You searched for - Page 109 of 1505

Pinterest slips as user growth disappoints

May 6, 2020

Pinterest saw its shares fall as much as 19% ion Tuesday after the company reported disappointing user growth its first quarter results.

‘More human’: Facebook creates chatbot from 1.5bn Reddit posts

May 5, 2020

‘More human’: Facebook creates chatbot from 1.5bn Reddit posts

Facebook has launched the largest ever open-domain chatbot, called Blender, which it claims is able to demonstrate empathy, knowledge and personality and is better than ones created by rival Google.

Reality of drone delivery unveiled: Myths, mistakes and the way forward

May 5, 2020

Reality of drone delivery unveiled: Myths, mistakes and the way forward

Following the release of the Drone Delivery Group White Paper accelerate the growth of the drone industry in the UK just two weeks ago, Robert Garbett, Chairman of the Drone Delivery Group, and Chairman of the British Standards Institution Drone Committee, dispels some of the myths around drones, warn against mistakes, and reveal the best … [Read more…]

Global media trends: Ad price deflation hits all channels (except digital)

May 4, 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to global ad prices falling across all media channels except digital video and display, according to new research.

Amazon sales boom but increased supply costs weigh down growth

May 1, 2020

Third of UK shoppers feel guilty for shopping at Amazon (but keep coming back for price and convenience)

Amazon sales grew faster than expected as more people shopped online amid COVID-19, but it missed on earnings as COVID-19-related costs across the supply chain increased.

NHS contact tracing app ‘can be a success if linked to testing’ – study

May 1, 2020

NHS contact tracing app ‘can be a success if linked to testing’ - study

It is possible to implement a privacy-respecting contact tracing app that can achieve widespread adoption in the UK, but only if the NHS, rather than the government, run it, researchers at Cass Business School have found.

Top 10 ads during lockdown: Gordon Ramsay ITV ad ‘most emotionally engaging’ (so far)

May 1, 2020

Top 10 ads during lockdown: Gordon Ramsay ITV ad ‘most emotionally engaging (so far)

ITV’s “Apart. But Never Alone” advert is the most moving coronavirus campaign in the UK (so far), ahead of NHS’s “Stay At Home” and Jack Daniels’ ”With Love, Jack”, according to new research.

Top 75 global brands: Amazon still dominates as retail takes centre stage

April 30, 2020

Top 75 global brands: Amazon still dominates as retail takes centre stage

Amazon is the top global brand in terms of financial performance and consumer opinion, followed by other digital native brands such as JD and Alibaba and retail veterans such as Costco, Target and Walmart have performed strongly too, according to new research.

Facebook sees record users numbers (but warns lockdown boost may not last)

April 30, 2020

The tech firm said it had seen "increased engagement" in the first quarter of the year but, like Google 24 hours earlier, admitted advertising revenues had taken a hit as the COVID-19 uncertainty began. Facebook reported almost three billion monthly users, on average, across its family of apps including Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram and Messenger at the end of the three months to March. That represented a 10% increase on the same quarter last year. There were 1.73 billion users active on Facebook daily over the same period - a rise of 11%. Total revenue rose to $17.7bn from $15.1bn - with net profits doubling to $4.9bn - despite a slide in advertising sales over the final weeks of the period as marketing budgets were slashed amid uncertainty over the economic landscape. But the company cautioned its business “has been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and, like all companies, we are facing a period of unprecedented uncertainty in our business outlook.” “Outlook is really uncertain,” Facebook Chief Financial Officer David Wehner told CNBC in an interview. “We have a really cautious outlook on how things are going to develop.” He noted a “broad-based pullback” in advertising among small and large businesses on the platform, which led to a decline in ad prices the last three weeks of the first quarter. Uncertainty over a wobbly economy prompted Facebook to not provide revenue guidance for the second quarter or full-year 2020. Instead, it offered what it calls a “snapshot” on revenue performance in the second quarter. “We have seen signs of stability reflected in the first three weeks of April, where advertising revenue has been approximately flat compared to the same period a year ago, down from the 17% year-over-year growth in the first quarter of 2020,” the company said in a statement. “The April trends reflect weakness across all of our user geographies as most of our major countries have had some sort of shelter-in-place guidelines in effect.” Shares, which gained 7% in normal trading ahead of the results release, added another 9% in extended deals. The company pointed to the creation of its in-app COVID-19 information centre as evidence it was attempting to keep people informed and safe during the outbreak following sharp criticism that the sector has not done enough to boost safety tools and tackle harmful content more widely. Analysis Socialbakers’ data shows ad spend beginning to pick up in the US and Europe – suggesting that marketers are taking advantage of low CPC, and hinting that platforms may see a return to normality after the initial shock of COVID-19. Chart source: Socialbakers Following Facebook’s strong Q1 earnings results overnight, Yuval Ben-Itzhak, CEO of social media marketing firm Socialbakers, said: “Despite the challenging economic situation, it's exciting to see Facebook reporting a surge in user numbers, engagement, and even an increase in revenue. We have seen that during the COVID-19 crisis people are spending more time on Facebook and its family of applications, proving that they really are the key platforms for marketers looking to reach and engage with their communities – and also showing just how important social media has become in our lives. “Social media data shows that ad spend in key regions like North America and Western Europe has started to pick up as savvy marketers look to stay close to their customers as these regions get to grips with the pandemic, which is a good sign that ad revenue will continue to grow for Facebook in Q2 and onward.”

Facebook has enjoyed record global user numbers amid the COVID-19 pandemic, but warned that the increased engagement may not last in the long term.

UK adspend to plummet 16.7% in 2020 as pandemic crisis hits marketing industry

April 30, 2020

UK adspend to plummet 16.7% in 2020 as pandemic crisis hits marketing industry

The UK ad market is forecast to contract by £4.2bn (16.7%) this year) to £21.1bn this year due to the coronavirus lockdown and economic slump.