Social video sharing platform YouTube is rolling out a “channel membership” paid subscription option to its top creators, following criticism that its latest ad policies make it hard for publishers to earn money.

In a model already employed by competitors such as Twitch and Patreon, the platform will let publishers with more than 100,000 fans charge $4.99 a month for access to exclusive content, while those with over 10,000 followers will be able to host live-streamed “premieres” and...

In response to the results of a survey by Edelman, which found a glaring loss of trust in social media platforms across the globe, the firm’s CEO has commented that “people are scared”.

Revealed at Cannes Lions yesterday (June 19), a study by the PR firm on over 9,000 consumers found that 70% thought it was up to advertisers to pressure social media sites, such as Facebook and Twitter, into more effectively addressing false information and offensive content.

Speaking to CNBC, the...

As we’ve seen within the last year, the big-spending FMCG giants have demonstrated some hefty lobbying power when it comes to holding the digital marketing industry to account. This time, they’re getting tough on influencer marketing.

At Cannes Lions today (June 18), Unilever’s chief marketing and communications officer, Keith Weed, said that the growing influencer marketing industry was at a pivotal stage and that its members must take “urgent action” in order to rebuild...

A new study by e-commerce martech company Rokt has given refreshed credit to the concept of retail therapy, with 71% of UK consumers claiming to be at their happiest when shopping online.

The survey of over 4,000 consumers worldwide found that the majority are not only at their happiest when browsing the virtual aisles, but are at their most “engaged, focused and open-minded”, presenting marketers with a prime opportunity to target customers in a buying mindset.  

For the UK segment of the...

Following its recent redesign, Reddit has rolled out a new native video ad format that will auto-play by default when a user scrolls through a feed.

The update is part of the massively popular site’s tentative efforts to monetise its 330m active monthly users, which can be widely resistant to any large-scale changes to user experience, particularly when there’s a commercial slant involved.

Users will, however, be able to turn off the autoplay function, while the ads themselves will only be served...

In similar fashion to its consumer-facing counterparts, B2B social network LinkedIn has launched Carousel Ads, allowing advertisers to display up to 10 customised, swipeable cards within one ad.

According to a blog post by product manager, Rohin Rajiv, the company hopes the update will “humanise” B2B marketing efforts and add a little colour to an otherwise non-too-descript news feed, encouraging users to engage with brands on both desktop and mobile.

Instagram is rumoured to be rolling out long-form video in what could be a play by Facebook to poach a growing portion of ad spend from YouTube, owned by arch-rival in ad tech Google.

While Instagram currently supports hour-long live streams, videos are capped at just 60 seconds, but unnamed sources speaking to WSJ say this could be extended to 60 minutes, which could make the photo-sharing platform a whole lot more attractive to influencers.

The news comes despite Instagram already becoming the dominant force of...

Facebook has announced that businesses will now be able to advertise within its classified ad listing hub, Marketplace, in a duo of updates that finally open up the channel for monetisation.

In addition to news feed, videos, Instagram and Messenger placements, businesses will now be able to advertise directly within relevant Marketplace product feeds, although so far the new feature is only available across the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.

The second update comes for users of Marketplace themselves,...

Apple has announced it will be making efforts to block Facebook’s user tracking tools within the next iteration of its iOS and Mac operating systems.

Announced at its WWDC developer conference yesterday (June 4), the tech firm’s software chief, Craig Federighi, said on the social network’s automatic tracking features, “we’re shutting that down”.

Those tracking tools in question allude to Facebook’s like buttons, share buttons and comment fields, which when integrated...

With three hours a day on average worldwide spent in apps, it’s no wonder that our smartphones have become intrinsic to our everyday lives. With the multitude of apps available, our smartphones are overwhelmingly personal – glancing at a few pages of someone’s chosen apps provides a uniquely intimate snapshot into their daily life and personal interests. From mobile banking and retail shopping apps, to Google docs, social messaging and publisher apps, our smartphone is the primary platform...