Apple and Microsoft have similar approaches to developers, and iOS 15’s approach to privacy is better than iOS 14.
Daily Update
Archive of Daily Emails for Stratechery Members
Passport Update, F8 Refresh, Trump Ends Blog
F8 was all about developers, and there is reason to believe that Facebook is serious about building a real platform, particularly on messaging.
A Note to Subscribers
A note of explanation to subscribers about this crazy week, and an expression of gratitude.
Amazon Buys MGM, The Streaming Opportunity, Anti-Monopoly vs. Antitrust
Amazon’s purchase of MGM makes sense strategically, but also points to bigger ambitions; it also highlights how a lot of antitrust talk is actually anti-monopoly.
Apple Ads and the Anti-Steering Argument, Additional Follow-up
Apple’s argument defending its anti-steering provisions also explain the company’s approach to its burgeoning ad business.
Snap Partner Summit, Spectacles AR, Scan and Minis
Snap’s Partner Summits continue to provide compelling looks into what Snap is building today, and how it connects to the future.
Google IO: Google’s Reality, Workspace and Smart Canvas, Wear + Tizen
Google’s IO seemed boring, but taken in totality, revealed Google’s ambition to create a new reality. Plus Smart Canvas and the partnership between Wear OS and Samsung’s Tizen.
AT&T’s Original Bad Deal, Discovery + WarnerMedia, The Streaming Landscape
AT&T bails on its streaming ambitions; they can’t undo the mistake of buying Time Warner, but merging WarnerMedia with Discovery is a nice recovery.
AWS CloudFront Functions, AWS’s Data Residency Whitepaper, Muddles and Mirages
AWS’s responses to Cloudflare are still predicated on an assumption of centralizaion; the truth is in the middle, and the status quo is powerful.
Roku’s Earnings, Roku and YouTube’s Streaming Ads, Roku and YouTube’s Dispute
Both Roku and YouTube are winning in advertising; Roku, though, wants to win its negotiation with Google, and use PR to do so.