Need to Know – The latest US media & marketing news: YouTube beefs up in-ad purchasing, Disney's mobile initiative & USA Today may ditch print edition
Morning all, here’s a glimpse at all the media and marketing news you should know today.
Disney is to roll out it's MyMagic+ program
1. YouTube has beefed up its video ads with side-by-side product listings, reports AdAge. The Google-owned platform has updated TrueView ads so that retailers can use interactive card overlays to include product information, images and links to purchase products.
2. Disney is expanding it's $1bn MyMagic+ program, writes Business Insider. The mobile initiative uses wristbands and an app that allow Disney World visitors to unlock hotel room doors, pay for food and merchandise, and book dinner reservations or ride times. It's currently only available at the brand's flagship resort in Florida but is set to roll out other parks soon.
3. USA Today may cease publishing a daily print edition "within the next five or six years", according to editor in chief David Callaway. AdAge says that the remarks were made on Wednesday during a panel on the 'Future of Media'. If the
daily were to shutter its print edition, it would become the second major US newspaper to go online only, following the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.
4. Mozilla will soon let advertisers target firefox users based on browsing history, according to MediaPost. The tech company's Suggested Titles platform categorizes users based on their recent and frequent browsing history, and then shows users tiles from marketers, including content companies and other publishers, who want to reach specific segments.
5. Russian authorities have threatened to block Google, Twitter and Facebook if they fail to abide by the country's internet laws, reports the Huffington Post. Media watchdog Roskomnadzor has asked the firms to register bloggers who have more than 3,000 readers a day and remove websites which call for "unsanctioned protests and unrest."
6. Uber is allegedly seeking a $1bn credit line from banks, asserts the Wall Street Journal. About six to seven banks are expected to be part of the move, which could signal an eventual initial public offering for the ride-hailing app.
7. Good news for Back to the Future fans: Christopher Lloyd has reprised his role as Doctor Brown in Lego's latest ad, reports the Verge. The Doc features in the new spot for action-adventure video game Lego Dimensions, which lets fans use real toys in the in a virtual setting.
8. And Hillary Clinton is now on LinkedIn, notes Yahoo. As any good job applicant would, the presidential candidate has created a profile on the site so that voters can get to know her work history and qualifications.
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