Instagram Rolls Out More Copycat Features

What Next?

Airbnb Launches Trips

8 years after founding their revolutionary accommodation sharing platform and 2 years after their rebrand, Airbnb have launched a new product called Trips. This new platform has three primary categories – ‘Experiences’, ‘Places’ and ‘Homes’ and, according to the press release, ‘Flights’ and ‘Services’ will be added in the future. Airbnb want to “make travel magical again” (great again?) and will do this by, “bringing together where you stay, what you do, and the people you meet all in one place.” Trips is not currently available in Australia, but no doubt we’ll be able to experience this new era of tourism soon.

Snapchat Harnesses Scarcity For A Different Kind Of Product Launch

Snapchat’s newly launched Spectacles are one of the most wanted items on the planet right now, partially because of the fact that it’s so hard to buy them. The glasses are only distributed via special Snapbot vending machines that have been covertly travelling around the US, and the small quantity that each vending machine supplies is most certainly contributing to the hype. Also interesting is the fact that digital publishers, tech bloggers and celebrities were denied early access to the glasses, where usually they would receive free pairs in exchange for ratings and reviews. This truly is a different kind of product launch for the tech industry: one that boycotts traditional sales channels and exploits scarcity bias.

The Nation Pays Attention

National Free to Air Station Audience
Have You Been Paying Attention – Mon Ch 10 911,000
First Dates – Tues Ch 7 794,000
Trump: First Interview – Mon Ch 10 786,000
Doctor Doctor – Wed Ch 9 766,000
RBT – Mon Ch 9 758,000
Home & Away – Mon Ch 7 755,000
First Dates – Wed Ch 7 742,000
Better Homes & Gardens – Fri Ch 7 716,000
The X Factor – Mon Ch 7 701,000
The Big Bang Theory – Tues Ch 9 701,000
14/11/16 – 20/11/16

Google’s AI Plays Pictionary

Last week, Google rolled out a series of AI Experiments that help users understand machine learning. The most talked about experiment has been ‘Quick, Draw!‘, a Pictionary-esque game played against a neural network. Google gives you an object to draw and the AI tries to guess it. The more you play, the more it learns. You also get the added satisfaction of seeing other users’ drawings, so you can compare your doodles to others’ interpretations of the same stimulus.

Instagram Rolls Out More Copycat Features

Instagram has released a suite of new features this week including a vertical ad format, as well as disappearing photo and video messages and live streaming through Stories. It is quite clear that they have no problem rolling out copycat features taken from Facebook and Snapchat, strengthening their product with formats that are already familiar to users. Brands that have already built a loyal following on Instagram are undoubtedly excited about these new features, as Instagram continues to maintain relevance in a fiercely competitive marketplace.

Heathrow’s Christmas Ad Is Warm And Fuzzy (Literally)

In a first for the London airport, Heathrow have released a Christmas commercial featuring…bears. Not the large, mountain-dwelling kind – rather the warm and fuzzy kind that you tuck into bed with your child at night. The 70-second spot shows the bears making their way through the airport, doing ‘airport things’ and finally being reunited with their family at Christmas time. According to the airport’s website, “For 70 years Heathrow has specialised in reconnecting people with their loved ones, especially at this time of year – because coming home for Christmas is the best gift of all.” The ad has already been viewed 3 and a half million times on YouTube.

Take A Selfie With Coke

As part of an activation in Israel, Coca Cola have created the world’s first selfie bottle. Coke distributed bottles at their Summer Love event that automatically took selfies when tilted to 70 degrees. The selfies were shared across Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat and were also distributed across Coca Cola Israel’s own social assets. Only 10 bottles were created for the event, but we’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for future releases… selfie bottles may just be the new selfie sticks.

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