eMarketer Report Shows Video Takes Center Stage on Facebook and Instagram

Facebook and Instagram are two of the biggest social media platforms right now. Both are under Meta Platforms umbrella and also have some combined features to facilitate the users. Meta tries so hard to add many features to these two platforms to make them fun and interactive for users. As a user of these two apps, you must have noticed that there are a lot of videos on the app, commonly referred to as reels. According to a new report by eMarketer, many of the adult users spent half of their time watching videos on Facebook last year. Users of Instagram are set to spend 60% of their total time on the app watching videos this year.

In 2024, it is predicted that adult users of Facebook are going to spend 17 minutes average of their day watching reels while they will spend 21 minutes watching videos on Instagram. So, according to eMarketer, this year users will spend 32 minutes on Facebook and 36 minutes on Instagram on average everyday. This shows how Meta is trying hard to push users to spend time on their apps. This year, it is predicted that US adults will spend 40% of their social media time on Instagram and Facebook, and this percentage is expected to grow 9.4%.

Meta is still trying to get back its market shares after they fell down to 37.4% in 2022 to 51.8% in 2019 because of TikTok. The report by eMarketer also said that users are going to spend 54 minutes everyday on average on TikTok this year.

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by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World

Study Shows How Skin Color, Followers and Age Impact Influencer Earnings

According to a report by SevenSix Agency, influencers on social media sites are paid based on their skin color. The report says that influencers who have darker skin are paid 44.63% less than influencers who have light skin. This pay disparity is also seen among influencers with different hair colors and textures. The 2024 influencer-pricing report studied the difference in pay between white influencers and influencers of color in the UK and it was found that influencers' pay varies according to the ethnic background and age of influencers.

It was found that creators or influencers who were Black were paid 34% less than White influencers in 2024. This difference was 22% in 2022. South Asian influencers are paid 30.70% less, Southeast Asian influencers are paid 57.22% less and East Asian influencers are paid $38.40% less than White creators.

SevenSix Agency's founder Charlotte Stavrou said that she approached different brands to educate them about this racial disparity. Most of the brands do not do it voluntarily as most of the time they aren’t even aware that they are not treating creators from different ethnic backgrounds equally. Stavrou also suggested brands some ways that can help them in negotiating with creators for pay rates.

The report also talked about the pay rates creators of different colors get on their reels. The creators with deep tan on their skin are paid $1,187 on average for a reel while creators with light skin can get $2,142 for the same reel. There was also a difference in pay between creators with straight and curly hair. Influencers with type 2A hair, which are slightly wavy, were paid more ($2,191) as compared to influencers with type 4B hair, which are extremely curly hair. Their pay was reported to be $1,023 on average.

Another pay disparity could be seen among Gen-Z creators and Gen-X, Boomers and Millennials. Influencers between 18 to 39 years of age are paid 144% more than the influencers older than 40 years. On the other hand, influencers between the ages of 40 to 59 are paid $1,978 while influencers between the ages 18-25 are paid less ($1592). 60% of the older influencers also said that they are treated differently than younger influencers on social media apps.

• Also read: New Analysis Finds that Webmasters and SEOs Need Thousands of Backlinks to Appear in Google's Top Search Results

Similarly, the data reveals that influencer earnings significantly increase with follower count. For example, influencers with 1,000 to 5,000 followers earn between £250 and £350 per feed post, while those with 300,000+ followers command £4,000 to £15,000. Similarly, reel fees range from £300-£400 for smaller influencers to £4,500-£18,000 for those with large followings. Story fees for a set of three also rise dramatically, from £150-£200 for the smallest influencers to £3,000-£15,000 for the largest. These examples illustrate how follower count directly impacts influencer earnings.

Read next: TikTok Leads May 2024 App Revenue with $203M, YouTube Follows with $131M; Top 10 Hit $791M

by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World

TikTok Leads May 2024 App Revenue with $203M, YouTube Follows with $131M; Top 10 Hit $791M

This week, AppFigures released an analysis of the highest-earning and most-downloaded apps for May 2024, which came up with findings that were more or less a continuation of the trends observed in April.

Here are some of the key highlights for highest-earning apps.

TikTok topped the revenue charts, generating an impressive $169 million from the iOS App Store and another $34 million from Google Play in one month, bringing its total revenue to $203 million. Coming in second place was YouTube, with revenue of $131 million from the iOS App Store.

Disney+ grossed a total revenue of $107 million, with $76 million earned through iOS and the rest through Google Play. Fourth was Tinder, with a total of $88 million in earnings, whereas Max app was in the last position in the top five, with $70 million.

Combined Total	Revenue	iOS App Store	Revenue	Google Play	Revenue
TikTok	$203M	TikTok	$169M	Google One	$35M
YouTube	$131M	YouTube	$131M	TikTok	$34M
Disney+	$107M	Disney+	$76M	Disney+	$31M
Tinder	$88M	Tinder	$72M	Max	$18M
Max	$70M	Max	$52M	Tinder	$16M
Bumble	$42M	Tencent Video	$38M	Spotify	$14M
LinkedIn	$40M	Bumble	$34M	Crunchyroll	$14M
Tencent Video	$38M	LinkedIn	$33M	Twitch	$11M
Crunchyroll	$36M	QQ Music	$32M	Amazon	$9M
Google One	$36M	Hulu	$30M	Peacock TV	$9M

Further down the list, 腾讯视频 (Tencent Video) made $38M on iOS alone, and Bumble brought in $42M overall. LinkedIn took in $40M, most of which from iOS, and QQ音乐 (QQ Music) brought in $32M on that platform. Hulu rounded out the top ten with $36M in overall revenue.

Standouts across the top lists for the month included Spotify, which received an estimated $14 million from Google Play. In comparison, Crunchyroll grossed an equivalent $14m, Twitch $11m, and both Amazon and Peacock TV $9m apiece just from Google Play store. In total, the top 10 applications accumulated $791 million in net revenue during May month, both from iOS and Android stores.

Most Downloaded Apps Worldwide in May

May proved to be the most active month in mobile app downloads, with a significant shift in rankings compared to April, i.e. according to Appfigures.

Instagram led the downloads chart with a combined total of 66 million number, driven by the largest share from Google Play—58 million. TikTok came in second, with 51 million—split between 15 million on iOS and 36 million on Google Play.

Facebook stood third with 50M downloads, all from Google Play. WhatsApp sustained fourth with a total of 38M downloads. CapCut and Temu took the fifth and sixth spots, respectively, with 28M and 29M downloads each.

Combined Total	Downloads	iOS App Store	Downloads	Google Play	Downloads
Instagram	66M	TikTok	15M	Instagram	58M
TikTok	51M	CapCut	10M	Facebook	43M
Facebook	50M	Temu	9M	TikTok	36M
WhatsApp	38M	Google Maps	9M	WhatsApp	31M
CapCut	29M	Google	9M	Messenger	24M
Temu	28M	Instagram	8M	Telegram	21M
Messenger	28M	ChatGPT	8M	JioCinema	20M
Telegram	27M	YouTube	8M	Temu	19M
Snapchat	21M	WhatsApp	7M	CapCut	19M
JioCinema	20M	Threads	7M	WhatsApp Business	17M

Considerable successes, primarily on Google Play, were also registered by Messenger and Telegram, with nearly 27 and 28 million downloads. In the top ten, there were also Snapchat and JioCinema, downloaded 21M and 20M times. Notably, high download numbers were also recorded by WhatsApp Business app, with 17M downloads; CapCut and Telegram, both at 19M; JioCinema, 20M, on Google Play. TikTok was a decently large downloader on iOS, with 15M; CapCut was at 10M; Temu hit 9M, among several others. The report from Appfigures found that in May, the top 10 apps together racked up 358 million downloads across both major app stores—a solid 10% share higher than in April.

So, there you have it — TikTok's making it rain with $203 million, and Instagram's just casually collecting 66 million downloads. Welcome to the wild world of apps in May 2024!

Read next: How to Build Strong Passwords For Your Apps and Keep Hackers at Bay
by Asim BN via Digital Information World

New Analysis Finds that Webmasters and SEOs Need Thousands of Backlinks to Appear in Google's Top Search Results

According to a new analysis by Internet Market Ninja, it was found that it is not possible to rank in top 10 search results of Google if your website doesn’t have a lot of links. The analysis found out that the websites that were ranking in top 10 on Google all had more than 1,000 backlinks. Only 0.3 websites in the top 10 results were the ones who had less than 100 backlinks.

This shows that despite Google saying that backlinks aren’t the top factors to rank in Google search result pages, websites still need a lot of backlinks to get ranked. The findings from the analysis suggest that 3.4% websites with 100 to 1,000 backlinks have ranked in top 10 on Google. 33.7% websites with 1,000 to 10,000 backlinks are in top 10 results, while among the top-ranking websites, 36.9% had between 10,000 to 100,000 referring domains. 5% of websites with more than one million backlinks were also ranked in the top 10 on Google.

• Also read: Google Prioritizes Relevance in Links, Ignoring Those from Irrelevant Sources and Emphasizing Local Links

Some other interesting things that were found from the analysis were the presence of Amazon and Walmart in top 10 rankings. Amazon ranked in 164 out of 200 keywords on Google’s top 10 search results which was followed by Walmart for 57 keywords. The website which was the weakest in terms of rankings had 54 referring domains. The minimum requirement for ranking in top 10 Google results is 164 domain backlinks on average. The study also says that not all links hold the same value. It all depends on relevance of anchor text, authority/importance of linking site and the total number of clicks on the link.

Read next: 

• Study Reveals Rising User Frustration with Online Searches; Calls for Improved AI Solutions and Transparent Advertising

• Study Reveals Gen Z's Shift from Search Engines to Social Media; Signals Changing Trends in Online Discovery
by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World

Microsoft Turns Its ‘Recall’ Feature Into An ‘Opt-In’ Endeavor After Privacy Concerns

After the launch of Microsoft’s ‘Copilot+ PCs’ that was backed up by Snapdragon processors, we saw the company debut another rollout dubbed Recall.

This endeavor was designed to enable users to look for anything and everything that was done via machines. After such privacy issues are on the rise, we’re now seeing the software giant announce how Recall would only be present as an opt-in option.

The feature first gained a lot of momentum when it was working alongside the wave of Snapdragon with X Plus laptops. It was revealed how users would be allowed to look for anything via the option on their PCs.

For those who might not be aware, it functioned with the help of screenshots that were made in a few seconds. This enabled AI to be searched via the screenshots so that users would get exactly what they were in search of quickly.

While most of it got done through devices seen online, experts and critics spoke about how it brought about major privacy implications. This had to do with capturing and storing data belonging to users.

But the tech giant seems to be backtracking on whatever claims it generated in the past. The announcement had to do with the option working as an option.

Seeing Microsoft’s default behavior across Copilot+ PCs, we saw how it could get turned off but then soon get enabled via default via the entire process for setup.

The company mentioned through a new blog post how it was doing a lot on this front to ensure options like Recall would ask users directly if they wish to opt in or not. If yes, it would be activated and if not, you can miss out on it at any time and choose to alter it at a later date.

The company added how it hopes to make the feature more secure in a few days with the addition of encryption for all data stores through Recall. This is right after a host of security researchers added how most of the data was stored using plain text.

The post was seen reiterating how all information gets stored as well as processed through devices. Meanwhile, the company did add how the feature would still be active and users would have great controls regarding whatever is getting captured.

Image: DIW-Aigen

Read next: Social Media Algorithms Barred From Recommending Content To Kids In New York As New Legislation Comes Into Play
by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

Social Media Algorithms Barred From Recommending Content To Kids In New York As New Legislation Comes Into Play

A new legislation in New York was passed yesterday that bars social media algorithms from recommending content to underage users.

The latest move is designed to stop addictive apps from throwing explicit and harmful material in kids’ direction. Moreover, it’s mentioned how the state Governor is expected to sign this new law into the bill.

The passing of the bill is giving parents a huge sigh of relief as many spoke about how it was a long time coming.

This means saying hello to how kids use social media from now onwards and that means a lot.

The latest act will inhibit apps that are popular with the younger generation like TikTok and Instagram from rolling out content to those below a certain age group, and by that, we mean the minimal 18-year age limit.

Therefore, apps would now be forced to work in a reverse chronological manner that is rarely seen in today’s modern time.

The new law explains how such algorithms are said to be very addictive in nature and can have negative impacts on the mental health of young minds.

They have a tendency to roll out material that is prioritized and linked to users on certain devices. This compels state AGs from disseminating regulations that need to be enforced. Hence, any firm that violates this needs one month to correct the matter or would be liable to pay hefty fines that no tech giant would ever wish.

The bill was amended to get rid of provisions banning apps from rolling out alerts to kids between midnight to 6am hours. Moreover, laws limiting social media use for kids are not only a popular subject of debate on a local level but one that has been talked about in detail on an international level.

Companies causing harm to young minds are being shunned while others are being pressed to do more to help ensure they remain protected at all times.

Experts predict how such a bill might bring about challenges when signed into law. Furthermore, we had one trade group representing leading tech and social media firms talk about how such laws are not fair and bar apps from functioning in a certain manner, adding that they’re not in line with the American First Amendment.

Others accused the decision of having significant political weightage and therefore digital rights groups argue in terms of what the real motive here is.

Image: DIW-Aigen

Read next: Survey Reveals PR Pros' Social Media Secrets: LinkedIn Dominates, X Left in the Dust!
by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

Survey Reveals PR Pros' Social Media Secrets: LinkedIn Dominates, X Left in the Dust!

According to the latest State of PR Report, LinkedIn has left X behind as a useful platform for PR professionals. X, formerly known as Twitter, has always been an authentic and useful platform for journalists and Public Relations (PR) specialists. But most of the journalists and PR professionals stopped using the platform after Elon Musk took over it in 2022. After surveying 1116 PR specialists and professionals from April to May it was found that these PR professionals think of LinkedIn as the most valuable and useful platform instead of other platforms like X, Facebook and Instagram.

61% of the PR professionals who were surveyed said that they are trying to use LinkedIn more, while 15% are trying to spend more time on X and 11% on Facebook. A few years back, X was the second most used platform for hiring reporters after emails. Now, only 10% of the PR professionals use X for hiring reporters, which is even less than hiring reporters through phone calls and text messages.

• Also read: Young Users Are Turning To Social Media For Everything Resulting In Search Engine Use Decline

As everyone is using TikTok nowadays, each social media platform is introducing short-form videos on their platforms. LinkedIn is also introducing TikTok like videos on its platforms. This feature will help in attracting young creators towards the platform. On the other hand, Facebook has also introduced a professional mode on its platform and has also made it easier to share short videos to direct messages. Even with all these features on different apps, TikTok is still leading among PR professionals with an 8% YoY increase according to the report.

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by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World