TikTok abandons plans to expand its live shopping feature
Social media giant TikTok has abandoned its plans to expand its live e-commerce ‘TikTok Shop’ initiative to the United States and parts of Europe. TikTok Shop was launched in the UK last year. This unique feature enabled brands and influencers to stream live while selling goods. However, TikTok’s attempt to replicate QVC-style shopping in the […]
Klarna valuation plummets as buy now, pay later market faces pressures
In its latest financing round, buy now, pay later giant Klarna saw its valuation plummet by 85%. Following the financing round, the Swedish company announced that it had raised $800 million from investors at a $6.7 billion valuation. However, this was down sharply from the $45.6 billion value it secured in a 2021 cash injection […]
Why brands are paying thousands for crypto domain names
Why we liked this article Major brands are investing heavily in securing their Web3 domain suffixes to ensure they have early brand dominance in this much-hyped area of digital marketing. Paying large amounts for the Ethereum Name Service (ENS) illustrates that ENS names are the established suffix in Web3—as a result of Ethereum being the […]
Is TikTok being used to amplify disinformation campaigns?
The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has urged both Apple and Google to remove TikTok from their app stores over China-related security concerns. Brendan Carr, one of the FCC’s commissioners, shared a letter via Twitter on June 28th, which was addressed to Tim Cook of Apple and Sundar Pichai of Alphabet Inc. (Google’s parent company). […]
Don’t fight the in-housing trend: a warning to agencies
Why we liked this article Developments in automation and a plethora of third party insight tools have shifted perceptions on the need for a specialist digital agency. More and more brands are therefore choosing to take their marketing in-house. Although agencies still offer economies of scale, e.g. greater expertise with specific technologies, insights across multiple […]
Snapchat trials paid subscription service
Social media giant Snapchat is currently trialling a new paid subscription service called Snapchat Plus, which is currently in “early internal testing”. The new service will offer users early access to new features. Speaking to The Verge about the new service, Snap spokesperson Liz Markman said: “We’re doing early internal testing of Snapchat Plus, a […]
Apple and Major League Soccer to present all MLS matches around the world for next 10 years
Apple and Major League Soccer (MLS) have agreed a broadcasting partnership that will see all MLS matches streamed around the world for 10 years, starting in 2023. In a historic first for sports fans, all matches will be available to watch through the Apple TV app, without any local blackouts or restrictions. What will the […]
Can crumbling cookies sweeten UK data-protection plans?
Why we liked this article The UK government wants to limit the need for repeated cookie consents – suggesting instead a one-stop data-privacy setting applied at the browser level. Raises wider privacy questions around opting out of tracking, rather than opting in, which may place the onus on individuals preventing, rather than permitting, their online […]
Meta begins rolling out new VR features with Meta Horizon Home
Why we liked this article The new VR feature enables the ability to connect with friends in the Home launching space. This marks the start of Meta rolling out more of the tangibles, that Mark Zuckerberg hinted at during his famous launch presentation, last year. This is an area to keep a close eye on, […]
Amazon pivots towards high-end fashion with the launch of Luxury Stores
Amazon has launched its new Luxury Stores fashion site, which features clothes by top designers such as Elie Saab and Altuzarra. The retail giant first launched the US version of Luxury Stores in 2020. Now, the world’s largest online retailer has also launched the division in the UK, France, Germany, Italy and Spain. Generally speaking, […]
Apple’s WWDC22 conference unveils raft of interesting iOS 16 features
At this year’s Apple Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC22), the tech giant has unveiled an all-new lock screen experience and new ways that users can communicate and share in iOS 16. With Apple’s new developments, users will be able to personalise their Lock Screen, keep family photos in iCloud Shared Photo Library, recall sent messages, schedule […]
TikTok moves further towards the mainstream with the launch of Clear Mode
TikTok is providing its users with the option of a less cluttered viewing experience. The social media giant’s new Clear Mode allows a user to watch a video without the UI overlay, which shows the favourite and comment buttons and other information about the video. What is Clear Mode and how does it work? It’s […]