The New European raises a half million pounds in invitation to readers to invest PLUS Twitter launches notes for longer tweets, and Reddit launches NFT project

June 23, 2022

The New European, a pro-European newspaper launched after the Brexit vote (and is also a Pugpig client, where I work), asked its readers to invest, and they did. Owner Matt Kelly wants to use the capital to raise the profile of the paper. Kelly bought the paper with investors such as the FT former editor Lionel Barber and former BBC director general and NY Times boss Mark Thompson.

Thompson's former paper, the NY Times, has a profile of Semafor, a new English-language international news outlet that is backed with $25m in investment from wealthy Americans. After my master's in innovation management, I'm fascinated by positioning because I really like Porter's view that managers are the guardians are trade-offs. Products must have focus, and media leaders need to know what those products are, who they serve, what needs they serve and also how they stand out from the competition. I do feel some tensions in the product as described and how Semafor's positioning will help it address the issue of audience trust, a very complex issue that is not only about the product but also the political environment in which leaders in democracies have founded their platforms on the destruction of small-d democratic institutions including the press. But that is a very complicated discussion best left to a discussion in the pub or a podcast. Still, I'm interested in Semafor because I've counted Gina Chua as a contact and friend for almost a decade, and I am always interested in what she is doing.

PLUS Reddit has published a guide to NFTs, which feels like a little bit of content marketing for its own NFT project. More coverage of the LA Times social media project, complete with its own Finsta - fake Instagram, burner account. Twitter launches Notes, which along with Threads is its way to break out of the 280-character limit of its format. A good look at the streaming industry in the UK, and a fascinating piece of the use of AI and ML in retail and media with Wayfair and Spotify being short case studies.

Deals with the streaming company could include exclusive agreements and revenue-sharing

Press Gazette has been reporting on British journalism without fear or favour since 1965. Our mission is to provide a news and information service which helps the UK journalism.

Social Media Today

The news start-up Semafor has raised $25 million from wealthy individuals, with a goal of cultivating direct relationships between its journalists and its audience.

The first-of-its-kind team is offering "views, vibes, and commentary."

Social Media Today

Apple TV+ and Disney+ were the major gainers in the U.K. SVOD market, a survey from BARB has found.

Armed with lots of data, Wayfair and Spotify use the power of machine learning to create personalized experiences for their customers.