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Stocks ticked up yesterday after AstraZeneca and Oxford said their Covid-19 vaccine was up to 90% effective. Cases are still surging, and LA county just shut down all outdoor dining.
Snap is the latest to copy TikTok with "Spotlight" — it's all about "The Three Vs"
What's next, FleetTok?... Last week, Twitter copied Snap's Stories feature with Fleets (only four years after Facebook copied it). ICYMI: Pinterest, LinkedIn, and YouTube also have Stories. And of course, Facebook/Insta also copied Snap's AR Filters (avocado crown FTW). Now, Snap is doing some copy-catting of its own with its new "Spotlight" tab.
- This TikTok-like section of Snapchat serves up viral vertical videos (we're calling it: "Three Vs" content). You basically just scroll up endlessly with no escape.
- The "Three Vs" = TikTok's not-so-secret sauce. Viral vertical videos, paired with ridiculously addictive algorithms, helped TikTok grow from 11M US users in January 2018 to over 100M today.
Not so Renegade, Renegade... Copying popular features is standard MO for social apps. And Facebook has been aggressively pushing vertical videos on its Tok-competitor "Reels." But Snap is doing Three Vs a bit differently:
- Cash Giveaways: Snap will divvy up $1M between the most popular video creators each day for the rest of 2020. It's all based on views from that day.
- Viral For All: TikTok and Reels also shell out $$$ to incentivize creators, but they're more geared toward famous influencers. Snap says you don't need a public account or a big following to make it on Spotlight.
This is new (complicated) territory for Snap... Before, users could only see snaps posted by friends or by publishers in the Discover tab — there was no "going viral on Snap." But with all the scrutiny around viral misinformation and hate speech on Facebook and Twitter, Snap is moving into moderation-heavy (and risky) territory. That's probably why it isn't allowing comments on Spotlight videos.
Warner Music thrives on streaming, loses on concerts (it's a tale of two businesses)
'Twas the Lizzo IPO... Warner Music went public back in June as the first pure-play music stock of the record label "three-oply":Â Warner Music, Universal Music, and Sony Music (say "music" again). Warner signs artists, then markets and monetizes their tunes. Stars include: Lizzo, Ed Sheeran, and Cardi B.
- Concerts aren't happening, so Warner lost on tour services and merch. Buuuut: Warner's full-year earnings were essentially the same as its record-breaking 2019.
- Music streaming made up for it. Warner negotiates with streamers to get paid on listens. Digital sales were up 15% last quarter on the stream-palooza, offsetting losses from the pandemic-hit side of its business.
When Bruno's on pandemic vacay... He's not dropping that 24K Magic. Before going public, Warner noted that the "absence of superstar releases" was one of the biggest risks to its biz. Its roster is stocked with Led Zeppelin and Madonna tunes, but the big money comes from new albums. Fresh hits from artists like Dua Lipa made up for the silence from stars like Bruno Mars.
Warner reflects the winners/losers of the pandemic... The Spotify streaming side of Warner's biz is thriving, just like Spotify — the live touring side of the business is hurting, just like Live Nation. Warner's partnerships with pandemic thrivers like Facebook, TikTok, and Snap are growing sales even faster than subscription streaming. Warner also hinted it's exploring new opportunities with pandemic winners like Twitch (live-streamed concerts) and Peloton (licensing).
What else we’re Snackin’
- Ride: The US government awarded Uber and Lyft a contract worth up to $810M to provide rides for public agencies and their employees.
- Hurry: FDA advisers are slated to meet on December 10 to review Pfizer’s emergency-use application for its vaccine.
- Game: Major tween gaming platform Roblox files to go public — it's all user-generated games (mostly created by kids).
- Buddy: Amazon's AirPods competitor — EchoBuds — will include workout-tracking features in the next few days.
- Treat: Regeneron says it'll provide 300K doses of its newly FDA-approved Covid treatment to the US by early January.
- Saved: Regal Cinemas owner Cineworld lands a $450M loan and other debt relief, averting bankruptcy.
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Tuesday
- Earnings expected from Medtronic, HP, Best Buy, Dell, Dollar Tree, and American Eagle
Disclosure: Authors of this Snacks own shares of Snap, Uber, Amazon, and Warner Music
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