Need to know – The latest US media and marketing news: Apple's Developer Conference plans, Amazon readies video game offering & Cadillac to sponsor men's NY fashion week
Morning all, here’s a glimpse at all the media and marketing news you should know today.
Need to know – The latest US media and marketing news
1. The Apple Watch and Apple TV will be high on the agenda at the brand's Developer Conference today, claims Reuters. The tech giant is also expected to unveil a new music service as well as better tools to build apps for its first ever wearable at the annual gathering.
2. The launch of Facebook's Instant Articles has been slower, and far less dramatic, than commentators anticipated. Business Insider has noted that while the social behemoth has posted links to all of its Instant content on a specific timeline, it hasn't actually published any stories since the feature was announced almost one month ago.
3. Not content with its expansion into home services, groceries and TV, Amazon is poised to move into video games "in a big way", writes USA Today. The online retailer is hiring a slew of designers for "a new PC game project using the latest technology."
4. Honda has partnered with gaming and media streaming site Machinima for a new animated digital series titled Justice League: Gods and Monsters Chronicles, asserts Adweek. The brand will serve as the official sponsor of the three-episode show, which has been billed as a "reimagined, edgier narrative" of Wonder Woman, Superman and Batman with each character receiving one full episode.
5. Snapchat debuted its first political ad on Saturday, writes the New York Times. The American Action Network, an outside group closely associated with the house Republican leadership, placed a 10-second ad on the social platform as part of a larger $900,000 campaign by the network urging congress to pass trade promotion authority laws.
6. Retail magazine sales in the US and Canada have declined considerably since 2014, reports the International Business Times. Figures for Q1 of this year from MagNet show a decline in traditional publishing sales as readers consume more content on the go. The number of magazines sold at retail outlets plummeted by 14.2 per cent in the first quarter compared to the same period last year.
7. Cadillac is to sponsor the first ever New York fashion week for men. According to AdAge, the agreement will run for two seasons and will see the all-American brand produce a variety of related events and provide vehicles as shuttles for attendees. Cadillac president Johan de Nysschen has said he's "very much interested" in brining the automaker into the fashion world.
8. And Subway is the latest fast food chain to Jump on the 'no artificial ingredients' bandwagon, notes MediaPost. The restaurant will follow in the footsteps of Taco Bell and Pizza Hut and remove all artificial flavors, colors and preservatives from its food by 2017.
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