According to comScore research, Snapchat is now the third most popular social app among the millennial demographic (18-34 year olds). With 32.9 percent penetration on mobile phones, Snapchat trails only Facebook and Instagram. Jumping from 12.1 percent back in November 2013, the app is now more popular with millennials than Twitter, Pinterest, Vine, Google+ or Tumblr. The shift is important considering that this age group is the most active of mobile social networkers. Continue reading Snapchat Now Third Most Popular Social App with Millennials

The young comedians, musicians, and entertainers who made it big on YouTube, Vine, and other online platforms are changing the way audiences and entertainment companies define celebrity. Young adults and teens are watching more content online than ever before, and they have launched the careers of Vine stars and YouTube personalities, some of whom cross over into traditional media after gaining huge audiences. Teens also find online stars more relatable and engaging. Continue reading Online Stars a New Breed of Celebrity Among Young Adults

Teenager Shawn Mendes’ first album was number one on the iTunes Top Albums chart only 37 minutes after its debut Sunday night. He was first discovered on video sharing service Vine, posting six-second clips of his covers of pop songs. With the help of his 1.5 million Twitter followers and 2.9 million Vine followers, his EP hit the top of the chart, his single “Life of the Party” debuted as No. 24 on Billboard’s Top 100 Chart, and the hashtag #ShawnToNumber1 was trending on Twitter. Continue reading Music: Fifteen-Year-Old Vine Star Tops iTunes Album Charts

The social network Facebook is experimenting again with video in its users’ News Feeds. This time, in the iOS app, Facebook users will now see a carousel of video suggestions after watching their friends’ video creations. This new feature makes it easy for users to watch a series of videos and has the potential to eventually become an advertising tool. Currently, the suggested video player only works with user content that is directly uploaded to Facebook. Continue reading Facebook Offers Video Suggestions to Keep Users Watching

During yesterday’s keynote event at Google I/O, the company unleashed its Android Everywhere strategy and a slew of related announcements. Google envisions us taking the more contextually aware Android mobile OS from place to place through every part of our lives, including our televisions, laptops, vehicles, bodies and workplaces. Major announcements unveiled details regarding Android L (5.0), Android Wear, Android Auto, Android TV, and integrating Android applications into Chromebooks. Continue reading Google I/O: The Future is All About the Android Mobile OS

A capacity 12,500 tickets were sold for DigiFest NYC, a festival where more than 70 social media stars took to three stages this past weekend. The event is part of a booming corner of entertainment that features performers and personalities who are generating fans via social networks such as YouTube, Instagram and Vine. Los Angeles startup DigiTour Media produced the festival, and is one of several companies putting social media celebrities on stage for paying audiences. Continue reading New Trend: Social Media Stars Featured in Festivals and Tours

Social network Twitter is making video sharing easier than ever for advertisers and regular users alike. By typing a hashtag in a tweet, Twitter users can easily find related videos in the suggested hashtag results. Then users can attach those videos to their original tweets with just one click. The social network could sell businesses the opportunity to provide those searchable, embeddable videos. Recently, Twitter made one-click videos available in Promoted Tweets. Continue reading Twitter Offers New One-Click Video Embedding Capability

Instagram has redesigned its “Explore” tab to provide a more relevant experience for users, rather than showcase random pictures that receive a lot of global Likes. The Explore tab will now display the photos and videos “Liked” by individuals that a user is actively following. This personalization reflects Instagram’s focus on each user’s social graph, which contrasts with the approach by Vine that largely centers on re-sharing content and notable video creators. Continue reading Instagram Improves Explore Tab for Personalized Experience

Twitter rolled out a new platform this week for hosting video that provides iPhone and Android smartphone users with image previews of video clips in their feeds. “In-line video” allows users to play the clips with a simple click. The company has been working with TV networks and video producers over the past year to make watching video clips — such as sports highlights and show previews — easier for Twitter users. The new feature marks the biggest change to tweets since the automatic preview of photos was introduced. Continue reading Twitter Introduces In-Line Video to Make Watching Clips Easier

Banjo Inc. has raised $16 million in Series B funding in its pursuit to become like a DVR for compelling social media content and conversations. Banjo offers a way to view aggregated, relevant social conversations about news and events attached to specific geographic locations or venues, all in one convenient stream. The startup recently released Android and iOS versions of its mobile app with a new Banjo Rewind feature that lets users access a past event to learn what people were discussing about it. Continue reading Banjo Raises $16 Million, Aims to Become TiVo for Social Media

At Digital Entertainment World, Jake Katz and Amrit Singh of Revolt TV discussed how they are reaching their millennial peers. Curation is key, said Amrit. For news, his goal is to be first, right, and “identify the relevant narrative.” Although they call themselves a cable network, they have a large bicoastal (LA, NYC) staff working on Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr and other social media in real time during the broadcasts. Millennials prefer phones and tablets; 34 percent of the Revolt TV audience won’t watch a television screen. Continue reading Digital Music and File Sharing Addressed at DEW Conference

Millennials, who typically get their video from Vine, Instagram, Snapchat and other social and online sources, are developing a new vernacular for viewing, said futurist Rob Tercek at the Digital Entertainment World conference in LA last week. He believes that the DreamWorks deal to produce children’s content for Netflix is a play by Netflix to capture and cultivate a generation of viewers, similar to the way Apple seeded schools with Apple computers. Similar trends are playing out with various Internet companies. Continue reading DEW Conference: Futurist Rob Tercek on Internet Companies

Some 73 percent of online adults now use a social networking site, while 42 percent now use multiple social networking sites, according to new figures released by the Pew Internet & American Life Project. In terms of number of users, Facebook remains the dominant platform, but an increasing number of consumers are diversifying onto other services such as Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest and Twitter. In addition, Instagram users are nearly as likely as Facebook users to check in daily. Continue reading Social Media Update: 73 Percent of Adults Access Social Networks

Hshtags is a new search engine from developer Kim Goulbourne that is designed to help users easily navigate the mass onslaught of hashtags, which have become a nearly ubiquitous utility of the social Web. The universal hashtag search client, launched in September, provides access to all the content posted with a specific hashtag from an array of social platforms including Facebook, Flickr, Instagram, Tumblr, Twitter, Vimeo and YouTube (support for Vine and Google+ is expected soon). Continue reading Hshtags Search Engine: The Google Search of Social Media

YouTube Capture is an easy-to-use app that allows smartphone and tablet owners to record videos of any length that can then be edited and shared. Google updated YouTube Capture for iOS this week with new editing features geared toward those who want to take their creativity beyond simple Vine and Instagram options. With the update, users can easily record video footage, edit, rearrange multiple clips and add music to create a single video. Continue reading YouTube Capture for iOS Update Includes Splicing and Music