#Newsfeed: Twitter failed to add new users this quarter; Sony/ATV joins forces with social-powered label Heard Well; Apple says goodbye to the Nano and Shuffle
Plus why your mum is killing your chances of going viral on Facebook.
Facebook has given in to publishers, letting them keep 100% of subscription revenue and data once the new feature launches on the social media platform. According to reports from Recode, Facebook’s hands-off approach to subscriptions is an evolution from earlier plans – including one to bundle multiple publications into a single subscription offering – and distinguishes the company from other big platforms like Apple, who takes a 30% cut of monthly revenue from Apple News subscriptions.
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Legacy magazine publisher Condé Nast is moving past the direct mail and email newsletters in favour of targeting subscribers on platforms like Instagram, as it launches a new digital store. The Condé Nast Store’s Instagram account targets posts at both of those magazines’ print subscribers and at Instagram users who follow Vogue and The New Yorker. Over time, those brands’ accounts will start promoting the store directly as well, though there’s no firm timeline for when that will begin.
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Heard Well, the label that employs social media tastemakers to compile their favourite tunes, is celebrating its second anniversary by joining forces with Sony/ATV Music Publishing. “We looked at Heard Well and their network of influencers as a great source for uncovering new artists at the earliest stage,” says Sony/ATV Co-President, U.S., Danny Strick. “In many cases even before research and data and analytics have appeared. The enthusiasm for music discovery that emanates from their management team is very exciting for us and we view their skills as a unique A&R tool that is a great supplementary source to our first-class A&R team.”
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- Facebook wants to help news publishers sell subscriptions, but says it doesn’t want a cut of the revenue [via Recode]
- Your mom is killing your chances of going viral on Facebook [via The Next Web]
- Looks Like Facebook Won’t Be Ripping Down Music Videos Forever [via Digital Music News]
- Twitter is having a very bad day [via TechCrunch]
- Twitter stalls, fails to add new users this quarter [via The Verge]
- Twitter likely has about 157 million daily active users, less than Snapchat’s 166 million [via Recode]
- Conde Nast is using Instagram and Facebook to sell mugs and beach towels [via Digiday]
- Instagram Video of Shark, Seemingly Bound and Dragged by a Boat, Under Investigation [via The New York Times]
- Apple streamlines iPod lineup, says goodbye to the Nano and Shuffle [via Digital Trends]
- Downloads will soon be making less money than ‘free’ streaming platforms in France [via Music Business Worldwide]
- Spotify, Hilton and Live Nation launch ‘Music Happens Here’ [via Music Ally]
- Grand Ole Opry Celebrates Country Music With Slate of Original Content Series: Exclusive [via Billboard]
- Sony/ATV Enters Deal With Social-Powered Label Heard Well: Exclusive [via Billboard]
- Weezer impersonate Guns N’ Roses in their new video for “Feels Like Summer” [via Consequence of Sound]
- Coldplay Surpasses Madonna for No. 5 Highest Grossing Tour of All Time [via Billboard]
- As a “Shameless Marketing” Move, New Jersey Rock Band 4:44 Released an Album Called ‘Jay-Z’ [via Pigeons & Planes]
- Katy Perry to host the 2017 MTV Video Music Awards [via NME]
- Mercury prize 2017: Ed Sheeran, Stormzy and the xx feature on shortlist [via The Guardian]
- Major Lazer’s New, Interactive ‘Know No Better’ Video Lets You Toggle Between a Dream and Reality [via Billboard]
- Google will soon merge YouTube Red and Play Music into one service [via Digital Trends]
- 30 years of the GIF [via TechCrunch]
- Slate uses podcasts to drive paid memberships [via Digiday]
- P&G Slashes Digital Ads by $140M Over Brand Safety. Sales Rise Anyway [via AdAge]
- A San Diego newspaper is partnering with GoFundMe to launch campaigns based on its own articles [via The Verge]
- TRENDING: #BillGates,
#TheBachelorAU,#ChoosingToBelieve
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