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Concepts

Media

  • Curation and Algorithms

    More and more companies are announcing new products based on human curation, even as the most important content players — Google and Facebook — rely on algorithms. When does curation make sense, and when are algorithms better? And ultimately, who is responsible for both?

  • Taylor Swift v Apple

    Eddy Cue is dancing again, but this time it’s figuratively and the tune is provided by Taylor Swift. Seventeen hours after Swift decried Apple’s plan to not compensate artists for songs played during the Apple Music demo period Apple changed course. What can be learned, and what does this say about Apple Music — and about…

  • Battle of the Box, Updated; Apple Enables Ad-Blockers

    A year ago I compared and contrasted Box and Dropbox; both have taken very different paths over the last year, and in light of Box’s earnings and recent Dropbox news I check back in on their progress. Also, Apple and ad-blockers.

  • The News App, Open Source Swift, Additional Notes from the WWDC Keynote

    This update touches on why Apple Music may be a much bigger deal than I suggested, and the moves on to all the other important announcements from Apple WWDC keynote. This includes the News app, open-source Swift, and more.

  • Vox Acquires Recode; Stars, Money, and Reach; The Apple Car and Jony Ive

    Recode has sold to Vox, and while everyone involved is putting a happy face on the matter, it seems highly likely that Recode failed as a business. Understanding how content businesses work show where they went wrong, but what does that mean for someone like Bill Simmons? Also, Jeff Williams spoke at Recode, and he just…

  • Verizon-AOL, Facebook Instant Articles, and the Future of Digital Advertising

    Two seemingly unrelated stores — Verizon buying AOL. and Facebook offering publishers the option of Instant Articles — are actually very much connected: advertising online is undergoing a fundamental shift, and while there will be a few big winners, there will be a lot more losers.

  • Media Monday: Bill Simmons vs ESPN, Spotify and the Content Hierarchy, Periscope and Piracy

    Today’s Daily Update is all about the media: – ESPN will not renew Bill Simmons’ contract, which leads into a discussion of the value of individual brands, particular writers, and how that value can best be captured – Not all content is created equally, which helps explain Spotify’s surprising decision to diversify – Periscope presents a…

  • Facebook and the Feed

    In a week where much of the Internet was all atwitter about Mobilegeddon, Google’s pre-announced algorithm change that will favor mobile-friendly sites in mobile search results, a potentially far more impactful announcement was much more of a surprise: Facebook is tweaking the News Feed algorithm. This is a big deal for publishers in particular: according […]

  • Daily Update: Moore’s Law at 50, BuzzFeed and Advertiser Pressure

  • Daily Update: BuzzFeed Busted, LinkedIn Buys Lynda.com