Elon Musk offers to buy Twitter Got $43 billion going spare? Tesla mogul Elon Musk certainly does, offering to buy Twitter for this rather hefty sum. This move comes after it was revealed that he had declined a board seat at the company, declaring that he’s the person who can unlock the ‘extraordinary potential’ of the platform. He’s said he’ll pay $54.20 per share in cash, 38% above the price on April 1, the last trading day before Musk went public with his stake. The announcement has caused quite the stir and it’s not yet clear whether Twitter will accept Musk’s meaty offer.
TikTok launches its own AR development platform, Effect House Expect to see a lot more effects go live on TikTok from now on, as the platform has launched its own AR development platform called Effect House. Effect House allows all TikTok creators to build AR effects for use in the app, prompting even more video creation. If you fancy yourself an effects creator, you may want to check out TikTok’s set of documentation that teaches users how to use tools like Face Mask, Head Tracker and 3D Face. This puts the platform in even closer competition with Snap and Meta, which both currently offer a range of tools that allow developers to build out AR experiences and effects.
Spotify adds live audio programmes and unveils rebrand Spotify is having a bit of a refresh by rebranding its Greenroom live audio app as Spotify Live. Spotify’s main app will only feature live content from select original programming, whilst the standalone Spotify Live app will continue to allow independent creators to go live. Spotify Live will continue to work as Greenroom did, but live listening in the main Spotify app will not support the interactive features, like audience questions.
Meta to allow Horizon creators to sell virtual items More cashing in opportunities are coming for creators. Meta is testing a new feature that will let Horizon creators sell virtual items and effects in the world they create for others to explore. Following in the footsteps of Roblox and Rec Room, users will be able to sell anything from VIP access to their world, to virtual items like jewellery and accessories. Meta will be taking a cut of what creators sell, though the exact percentage isn’t yet clear.
TikTok is testing new kindness and safety options Kind is cool and TikTok has taken note. The platform is now testing a way for people to identify comments that they believe to be inappropriate with a ‘dislike comment’ feature. Only the person who dished out the dislike will be able to see that they have done so. The channel is also experimenting with reminders that alert creators to features like comment filtering and bulk block and delete. Whether these features will become a mainstay of the app is yet to be determined, but we’re likely to hear the outcome in the next few weeks.
Snap launches Dynamic Stories Putting together your daily content is about to get a whole lot easier with Snap’s latest feature, Dynamic Stories. The tool lets publishers on the platform automatically create posts based on stories published to a website. Using a publisher RSS feed to create posts, the feature is expected to make it easier for Snapchat users to keep up with breaking news from credible sources. Early partners include CNN, ESPN and British Vogue.
Clubhouse begins testing an in-room gaming feature Clubhouse is venturing into the world of gaming. The app is rolling out a game called ‘Wild Cards’, which presents a series of questions that are designed to encourage conversation and help people to get to know each other better. By offering new features like in-room games, it looks as if Clubhouse is working to stay ‘ahead of the game’ when it comes to its competitors, like Twitter Spaces, which currently doesn’t offer anything of this kind. To start a game on Clubhouse, you have to click the “+ Rooms” button and then select the “Games” option. You’ll then be dropped into a social room where you can invite friends to play with you.
