Innovation
AR helps local media shoot for the stars — www.protocol.com
USA Today Network not only distributes AR experiences to its local news partners, but they want to help local papers produce their own AR content as well. And Amazon embraces live and linear programming for Fire TV devices. #AR
We’re teaching robots to evolve autonomously — so they can adapt to life alone on distant planets — theconversation.com
The robots are ‘born’ via 3D printer, and recycle themselves upon their ‘death’.
PlayStation Files Patent For Technology That Lets Spectators Mess With You in VR — www.ign.com
RT @IGN PlayStation filed a patent for technology that lets audience members participate in VR games to make decisions for the active player, like choosing a soup ladle instead of a sword to use as a weapon.
Technology
Facebook & Instagram Shops Integrate With Shopify — www.searchenginejournal.com
Facebook and Instagram Shops are adding Shopify as a payment option which is estimated to increase conversion rates by 1.72x.
Is Facebook’s surprise Apple Watch rival dead on arrival? — www.creativebloq.com
New hardware could be a hard sell.
After Growing Commerce Sales by 67% Last Year, BuzzFeed Eyes a ‘Digital Shopping Mall’ w Ad Units — www.adweek.com
BuzzFeed wants to think more like a retailer, investing in creating a more proactive, intent-based shopping experience.
YouTube’s Shorts, Quick-Video Answer to TikTok, Coming to U.S. in March — www.bloomberg.com
YouTube will introduce a short-form video feature called Shorts to the U.S. in March, making its biggest move yet to respond to the growing challenge from TikTok.
Instagram says its algorithm won’t promote Reels that have a TikTok watermark — www.theverge.com
Instagram issued new best practices for creators who want to make content on Reels. The platform recommends getting rid of watermarks and logos and making sure content isn’t blurry.
Amazon documents reveal company’s secret strategy to dodge India’s regulators
www.reuters.com
Internal documents show how Amazon secretly favored big sellers on its India platform and got around rules meant to protect the country’s small retailers.
Amazon delivery app Mentor tracks drivers’ locations and measures their performance
Amazon changed traffic light timing during union drive, county officials say
www.theverge.com
Workers at an Amazon warehouse in Bessemer, Alabama, are pushing to organize under the Retail, Warehouse and Department Store Union (RWDSU) — but Amazon has found creative ways to oppose them.
Facebook reported revenue it ‘should have never made’, manager claimed
A Facebook manager warned internally that the company made revenues it “should have never made” by overstating how many users advertisers could reach, according to class action lawsuit. Execs refused to fix the issue “to preserve FB’s own bottom line.”
Social audio app Clubhouse has topped 8 million global downloads
Facebook Is Said to Be Building a Product to Compete With Clubhouse — www.nytimes.com
ICYMI Facebook, which has a history of cloning its competitors, has started working on an audio chat product.
Microsoft reportedly tried to buy $51 billion Pinterest, in what could have been the tech firm’s biggest deal
Pinterest, which has gained 100 million monthly active users in the past year, would have been Microsoft’s biggest acquisition.
How Figma and Canva are taking on Adobe — and winning — kwokchain.com
New use cases drive new needs.
Publishing & Media
In Australia, Facebook’s ban on sharing news stories has sent publishers’ traffic tumbling
www.niemanlab.org
Audience declines of 20 percent or more have followed Facebook taking its traffic ball and going home.
‘I’m afraid of repercussions’: Publishing industry members question Google’s motives in paying off News Corp — digiday.com
Google’s News Showcase is one way the firm has responded to criticism that its search engine and other tools exploit content producers.
Google’s $76 million deal with French publishers leaves many outlets infuriated — www.reuters.com
Settlement agreements for the copyright dispute between French media and Google show Google will pay $22M annually in total to 121 publications for three years
Google is going to start paying UK publishers for news
www.cnbc.com
Google has launched its News Showcase product in the U.K., meaning the tech giant will now pay for news content in the country for the first time.
TikTok’s got a new feature on recipes called Whisk that lets you click through to the original site
MT @liahaberman TikTok’s got a new feature on recipes called Whisk that lets you click through to the original site. This is a BIG deal for bloggers via @MyHealthyDish & @feelgoodfoodie1
How Kids Television Became the Most Heated Front in the Streaming Wars — variety.com
Media giants like Netflix, Disney, Apple, Amazon and more are clawing over one another to capture kids’ eyeballs.
WarnerMedia Will Push for Preschoolers in Bid to Draw Views to HBO Max — variety.com
WarnerMedia will launch a new preschool brand, Cartoonito, and work to bring young girls and family viewing into its kids-programming mix
YouTube Kids Now Boasts 35 Million Weekly Users Worldwide — www.makeuseof.com
New York Times testing add-free digital subscription for “NYT Kids” — www.axios.com
Standalone digital subscription products are a key driver of its long-term business strategy.
The New York Times aims to convert newsletter readers into paid subscribers as The Morning newsletter tops 1 billion opens — digiday.com
Roku original content push: plans to produce movies, shows — www.protocol.com
Roku is hiring an attorney to produce its own originals, including eposidic content and feature films.
Reese’s Book Club to Launch Digital Cooking Series Hosted by Christina Milian — www.hollywoodreporter.com
A new 4-episode digital series, ‘Eat the Book,’ will launch on Thursday and bring together popular Reese’s Book Club authors with up-and-coming and established women chefs.
The impressive resilience of digital audio
W3C Publishes Working Draft of New Accessibility Guidelines — www.cmswire.com
ICYMI
Don’t Make These Mistakes that First-Time Self-Published Authors Make — miralsattar.substack.com
Good tips from @miralsattar
Automated Publishing Workflows, Explained
From @NellieMcKesson #eprdctn #publishing
Literati Gets Big Money for Book Boxes — www.publishersweekly.com
The Austin, Tex.–based book box subscription service has pulled in more than $50 million recently.
#MarginsBookstores Month
MT @wordisdiversity #Bookstores and #bookshops that are owned or managed by folks from marginalized communities/backgrounds: We are hosting a #MarginsBookstores Month in the fall! Want to participate and be included in our Margins journal?Fill this out by February 27!
‘Forbes’ Launches First-Party Data Platform
Forbes joins Meredith, which last year launched its Data Studio.
‘Saveur’ Kills Print Title, ‘Delish’ Starts Quarterly Print Publication
Meredith has fired off a “cease and desist” letter to Time magazine over its highly profitable bookazine business
“Future resilience of the world’s media lies in focusing on niche audiences”: Lessons from Allrecipes’ success story — whatsnewinpublishing.com
85 million users — that’s quite a “niche!”
How The Atlantic’s Black history project turned into a 7-figure deal with Salesforce — digiday.com
The Atlantic is setting out on an 18-month journey to uncover Black history in America, with a seven-figure sponsorship with Salesforce.
Resources & Opportunities
Technology + Storytelling: Engaging the Immersive Future
From @nycmedialab free event 3/10
Black Creatives Revisions Workshop
MT @diversebooks Black Writers: Applications for the Black Creative Fund’s Revisions Workshop are now open! Writers chosen will receive training to complete revisions of their manuscripts for submission to editors @penguinrandom #teamPRH
WNDB Emergency Fund for Diverse Creatives
MT @diversebooks The WNDB Emergency Fund for Diverse Creatives is accepting new applicants! We’ve updated our criteria so that even more diverse creatives can apply for grants (ranging from $500 to 1,000) during this challenging time.
We Need Diverse Books Announces the 2021 Symposium on Diversity in Children’s Literature and the Walter Dean Myers Awards and Honor Books for Outstanding Children’s Literature — diversebooks.org
MT @diversebooks WNDB is pleased to announce the 2021 Walter Award winners and honorees, along with the sixth annual free Symposium on diversity in children’s literature, co-hosted by @librarycongress! The virtual Symposium and award ceremony will be on March 12
Online Classes — Kundiman
MT @diversebooks Kundiman’s Spring Online Classes include a roster of 8-week workshops and 3-hour craft classes. Classes are open to either Asian American writers or all writers of color from Feb–May. Scholarships are available. @kundimanforever
Latinx in Publishing Launches Two Fellowships
SEJ Awards for Reporting on the Environment — www.sej.org
MT @sejorg Enter the #SEJAwards for Reporting on the Environment! Deadline: March 1.
Park & Fine Partners with DPI on Diversity Scholarship
www.publishersweekly.com
The Denver Publishing Institute is accepting applications for the DPI Community Scholarship, which will provide scholarships to applicants who identify as Black, Indigenous, and people of color. The program is supported by Park & Fine Literary and Media.
Bursaries for under represented writers — Bridport Prize — bridportprize.org.uk
Our 2021 bursaries are now open. These give under represented writers a free entry to the Bridport Prize competition in any category. There will be monthly bursary awards running through to May 2021.
Lena Waithe & Hillman Grad Productions Team With Indeed For ‘Rising Voices’ Initiative To Showcase BIPOC Filmmakers — deadline.com
Lena Waithe And Hillman Grad Productions Team With Indeed For ‘Rising Voices’ Initiative To Showcase BIPOC Filmmakers
Scholarships — The Type Directors Club — www.tdc.org
RT @typedirectors We’re still accepting apps for the 2021 TDC Superscript Scholarship, a $5000 award for outstanding BIPOC students studying the design of typefaces, lettering and/or calligraphy. Applications open until Feb 26. Don’t miss out on this opportunity. Apply now & spread the word
DREAMing Out Loud Spring 2021 Application
RT @PENworldvoices Calling all aspiring #undocumented and #immigrant writers in #Brooklyn for @PENAmerica’s 2021 season of DREAMing Out Loud, a paid, tuition-free writing workshop. Classes start in March. Apply today!
WMG Members — sign up for free “You Don’t Have to Read the Book” Book Club featuring Bookish Broads
Join @WMG_NYC Book Club on February 25th to celebrate fierce, trailblazing women authors including WMG member Lauren Marino herself, author of our latest book club selection Bookish Broads: Women Who Wrote Themselves into History (Abrams).