We Are Social Asia’s Tuesday Tune Up
X to test livestream shopping with Paris Hilton
X has announced it will run a livestream shopping event with media icon Paris Hilton. The feature will allow users to watch a live-streamed video, chat with others, and shop at the same time, as well as hang out in Spaces. In Hilton’s related partnership announcement, she said it would explore “new ways to connect with all of you across video, live video, live shopping, and even Spaces. And we’re just getting started.” The announcement did not include details of the date and time of the event, nor what products will be sold. Could this be a new focus for X?
X to test three tiers of its Premium service
X is planning on testing three tiers of its X Premium service to bring in additional revenue. X CEO Linda Yaccarino said that X would split the current $7.99 Premium subscription into three different plans: Basic, Standard, and Plus, at various price points. X app’s code references “Premium Basic,” “Premium Standard,” and “Premium Plus” plans, which will have full ads, half the ads, or no ads. This implies that X’s current Premium plan would become the new middle tier as it offers subscribers the ability to remove half the ad load. It’s unclear whether all payers would receive the blue Verification mark.
TikTok confirms test of an ad-free subscription
TikTok has reported that it is testing an ad-free subscription model priced at $4.99 to users in an English-speaking country outside the US. However, it looks like the subscription only removes ads by TikTok, not influencer marketing one-offs or campaigns, so it won’t do anything to remove those ads that fail to label sponsored content.
X cuts headlines from link previews
X has started cutting headlines from link cards, meaning you will see just an image with the domain name of the link on the bottom left, rather than the name of the publication and headline of the article. The move is part of Elon Musk’s efforts to get users to post “long-form content” directly on the platform. He aims to encourage people to spend more time on the platform reading this content directly from X, and to increase Premium subscriptions, that allow users to post long-form content.
Snapchat announces ‘Phantom House’ activation for Halloween
Spooky season is upon us, and Snapchat is launching a new immersive Halloween experience called ‘Phantom House’ – a weekly Snapchat video series that users will be able to participate in via Snap’s various elements. This includes sharing what they’ve seen with friends through AR Lenses and AI-generated Dreams selfies inspired by the Phantom House. Snap said that “brands can seamlessly integrate themselves into the Phantom House conversation with interactive AR experiences of their own, commercials placed within the show, and off-platform co-marketing.”
The latest influencer marketing news
Converse has released its Emerging Creatives Report, sourcing 500+ emerging leaders within the All Stars community to share what the future of creativity looks like.
In other news
YouTube Tests New Community Notes Feed in the Mobile App. Instagram has announced new features, including birthday shout-outs, selfie videos for Notes, and new group interaction options. Finally, Elon Musk’s X Corp faces trademark lawsuit from social media ad agency 👀