Top News:
Nicola Agius / Search Engine Land:
Google says IAB Tech Lab's report claiming Privacy Sandbox could disadvantage smaller brands and media companies contains “misunderstandings and inaccuracies” — The IAB Tech Lab report claims that Privacy Sandbox could make it harder for brands to serve effective ads - particularly smaller businesses.
Discussion:
Google for Developers, MediaPost, Marketing Dive, The Drum, Hanne Tuomisto-Inch on LinkedIn, @iabtechlab, MarTech, Ad Age, Digiday and AdExchanger
Daniel Thomas / Financial Times:
Sources: The Independent is in talks to assume control of BuzzFeed in the UK and Ireland under a licensing deal for its brands, including HuffPost — British media group to take charge of local operations of start-up once seen as future of the industry — The Independent, the British media group …
Discussion:
The Guardian, Mediaite, Reuters, @janinegibson.bsky.social and The Information
Drew Harwell / Washington Post:
The SEC approves Truth Social's SPAC merger with DWAC; Trump's stake in the post-merger company would be valued at more than $4B at today's price — The former president's stake in the post-merger company would be valued, at today's share price, at nearly $4 billion.
Discussion:
Fox Business, The Hill, Reuters, Axios, CBS News, Politico, CNN, @drewharwell@mastodon.social, @Nonilex@masto.ai and @gwynnion@mastodon.social, more at Techmeme »
Anne Steele / Wall Street Journal:
Sources: Rod Stewart sold his music and publishing catalog for ~$100M to Iconic Artists Group, which says it has raised $1B+ for future catalog investments — Investors pour billions of dollars into companies pursuing music-rights deals — Rod Stewart, the star behind such hits as …
Discussion:
New York Post, Axios, Deadline, Music Business Worldwide, Forbes, Billboard, Music Week, Variety and Digital Music News
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Roku reports Q4 revenue up 14% YoY to $984.4M, vs. $968.2M est., and warns of a “challenging” environment for media and entertainment in 2024; ROKU drops 14%+ — Roku revenue came in above Wall Street forecasts for the fourth quarter of 2023 — and it touted new milestones …
Discussion:
The Desk, TechCrunch, The Wrap, The Information, Media Play News, Deadline, Roku and The Hollywood Reporter, more at Techmeme »
Alexandra Alter / New York Times:
The National Book Awards expand eligibility to noncitizens in the US, including immigrants and longtime residents who have made their home in the country — The awards, which celebrate the best of American literature, are expanding the definition of who qualifies.
Discussion:
Publishing Perspectives, Mother Jones and @mtaeckens
Bloomberg:
Sources: the US DOJ plans to scrutinize the streaming service proposal by Disney, Fox, and WBD over concerns it could harm consumers, rivals, and sports leagues — - Concerns likely focused on pricing, sports league negotiations — Antitrust enforcers have blocked cable bundles in past cases
Discussion:
The Streamable, Reuters, @tomselliott and Cord Cutters News
Emma Roth / The Verge:
Meta plans to start charging a 30% fee for boosting Facebook and Instagram posts on iOS later in February, after Apple extended its 30% cut to boosting in 2022 — Meta said Thursday that it will start charging a 30 percent fee when advertisers pay to boost the visibility of their posts in Facebook's and Instagram's iOS apps.
Discussion:
Facebook, MediaPost, Search Engine Land, Reuters, @AAKL@noc.social, BGR, Bloomberg, The Information, Wall Street Journal, 9to5Mac, TechCrunch and Engadget, more at Techmeme »
Charlotte Tobitt / Press Gazette:
How Swiss outlet Blick gained 16,000+ subscribers since June 2023 by using a registration wall and summaries teasing the content of some walled-off articles — A registration wall launched in the run-up to the premium offer was a “key element” to a strong launch.
Committee to Protect Journalists:
A Turkish court finds three journalists guilty of assisting a terrorist organization; the three have faced multiple trials since their initial arrests in 2016 — The Committee to Protect Journalists urges Turkish authorities not to fight the appeals of journalists Ahmet Altan, Nazlı …
Discussion:
Voice of America and Committee to Protect …
Ben Mullin / @benmullin:
A memo to Intercept staff says EIC Roger Hodge is leaving and the outlet is laying off 15 people and cutting salaries for the leadership team — Scoop: @theintercept is cutting 15 positions, and EIC Roger Hodge is departing [image]
Discussion:
MediaPost, @froomkin, @danackerman, @themaxburns, @willyblackmore, The Wrap and NPR
Geert De Clercq / Reuters:
An EU study of 576 influencers finds that 97% posted commercial content but only 20% systematically indicated the content was advertising — Four out of five influencers on social media fail to disclose commercial content they post is advertising as required under EU law, a European Union study released on Wednesday showed.
Discussion:
European Commission, The Hill, The Information, RTÉ, Metro.co.uk, Adweek and Boing Boing
Oliver Darcy / CNN:
Meta seems unable to define political content, vaguely mentioning laws, elections, and social topics, after saying Threads would not amplify political content — What constitutes “political” content? — It's an important question that Meta has conspicuously left unanswered …
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