We Are Social’s Monday Mashup #344
Snap’s (Snapchat’s parent company) IPO went off with a bang, with shares rising 44% on Thursday, the day of it’s initial public offering. On Friday, its second day of trading, Snap’s shares soared up as much as 20%, but then eased back by midday – although still at a sky-high valuation, despite warnings from analysts.
Snapchat growth increasingly driven by older users
Long gone are the days of Snapchat being seen as an app that is confusing to the older generation, as according to a new report from eMarketer, much of the platforms growth is now being driven by older Americans.
The firm states that this year, 6.4% of Snapchat’s users will be between the ages of 45 and 54, up from 4.2% that was previously estimated. Snapchat’s growth among older Americans has a lot to do with the content deals, which include those with NFL, NBCUniversal, Hearst and so on. Interestingly however, projections for users 24 and younger have decreased slightly, partly due to increasing competition from Instagram.
Let Facebook be your travel guide
Facebook has confirmed a new travel planning feature called ‘City Guides.’ A potential challenger to Foursquare, the guides will show users a list of cities and which of your friends have visited, as well as various recommendations of places to go and things to do. The data is presumably being extracted from users’ check-ins and Facebook posts. Also included in each city’s guide is a list of ‘Places the Locals Go’ – so no more tourist traps, you can revel in some proper culture instead.
The feature is still only available to a small amount of users but it is now rolling out more broadly across mobile.
Facebook tests Messenger Reactions
Facebook is currently testing Reactions and a dislike button on messages to make Messenger more fun and engaging. It’s currently a small test where users can share an emoji that best represents their feelings on a message. It’s not available to everyone right now, but Facebook have said that if users enjoy it then Messenger Reactions could roll out to all users soon.
YouTube tops one billion hours of video a day
YouTube viewers world-wide are now watching more than one billion hours of videos a day. This figure represents a tenfold increase in viewership since 2012 and threatens to overshadow U.S. television viewership. This is a milestone for the platform which has been fuelled by the Google unit’s embrace of artificial intelligence to recommend videos.
YouTube launches its own streaming TV service
At an event in Los Angeles recently, YouTube announced that it will be launching its own streaming TV service. The feature will mix cable television programming and live streams of broadcast with the abundance of online video found on YouTube.
The service is to exist in a standalone app, and for $35 a month, subscribers will get four major networks – CBS, ABC, FOX and NBC and around 35 cable channels. No specific date has been given for launch as yet, however keep your eyes open in the next few months.
Introducing Series by Medium
Medium is introducing a new type of story for readers – Series. Series are mobile stories that can be added to over time and unfold card by card with the tap of your finger – this is its first step towards building a new way to read on Medium that is serialized and seamless.