MM Tech, Media & Publishing Roundup #1

Streaming:

1. Netflix Lost 200,000 Subscribers In Q1 And Expects To Lose Another 2 Million In Q2

Netflix has had a rough start to the year, with subscription rates declining rapidly for the first time in 10 years.

Several reasons could be attributed to the fall in subscribers, one being the recent ban in Russia, accounting for nearly 700,000 lost accounts

To redeem its long-standing reign, Netflix executives stated they intend to “spend around $18 billion on content this year.”
(Via Variety)

2. Roku Experiences Growth In Q1 With Now 61.3M Active Accounts And Up To 14% Increase In Streaming Hours

Roku is forecasting the total net revenue for the full year ahead will experience growth of about 35%.

In Q1, The Roku Channel was a top 5 channel on its platform in the U.S. by reach and engagement hours.
(Via Fierce Video)

3. Fox’s Video Streaming App Tubi Extends Relationship With Nielsen For Ad Ratings

This integration with Neilsen will allow for enhanced and comprehensive measurement through the latter’s digital ad ratings product. 

Tubi will expand coverage of streaming devices, including desktop, mobile, and connected TV (CTV) inventory served on specific CTV devices.

“In this increasingly fragmented media landscape, the need for independent measurement is more critical than ever, as is providing more transparency to advertisers,” said Ameneh Atai, GM, Digital Audience Measurement, Nielsen.
(Via Media Play News)

4. CNN+ Short-Lived Service Quietly Leaves The Party Early

A month after launching, the subscription streaming service CNN+ was shut down on April 28th, two days earlier than initially scheduled. 

The incoming president of CNN, Chris Licht, stated that the decision was in line with the “complex streaming market” and did not reflect the quality and talent of its content offerings. 
(Via Vulture)

The Creator Economy:

5. Reddit Pledge to Fund $1M Community Programs Set To Kick Off In June

Reddit has announced it will be investing $1M in its Community Funds Program, intending to increase more opportunities for users. 

Reddit will invite communities to submit ideas for projects, events, contests, and more starting in June.
(Via TechCrunch)

6. YouTube Monetization Tool ‘Super Thanks’ Will Roll Out To All Channels

Creators will now be able to earn money directly from viewers on all eligible channels. 

Essentially a donation or tip, viewers will be able to support their favorite creators with YouTube’s ‘Super Thanks’ feature. 

Creators will keep 70% of the amount a viewer chooses to contribute.
(Via Search Engine Journal)

7. McDonald’s USA Launches Spotlight Dorado To Uplight Latino Talent

McDonald’s Spotlight Dorado is part of the longstanding commitment to supporting and inspiring the Hispanic community’s rich culture through programs that fuel Latino pride and representation.

Starting from June 3rd, 2022, Latino writers, directors, and producers in the U.S can participate in the short film Spotlight Dorado contest. 

Three finalists from the contest will be awarded a production budget of $75,000 and mentorship to assist in bringing to life their short films.
(Via PR News Wire)

Social Media:

8. Billionaire Elon Musk Buys Himself Twitter

Musk looks into taking Twitter private after Twitter accepted Musk’s offer to acquire the publicly traded company at $54.20/share, valuing the social media platform at $44B. 

“I also want to make Twitter better than ever by enhancing the product with new features, making the algorithms open source to increase trust, defeating the spambots, and authenticating all humans. Twitter has tremendous potential — I look forward to working with the company and the community of users to unlock it,” Musk wrote. 
(Via TechCrunch)

9. Snapchat Expands Its Ecommerce AR Shopping Space With AR Try On Capabilities

Social media platform Snapchat continues to develop its new augmented reality (AR) shopping features. The Lens platform on Snapchat called “Dress Up” enables users to try on clothes virtually.

“Dress Up” is also available on desktop, with a number of advanced tools like Connected Lenses, which lets consumers interact together in real-time. 

Some tools will be aimed at retailers selling products via Snapchat, including a 3D Asset Manager. This web content management platform enables businesses to request, approve, and optimize 3D models for any item in their shopping product catalog.
(Via Chain Store Age)

10. Meta Aims To Create Human-Level AI

The social media giant Meta announces long-term research to create human-level AI that processes data like humans by partnering with neuroimaging company, NeuroSpin. 

Meta wrote, “We’re comparing how AI language models and the brain respond to the same spoken or written sentences. We’ll use insights from this work to guide the development of AI that processes speech and text as efficiently as people.”
(Via Search Engine Journal)