Ok, Let's Talk About Byte
Ok, Let's Talk About Byte
You'll remember Vine, right?! Well, the mid-2010's sensation that was eventually flattened by competitors (*cough* Instagram *cough*), mismanagement of creators and dwindling enthusiasm from advertisers has been revived... sort of.
Now, this isn't exactly shocking. We've known that 'Vine V2' (from co-founder Dom Hofmann) has been in dev for a while, and despite not meeting its original launch date of mid-2018 Byte finally made its way to the App Store last week. And talk about MEH...
While Byte made big headlines in its first days, overtaking TikTok in the App Store (swiftly falling back down the charts shortly after) I really don't think it's living up to the 'Vine' hype. I've spent some time on the app, and unsurprisingly ex-viners and 'reposting' TikToker's make up most of the users, at present. Meaning that unfortunately, nothing feels new. This is on top of a UI that feels like TikTok on LSD, in a bad way.
Of course, I could be totally wrong, and Byte might turn out to be the next big thing. If you've got the time, I'd definitely recommend creating an account and having a look around, but for now, I'll be watching from a distance.
Further reading on Byte if you're not up for installing the app.
Facebook Celebrates Data Privacy Day, SMH...
If you were on Facebook last Tuesday, you might have spotted the notorious privacy-abusive company celebrating Data Privacy Day. The big focus of Zucky's celebration on the day was the launch of a new privacy tool for users, titled 'Off-Facebook Activity' which allows you to view the data Facebook receives about you from other websites & app's.
It would be an understatement to say the new feature is an eye-opener and seriously if you didn't already click the above link to check it out go, go now! Of course, it makes sense for Facebook to invest in privacy tools like this with consumer awareness of privacy abuse at an all-time high and more public criticism landing at big Zuck's doorstep every day.
Ofc, you all know I'm not Facebook's number one fan, so I won't drone on about the irony here, but if you're keen on more reading, this Forbes article digs into the business side of Facebook's interest in privacy.
RIP IGTV
Remember when Instagram announced IGTV, a fantastic new standalone Instagram App all about video?? Well, with the announcement last fortnight that the in-app IGTV button would be removed after only 1% of Instagrams users installed the app I think it's fair to say you probably weren't alone.
We'll have to see where IG wants to take video in the next couple of years, but I'd be willing to bet we'll eventually see the 'IGTV' branding removed and the app shut down as video becomes more embedded in the native Instagram app. There is the additional possibility that IGTV will be heavily rejigged to better clone some of TikTok's best features, taking the function away from its previous focus on long-form YouTube-esque video.