#Newsfeed: Live Instagram Stories goes global; Twitter’s getting smarter; Meryl Streep issues official Oscars statement in GIF form

Plus the latest social media stats are in!

• White House Comment Line Shut Down, Tells Callers to Use Non-Existent Facebook Messenger Account Instead [via Variety]
• Indigenous Australia has a message for you: #ChangeTheDate [via Mashable]
• Twitter’s Getting Smarter – Here’s Why That’s Important [via Social Media Today]
• Live Stories: Available Globally [via Instagram Blog]
• North Korean content on YouTube are getting removed one by one [via Mashable]
• Snapchat Offers to Bill Brands for Ads Based on TV-Style Ratings From Nielsen [via AdAge]
• Snapchat just got a little better thanks to Britney Spears’ debut [via Mashable]
• Inertia CEO Says PIAS Deal Will Increase Local Artist Exposure ‘Tenfold’ [via TheMusic.com.au]
• Is This The Last Year We Hear The Hottest 100 On 26 January? [via TheMusic.com.au]
• Meryl Streep’s official statement regarding her Oscar nomination is a GIF [via BuzzFeed]
• New Research Reveals Global Social Media Use Increased by 21 Percent in 2016 [via Hootsuite]
• White House adds press room “Skype Seats” for remote reporters [via Digital Trends]
• Amazon nabs the first best picture Oscar nomination for a streaming service [via TechCrunch]
• Apple will finally let developers respond to App Store reviews [via TechCrunch]
• Netflix’s New Documentary Series Is the ‘Chef’s Table’ for Design [via Apartment Therapy]

Like most other brands in the digital age, The White House is turning to social media for customer service – the only problem is, users are being directed to a non-existent platform. Callers to the public comment line at The White House are greeted with an automatic message telling them to contact the administration via Facebook Messenger instead. There’s only one problem: Neither the new White House administration nor President Donald Trump seem to currently maintain an active Facebook Messenger account.

Read more about this story here.

One social media news website has highlighted the advantages of Twitter’s continued changes to its algorithm, suggesting that it’s the only way the platform was going to increase engagement.

In their latest article, Social Media Today outlines the data-driven updates Twitter has made, and further recommends “where Twitter could really boost engagement is if they can utilise their data to more effectively identify and highlight key trends and happenings, narrowed down to a more specific focus.”

Read the full analysis here.

Instagram has officially announced that live video on Instagram Stories will be rolling out across the globe over the next week. To go live, just swipe right from feed and choose Start Live Video in the camera. When you’re done, your live story will disappear from the app. Instagram has also highlight that users may also see Top Live on Explore, connecting them to “exciting live stories happening now”.

Read the official blog post from Instagram here.

Amazon has one-upped Netflix to a considerable honour, with the company picking up an Oscars nomination for Best Picture for Manchester by the Sea. The film was acquired by Amazon in a US$10 million deal that saw Amazon Studios debut the movie in theatres – whereas Netflix typically buys the rights to films specifically to premiere them on its streaming service first, which could make the difference in terms of scoring nominations in the coming years.

Read more about how digital is beating the film industry at its own game here.

The first social media stats for the year are in, and global use has increased by a whopping 21 per cent. The research – published by Hootsuite and We Are Social – found that mobile social media use has increased by 30% year-over-year to surpass 2.5 billion users globally.

Read the latest social media figures here.

JADEN JAM: The world’s first “acoustically perfect” concert hall has opened in Germany and features 10,000 unique panels lining the central auditorium