Snap increases users and revenue per user, but still nets loss
Snapchat has increased its daily active users (DAU) 21% year-on-year on the second quarter with 173 million people now using the app. It has added more than 30 million new users during the period. It added 7.3 million people in the three months to June 30 alone. The company has also doubled its average revenue per user (ARPU) from the same quarter a year ago. ARPU in the three months to 30 June increased 109% to $1.05. Capital expenditure increased from 16.4 million a year ago to $19.4 million in the quarter. Despite user growth, parent company Snap Inc has reported a net loss of $2.2 billion for the six months ending 30 June - its first six months of trading since floating on the stock market. Don't forget you can follow AdNews on Snapchat by scanning this snapcode.
SCA joins GroupM's 'Out of Towners' expedition
Southern Cross Austereo is joining News Corp as a media partner in GroupM’s Out of Towners initiative, a nine-week road trip taking media buyers and clients out of the ad bubble and into regional Australia. AdNews is also going along for the ride, and it will become part of a feature on regional marketing in our October print issue. The aim is to experience first-hand the lives, behaviours and interests of real Australians – not just the metro bubble, and participants will visit SCA’s regional radio and TV stations, and News Corp news outlets, to gain a better understanding of regional media.
Facebook edges closer to being a TV platform
Facebook has rolled out ‘Watch’ its TV-like platform in the US, with an Australian launch mooted in the future. Facebook calles Watch a “platform for shows’ and it will be a competitor to YouTube. Shows can be live or recorded.While a Facebook spokesperson couldn't confirm a timeframe, all new initiatives tested in the US tend to arrive in this market a few months down the track. When watching shows within Facebook, users can see comments and connect with friends and other viewers, or participate in a dedicated Facebook Group for the show. It’s also mooted as a way for creators to make money.
Gender waves hit Billabong’s ‘marketing morons’
Australian-founded surf brand Billabong has caused waves online after representation of women on its us.billabong.com site was called out on web aggregator content site Medium. “F*ck You Billabong. Seriously, f*ck you”, is the title of an article by an author under the name of Karen Knowlton and it seems to be garnering interest online and across social media. Knowlton lets lose on the brand after becoming enraged by ‘overt sexism’ on the website’s landing page (below). “Man as subject, shredding waves. Woman as object, back arched and head dropped back for ultimate titillating effect on the viewer. This doesn’t even pretend to be an image of a woman having fun on the beach, actually enjoying her beautiful body in the perfect swimsuit. It’s just straight objectification,” Knowlton said. She adds she knows sex sells, “but just do better” and urges the brand to “just be better than this, because this totally sucks and frankly the whole thing is a bit tired”. She said this kind of imagery impacts the psyche of women and girls “far beyond whatever marketing moron you entrusted your site to could even imagine”. It’s thought the site has since changed the opening brand shot to a woman on a surfboard. Billabong has been approached for comment.
Let me guess.... no women CD at the table? @cindygallop https://t.co/zJyrmFrzbo
— Andreea Campobasso (@Andreea_IM) August 10, 2017
Williams Lea Tag appoints APAC CEO and CMO
Williams Lea Tag has named Toby Codrington as APAC CEO and CMO. Codrington has been with the marketing communications services provider for more than a decade and was previously client officer for the APAC region. He will continue to be based out of Singapore. “I am privileged to have been selected as the new chief executive officer, APAC. I am looking forward to the journey ahead and believe that we have a great team in place to help us achieve our growth ambitions in the region,’ he says.
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