Vine is approached by a new — and interesting — suitor, Facebook throws on its Snapchat costume and LinkedIn Q3 earnings mark the highest in the platform’s history. Want more? Watch SMCF! Oh, and happy Halloween!
Transcript:
Facebook is continuing its quest to steal every Snapchat feature it possibly can. Now, not only has Facebook been turned down to buy Snapchat, but they were also turned down when offering to buy “Snow” which is essentially a Snapchat clone popular in Asia. This must have been a big blow to Facebook’s ego, so they’re picking themselves up and moving forward by testing new features that once again completely rip off Snapchat. The new features will include Snapchat-like masks, geofilters, Prisma-like filters as well as overlaid graphics. Users can send selfies with the features to their friends via direct message, and the messages disappear within 24 hours. So, yeah, pretty much Snapchat…
Last week Pro Publica published a report accusing Facebook of allowing racial discriminatory targeting options. Facebook’s head of multicultural, Christian Martinez, responded to the accusations with examples of when such targeting would be appropriate, stating “a nonprofit that’s hosting a career fair for the Hispanic community can use Facebook ads to reach people who have an interest in that community.” Martinez’s point also speaks to the nature of the targeting options — targeting with the ethnic affinity option does not necessarily mean you’re targeting a race, but those whose interests and behaviors align with that culture. However, that doesn’t mean marketers don’t have to be careful, particularly with exclusion targeting. Take a look at a blog we published last year regarding targeting discrimination… it’s interesting stuff!
Oh, hey! LinkedIn is doing better than expected. As of the end of September, revenue for the quarter was at $960 million, the highest the company has ever seen and up 23 percent from the same time last year.
Last Wednesday, YouTube launched “End-Screens”, a set of features for content creators that let’s you link to other videos or services during the last 5-20 seconds of any video. You may be thinking, “Al, that sounds similar to Annotations. What’s the deal? Are they getting rid of Annotations?” The answer is, I don’t know, I just heard about this. However, Google says following the update, creators will “no longer need to use Annotations” because End-Screens will be for both mobile and desktop and be quicker and easier to use. To me, this sounds like Annotations are getting the ol’ Google boot. For more information, check out Google’s help page in the link below.
Twitter laid off 9% of their staff in order to show a positive Q3. That’s more than 300 people. As rumors swirl around finding a buyer, Twitter also said, “B-bye Vine.” Vine videos have made millions laugh but who cares! Twitter is discontinuing the app. The company says they value the content created and they are keeping the website, if anything changes they will make an announcement and contact creators. However, in an effort to do the shutdown the right way, creators will be able to access and download their vines for now.
It’s sad news for Viners, but, maybe… just maybe there is a glimpse of hope. Vine might be able to be saved and revived by no other than… you guessed it… America’s #1 visited site… Pornhub. That’s right. Pornhub got in contact with Jack Dorsey giving a potential offer to buy Vine from Twitter to help with a little cash in-flux, stating “6 seconds is more than enough time for most people to enjoy themselves.” And they couldn’t be more right. We’ll keep you updated if this deal is consummated.
Sources:
Facebook tried to buy Asian Snapchat clone Snow, @jonrussell, Tech Crunch
Facebook testing Snapchat-like filters for its camera:Â Report, Indian Express
Facebook’s ad options could be discriminatory, @selenalarson, CNN Money
Twitter lays off 9% of its workforce as it posts a desperately-needed positive Q3, @mattlynley, Tech Crunch
Pornhub offers to buy Vine: ‘Six seconds is more than enough’, @EricCMack, CNET
YouTube launches mobile-friendly “End Screens” feature to keep viewers watching more video, @sarahintampa, Tech Crunch
