Digital news publishers are swarming to develop branded apps for mobile users. But they might just be neglecting the truly important portal here—mobile web. According to a recent study from the Pew Research Center, mobile users tend to get their news from mobile websites in their browsers instead of apps. As mobile web browsing continues to outpace corresponding mobile apps for most news sites, news publishers need to take notice and put mobile optimization first.
In an interesting turn of events, Amazon has officially closed a $970 million deal to acquire Twitch, after Google apparently dropped its billion-dollar bid a month ago. At first glance, the ecommerce giant and the live-streaming game platform have little in common, but a closer examination reveals that Amazon has been courting the gaming market for a while. It makes perfect sense: Twitch was increasingly running into licensing issues as it grew in size, and it needed a big partner to support its development, making Amazon a good fit.
If Google had closed the deal, Twitch would have predictably become YouTube’s “little brother.” At Amazon, however it has the chance to become the video mainstay due to its lack of user-generated or live video platform. And now that the acquisition has been made official, the online video landscape could be radically shifted.
In the upcoming election, you might just get served with targeted political ads based on whether you lean left or right. Both parties are reportedly utilizing a new TV ad targeting system from DirecTV and Dish that takes advantage of public voter records to put personalized campaign ads on their DVRs at the household level. This new ad program promises to deliver a customized audience for statewide races and issue-based campaigns.
One of the biggest advantages native advertising has against traditional banners and pop-ups is their subtlety. And Yahoo is taking full advantage of their ad network to extend these ads outside its own properties to help other publishers promote their own stories. Featured as sponsored links, these “Stream Ads” from Yahoo will appear in the content recommendation box on sites like Vox Media and CBS Interactive, with more publishers expected to join in the near future.
Even though the Emmys typically have the lowest ratings among the big four awards show, it is still a live-viewing-required “TV event” that brands and advertisers crave. And this year, instead of being content with mere celebrity tweets and updates, three major social media sites jumped in on the fun to bring an integrated experience to the show.
On the red carpet, Facebook used a comically large tablet, dubbed the “Mentions Box”, to let celebrities take questions from Facebook users and record their answers on it. The reply videos were then posted on the Emmy’s Facebook page. Meanwhile, a Twitter-branded zip-line camera swooped over the red carpet and pre-show, with the footage beamed to NBC’s Twitter account. Additionally, a Pinterest page set up by NBC was updated in real time with related content, with a lower third caption occasionally shown throughout the telecast—the first time Pinterest has been integrated into a major awards ceremony. Clearly, these platforms are trying to create an engaging “second screen” experience for viewers.
With the help of Canadian tech firm Omsignal, Ralph Lauren has developed its first item of smart sportswear. Dubbed the “Polo Tech” shirt, it has built-in sensors that track the wearer’s heart rate and movement, with collected data synced with an iOS app. This is not the first time that wearable tech has teamed up with the fashion industry to normalize its still-novel products. And even though this shirt is currently in the prototype stage, it indicates a future where wearable tech is further integrated into sports and other realms of daily life.
“Bullet screen”, or “dan’mu” in Chinese, is an emerging new feature on online video sites in China and Japan, which allows real-time comments from viewers to fly across the screen like bullets. Mostly used for virtual nods and zingers, this “social viewing” feature is phenomenally popular with the younger crowd. In fact, it is so popular that several theaters in China have been incorporating this practice into special screenings that display streams of text messages sent in by the audience. It’s unclear whether this trend will spread to global markets, but it’s an excellent example of how media channels can adapt to user behavior.
According to a report from Barclays Capital, if HBO offered its streaming service as a standalone online service, it could theoretically bring in $600 million of annual revenue for the premium channel. The analysis lays out a couple of different ways that HBO could this without angering its cable-provider partners, the major opponents of HBO selling its programming online. As the OTT market continues to rise, it might be time that HBO seriously consider meeting this popular demand.
Update 10/15/2014: HBO CEO Richard Plepler has confirmed the company plans to launch a “standalone, over-the-top” HBO Go subscription offering at some point in 2015.
With today’s ever-shifting technology landscape, a new breed of marketing executives—the ones that are equally adept at marketing and technology—are finally getting the recognition it deserves. Sometimes labeled chief marketing technology officers (CMTO), these are the individuals who educate agencies on emerging marketing technology and equip them with the tools needed to engage today’s always-on customers. As crucial players in the future of marketing in our increasingly digital world, CMTOs are quickly becoming invaluable assets to any agency.
Audience Entertainment, a New York-based startup, is bringing a new type of ad experience to movie theaters. By integrating the company’s technology, the new big-screen ads will allow audiences to respond and play along in real time. To expand its market reach, the company is announcing a software development kit (SDK) that will allow third parties to create content for the platform.
