Hello and welcome to this week’s FWD. Another big one for the ninth WFH edition.
- Apple announced a $10 million award for COVID-19 sample collection kit production
- Zoom has acquired Keybase, accessing their end-to-end encryption products
- Google’s Duo video chat app gets two updates, a family mode and group video calls
- Facebook has updated its Free Basics initiative, which is trying to connect more people to the internet and also helping its users to find and support local businesses
- Pinterest updated its Shopify app to support Shoppable Product Pins creation
- YouTube on home TV screens, a new way to reach viewers through ads
- Engagement with local news providers is booming, Facebook says
- 3 ways people are using YouTube to learn from home
- Key steps Google is taking to preserve the integrity of the ads on its platforms
- Social Media Platforms Q1 updates:
- Facebook’s Global MAU and DAU’s grow with a 10% and 11% YoY rise respectively
- Twitter’s Average Monetizable DAU reached 166 million in Q1, up 24% YoY
- Pinterest’s MAU have increased by 26% YoY, adding 32 Million more users in Q1
- It’s time for children to learn life skills through Whirlpool’s #ChoreClub
- Sports Quiz is back through HQ Trivia while Tinder is testing an in-app trivia
- Rethink makeup through Instagram’s Filters
- Bored of your Stories feed? Instagram is testing new ways to navigate through them
- Artist Damian Hirst and Snapchat are launching New Spin Painting Lens to raise funds for COVID-19
- An NFL team uses Animal Crossing to reveal their 2020 schedule
- How are we planning media through Covid-19 and how are you leading your team during this time? Google is giving some advice
- Tech for good during COVID-19
- For those who are into Apple tech, this is how they reinvented the cursor for iPad
- The value of a connected data-driven strategy