“Discover, shop, and express your style” is the slogan for Polyvore, an online global community that has created over 80 million collage-like “sets,” designed to give everyone a voice in shaping trends and influencing purchases. While it may not be a household name yet, the social network drives disproportionate amounts of social revenue. At 20 percent, it drives more social traffic than Pinterest (15 percent) and four times that of Twitter (5 percent). Continue reading Polyvore Drives More Social Traffic Than Pinterest and Twitter

Google is now offering a prepaid debit card that can be used in stores and at ATMs. Using Google Wallet, consumers will be able to access funds just like they would with a regular debit card. The Wallet Card will be accepted wherever MasterCard is accepted, and is free without any monthly fees. The card will also provide Google with consumer information like what was purchased and for how much — even the name and address of the consumer would be recorded. Continue reading Google Unveils New Prepaid Debit Card Using Google Wallet

Google is in the early stages of developing its own alternative to cookies, which have a few limitations when it comes to tracking users. The company is working on universal IDs, which will track users from device to device. Whereas cookies can be erased and sometimes lead to ineffective ad targeting, universal IDs would provide more accurate user data. But it could also create a Google-owned monopoly of data. However, Google isn’t the only company working on cookie alternatives.  Continue reading Google Envisions a Web Beyond Cookie-Based Data Tracking

It seems that Wall Street loves Twitter. The company set an initial public offering price of $26 late Wednesday, only to see the stock close its first trading day up 73 percent at $44.90 a share, with a session high of over $50. The rocketing IPO set co-founder Evan Williams’ stock value at $2.9 billion and co-founder Jack Dorsey’s at $1.2 billion. CEO Dick Costolo’s stock is now worth $384 million. At about $45 per share, the company is valued at $24.4 billion. Continue reading Twitter Numbers Skyrocket on New York Stock Exchange Debut

As its contracts with producers come up for renewal, YouTube is changing its terms for ad revenue splits, no longer providing major Hollywood players like CBS or Warner Bros. with special deals over smaller names such as Machinima or AwesomenessTV. Previously, YouTube offered up to 70 percent of its ad revenue to encourage film and TV producers to place content on the site. Now that YouTube has exploded in popularity, it plans to keep 45 percent of all advertising profits starting in January. Continue reading YouTube Changes Ad Revenue Split: No More Sweetheart Deals

According to a new report from online content distribution service ShareThis, photo site Pinterest is currently the fastest-growing platform for online content sharing. Data analyzed across more than 120 social media channels and two million websites indicates that sharing via Pinterest grew 19.2 percent in the last quarter, while sharing grew via LinkedIn by 15.1 percent and on Facebook by 14.7 percent. The report also suggests that sharing on Twitter fell 7.6 percent. Continue reading Pinterest: Fastest Growing Platform for Online Content Sharing

According to a study from social media analytics platform Simply Measured, the world’s top 100 brands are discovering new success with photo- and video-sharing service Instagram. Simply Measured found that 71 of the Interbrand 100 are currently using the Facebook-owned service, up from 40 last October. While the total number of brands on Instagram increased 55 percent in the past year, 57 percent of those brands average at least one post per week, a 38 percent increase from last year. Continue reading Top Brands Increasingly Turning to Facebook-Owned Instagram

Facebook is looking to expand its Graph Search algorithms to account for the use of slang and expressions, and translate them into searchable key words. The company adjusted its search algorithms in January, and the changes mostly worked. The new algorithms signal the beginning of new ways to search user information using natural and nuanced language, and provide more personalized ads. Other tech companies are looking into similar technologies. Continue reading Facebook Turns to Deep Learning to Grow Search Possibilities

According to inside sources, YouTube is readying a premium on-demand music service expected to launch later this year. The new YouTube offering, designed with mobile listening in mind, would be similar to a service such as Spotify, but include video. It is expected to be tiered with a free ad-supported option and a premium component that features unlimited access to a full catalog of tracks, similar to what Google offers with its All Access subscription music service. Continue reading YouTube to Launch New Premium On-Demand Music Service

YouTube’s most popular programmer, Maker Studios, is restructuring its network of genre-ranging channels in an effort to better reach consumers and advertisers. Its more than 55,000 channels will be organized into four units: men, women, family, and entertainment programming. At the Variety Entertainment & Tech Summit on Monday, Maker Studios chairman Ynon Kreiz also unveiled Maker Max, which allows content creators to more easily manage their videos. Continue reading Popular YouTube Programmer to More Closely Resemble Cable

Facebook announced this week that it would allow teenage users between 13 and 17 to make their posts public so that they can be seen by anyone on the social network, underscoring the competition between today’s social platforms to reach the teen audience and attract advertisers. Previously, the posts of teenage users could only be viewed by friends and friends of friends. While drawing criticism from privacy advocate groups, the move will enable Facebook to operate more like its rival Twitter. Continue reading Facebook Under Fire for Decision to Make Teens’ Posts Public

Facebook announced that it will begin using popular photo- and video-sharing service Instagram, which it acquired last year for about $1 billion, as a new vehicle for delivering advertisements. The move marks the first attempt by Instagram to leverage its growing popularity for revenue (it has yet to generate income for social giant Facebook). The announcement came shortly before competitor Twitter released financial details regarding its planned IPO. Continue reading Facebook to Start Using Instagram as New Advertising Vehicle

At this week’s Advertising Week conference in New York, Nielsen is expected to announce that it will start incorporating viewership on mobile devices into its TV ratings system in the fall of 2014. The move is in response to changing viewership trends in addition to networks and industry analysts that have been critical of the company’s slow adoption of new technologies. Nielsen’s ratings data helps determine how advertisers spend about $66 billion each year. Continue reading Nielsen to Include Tablets and Phones in TV Viewership Data

Twitter announced this week that it has acquired mobile advertising firm MoPub, which enables mobile application publishers to manage inventory and leverage advertising such as direct ads, house ads, ad network and real-time bidding through the MoPub Marketplace exchange. The deal, worth an estimated $350 million, can be viewed as Twitter’s latest effort to increase revenue prior to its much-anticipated initial public offering, expected sometime next year. Continue reading Following Trendrr Deal, Twitter Acquires Mobile Ad Firm MoPub

Since March, Emily White has been leading a team to develop a paid advertising program for Instagram. The photo-sharing service has been ad-free since the start, and may risk losing users when it adopts advertisements, especially from its large, young user base. White is working to establish relationships with brands, and to expand Instagram as a brand marketing platform. Yet it is unclear how advertisers and brands will pay for a service they use for free. Continue reading Instagram to Begin Experimenting with Advertising Service