New Data Shows TikTok’s IAP Earned It $205 Million More Than Snap, Facebook, Instagram, And Twitter Combined

Ever since Apple introduced its ATT feature, we saw huge social networks suffering mega revenue losses across the board.

The much-talked-about privacy feature was unveiled in 2021 and a year later, it was designed to wreak havoc as apps couldn’t target ads anymore without users providing the green light to do so.

And since these leading apps are not having any paywalls means they are collectively directing user payments as alternatives for monetization through ads. They’re giving out offers for goods and services at a particular fee charge for the in-app purchase that Apple and Google got a share of. As a whole, the IAP revenue increased by nearly 91%.

Before the introduction of Apple’s iOS 14.5, it showed how its privacy protections were big on social media apps and that is where they seemed to be making all of their money through advertising.

And the most useful data there was, the better ad targeting took place and this meant the revenue multiplied for apps like Facebook. But when data was less, ad relevance took a hit and so did ad revenue. So it’s clear how big tech giants in the world of social media are trying to get all of their lost revenue back. And they’re doing that through the platform’s users.

Today, Snap is giving its subscription at $40 a year while Twitter is providing theirs for $115 a year. Now, both programs are giving premium features to users that pay extra. Then we have the likes of Instagram and Facebook giving their followers payments as a means to reward creators and boost post visibility.

Then we have apps like TikTok whose main focus is creator rewards and as a whole, it’s doing much better than all of these platforms combined together.

But TikTok’s success in terms of app revenue is growing for a while now. Think seven back-to-back quarters with TikTok generating $205 million more in IAP revenue for this year only, when we combine all of its archrivals, as per Apptopia.

But Meta’s Facebook is not keeping quiet. It is continuing with its endeavor to fight back.

In the past month, the CEO said would provide a verification program where users would pay $12 each month for web usage while the fee for an in-app subscription was $15 a month. The end result is getting the Meta Verified Badge and some added safety measures.

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by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

Ban On TikTok In The US Won’t Help As Thousands Of Apps Are Sending Data From The Platform, Experts Confirm

There can be nothing worse than knowing that your data is shared with so many others around the globe.

And this happens to be a privacy concern of US Lawmakers that are trying really hard to stop the app from functioning across the devices of those holding government positions.

But the latest report from Reuters is shedding light on something more interesting. Most politicians are trying to punish the platform but in reality, they should be diverting attention to something else.

A new study has found nearly 28,000 apps that could be present on so many government employees' devices that make use of a code. And this code is what sends out information to the app.

Nearly 28,251 platforms are using the TikTok software and its respective development kids and tools to combine apps with its system. In the end, the data belonging to users of the platform is sent out for functions such as advertising within this app.

You simply log in and share video-related content from this platform. That is in accordance with searches taken place by Gizmodo who took assistance from AppFigures which is a leading company dealing with analytics.

But apps are not the sole source where data is taken from. There are so many trackers from the platform which spread through so many different websites. And the type of data sharing that TikTok ends up taking part in is as common as some other places on the web.

The alarming factor has to do with how the apps aren’t one or two but tens of thousands. And now, there is more news on how it uses popular games such as Fruit Ninja, Trivia Crack, and Mobile Legends. Similarly, commonly used photo editors in today’s time like Canva and VSCO are also spoken about. The list is endless and you have so many common apps in all categories. For now, no developer for these platforms that were listening gave out a comment despite being requested.

A small ban on the TikTok app would not prevent it from stopping data from flowing toward the app, experts continued to mention. Remember, this app has so much software in place including trackers that are spread across so many places on the web. There is not even a TikTok account but there are still so many ways through which the firm can gain data.

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by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

Instagram Ensures Its Platform Is Safe For Young Audiences By Expanding Tools For Age Verification

It was way back in June of last year that we heard about Instagram launching its new tool for age verification.

The company announced how the goal was to allow for more transparency on the app with such endeavors. And now that we’ve entered March of 2023, the platform is launching this feature in different nations such as Australia, Japan, Europe, Mexico, and Canada.

As mentioned in the past, the app began this new endeavor back in June of last year and it required users to confirm through this tool that they were indeed meeting the age criteria outlined in Instagram’s policy.

While this is not applicable to all of the app’s users, it does tend to pop up in some situations. For instance, when users fall under the below-18 age criteria and due for some reason end up opting to alter their birthday to another year. This is usually seen when it comes to those trying to find the right verification that makes them legal to use the app.

There are a total of three ways through which users can submit copies of their respective IDs. In addition to that, they can put up a video selfie on Yoti. The latter is the app’s verification partner. This is what specializes in things like online age verification.

And after that, the user may end up reaching out to others on the app so they can better verify age. But a lot of people are questioning why such verification processes were rolled out at the start.

Instagram always wished to provide the right experiences to so many age groups. And that was right when it came down to teenagers. For most of it, this is a very small sample of what the app has been trying to do for a while. They wish to make Instagram a great and safe place for not only some users but for bigger audiences.

Before this rollout, we saw Instagram undergoing an expansion of its verification system to several nations such as Brazil and even India. As there are users growing each day, this must be great news.

But that’s not the only protection it hopes to roll out. Others include safeguards where users can take a step back from the app and choose to disconnect completely, when and if they want to. But at the same time, they can continue to put the content in focus.

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by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

Netflix is the Top Streaming Platform in 78 Countries, But Who Comes in Second?

It’s been quite a long time since Netflix proved that it was more than just a streaming platform. Rather, it showed that it was also a bit of a content powerhouse, and that led to the streaming wars with many other corporations throwing their hat into the ring. From Amazon Prime to Disney+, it seems like every major company out there is trying to create a streaming service.

In spite of the fact that this is the case, Netflix continues to be the most popular streaming service in around 78 countries around the world. It’s also the most popular service throughout all of Europe, with South America, South Asia and Australia also being some of its biggest strongholds with all things having been considered and taken into account.

Netflix is so successful in countries like Mexico, the UK, Germany, Brazil and France that it is the single most subscribed to service in those countries, even surpassing Amazon’s Prime delivery service. However, it doesn’t seem to have a firm grasp over North America.

With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that Amazon Prime is the most popular service in North America, and interestingly Afghanistan as well. However, it is not the second most subscribed streaming platform in the world. That honor belongs to Cana Plus which topped the charts in 17 countries, followed by the Arabic streaming service Shahid in 16 countries and Showmax with 15.

One name that appears to be conspicuously absent from this list is that of Disney+. India is the only country where Disney+ beats out all of its competitors. This is despite it having around 160 million subscribers all around the world. The lack of dominance in any country suggests that Disney+ is going to continue to experience growing pains, especially when much of its content caters to demographics in the US rather than having an international or global appeal.

Netflix’s continued success shows that the platform still has a lot to offer. It will be interesting to see if anyone can supplant it.

H/T: Visualcapitalist / Flixpatrol

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by Zia Muhammad via Digital Information World

Overusing Social Media Could Lead to Reduced Brain Activity Among Teens

It is no secret that social media can be a bit of a burden on teenagers and adolescents, but in spite of the fact that this is the case the true impact of their usage may not be immediately apparent. That’s why researchers working at the University of North Carolina conducted a study that tried to look at how the use of social media can change the brain activity and functions of young people whose minds are still developing.

With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that teens who used social media multiple times per day showed lower activity in the amygdala section of their brains, as well as in various other cortexes. One potential impact this could have is that it could make the teens that overuse social media more sensitive to social feedback than might have been the case otherwise.

The researchers mentioned that this should change the way teens using social media is approached because of the fact that this is the sort of thing that could potentially end up having a negative impact on their cognitive development. However, they also stated that their research is still in its very early stages, and that it will take a lot more analysis to come to any definitive conclusions.

The impacts of social media on teenage brains is still quite a recently initiated field of study with all things having been considered and taken into account. The reality that adolescent minds are being molded by social media is hard to dispute, but it is also tough to say whether this is a good or bad thing.

Physical changes in the brain are a worrying sign, but they also might indicate some kind of evolution in the human mind. Social feedback is something that people will have to deal with at some point or another, and being overly sensitive to it could have a very negative impact on an individual’s negativity to grow. The picture will become clearer once more data is acquired and subsequently analyzed.

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by Zia Muhammad via Digital Information World

AMD Closes In on Intel With 62% YoY Revenue Growth

Intel has been the biggest name in the CPU game for quite some time now, but in spite of the fact that this is the case there is a new contender for the top spot that is closing in fast. This contender is AMD, and they have already done a lot to provide viable options to Intel that many consumers are starting to prefer with all things having been considered and taken into account.

Recent data revealed that AMD’s revenues from its data center CPUs has grown by an incredible 62% year over year. With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that Intel’s own revenues actually declined by 16% in 2022. This seems to suggest that Intel might get surpassed by AMD sooner than might have been the case otherwise.

However, Intel still has a 71% share of the overall market. While AMD has grown by some enormous strides, the company still only has a 20% share of the market. It will take a lot of time for AMD to catch up, but this growth rate suggests that they are definitely doing a few things right.

What’s especially interesting is that the overall CPU market has experienced a decline. This indicates that AMD has not just beaten its biggest rival Intel, but also the market as a whole. Such findings might prove useful because of the fact that this is the sort of thing that could potentially end up allowing people to predict the future of the CPU industry, and it also proves that even the most rock solid of industry stalwarts might find it difficult to keep their dominace if they don’t innovate.

Another company that has seen a decent amount of growth is Ampere Computing. While they don’t hold a candle to AMD, they can still prove to be a troublesome competitor for Intel especially if they continue to grow. We might be looking at a vastly different CPU industry down the line, and Intel will be the ultimate loser there if they don’t change things up.

H/T: Counterpointresearch
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by Zia Muhammad via Digital Information World

Are AI Tools Useful For Small Businesses? This New Study Has The Answer

The world of AI-powered technology is taking center stage and many are now incorporating various tools from this domain into their everyday lives. And small businesses are no exception.

But what is the future of AI for such enterprises?

It’s likely that AI is going to take over the world sooner than later. That puts so many small firms at risk of greater competition from those who make use of AI technology better than them.

This new study surveyed nearly 1,000 owners having small-scale corporations and how they are utilizing AI tools. And it’s the best motivation you need if you are on the fence linked to using such tools for your brand to succeed.

Remember, each tool comes with its own respective learning curve. After getting past that hurdle, you may witness some major financial savings.

AI tools for firms entail a wide array of functions. This includes communication with respective clients to make processes more automated like payrolls and analysis of data. Moreover, the manner through which so many firms use AI is a major mix of customer-facing and internal-facing ordeals.

Moreover, one of the biggest findings in this research had to do with firms implementing AI. They saw much greater growth in revenue when compared to those who didn’t see much. Out of those that did see growth, the rise in yearly revenue growth was around 75%. 9 out of 10 people who used the respective AI tools felt AI is indispensable, adding how valuable of a factor it turned out to be for their growth.

The benefit of AI includes reducing the chances of human error and enhancing the business’s productivity. Moreover, the study proved that the biggest reason for taking AI on board is better communication as it shines greatly in this respect.

For instance, you’re bound to answer a customer so much better and with greater proficiency related to all of their queries when using AI. Problems get solved quicker and more effectively and in the end, you are converting a potentially happy client into a very happy one.

In the same way, another study spoke about how 92% of users that enjoy online purchases prefer AI customer service. And they feel no drawback or resistance when dealing with someone that is in a nonhuman form for their support. Obviously, a lot more needs to be done in this field but so far, the results look promising.

We still have a long way before we eliminate the likes of getting rid of human telephone support when conducting chats. Furthermore, we’ve got a paper from Harvard that was published last year and it speaks about how AI is bound to improve dramatically with time as it gets more advanced.

Hence, we’re expecting to see more acceptance and better customer satisfaction. See, the goal of AI is to help give users more support in various niches. Be it health, shopping, banking, finance, and IT. And it won’t be long before we see it getting improvement for small-scale organizations too.

Now coming to the main part of things what AI tools should a small business take advantage of?

A lot of small firms are speaking about increasing budgets to take on such tools for maximal efficiency. A lot of large enterprises are focusing on project management as one designated department for such tools as others include the likes of teamwork and Project Insight.

If we had to pick up one from this list, it’s ProofHub which is widely utilized among all of these niches. And the number two department for using these tools was customer support.

ChatGPT is really helping firms save up on costs big time as its respective business apps are really marvelous in terms of getting the job done well. You can draft mail and add it to webpages, and even some more tools. Some are using it for the sake of writing and debugging as well.

So as you can see, the applications are plenty and they’re really paving the way for a remarkable future that not many had anticipated from day one. Hence, as a small business, you might want to read further on this domain to really better your company’s future outlook.

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by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World