TOGETHER WITH

It’s Thursday and if you’re looking for reach, Instagram Reels is the place to go. (But is reach really what brands should be gunning for? The data isn’t so sure.)

Today’s News

INSIDER UPDATE

YouTube is leaning into gamification with two new creator-friendly features

The announcement: Over the last year, YouTube has rolled out a series of updates themed around gamification and fandom-building. Its latest features are no exception. In a recent Creator Insider episode, the platform announced that it’s adding poll stickers to Shorts and introducing Super Chat goals to livestreams. Both features are designed to encourage community engagement, while simultaneously helping creators gain insights and extra revenue.

Shorts poll stickers: The addition of poll stickers to Shorts expands a YouTube capability that was previously limited to Community text posts. That update could be a big opportunity for video creators looking to replicate the success of streamers like Balkan Gains, who has grown his channel to 635,000 subscribers by posting a text post poll about a new topic every single day.

Super Chat goals: YouTube’s second update (which allows creators to set an amount they want to raise during a stream and choose a specific reward if that amount is reached) also builds on an in-demand feature, but one that hasn’t previously been available on platforms like YouTube or Twitch. Due to that omission, streamers have historically turned to third-party tools to set their own per-stream sub/donation goals on Twitch—meaning the introduction of Super Chat goals on YouTube could give it an edge over a major rival.

That advantage would be a welcome change for the video giant, which has long struggled to make livestreaming work—in large part because of a general lack of features. For now, Super Chat goals are classed as an “experiment” available to a limited number of creators. But if YouTube does choose to expand the feature, it’ll be a step toward improving its livestream experience for both creators and viewers.

🔆 SPONSORED 🔆

YouTube just announced a big change to Shorts. With OpusClip, you’ll have the tools to make it count.

YouTube just dropped a major announcement: the time limit for Shorts—previously limited to 60 seconds—is now increasing to a full 3 minutes. 

That change will have a big impact on viewers’ feeds and watching habits. It's clear that YouTube is prioritizing Shorts and users are already reporting interface changes that push short-form content, so now is the time to start making Shorts!

OpusClip makes it easy to post Shorts every day, like clockwork.

With YouTube doubling down on Shorts, posting daily is the best way to stay at the forefront of viewers’ minds—and their feeds. That’s where OpusClip comes in. 

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ClipAnything identifies actions, people, and emotions in seconds, which means that no matter what kind of content you make, OpusClip can repurpose it. Simply type in prompts like ‘compile the funniest chat moments’ or ‘find the part where I win the race’ to generate social media-ready clips.

This is your moment to capitalize on YouTube's new 3-minute shorts and kick your growth into overdrive—so hit the link below to start creating:

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HEADLINES IN BRIEF 📰

• Epic Games has announced the launch of Fab, a one-stop digital asset marketplace designed to help developers build their own metaverse experiences and video games. (Tubefilter)
  
  

• Multiple reports have called out child safety concerns on Roblox. Now, the platform reportedly plans to impose new chat restrictions to protect pre-teen users. (The Verge)
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• Is Elon Musk’s PAC breaking the law by giving away millions of dollars to voters? According to CNN, the X owner has already received a stern warning from the Department of Justice. (Gizmodo)
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• Meta says it has banned celebrity jet-tracking accounts across Instagram and Threads in order to mitigate “the risk of physical harm to individuals.”  (Ars Technica)

OPTIMIZING PRIME

Amazon brought ads to Prime so it could fill them with shoppable links

The strategy: Subscribers weren’t exactly thrilled when Amazon announced that it would begin showing ads on Prime Video in 2024—but that doesn’t seem to have stopped viewers from clicking.

Early ads have delivered promising returns, and the arrival of interactive Prime Video ads has only added to that initial success. According to Adweek, interactive ads for Duracell—an advertiser on Prime Video’s Thursday Night Football package—have catalyzed a 2.5% lift in brand recall and a 1.8% lift in consideration. Amazon also says those 30-second spots drove an 86% increase in “add-to-cart” rate.

The context: The value of these ads goes all the way back to the introduction of Prime in 2005. Amazon first launched the paid subscription to make shopping more convenient and encourage customers to spend more time perusing its listings. The addition of premium video content to Prime in the 2010s boosted the tier’s numbers further and gave users another reason to keep their subscriptions.

Now, with brands allocating $1.8 billion to their Amazon budgets and Prime Video ads strengthening connections between content and ecommerce, the link between the company’s retail empire and entertainment arm is complete.

The competition: Those cross-industry binds don’t bode well for the YouTubes and TikToks of the world. While rival platforms are eager to make shoppable videos happen in the United States, their connections to retail aren’t as strong as Amazon’s. Even TikTok (which has a solid foundation thanks to TikTok Shop) still has to convince its community that its retail platform is worth their money and effort. That process will likely be a lengthy one, giving Amazon a valuable time advantage as the ecommerce industry continues to grow.

CURRENT EVENTS 🌎

Twitch just lifted a limit on Israel and Palestine signups. Are debates about to get fiercer?

The update: After over a year, Twitch is lifting a restriction that prevented users from verifying new accounts with Israeli and Palestinian email addresses.

That restriction was originally instituted in the wake of last year’s October 7 attacks to cut down on graphic footage. It was a temporary lockdown that only applied to verification via local email addresses—phone-based verifications were still allowed—and was consistent with the platform’s policy on violent imagery. Now, however, Twitch has apologized for the “unacceptable miss” that led to the year-long restriction and re-opened sign-ups from Israeli and Palestinian email addresses.

The context: If new accounts from those countries surge as a result, Twitch could face a difficult balancing act. Streamer debates about violence in the Middle East have already been intense, with heated discussions coming between former friends (like Ethan Klein and Hasan Piker) and leading to temporary bans for streamers like OTK co-founder Asmongold.

Twitch’s efforts to moderate that situation have already raised alarms among creators and advocacy orgs. The platform’s most recent spate of suspensions targeted creators sympathetic to the Palestinian cause, including Frogan (pictured above) and Raffoul, both of whom participated in a panel at TwitchCon that ranked fellow streamers based on whether they can use the Arabic term of endearment “habibi.”

That panel—which ended up ranking Arab streamers on top and pro-Israel streamers on the bottom—prompted an outcry from groups like the Anti-Defamation League (which has been accused of having a pro-Israel bias). Shortly after, Twitch took action against the involved creators.

Frogan has since openly wondered why her suspension was twice as long as Asmongold’s (who received a 14-day timeout for comments he admitted were “mean-spirited” toward Palestinians). Similar questions will likely continue to mount as content pours in from Israel and Palestine—meaning Twitch needs to be ready to make some tough decisions.

WATCH THIS 📺

Watch out, D’Amelios: A new TikTok icon is taking over Dancing with the Stars

The icon: Long-time fans might have followed Ilona Maher’s socials for Olympics content, but they’re sticking around for Dancing with the Stars drama. The TikTok-savvy athlete has followed in the footsteps of social media icons like Charli D’Amelio by appearing on the reality competition show (and absolutely killing it onstage).

The content: Maher’s sick moves aren’t the only thing attracting viewers to her TikTok channel. The Olympian has a knack for expertly adapting the app’s hottest trends—a skill that now routinely nets her millions of views per DWTS-themed video.

One of her latest clips (which follows Maher and her pro dance partner, Alan Bersten, as they attempt to recreate a now-viral move) has scored more than 17 million views in just two days. You can check it out here, but be warned: this choreo is not something to try at home.

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Today's newsletter is from: Emily Burton, Drew Baldwin, Sam Gutelle, and Josh Cohen.