We Are Social Midweek Mashup #172
News
News
Meet Present, the anti-Snapchat social video app
Present, a Singaporean startup by Peter Zhuo, is challenging the shift toward shorter videos and fleeting images. Aspiring to be a video memory bank, it is useful for chronicling “first experiences” and “last memories”. New mothers can relive the day-to-day progress of toddlers, and grandparents can record video messages for future grandchildren.
Present allows videos that are up to two minutes in length and organises them by timeline, location, friends and topics. Users can also retrieve videos recorded in the vicinity to view the memories of others. Congratulations Harry Potter, you can finally ditch the Pensieve.
Walking #withoutshoes on Weibo, WeChat, Mogujie and Instagram
US shoe brand, Toms, is collaborating with social media giants Weibo, WeChat, Mogujie and Instagram. Between May 5 and 21, users in China are encouraged to caption their barefoot photos with the hashtag #withoutshoes. As part of its “One for One” pledge, Toms will donate a pair of shoes for every photo uploaded.
Online platforms Shangpin, Mogujie and Alibaba will also seed the movement among niche communities, while Weibo and Wechat will leverage on social influencers. Toms China announced that “This is the first philanthropic campaign of its kind, leveraging digital technologies to solicit global awareness, with zero time nor monetary commitment.”
Off you go then – take a moderately large amount of feet photos and we promise you will not be judged.
More US internet users are mobile-only than desktop-only
The number of US mobile-only internet users has overtaken its desktop equivalent for the first time ever. The former camp now sits at 11.3% to the latter’s 10.6%.
Facebook brings video calls to Messenger
Facebook has added video calling to its standalone Messenger app. The feature, available in the UK, USA, Canada and 15 other countries, will work on mobile connections from 3G to LTE.
Buy promoted tweets and Google ads together
Twitter and Google have formed a partnership that will allow users of Google’s ‘Double Click Bid Manager’ to purchase promoted tweets along with Google ads. This marks yet further interaction between Twitter and Google, which has already given greater prominence to tweets in search results.
Twitter purchases TellApart
Twitter has bought ad retargeting company, TellApart, a move that comes with ‘cross-device’ expertise. This ability, combined with Twitter’s huge amount of login data, could prove lucrative, particularly when Twitter’s ‘buy’ button is thrown into the mix.
Meerkat distances itself from Twitter
Meerkat has added Facebook support in the latest version of its iPhone app. The move clearly shows an attempt to distance itself from Twitter, which has removed the app from its social graph since the launch of its rival streaming app, Periscope.
Absolutely Anything trailer to debut on Snapchat
Absolutely Anything, the British comedy that marks Robin Williams’s final on-screen performance, is set to debut its trailer on Snapchat’s Discover platform. Lionsgate, the company behind the film, has said that it will be looking at further Snapchat promotion closer to the film’s release.
Lego gets kids to invent the kronkiwongi
Lego has launched a Facebook campaign asking children to create an imaginary character called a ‘kronkiwongi’ and encouraging parents to upload their children’s creations. We’re not sure about you, but we think it looks exactly like this.
#DoritosRoulette on Periscope
Doritos has launched its ‘Roulette’ bags, in which one of every six crisps is incredibly spicy, in the US. To celebrate, it has created #DoritosRoulette on Pericope; all viewers are eligible to win prizes, which will depend on where a roulette wheel lands in the live gameshow.
Watching boxing on Periscope
Mashable has released a piece about watching the Pacquiao-Mayweather fight on Periscope, in which it discusses how numerous streams were available, how many were shut down and how it created a unique watching experience. It raises a number of questions about both social viewing and piracy, which are well worth considering as we move into an increasingly mobile and digital world.
Facebook responds to Nepal earthquake
After the tragic news that an earthquake had hit Nepal last week, there was at least some comfort to be taken in the heartwarming worldwide response. Facebook was a part of this, adding a ‘donate’ button to the top of users’ News Feeds and promising to match donations up to $2m. In two days, it had raised $10m.
Child is born
Last week, despite it being the 21st Century, a princess created another princess. Of course, brands were keen to get involved.
Special delivery! #RoyalBabyhttps://t.co/FcnWvltr3r
— Disney (@Disney) May 2, 2015
