We all have those busy weeks. Those weeks that you are not able to do anything, but work, sleep, repeat. During those weeks, if you are like me, you still want to be looped in on the news. That is what this week’s article is for. To curb the anxious feeling that you might have missed some big news this week.
Facebook joining TV
Facebook has ventured into the video content industry, joining the ranks of Amazon, Netflix, and Hulu. This content will be a hosting ground for their partners that produce original content. In exchange for their content, the partners will receive 55 percent of the ad revenue, meaning that Facebook keeps 45 percent of that revenue. You can access this content through the “Watch” tab on Facebook. More content will start to roll out to small groups over time. The content will be made available on mobile, desktop, and Facebook’s apps.
The benefit of this for Facebook is that they will begin to drive more traffic to their Facebook. It is no surprise that the younger generations have been less interested with Facebook and more interested in Instagram (which is still owned by Facebook). Facebook has been trying to get traffic back to Facebook, in addition to Instagram, so this is a great way to do that.
Not only will you be able to get personalized recommendations of live and recorded shows, but you will also see categories of “Shows your friends are watching”, “Most Talked About”, and the list goes on.
The fact that Facebook already has the social platform built and is integrating video content , creates a first of its kind social integration into a platform of this type. The future implications of this are tremendous, considering you are more likely to watch a show that your friends are watching. For example, if you know your best friend is obsessed with Game of Thrones, chances are, you will enjoy the show as well. Then, once that decision has been validated and you realize that you do enjoy the same TV shows, that will cause you reference Facebook more often to see what show you should watch next.
Snap losing money
Snap, the parent company of social app Snapchat, posted a net loss of $443 million in its second quarter as a company. This sent the stock straight down 14 percent on Thursday. This major loss, compared to last years loss of $105 million, signals that Snapchat is not only trying to grow, but is spending much more than they are currently making. Now, this would be acceptable to most investors if, and it is a big if, their user growth was skyrocketing in numbers.
If they were generating an extraordinary following, investors would be flexible will losing money in the short-term to gain a larger capital return in the future. However, that is not the case. With a total of 173 million at the end of the second quarter, Snapchat has not grown their user base to the expectation of, well, anyone.
So, when Snap released their earnings, people started to consider the legitimacy of their future. This will be an exciting next few years for Snap with everyone beginning to question why they actually are worth the $14 billion.
Disney cutting ties with Netflix
Disney announced this last Tuesday that they are no longer going to distribute their content to Netflix. They, in turn, are going to jump into their own video content distribution. Therefore, both Facebook and Disney have joined the fight against Amazon Video, Netflix, and Hulu. Disney’s own streaming service is planned to launch in 2019 and it will also include ESPN content, seeing that Disney owns ESPN. This announcement caught a lot of individuals off guard when they announced it during their quarterly earnings report.
So, some of you might be wondering how this is actually plausible? Recently Disney acquired a portion of a company called BAMTech. This company is the streaming video arm founded by the MLB. Disney bought into a third of this business for $1 billion and then added an additional $1.58 billion this last Tuesday, to bring their total ownership up to 75 percent.
With that being said, this service will offer thousands of regional, national, and international sporting events and will be able to be accessed through the ESPN app. Additionally, assuming no changes occur, it will already have access through streaming services like Fire Stick and Roku.
The next question everyone will be wondering is, “what movies are coming off of Netflix?”. This change is not immediate so you do not have to do a Disney binge right now. This separation will come in 2019. The big titles that are coming that year are Toy Story 4, Frozen 2, and the live-action Lion King. These are all projected to be big hits that Netflix would then be missing out on.
This move creates a great entry point for Disney to get closer to their customers. It also helps their business to customer segment. Lastly, this begins to show the shift that Disney is having towards the “cord cutters” that are always being referenced in accordance to Disney earnings calls.
You sold into buying this service? If so, the Disney and ESPN streaming services (when launched) will be available for purchase directly from Disney and ESPN and authorized sellers.
The news announcement sent Netflix dropping as it decreased more than 3 percent in after hours trading.
A Carless City
A new fad has started in America. This movement has already been taking place overseas, primarily in Europe. The change that I am talking about is carless cities. Still confused? Recently, bike-sharing companies, Spin and LimeBike debuted in Seattle last month with 500 bicycles each as part of a six-month pilot program organized by the city. The regulations now allow for 1,000 bicycles per company, so expect to see more orange and green two-wheelers around town.
So, what exactly does this mean for cities? It is well-known that people do not like cars emissions in the city. Air pollution is a real thing. Some cities take this fact heavier than others. With that being said, certain cities have banned cars in the city and only allow bikes.
Do I think Seattle will do this? No. However, they are making pushes in public transportation and focusing on more bikes. This push is in hopes to limit the amount of cars that drive in the city, thus decreasing the amount of traffic and pollution that the city faces. Will this push be successful? Only time will tell.
There you have it – your weekly news wrapped up for your enjoyment. I hope this saved you some time, lowered your anxiety of missing news, and informed you of the tech news for the week.
Think we missed some major news that needs to be featured? Let us know!
