In case you missed it 😊 🌎 😀 ☀️ or Happy World Emoji Day! Over 150 new emoji will be coming this year, you can check them out here. Of course, there was bigger news than emoji’s, so here’s all the news you may have missed.
General
- The biggest news of the week is EU fining Google €4.34 billion for breach of EU antitrust laws “for illegal practices regarding Android mobile devices to strengthen dominance of Google’s search engine“. At the heart of the complaint is bundling Google Search, Play Store, and making payments/restricting device makers from non-Google alternatives. Google will appeal the decision and has published a blog post defending Android.
- A bill has been introduced in the US Senate to require streaming services like Hulu, Spotify, etc. to broadcast emergency alerts (like those from FEMA). If anything, this is a good indicator of just how much time is spent streaming (and potentially important warnings).
- Kara Swisher from Recode conducted a 90-minute interview with Mark Zuckerberg (transcript here). The interview reveals a somewhat ambivalent attitude to fake news and resulted in more controversy for both Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook. Make time to listen to (or read) the interview.
- Snapchat has integrated Nielsen Premium Audience Segments. This strengthen’s Snapchat’s ability to target offline audiences, especially in the CPG category and also the to measure any resulting sales lift.
- Comcast has dropped its bid for 21st Century Fox’s entertainment assets, electing to focus on acquiring Sky UK instead. This clears the way for Disney (subject to regulatory approval) to acquire Fox Entertainment assets.
Data
- Google, Facebook, Microsoft, and twitter have launched the Data Transfer Project to enable users to readily download/transfer their data from one service/platform to another (a form of social media data portability). This may encourage people to try new services but also makes it easier for people to move completely if dissatisfied. Not yet live in an easy-to-use way (you need to be technically inclined), the service will also be open to companies outside the original foundational members.
- Salesforce has entered into an agreement to acquire Datorama. The purchase price is around $800MM and will see Datorama integrated into the Salesforce Marketing Cloud.
AR/VR
- Amazon has added a feature to their iPhone app to help you identify small nuts and bolts with an AR Part Finder. Aside from being useful, it shows how machine based object recognition and AR can play a real role in eCommerce.
eSports
- Turner is looking to expand their ELeague with more tournaments planned to take advantage of growing advertiser demand, this includes a focus on creating more behind-the-scenes video content as interest in players (not just the gameplay) ramps up. Turner also revealed that their Counter-Strike GO final in January peaked at 1.1M streams.
Brand Safety, Trust, and Transparency
- Facebook has suspended Crimson Hexagon over concern that the analytics firm’s contracts with the U.S. government and a Russian nonprofit tied to the Kremlin violate the Facebook’s policies. Crimson Hexagon responded (indirectly) in a blog post stating that it only collects public data. Further details and timings on when Facebook will complete the investigation are unknown.
- The earlier mentioned Data Transfer Project may be good news for a proposed open-source privacy-focused competitor called Open Book. Supported by, among others, the founder of PGP Open Book is positioned as the honest, open-source, and awesome social network. The platform is looking for funding and there is an Open Book Kickstarter campaign underway.
- Facebook has started cracking down on accounts owned by those under 13 (accounts which breach COPPA). The crackdown is in response to a Channel 4 UK documentary on Facebook moderators that covered Facebook’s overall approach to all types of content moderation. It’s worth watching or reading details on the Channel 4 Facebook moderation documentary as it raises many questions on how genuine Facebook is about policing the platform.
Have a wonderful week and don’t forget to stream the Overwatch League finals next weekend!
Joshua
PS. Two (2) distractions of the week this week!
- Linked In has a fantastic new virtual business card / QR code scanning feature. It’s hidden away but does away with the need for business cards in every meeting (assuming you want to connect on Linked In).
- Something fun for your summer road trip, this web app will read details about Points of Interest you’re passing based on information from Wikipedia.