Instagram Stories Beats Snapchat at Its Own Game
So many apps have ripped off Snapchat’s popular Stories feature that it’s become something of a joke among mobile app developers. Even Snapchat itself is in on it, as the company proved with its April Fool’s Day-exclusive Instagram filter. But the laughter may be catching in Snap’s throat. The company’s most direct competitor Instagram Stories […]
Facebook Looks for New Approaches to the Fake News Problem
Merriam-Webster’s word of the year for 2016 was “surreal.” The Oxford English Dictionary went with “post-truth.” The Australian Macquarie Dictionary settled on “fake news.” No matter what term social media app developers prefer to use to define it, 2016 was the year that the conspiracies, propaganda, and outright hooey that used to be the purview […]
Facebook Raids Snapchat’s Stories Feature for Its Main App
Facebook has not been subtle in its desire to cut into whatever edge Snapchat has in the startup world, blatantly copying the ephemeral messaging app’s Stories feature for Instagram, Messenger, and WhatsApp. Now the company’s mobile app development team is rolling out its take on Snapchat’s innovations on the latest update of the main Facebook […]
EU Cracks Down on Consumer Rights Violations on Social Media
In this era of “fake news,” hateful trolling, and increasing privacy concerns, the negative aspects of social networking have never been more clear. While social media app developers scramble to address these issues, governments around the world are becoming more involved with proposed laws and regulations designed to turn up the heat on the major […]
Facebook Introduces Stories on the Heels of Snapchat IPO
Facebook has grown to the point where virtually every smartphone user on the planet has the app on their phone — and those who don’t almost certainly use it at home. That popularity has come at a price for the company’s app developers, though, as the original use cases that brought users to the platform […]
SNAP’s IPO Has an Odd Footnote: The ‘Camera Company’ Clause
Snapchat’s IPO was one of the most anticipated tech events of the year. So you can bet that when $SNAP went live this Thursday, app developers were watching. Would it soar or sink? Will traders benefit, or only underwriters? And why is the social media titan listed as, of all things, a “camera company?” You […]
Are Users Ready to See Ads in their Personal Chats?
Are users ready for ads to enter the personal chat space? Facebook seems to think so, as they recently announced they’ll be integrating ads with their messaging platform in small tests in Australia and Thailand. The move has sparked both approval and outrage from different corners of the app development industry. Predictably, many iOS app […]
Will Tech Leaders Jump Into Politics in Next Four Years?
What is the pre-requisite to being president? “Being a billionaire,” some might argue—and many have been, or at least multi-millionaires, before running for the nations highest office. So when rumors started flying that Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook might be planning a presidential bid for 2020, the tech press didn’t bat an eye—in fact, the move […]
Trump Tech Summit to Include Apple, Facebook, and Amazon
It’s no secret that relations between Trump and the tech industry are, well, “strained.” The media mogul and now president elect has blasted the tech world repeatedly throughout his campaign, ironically using Twitter for many of his most serious allegations. Those allegations have included accusing Sandberg of being too concerned with her ego, pushing a […]
Facebook Encourages AI Students to Focus on Mathematics
Facebook’s Yann LeCun is a leading figure in the artificial intelligence (AI) community, and responsible for much of the heavy lifting the company has done in the AI arena for iPhone app developers. When he speaks, developers listen — and he has some sage words for young aspiring AI developers and established tech educators alike […]