Emoji

Facebook, Google and Apple Announce New Emoji Updates to Celebrate World Emoji Day

While the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has dampened enthusiasm for event days in 2020, the 17th of July marks the World Emoji Day, which aims to celebrate those small, cartoonish characters than have now become a significant part of the way people communicate. Indeed, according to research, some 92% of people have used, and/or regularly now use, emojis…

Twitter

Twitter Outlines Specific Detail of Recent Hack of 130 Accounts of Several High Profile Users

As its investigation continues, on late Friday night, Twitter provided an update of the latest information about the recent hack which targeted the accounts of several high profile users. To recap the situation, at around 1 pm on Wednesday, several celebrity accounts began tweeting out similar, odd messages regarding a Bitcoin giveaway. As you can see in these…

Twitter

Twitter Publishes its Regular Summary Listing of Major Events for Marketers to Note in July 2020

Normally, just ahead of the coming month, Twitter publishes its regular summary of the key dates coming up in the preceding month, which can help marketers plan their campaigns in order to tie-in with trending discussions and events. But with the impacts of COVID-19, those normally optimistic, fun-looking listings are starting to look a lot barer…

TikTok

TikTok, China, India and the New Data Battleground

Last week, India took the extraordinary step of banning 59 apps of Chinese origin, including the wildly popular TikTok, as tensions continue to flare between India and China over the disputed Line of Actual Control in Ladakh. TikTok India has issued a statement, explaining its position, and its intention to restore the app for Indian users, but…

Reels

Instagram Launches TikTok-Like ‘Reels’ Functionality to some Users in India

In a move that will likely come as a little surprise, Instagram has quietly rolled out a new test of its TikTok-like clone functionality ‘Reels’ to some users in India, following the ban of TikTok in the Indian market. Reels, which Instagram has admitted is its ‘response’ to TikTok, enables Instagram users to create 15-second, looping video clips within…

Google

Google Adds New Prediction and Trend Tools to Help Advertisers Maximize their Ad Campaigns

Google has announced some new tools to help advertisers maximize their ad campaigns, including updated recommendations based on evolving search trends, new tools for managing your campaigns on the go, and improved transparency into its automated ‘Smart Bidding’ process. First off, with search behaviors changing significantly amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Google has highlighted the rising value of its Recommendations page,…

Snapchat

Snapchat Shares and Shows New Data on Sports Engagement among Users

The NFL signed a new deal with Snapchat, which will see it triple the number of highlight shows on the platform, which will air in near real-time. While much uncertainty remains about the immediate future of live sports, with various professional leagues around the world working to continue play amid the lingering COVID-19 threat, the NFL has…

YouTube

YouTube is Adding More Ads, with Mid-Roll Breaks Available in Shorter Videos that are at Least 10 Minutes

Have you ever noticed how every YouTube influencer creates videos that are around the exact same length – which is about 10 minutes? The reason for that is YouTube’s monetization policy – currently, YouTube enables mid-roll ads on videos that are at least 10 minutes long, so for YouTubers who are trying to generate revenue, it makes sense for…

Instagram

Instagram Launches Test of New ‘Shops’ Tab with Selected Users within their Bottom Function Bar

Have you noticed your in-app buttons within Instagram moving around a bit of late? Suddenly, your ‘Direct’ icon has gone to the bottom function bar instead of up top, or your activity tab (the heart icon) has disappeared, then come back again days later? Those changes are linked to Instagram’s work to find the right…