Tuesday Tune-Up #273

News
daniel.hitchcock
Lego Life – a new social network for kids 
There’s a new social network for kids on the block from LEGO called ‘LEGO Life.’ LEGO Life is available as an iOS and Android application and is aimed at those under the age of 13. It’s a safe, online space where kids can share their LEGO creations and connect with a broader community. As well as being able to interact with LEGO characters, there are also LEGO videos, news updates, quizzes and many other activities. LEGO play, everyone!



Facebook Lite now has 200 million monthly active users
Facebook Lite – all the connectivity, without extra calories. The low-bandwidth alternative to the social network’s flagship for users with poor connectivity, has now topped 200 million monthly active users. The app has doubled its user base since last March, when it topped the 100 million MAU mark.



Facebook announces changes to its measurement system 

Facebook has increased its transparency by updating video and third-party viewability metrics. The platform will provide new insights into campaigns, and it plans to open up third-party display viewability to measure text and photo ads through its new partnership with comScore and Nielson. Similar to video viewability, display viewability will track when and how long ads appear on a page – these measurement offerings will begin to roll out in the first quarter of 2017.

Facebook has also announced that advertisers will be able to buy ads with an option to only pay when videos play with the sound on. Facebook videos normally show up in people’s timelines on mute and then automatically start playing. However, now under new criteria, if the advertiser chooses, the views will only count when the volume is on.

Snapchat brings new episodes of Planet Earth to mobile
Hurrah. Planet Earth II episodes are coming to Snapchat. BBC Worldwide and Snap Inc. are partnering up to release six episodes on the mobile platform. The Snapchat episodes premiere on February 17th and will be released weekly, covering the same content as the television show. The episodes will also feature binaural audio, which is a new stereo feature created with the use of two microphones that give sound a 3D quality.

Snapchat is getting a reality TV show from A+E

In another effort to be seen as more than just an ephemeral messaging service, Snapchat has teamed up with entertainment media companyA+E Networks to produce a series of shows based on the company’s portfolio of brands (among them Lifetime, History, and FYI).

Their first offering, Dubbed Second Chance, is an unscripted, eight-part weekly series that will reunite old flames for the first time since their breakup to hash out the problems that led to it – I for one am already hooked.

Twitter’s ad revenue declines
Twitter’s advertising revenue has slightly declined in the fourth quarter after the platform struggled to build a strong user base despite putting increasing emphasis on live video. According to Twitter’s Q4 2016 earnings report, advertising revenue totaled $638 million, which is down from previous years, with mobile devices bringing in 89% of the total revenue.

Pinterest introduces Lens, Shop the Look & Instant Ideas 
Pinterest has introduced three new visual discovery products – LensShop the Look and Instant Ideas. Lens is a tool inside the Pinterest mobile app that functions as a ‘Shazam’ for objects – so point it at furniture, food, whatever takes your fancy, and Pinterest will show recommendations for similar objects.

Shop the Look is a new shopping feature that allows users to browse and buy items they see in Home and Fashion Pins. Similarly, Instant Ideas enables users who see a concept they like in a Pin to tap the circle in the bottom-right corner to check for similar ideas.



YouTube creators with 10,000+ followers get mobile live streaming

YouTube Creators rejoice – you can now go live from your mobile devices. YouTube’s product managers have announced that the mobile live streaming feature that was introduced last June is now available to all YouTube Creators with more than 10,000 subscribers.

Say it with Starbucks this Valentine’s

In the lead up to Valentine’s Day, Starbucks has a new promotion in China, ‘Say it with Starbucks,’ where people can use their WeChat app to send their friends coffees or gift certificates. Sending someone a Starbucks latte is a new twist on WeChat’s virtual gifting games, and Starbucks is the first retail brand to use a social gifting feature in this way through WeChat.



Romance in aisle three

Who said a trip to Woolies isn’t romantic? The Aussie supermarket giant tugged on the heart strings of trolley dashers far and wide with their latest Valentine’s Day campaign. Using hidden cameras, they captured the reaction of customers listening to a surprise pre-recorded message from their loved ones. The video, ‘Celebrate Valentine’s Day with Whoever you Love’, was shared across Woolworths’ social channels. Grab a loved one (or a tub of ice cream) and check it out.



This post courtesy of @86_dch