typical initial two-month reporting delay with new releases. TuneCore surpassed $2.5B in royalty payouts to artists since 2006. The distributor now operates in 14 countries across 4 continents, and its artists have racked up ~500B streams and 700M downloads.
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Research Asserts Youtube's Bond With Viewers Is Tighter Than Other Media
DEADLINE - As YouTube took its first step onto turf long controlled by television - upfronts week in New York - it released new research affirming its connection with viewers. The study surveyed 2K respondents aged 18-64 in the U.S. from Jan 11 to 21. It found that 86% of survey respondents said YouTube delivered relevant and intellectual programming, compared with results in the 73% to 79% range for other platforms. In terms of emotion, the number was 84%, edging social media at 80%. The lone category where YouTube did not come out No. 1 was sensorial - aka the way programming looks and sounds - where it rated 72% and trailed streaming's 76%.
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Musk Plans to Increase Twitter's User Base by ~200% Over the Next 3 Years
SOCIAL MEDIA TODAY - In a new SEC filing, Musk reported that he had secured ~$7B in additional funding commitments to solidify his $44B Twitter takeover bid. Musk plans to increase Twitter's user base from the 229M DAU it has now, to 600M by 2025, then to 931M by 2028. The roadmap also outlines a 5x increase in Twitter revenue by 2028, rising from $5B in 2021 to $26.5B. Advertising income, currently amounting to 90% of Twitter's intake, will reduce to ~45% of the company's revenue. Musk plans to cut ~1K staff at Twitter over the next year, before adding ~2.7K new employees by 2025.
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Truth Social Has Added $400M to Donald Trump's Net Worth
FORBES INDIA - Truth Social has already boosted Donald Trump's net worth by $430M helping lift his fortune from $2.4B a year ago to $3B. Trump Media plans to merge with a SPAC that retail traders are buying like crazy, boosting its shares from $10 to ~$70. Trump probably owns at least 50% based on clues buried in regulatory filings.
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Child 'Influencers' Need Protection From Exploitation by Parents
INEWS - Tougher laws to protect children from being exploited by parents who try to turn them into social media "stars" on YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram are being demanded by MPs. Evidence was given to MPs of children positioned in "erotic" postures on accounts run by parents, to increase their follower count for the financial benefit of their parents.
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VSN - We're dedicated to providing executive summaries on the news you can use, to get smarter, and make better decisions.
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Announcing Trust & Safety Connect Event on Defending Our Communities Against Scammers
VSN - Trust & Safety Connect (TSC) is on Wed 18th May at 11:30 AM EST (New York), and for this quarterly online event we're focused on 'Defending Our Communities Against Scammers.' We have a half-hour of networking on virtual tables, then a 50-minute panel with four world-class panelists - Jorij Abraham, GM & Founder of Global Anti-Scam Alliance & ScamAdviser.com; Steve Baker, Former Director at FTC; Mark Kapczynski, SVP at OneRep; and moderator Norman Petty, who is head of Trust & Safety at The Meet Group. 1.5 hours all-in.
If you hold a full-time leadership role at an online social community then you are welcome to join OSCA for free and join TSC (and LTR) events for free. See the Trust & Safety Connect speakers and invite page here. Email mark@courtlandbrooks.com to RSVP for TSC. There are 40 places only.
Trust & Safety Connect is kindly sponsored by RealMe, vPaaS by Meet Group, FaceTec, OneRep, and Courtland Brooks
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Top Twitter Execs Are out Following Musk Deal
TECH CRUNCH - Twitter GM of Consumer, Kayvon Beykpour, announced that he will be leaving the company after seven years. Bruce Falck, Twitter's Revenue Product Lead, is also departing. The VP of Consumer Products Jay Sullivan will now become the new GM of Bluebird and interim GM of Goldbird. The departure follows Elon Musk's decision to acquire Twitter and take it in a direction that's focused more on "free speech."
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