#Newsfeed: Facebook developing more 360 cameras; The Instagram ‘pods’ using likes to fight the algorithm; Unreleased Prince EP to drop on Friday
Plus why Twitter is reviewing it’s relationship with Russia.
Facebook is getting serious about 360 – so much so that they’re building another two cameras to support the content. But unlike the social media platform’s last 360 experiment, the latest cameras use six degrees of freedom (6DoF) – which means users can move through the footage.“One of the reasons we want high-end creatives to use [the camera] is to teach the rest of the world how to use it,” Facebook Engineering Director Brian Cabral told Venture Beat.
Read more about this story here.
Twitter doesn’t always play by the rules, but when it comes to complying with data localisation laws it takes things very seriously. According to the Moscow Times, Russian communications regulator Roskomnadzor has secured an agreement from Twitter to transfer Russian users’ data to local servers by mid-2018 – which may see Twitter no longer blocked in Russia for not obeying Russian law.
Find out why this is such a big deal here.
You’d be forgiven for not knowing what an Instagram “pod” is. Thankfully Mashable is shedding light on the growing trend, which sprang from bloggers fighting the platform’s algorithmic timeline. Instagram user @CardiganJezebel explained to Mashable a pod is “essentially a group message on Instagram”. Members of the group follow each other, and constantly like and comment on one another’s posts to keep pod members’ posts showing up in other people’s timelines – and hopefully in turn grow their followers numbers organically.
Read more about these curious secret societies here.
Despite ongoing battles over his estate and back catalogue, six new Prince songs are set to drop at the end of the week – just in time for the first anniversary of the singer’s death. Dubbed “Deliverance”, the EP was reportedly co-written and co-produced by Prince with longtime Paisley Park engineer Ian Boxill – who, after Prince’s death, completed recording and mixing the songs.
Read more excerpt from the official press release here.
Forget Ed Sheeran or Harry Styles. The biggest YouTube music video debut of 2017 so far isn’t even a “video” – it’s an audio track by Puerto Rican singer Luis Fonsi, played over a static screen showing the record’s sleeve. The track, featuring Justin Bieber (singing in Spanish) and rapper Daddy Yankee, was published on YouTube on Sunday (April 16th) and amassed 20 million YouTube plays within its first 24 hours.
Read more about the success of this track here.
- Everything Facebook launched at both days of F8 and why [via TechCrunch]
- Facebook developing 360 cameras that let you move with six degrees of freedom [via Digital Trends]
- Workplace Announces New Integrations for Files, Bots, Compliance, and Live Video [via FB Newsroom]
- Twitter is reviewing whether to store some user data in Russia [via TechCrunch]
- Twitter’s porn problem is ‘trending’ [via NetworkWorld]
- Upcoming Instagram update will let you browse photos while you’re offline [via Digital Trends]
- The Instagram ‘pods’ using likes to fight the new algorithm [via Mashable]
- I tried to join an Instagram pod and it was like high school all over again [via Mashable]
- Spotify expands its student discount program to 33 more countries, including Australia [via The Verge]
- Unreleased Prince EP to Drop on Friday — And It’s Surprisingly Good [via Variety]
- YouTube’s biggest music video debut of 2017 is… not a music video [via Music Business Worldwide]
- Brands Can Now Choose When To Advertise On Spotify [via Digital Music News]
- How YouTube’s Shifting Algorithms Hurt Independent Media [via New York Times]
- Snap will report earnings for the first time on May 10 [via Recode]
- 6 Ideas to Borrow from Creative Social Media Carousel Ads [via Hootsuite Blog]
- Google Maps’ new Timeline feature on iOS helps you recall everywhere you’ve been [via Digital Trends]
- Foxtel and On Message launch ‘The Wentworth Rat’ chatbot to share show secrets [via Mumbrella]
- TRENDING: #BillOReilly, #SerenaWilliams, #Paramore
JADEN JAM: Redditor CousinTyrone followed through on a promise he made to the internet, and ate a vinyl record because Kendrick Lamar didn’t release a second half of DAMN. (like the rumours suggested).