Twitter Cut Off From Facebook Updates; YouTube Quietly Launches Stories

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This week in social media news, Twitter users can no longer fill Facebook feeds simultaneously and YouTube gets in on the Stories craze.

In other news, WhatsApp is ready to make money, YouTube Music pledges regular updates and game developers get more options on Facebook. Snapchat’s new Lenses like the sound of your voice, Facebook protects your data, Instagram cares about your mental health and YouTube is testing a quick navigation feature. In addition, Japan is a place of strength for Twitter and Facebook removes a large ring of manipulators. Twitter cracks down on video trolls, Instagram tests a way to promote IGTV, YouTube goes dark and Snapchat renews its sports partnerships.

Twitter Among Apps Cut Off From Automatic Facebook Posts

Facebook has depreciated its Publish actions permissions from its API, a feature that allowed other apps to automatically publish posts to Facebook as the logged-in user.

Why it matters: Facebook is still encouraging users to share content from other apps through its Share dialogues. The move was designed to protect unsavory apps from accessing Facebook user information but also forces more interaction directly with the platform. Marketers that relied on the automated Publish feature will now have an extra step in their social media strategy.

Details: Facebook’s Publish actions permissions depreciation is expected to impact roughly 60,000 apps, the company announced. Twitter users quickly learned that they were among those affected. Facebook posts will have to be updated manually, although Twitter reminded users that they can also share tweets via SMS, direct message or email.

YouTube Introduces Its Own Stories Feature

Certain YouTube channels are now able to produce Stories in the style of Snapchat, Instagram and Facebook.

Why it matters: Instagram boasts 400 million daily active users on its Stories feature, compared to Snapchat’s 191 million. YouTube stands to gain from this popular format, especially since its users are, by nature, more experienced in video production and entertainment. If the feature proves successful, Google will undoubtedly begin selling ad space.

Details: YouTube has begun the rollout of Stories that appear at the top of its app. At the moment, it is limited to certain channels only, such as electronics enthusiast Avdan. Channel logos are given a red ring to indicate that a Story has been posted, just like on Instagram.

WhatsApp Launches Business API

WhatsApp is now offering paid interactions between businesses and consumers, as well as access to ads on Facebook.

Why it matters: In its Q2 earnings call, Sheryl Sandberg said they were “very focused” on WhatsApp, adding that 3 million people were testing business solutions. It’s not entirely surprising that Facebook would release its business API only a week after this statement was made. Facebook may be the number two ad seller in the world, but it’s running out of real estate. Adding monetization to WhatsApp will allow the company to pursue revenue growth while connecting solutions with other platforms such as Facebook and Instagram.

Details: Facebook released its WhatsApp Business API on Wednesday, offering solutions to brands that include calls to action and custom notifications. The API will allow businesses to send customized, non-promotional notifications such as shipping confirmations and appointment reminders, which will be charged at a fixed rate once the message has been delivered. Businesses can respond to questions and comments for free within 24 hours, encouraging quick turnaround and better customer service.

YouTube Music Will Be Updated Every Two Weeks

Google has updated YouTube Music and will continue to do so about every two weeks, adding features or tweaks to keep the service competitive.

Why it matters: YouTube Music launched in May, but lacked many of the same basic features users can find on competing services like sorting in alphabetical order. Regular updates will allow the service to be fluid, adding or improving features while the service is still in its infancy.

Details: YouTube Music has begun rolling out updates, including the ability for Android users to download songs to an SD card. Elias Roman, a product manager for YouTube Music told Engadget that the company plans to continue these regular updates every two weeks. The app recently removed its “Shared History” feature that combines YouTube and YouTube music, for example. In an update scheduled sometime in the next few weeks, YouTube Music will allow users to specify whether they want to stream or download songs in low, medium or high quality settings.

Facebook Gaming Extends Ad Solutions

Three new ad solutions—playable ads, retention optimization and a minimum return on ad spend (ROAS) bidding have been added to Facebook Gaming effective August 2.

Why it matters: The three new ad solutions allow developers to optimize campaigns to reach paying users or increase retention by allowing them to try a game before installing. In a saturated game marketplace, targeting the most valuable users upfront will offer higher return on investment.

Details: Mobile game developers can now access three new tools on Facebook designed to reach the most valuable players. Playable ads give Facebook users a way to test the game directly from their News Feeds and can download the app if they like it, offering better intent. Retention optimization allows developers to target users more likely to re-engage based on previous behaviors. Lastly, a minimum benchmark has been added to ROAS bidding to ensure that advertisers meet specific requirements.

New Snapchat Lenses Respond To Voice Commands

Snapchat has introduced new augmented reality Lenses that animate based on what the user says.

Why it matters: Snapchat has to keep finding new ways to remain competitive, especially as Instagram finds success with augmented reality. While the voice-activated Lenses are still in their early stages, the new feature is a sign that Snapchat continues to invest in the same technology that made it famous.

Details: New Lenses have been spotted on Snapchat that the prompt the user to say words like “ok” and “cool.” Saying the right word will cause the Lens to animate, such as a cat’s paw giving a thumbs up or adding jazz music in response to the word “love.”

Facebook Cuts Off API For Thousands Of Apps

Making good on its August 1 deadline, Facebook cut off API for any apps that were not submitted for detailed review and verification.

Why it matters: Back in May, Facebook told developers that it will scrutinize which business gain access to its API by introducing a more detailed verification process. Withholding its API from those who did not comply shows that the company is serious about rethinking its previous methods in favor of protecting user information.

Details: Facebook announced that it has revoked API access to “thousands” of apps that did not submit a new application, pursuant to the new requirement effective August 1. This new procedure includes verification of business identity, supplemental contracts and agreement that restricts the use of data for the sole purpose of servicing the individual customer.

Time Management Tools Added To Facebook And Instagram

Facebook and Instagram have simultaneously added tools that allow users to track and manage their time spent on social media.

Why it matters: In December, Facebook addressed concerns—and studies—that too much social media use can damage one’s mental health. While Facebook acknowledged “passive” use as potentially hazardous, the company insisted that actively participating can be “beneficial.” These tools will not only allow users to be more aware of their time on the platforms but give Facebook plausible deniability if a user chooses to scroll their mental health away regardless of warnings.

Details: On Wednesday, Facebook and Instagram announced new time management tools available in Settings that include an activity dashboard, a daily reminder and a new way to limit notifications. The company said it developed these tools based on “collaboration and inspiration from leading mental health experts and organizations,” as well as academics, internal extensive research and feedback from the Facebook/Instagram community.

“We want the time people spend on Instagram and Facebook to be intentional, positive and inspiring,” Ameet Ranadive, product management director at Instagram and David Ginsberg, director of research at Facebook said in a blog post. “Our hope is that these tools give people more control over the time they spend on our platforms and also foster conversations between parents and teens about the online habits that are right for them.”

YouTube Tests Swipe Feature On Android Devices

YouTube appears to be testing swipe video navigation that would allow users to swipe back and forth between content.

Why it matters: Swiping through content is a common feature on social media apps, which makes it a viable option for YouTube. The site considers a video view to be anything 30 seconds or longer, so quickly skipping content wouldn’t impact viewership metrics. Also, it may give YouTube a way to insert ads much like Instagram does while viewing Stories.

Details: Google+ user Joe Kelly discovered the ability to swipe through videos on the YouTube app home screen and posted a video of the feature to see if anyone else had seen it. The swipe navigation feature appears to be available only on certain devices, indicating a test.

Nearly 64 Percent Of Japan Uses Twitter

EMarketer has increased its estimates of Twitter penetration in Japan, naming it one of the social network’s strongest demographics.

Why it matters: Twitter resonated with Japanese users following the 2011 earthquake and tsunami as an alternative method of communication when telephones were not available. In addition, the Japanese language includes many one-symbol words, allowing users to create longer messages, even before the 280-character expansion.

Details: EMarketer now estimates that 63.3 percent of Japanese citizens use Twitter at least once per month from any device, compared to Facebook and Instagram at 39.9 percent and 38.1 percent, respectively. The research firm expects Instagram to surpass Facebook by the end of 2019, with nearly 42 percent of social network users in Japan using the platform at least once a month.

Facebook Discovers Fake Accounts Coordinating Washington Protests

Facebook announced the removal of 32 Pages and accounts from Facebook and Instagram once it was discovered they were involved in “coordinated inauthentic behavior” designed to instigate US protests.

Why it matters: Facebook wants the public to know that it is successful in detecting and putting a stop to coordinated efforts, as well as the hurdles they face in doing so. The company said it is investing heavily in “more people and better technology” to prevent bad actors misusing Facebook, as well as working much more closely with law enforcement and other tech companies. While the company hasn’t determined who is behind the scheme, the masterminds went to much greater lengths to obscure their true identities than the Russian-based Internet Research Agency (IRA) has in the past.

Details: A coordinated effort by unknown parties created at least 32 accounts on Facebook and Instagram as well as Facebook Pages and spent $11,000 on advertising to promote them. The groups organized 30 events going back to May 2017 and were behind protests planned in Washington next week. Some of the activity is consistent with patterns observed from Russian groups during the 2016 election, but with enough differences that Facebook is unsure of the culprits. Law enforcement and Congress have been informed of Facebook’s discovery.

Twitter Will Punish Repeat Offenders On Live Video Chat

Beginning August 10, Twitter will review and suspend accounts for repeatedly sending video chat messages that violate site guidelines.

Why it matters: Twitter has long been criticized for allowing abusive behavior on its platform in the name of free speech. Taking a more aggressive stance against offenders may help ease concerns from users, investors and most of all, advertisers as the company continues to push video as a revenue source.

Details: In a blog post on Friday, Twitter said it will continue its commitment to fostering safe conversation on its platform by “launching more aggressive enforcement of the guidelines” related to chats sent during live broadcasts. Periscope and Twitter users can already report and vote on video chat messages to determine if they are spam, abusive or otherwise unwelcome. According to existing Periscope guidelines for video chat, repeat offenders may be suspended from the broadcast or even on future videos for bad behavior. Twitter did not outline any new procedures, which indicates that the company “went easy” on some offenders in the past.

Instagram Tests IGTV Carousel Inside Flagship App

A new IGTV video carousel has been spotted by a few Instagram users, displaying select long-form videos directly in the news feed.

Why it matters: IGTV launched a month ago with its own dedicated app. To encourage widespread viewership and attract creators, Instagram is tapping into its existing user base to garner attention.

Details: Instagram is testing a video carousel inside its news feed, the company confirmed last week. “We’re always testing new and different ways to surface interesting content for people on Instagram,” a spokesperson told TechCrunch. The feature displays videos underneath Stories, encouraging users to browse IGTV videos. Another user noted the ability to add IGTV videos to Stories.

YouTube ‘Dark Mode’ Rolls Out On Android Devices

Google has begun a rollout of a YouTube “dark mode” for Android devices, several months after the feature went live for iOS users.

Why it matters: Dark mode changes the appearance of an app’s interface to black, reducing eye strain and saving battery life. The feature may allow Android users to browse the app longer, especially at night.

Details: Dark mode became available to iOS users in March and the feature has begun a rollout to Android devices, although it’s not clear when it will be available to all users. The feature is also available for web browsers.

Snapchat Ramps Up Sports Content With New Partnerships

Snapchat has extended a partnership with the NFL and penned a new one with NBC Sports Group.

Why it matters: Snapchat is placing faith in its Discover partners to draw users to the platform and keep them there. The disappearing-message app faces tremendous pressure to compete against Instagram which continues to outperform Snapchat despite copying its features. The NFL claims that its content earned 52 million unique views during the 2017-18 season.

Details: The NFL has renewed its partnership with Snapchat, Deadline Hollywood reported Monday. Snapchat will continue to produce “Our Stories,” which combine NFL-produced segments with media captured by the fans. During football season, a Publisher Story will be released every day the move to once per week during off-season.

NBC Sports Group has also partnered with Snapchat for a new weekly original Show called Premier League: Extra Time. The show will debut exclusively on Snapchat’s Discover page at the start of the 2018-19 Premier League season.

Editor’s Note: Our weekly social media news post is updated daily. This installment will be updated until Friday, August 3. Have a news tip? We’re looking for changes to and news surrounding social media platforms as they relate to marketing. Let us know at editorial@alistdaily.com.

Snapchat Launches First ‘Snappable’ AR Lens In UK With Three’s ‘Puggerfly’ Mascot

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Snapchat announced on Friday a first of its kind partnership with UK-based mobile network Three. The two are leveraging the timing of the World Cup by launching the social platform’s first Snappable augmented reality Lens featuring Three’s now famous Puggerfly mascot (a virtual pug dog with butterfly wings)

Snappables are a new type of interactive Lens that for playing and sharing augmented reality games with friends. These experiences are controlled using touch, motion and facial expressions.

Three is the first brand to use the new Snappable format, which enables users to play as Puggerfly in an AR game of football. By tilting their heads left or right, users can dodge incoming Puggerflies while the Lens keeps score, and Snapchat users can then invite their friends to beat their high score.

Puggerfly made its first appearance in Three’s “Go Binge with Snapchat” campaign, and it has already become a trendsetter by being at the center of several firsts on Snapchat. According to a press release, it was the first AR pet to be featured on the platform, running in different Lenses during a week-long period in April, where users could raise a Puggerfly from a puppy to adulthood. Additionally, the virtual pet is the first Lens to “go to sleep,” and it was the first gamified Snapchat Lens that offered real-world rewards through Three’s mobile network.

Snapchat first announced Snappables in April, and they offer developers a means of creating gaming experiences on the platform. At the time, Snapchat said that it intended to release a new Snappable each week. Previous attempts to bring games onto Snapchat include last year’s Zynga Poker promotion, where users could play a hand of poker using facial expressions.

There are currently over 12 million daily Snapchat users in the UK, with the platform reaching over 25 percent of all smartphone users in the country. Users spend an average of three minutes playing with AR experiences and sharing over 250 million Snaps using Lenses each day. Snapchat reported that over 1 trillion photos were taken globally with the Snapchat camera in 2017, which comes out to about three billion Snaps a day.

“Since the start of our partnership with Snapchat we have focused on creating innovation and true integration across our campaign, end-to-end,” said Three’s director of brand and communications Kat Ward-Smith in a statement.

David Norris, Snapchat’s creative lead in the UK, added “We know how important big cultural moments are on Snapchat, and it is so exciting to bring Puggerfly back to the camera during the first weekend of the World Cup. We’ve already enabled Snapchatters to play with their Puggerfly as it learned to walk, dance and fly; so, what a great way to continue the story by creating the pitch invading Puggerfly to launch the UK’s first Snappable.”

Social Media News: YouTube On TV, Snapchat Woes And A First For Twitter

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This week in social media, YouTube aims for TV viewers, Twitter touts live video, Snapchat defends its redesign and Facebook joins the dating game.

YouTube On The Boob Tube

With over 150 million hours of watch time per day, TV screens are now YouTube’s fastest-growing segment, the company reported on Sunday. To help advertisers reach and tailor campaigns to this demographic, YouTube will add a TV category to AdWords and DoubleClick Bid Manager in the coming months.

In the meantime, a new AdWords segment called “light TV viewers” has been added for brands who want help reaching cord cutters.

Twitter: New Kid At NewFronts

Hot off the heels of a profitable first quarter, Twitter hosted its very first NewFronts presentation on Monday, which focused heavily on live video.

The social network showed up ready to unveil 30 new content and renewal deals, including NBCUniversal, ESPN and Viacom.

Twitter’s biggest selling point for marketers was transparency about where ads appear on the site. During the company’s NewFronts presentation, Matthew Derella, Twitter global vice president of revenue and content partnerships, told marketers that they could say goodbye to unsafe brand environments and “hello to you being in control of where your video aligns . . . we say hello to a higher measure of transparency, we say hello to new premium inventory and a break from the same old choices.”

Snapchat: Sorry, Not Sorry

Backlash over Snapchat’s app redesign contributed to lower than expected daily active users (DAU) count in March, but the company stands behind the move . . . or does it?

During its first-quarter earnings call on Tuesday, Snap CEO Evan Spiegel told investors that they will continue to optimize the app redesign, especially for Android users.

“We are already starting to see early signs of stabilization among our iOS users as people get used to the changes,” Spiegel said.

Despite Snap’s apparent lack of concern, the company is quietly testing a design that undoes some of February’s controversial changes. The design would reportedly reunite Snapchat Stories from friends and celebrities—the biggest complaint from users.

Facebook’s Status: It’s Complicated

Facebook’s annual F8 developer’s conference tried its best to instill hope during a time of controversy and privacy concerns. Mark Zuckerberg poked fun at himself for his congressional testimony but otherwise assured developers that the site will continue to evolve, albeit with a new attitude of accountability.

Among the biggest announcements at F8 was an upcoming dating profile feature. The new opt-in dating feature only suggests other Facebook users who are not already friends. The tool will allow users to build separate dating profiles that use first names only, which will be hidden from regular friends and news feeds.

Other notable reveals include the ability for users to clear their Facebook tracking history, WhatsApp video calls, live commentary on Facebook videos and the launch of Oculus Go—the latter of which was gifted to attendees Oprah-style.

Social Media News: Playable Ads, AR Shopping And Paying For Privacy

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In case you missed the social media headlines this month, here are the most important things marketers should know.

Snapchat: Shopping With Selfies

Face swap? How about face shop? Brands on Snapchat can now sponsor a photo lens that allows users to buy products or learn more without leaving the app.

Adidas, Clairol, King and STX Entertainment are the first to use the new Shoppable AR feature, which was announced on Wednesday.

Instagram: Focus On Friends

Facebook’s Instagram announced another Snapchat-like feature this week—a special image that when scanned, allows someone to follow a specific account. Dubbed “Nametags,” the feature is similar to Snapchat’s QR codes.

Meanwhile, portrait mode in Instagram Stories just received a new mode called “Focus.” Snapping a photo in the new mode will keep the subject in focus, while slightly blurring the background. The new feature is available on iOS at launch, and rolling out to select Android devices beginning Wednesday.

Users can mention other accounts with the new “@mention” sticker, which works the same as tagging someone in the caption. While advertised for friends, the implications for influencer marketing are obvious.

Facebook: Play, Pay And Privacy

Facebook is testing a new “playable ad” format that would allow users to try a game before they install. Developer Miniclip was one of the developers who tested the ad in beta. Facebook will provide more details about playable ads during its annual F8 event May 1.

Would you pay for Facebook? During his testimony before the US Senate, CEO Mark Zuckerberg said that users are not able to opt out of being targeted for ads, saying, “that would be a paid product.” He also said that there would always be a version of Facebook that is free—causing many to speculate as to whether the social network will adopt a tiered level of membership in the future.

As the GDPR deadline looms closer, Facebook has updated its terms of service but it’s clear what the company wants users to move along. When asked to accept or decline Facebook’s new terms of service, users will see a big blue button marked “I accept,” while “See your options,” including the ability to decline the terms is smaller and less conspicuous.

Snapchat Gives Influencers More Stats And Marketers Free Ads

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Snapchat is finally giving additional analytic support to its most popular users, giving an “Insights” feature to its Official Stories creator community.

Currently, the company will give its verified creators information on total and unique views, completion rates, time watched and audience demographics, interests and geographic data, which these influencers will be able to use to obtain brand sponsorships on their own.

“We have historically neglected the creator community on Snapchat that creates and distributes public Stories for the broader Snapchat audience,” Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel said during the company’s Q3 earnings call in 2017. “Developing this ecosystem will allow artists to transition more easily from communicating with friends to creating Stories for a broader audience, monetizing their Stories and potentially using our professional tools to create premium content.”

As its platform stands now, Snapchat offers no official options for these verified influencers to partner with brands on its platform, either through sponsored or joint posts, meaning that the company will not see any direct revenue from empowered influencers.

The influencer tools are just one more effort by the social media company to take a loss-leader approach to consumer and marketer audience building. On Tuesday, Snapchat offered advertisers who had purchased video ads from its competitors free ad credits on its platform.

With the price of Facebook ads soaring year over year, the “ghost” is ready to swoop in with a tempting offer for those who have never tried Snap Ads. Mobile or social marketers who can provide proof of vertical ads purchased in the past three months can apply to receive credits to use toward their first Snapchat campaign. The credits would be worth “several hundreds of dollars with no minimum spending requirements,” a source told Recode.

The company has made considerable changes to attract marketers in recent months, including tools for app developers and new tracking features. Snapchat also announced Lens Studio in December—a tool that allows brands to design and distribute their own AR activations. Advertising revenue for Snapchat grew 38 percent in the fourth quarter of 2017. Meanwhile, price per impression fell 25 percent over the third quarter.

The timing of Snap’s current credit offer may be fortuitous. EMarketer just revealed that teenagers are losing interest in Facebook—a demographic traditionally attracted to Snapchat.

“Brands should know that there’s a highly unduplicated, extremely engaged young audience on Snap that is 13-to-34 years old,” Marni Schapiro, director of sales at Snap told AListDaily in a recent interview. People under the age of 25 use Snapchat for 40 minutes on average every day. You won’t find these users in the places you used to find them.”

Teenage users of Snapchat were less than thrilled with the app’s recent overhaul, however. Distaste for the new app design has resulted in an online petition to revert back to its old design. The plea to Snapchat has earned over 650,000 signatures to date.

Snap’s move to woo marketers away from its biggest competitors isn’t the only way to qualify for free advertising. A program called Snap Accelerate already gives special deals to startups that want to advertise on Snapchat, as well.

Snapchat was famous for vertical video messages and augmented reality filters until Instagram introduced Stories and AR. That’s not to say Snap hasn’t borrowed its fair share of features, but as a publicly-traded company, the disappearing-message app is feeling even more pressure to produce results.

While its user base is growing, Snapchat trails far behind its biggest competitor Instagram. The two social networks are expected to reach 86.5 million and 104.7 million users respectively in 2018.

Twitter’s First Profitable Quarter Hides Opaque Treatment Of Advertisers

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For the first quarter in its history, Twitter has reported turning a profit, coming from increased ad revenue driven by improved ad engagement. However, despite this good news for investors, the social media network remains tight-lipped about metrics necessary for advertisers.

In its letter to investors, Twitter reported a 7 percent year-over-year increase in ad revenue growth for Q4, citing major improvements in the rate of ad engagements (an increase of 26 percent) and cost per engagement (a decrease of 42 percent). Click-through rates have also improved, though the company declined to give any specific figures.

Likewise, Twitter claims, without giving figures, that cost per impression (CPM) has increased despite the continued reduction in cost per engagement (CPE).

When asked about the company’s predictions for future CPEs on its earnings call, Ned Segal, Twitter’s CFO, again declined to give specific figures, saying:

“We’ve seen our CPMs be really healthy and we expect the CPM trend to continue and we try to think more about CPMs than we do about the inputs; that is, CPE or other things.”

Twitter has acknowledged that CPMs are the most significant metric for advertisers, yet refused to disclose specifics on what those numbers might be. Other important statistics for marketers, such as click-through rates and average time spent per user, are also notably absent from Twitter’s reporting.

“We feel good about where we are from a time spent perspective, but what we really talk about when we think about audience and engagement and the best way to measure the usage of Twitter as a daily utility is that [daily active user] growth,” Segal said when asked about time spent.

Twitter’s rivals in the social-media space, Snapchat and Facebook, have all disclosed specific information about CPMs and time spent to investors, even when those figures dropped significantly.

The platform’s own investor presentation reveals that not everything is in order with its ad business. While its ad revenue for the quarter did increase, it was only by one percent from Q4 last year, and was motivated entirely by international investment in Twitter ads: US spending on ads on Twitter dropped by 10 percent over Q4 2016.

In an announcement today, Twitter announced its intentions to “go back to basics” with its ad products, promising to use machine learning to improve targeting and make it easier to make media buys. But if the company won’t disclose vital information to advertisers, it may not be worth the price of admission.

Teenagers Are Leaving Facebook As Older Generations Sign Up

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Facebook is losing ground with US users ages 24 and younger this year, according to forecasts by eMarketer. As older users join, younger generations are becoming less interested, with many turning to Snapchat over Instagram.

For the first time, eMarketer predicts that Facebook will lose users across age groups between the ages of 11 and younger, 12-17 and 18-24. The largest decline will be in users aged 11 and younger, at 9.3 percent. Teenagers and young adults are leaving at similar rates as one another. Users ages 12-17 and 18-24 will decrease by 5.6 percent and 5.8 percent, respectively.

Facebook acknowledged the decline in users in its fourth quarter earnings call to investors. According to the company’s estimates, its users spent five percent less time on its platforms, resulting in 50 million fewer hours on Facebook per day. For the first time in the company’s history, the number of daily active users in the US and Canada dropped, as well.

CEO Mark Zuckerberg doesn’t seem concerned, citing quality of engagement over quantity.

“I want to be clear, the most important driver of our business has never been time spent by itself,” Zuckerberg said in the call. “It’s the quality of the conversations and connection.”

Ages 55 and over will become the second-biggest demographic on Facebook this year, which begs the question for youngsters—is the social network still cool? As parents and grandparents sign up en mass, younger users, especially teenagers, begin to crave privacy and camaraderie with friends.

There is some hope for Facebook in that many, but not all of its estranged users are migrating to Instagram. EMarketer predicts that Instagram will add 1.6 million users ages 24 and younger this year.

Instagram is still more popular in the US than Snapchat, however. Instagram users are expected to increase 13.1 percent in 2018 to reach 104.7 million.

Snapchat, meanwhile, is also expected to grow but at a slightly slower pace of 9.3 percent. The company will add 1.9 million users aged 24 and younger and continue to have more users ages 12-24 compared with that of Instagram. EMarketer predicts that Snapchat users will number 86.5 million this year.

In the fourth quarter of 2017, Snapchat saw the addition of 8.9 million daily active users, the highest number of quarterly net adds since the third quarter of 2016.

Snap, Inc. CEO Evan Spiegel told investors that the app’s redesign is easier to use and is attracting older users. On the surface, this appears to be good news, but Snapchat is known for being very niche—i.e. attracting primarily young consumers.

“Snapchat could eventually experience more growth in older age groups since it’s redesigning its platform to be easier to use,” eMarketer principal analyst Debra Aho Williamson said in a statement. “The question will be whether younger users will still find Snapchat cool if more of their parents and grandparents are on it. That’s the predicament Facebook is in.”

Unilever To Social Media Giants: Shape Up Or We Ship Out

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Unilever has given social media an ultimatum—stop spreading toxic content or the company will take its millions of ad dollars elsewhere.

Chief marketing officer Keith Weed will explain the company’s position in a speech given at the annual Interactive Advertising Bureau conference on Monday. Copies of the speech were obtained by certain press outlets beforehand.

“2018 is either the year of tech-lash, where the world turns on the tech giants—and we have seen some of this already—or the year of trust. The year where we collectively rebuild trust back in our systems and our society,” the speech reads.

Unilever spent about $9.4 billion on marketing last year, 25 percent of which is dedicated to digital. As one of the world’s largest advertisers, Unilever’s portfolio spans across food, home and healthcare industries including Dove and Lipton.

A September study by the CMO Council found that 88 percent of consumers would think differently about a brand or would stop doing business with it after a negative brand association. For Unilever, having so many brands under its name equals more risk of bad press or boycott.

“As a brand-led business, Unilever needs its consumers to have trust in our brands,” Weed will say in the speech. “We can’t do anything to damage that trust—including the choice of channels and platforms we use. So, 2018 is the year when social media must win trust back.”

Weed doesn’t accuse any companies in particular, but Facebook was quick to respond with a statement: “We fully support Unilever’s commitments and are working closely with them.”

The speech targets divisive content and lack of transparency, naming fake news, racism, sexism, terrorists spreading messages of hate and toxic content directed at children. Unilever will also make a commitment to fight gender stereotypes in advertising.

Unilever has been accused of racism as recently as October when a Dove ad showed women of different races changing into one another. Dove apologized and promptly removed the ad saying that they “missed the mark.”

The company’s safety demands—for both brands and consumers—place additional pressure on companies like Facebook, Google and Twitter to clean up their content.

Google-owned YouTube recently announced a new task force that will moderate and review videos that could be in violation of YouTube policy. Working alongside machine learning software, the new team will enforce stricter criteria on the channels earning money from ads. Over the weekend, YouTube announced potential punishment for creators who negatively impact the community.

During its fourth quarter earnings call, Twitter said it will continue its efforts to make the social network safer by clarifying its policies and adding new signals to give better context to reported Tweets.

In November, Facebook, Google and Twitter testified before US Congress regarding Russian interference that could have influenced the 2016 Presidential Election.

Twitter Finally Sees Growth In Q4, Continues To Invest In Video

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Twitter enjoyed modest growth for the fourth quarter of 2017 despite a bad investment and plans to use its new features to bolster advertising ROI.

Daily active users (DAU) grew 12 percent year over year in the fourth quarter but dropped two percent over the third quarter. Monthly active users (MAU) were 330 million.

After three straight quarters of revenue losses, Twitter finally saw revenue growth in the fourth quarter of 2017, albeit only two percent for a total of $732 million. Total revenue for the 2017 fiscal year reached $2.4 billion, a decrease of three percent year over year.

Twitter blamed its struggles on TellApart, a marketing technology company acquired in 2015. This bad investment resulted in approximate losses of $82 million year over year, according to the letter to shareholders, and fourth quarter growth would have been eight percent year over year had it not been for depreciation.

The social network isn’t giving up on performance-based marketing, however. In November, Twitter launched a new Promoted Tweet composer designed to simplify the process. Advertisers who had access to the new compose experience created 26 percent more Promoted Tweets, launched 13 percent more campaigns and spent 23 percent more on Twitter in the fourth quarter.

Twitter also doubled its character limit and increased username length during the quarter. To attract smaller businesses to the platform, Twitter began offering Promote Mode, an automation tool that promotes brand posts up to 10 times per day for $99 per month.

Emphasis was placed on ad serving optimization in the fourth quarter, which resulted in a 26 percent increase in ad engagement rates and an 18 percent increase in return for advertisers, Twitter said. Cost per engagement (CPE) declined by 42 percent year over year while overall ad engagements increased by 75 percent.

Going forward, Twitter says that its main revenue priorities are to improve core ad offerings, tap new channels of demand such as online video and add new advertising options for brands.

Like its competitors, Twitter is investing in video content to keep users tuned in. During the fourth quarter, Twitter announced approximately 22 deals and streamed approximately 1,140 live events with 60 percent of those reaching a global audience. User-generated streams also proved popular, with 28 million broadcast during the quarter across both Twitter and Periscope.

Twitter has become a hotbed for political debates and bullying and has often been accused of censorship by its users for banning Conservative-leaning accounts, with some employees reportedly admitting the practice. With brand safety a growing concern across all marketing platforms, Twitter says it will continue its efforts to make the social network safer by clarifying its policies and adding new signals to give better context around reported Tweets—although it denies any discriminatory practices.

Snapchat Q4 Earnings Reveal Ad Revenue Growth, Adoption By Older Users

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Snap, Inc. has reported substantial growth in the fourth quarter of 2017, smoothing investor relations after a rough first IPO year. The Snapchat parent company credits its success to improvements made to the Android app and “removing friction” from its advertising business.

In the fourth quarter of 2017, Snapchat saw the addition of 8.9 million daily active users (DAU), the highest number of quarterly net adds since the third quarter of 2016. Annual revenues grew 104 percent from the prior year, but came at a lower cost than the previous quarter, according to CEO Evan Spiegel.

“In 2017, we focused on removing friction from our products, our advertising business, and our team,” said Spiegel.

Snap Ads were migrated to an automated auction last year, resulting in over 90 percent being purchased programmatically during the fourth quarter, and total advertising revenue grew 38 percent. Spiegel added that Snapchat we increased advertising impressions by over four times year over year while continuing to grow per-user engagement.

Total advertising revenue for the quarter was $281 million, an increase of 74 percent year over year and 38 percent quarter over quarter.

Throughout the year, Snapchat made a number of changes to its app that prioritize friends over publishers—a move that may have influenced the recent Facebook News Feed update. According to Spiegel, the redesign has increased the retention rate of new Android users by 20 percent over 2016 and increased the number of net additional users more than any other quarter in the company’s history.

Commonly associated with teenagers and young adults, Snapchat’s redesign is having a positive impact on older users, as well.

“Compared to the old design, core metrics around content consumption and time spent in the redesigned application are disproportionately higher for users over the age of 35, which bodes well for increasing engagement among older users as we continue to grow our business,” Spiegel said.

This may prove to be a double-edged sword as more users drive growth, but younger users may become disenfranchised with Snapchat as soon as Mom signs up. A 2016 study by Defy Media found that 30 percent of users between the ages of 13-24 prefer Snapchat because their parents don’t use it.

Emarketer predicts that the number of generation Y users who access Snapchat every month will account for 56 percent of all US Snapchat users by 2020.

Investors were clearly happy with the results as Snap, Inc. stock rose 22 percent hours after the earnings call.