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TweetDeck may become a paid Twitter Blue option
TweetDeck — a version of Twitter beloved by journalists, social media pros and other power users — might soon become a paid app.
Firefox Relay offers unlimited email aliases as part of its new premium plan
Mozilla has launched a paid tier for Firefox Relay, which will let you create an unli
Facebook plans to clarify when pro-Bloomberg posts come from staffers
Thanks to Mike Bloomberg, Facebook wants to make it more obvious when paid campaign staffers share posts promoting candidates, CNBC reports. This is a direct response to Bloomberg paying organizers to post on social media, but it could apply to any campaign staffers sharing political views on Facebook.
Facebook: Creators must disclose paid partnerships with political campaigns
Mike Bloomberg's ploy to reach voters through bad Instagram memes may be tacky, but it is not violating any Facebook or Instagram rules, as long as creators disclose paid partnerships. "After hearing from multiple campaigns, we agree that there's a place for branded content in political discussion on our platforms," Facebook said in a statement provided to Engadget.
Google might finally pay news outlets for their content
Google is considering paying news publishers for their content, The Wall Street Journal reports. The company is reportedly in talks with publishers about licensing fees. The details are still sparse, but it sounds like Google could be working on a news subscription service like Apple News+.
Twitter considers offering a Tweetdeck subscription service
Twitter has always been free to use and will likely remain free. But the company is now considering offering its first paid subscription service through Tweetdeck. The social network has recently sent emails to select users, asking if they'd be willing to pay for a "more advanced Tweetdeck experience." Based on the email posted by journalist Andrew Tavani, a premium experience will add new viewing, posting and signaling tools in one customizable dashboard that you can see above.
Tinder's paid service launches with a pretty sleazy catch
If you didn't think that your opinion of Tinder could go any lower, something new pops up to make you change your mind. The hookup app has reportedly launched its long-awaited paid tier, but in Europe, users will have to overcome something worse than left-swipes: ageism. Tinder Plus users who are under 28 years old will be able to subscribe to the service for just £3.99 ($6.39) a month, but users over that age will be asked to spend £14.99 ($23.03) -- nearly four times as much for the same thing.
Twitch seeks transparency for promotional broadcasts
Twitch will begin instituting new policies that clearly label sponsored broadcasts on its channels, the video streaming platform announced on its blog. "We want complete transparency and unwavering authenticity with all content and promotions that have a sponsor relationship," Twitch wrote. Copy and graphics for future Twitch-driven campaigns will now have labels to indicate that they are promotional in nature. For instance, the front-page video carousel will include a new "sponsored" graphic when applicable, and Twitch will add sponsored labels to its content newsletters as well. Future tweets from the streaming platform's official accounts will also include language that indicates if the broadcast is promotional as well. Twitch isn't the only company opting for more transparency in how sponsored content is listed; Valve introduced new policies for Steam Curators to openly disclose paid recommendations this week as well. [Image: Twitch]
Steam now requires disclosure from sponsored Curators
Valve updated its policies for Steam Curators this week, requiring that curators disclose any compensation received for recommending games on the service. The company introduced Curators late last month, allowing any person or brand (such as good old Joystiq) to list their favorite games on the distribution service while linking out to reviews, videos or blogs about the games. Additionally, Gunpoint developer Tom Francis noted on Twitter that "Steam actually has just given devs the ability to curate which Curators appear on our Store pages" in its update. With Steam Curators being one large piece of a major shift in Steam's increasingly hands-off storefront, paid placement on curator's lists was among the biggest concerns both developers and the service's top Curator, TotalBiscuit, told Joystiq last month. Valve's updated rules alleviate those worries, providing curators adequately disclose sponsored placement: "If you've accepted money or other compensation for making a product review or for posting a recommendation, you must disclose this fact in your recommendation," the policies state. Valve also added that recommendations "should not link to or promote any stores other than Steam." [Image: Steam]
Yes, Conan O'Brien's 'Clueless Gamer' skit offers exposure for cash
Conan O'Brien is a beloved TV personality, former Simpsons writer and an abnormally tall redhead, but most importantly, he's a beloved TV personality with a large audience, and therefore frequently receives compensation to feature certain consumer goods on his show. Goods like video games. It's a common marketing gimmick that nonetheless has caught the attention of a Recode report, which claims that "about a quarter" of the games highlighted on O'Brien's "Clueless Gamer" skit appear there due to monetary compensation. An episode from last October prominently features Red Barrels' indie horror release Outlast. Stephanie Palermo, a senior account executive at Outlast representatives TriplePoint PR, has revealed that O'Brien's production team received $35,000 for the game's appearance, but adds that positive commentary wasn't a requirement of the deal. In fact, says Palermo, O'Brien is under no obligation to praise any of the games that pay to appear on his show. Though this practice seems to be common, it's not a hard, fast rule. Representatives from Mojang claim to have paid nothing for Minecraft's appearance on Clueless Gamer. As Recode notes though, O'Brien's "review" of Minecraft was largely negative, particularly when compared to his praise for Outlast. This news immediately follows the controversy over Microsoft paying YouTube users to include the Xbox One in their videos. As in that case, the reality of paid endorsements is being conflated with the more salacious concept of "pay for play." O'Brien's show accepting cash to feature games is no more shady than your favorite sitcom earning extra money every time a can of Coke is displayed on screen. That said, O'Brien's show does not mention these endorsement deals in its credits or elsewhere, claiming instead that it's understood that a comedian riffing on a game is not a proper critical review.
App Store's revenue grew 15% between February and July
The analytics wizards at Distimo have released their July report on mobile trends, this time comparing the top apps for the App Store, Google Play and Amazon's Appstore for Android. Tucked away in their findings, however, is an interesting look at how Apple's App Store for iOS has grown in the last six months. Between February and July of 2013 the App Store grew by 15 percent while Google Play saw its own store grow by 67 percent. While the discrepancy between each store's growth rate may seem unfavorable for Apple, it's important to point out the App Store still generated more than twice as much revenue as Google Play during that same period. (It's easier to grow by big percentages from a smaller base, in other words.) The app that generated the most revenue globally, Candy Crush Saga, was the same for each company, meaning that regardless of what kind of smartphone your friends are working with, you're probably being asked for candy assistance on Facebook at this given moment. Interestingly, none of the normally paid apps that were offered for free as part of Apple's App Store 5th Anniversary sale made it into July's top five free paid apps. BADLAND came close, but was unable to move past number six on the charts. The next closest anniversary sale title to chart in the Top 10 was Infinity Blade II, at number nine. Worldwide, the United States spends the most money on apps, followed by Japan and South Korea, which account for a majority of the growth Google Play's store enjoyed during the six-month period.
YouTube launches pilot program for paid subscriptions, channels start at $0.99 per month
We've had a pretty clear indication that it was coming, and YouTube has now gotten official with one of the biggest changes to the way it does business to date. It's today kicking off a pilot program for paid subscriptions, which initially consists of a small group of partners offering channels that start at $0.99 per month. Those will include channels ranging from Sesame Street to the UFC (just over 50 in all at the moment), each of which include a 14-day free trial, and some of which come at a discounted rate if you pay by the year instead of per-month. YouTube's promising to roll things out more broadly in the coming weeks, with qualifying partners able to take advantage of the option as a self-service feature and others invited to sign up if they're interested in going the paid route. Naturally, you'll be able to view channels on the usual range of devices once you subscribe, but you will have to do the actual subscribing on a computer for now (subscribing on others devices is promised to be coming soon). The company's also quick to point out that it's still early days for the service, noting that it'll have more to say as it gets feedback from users and content partners.
App.net introduces a free tier, currently invite-only
App.net is a service that's had its fans and opponents -- it's currently used as a microblogging service, similar to Twitter, where users can share files and updates easily. But unlike Twitter, App.net's had a philosophy of staying away from ads, letting users keep all rights to the content they create, and keeping the API as open as possible. Until now, App.net has only had paid tiers of service, but starting today, they've announced a free tier, meaning users can now join the site and the network for free. As you might expect, there are some limits. First, you'll need an invite, and the invites are being given out to paid account holders, so it's not exactly an open door just yet. After you sign up, free accounts can only follow a max of 40 people, and will only have access to 500 MB of storage, with a max file size of 10 MB. App.net is also giving away some extra storage space to those who invite users who stick around and follow others, so if you have a paid account already, there's a chance at a bonus if you invite the right people. If you don't get in on this first run, don't worry -- App.net's devs say they're going to be opening up the process going forward, depending on how it goes. App.net's API is now used by more than 100 third-party apps on a number of different platforms (including apps like Netbot for iPad on iOS), and I expect that number will rise as more and more people join and use the service. In the past, App.net has gained attention (and accolades) for being a very limited, paid-only network, but offering a freemium tier like this is the next step towards really creating the "movement" and ecosystem the team originally wanted.
App Store acting wonky by showing free apps in the top paid list
Anyone else notice that the desktop version of iTunes is acting weird today? We were browsing through the top paid apps in several categories (Medical and Social Networking, for example) and noticed that all apps listed are free apps. Amusingly, the top paid app in the Books category is iBooks! This is one of several reports that have trickled in this week with other unusual behavior in the iTunes App Store. Maybe Apple is tweaking things on the backside in preparation for some big announcement next week? We can only hope. Hat tip to Appency!
25 percent off character transfers this weekend
Last weekend we had a discount on faction transfers, and this week Blizzard has confirmed that there will be a discount on realm transfers! Betting will shortly open on the nature of next weekend's sale. Realm transfers are offered all the time, of course, allowing you to pack your character's bags and shift them, their bank, their mounts, pets, and all their holdings to a new realm. This discount decreases the price from $25, £15 or €20 to $18.75, £11.25 or €15. (American prices are subject to tax in certain areas.) The realm transfer sale ends on July 23 -- Monday -- so get your skates on! Do check out the Character Transfer FAQ if you're curious about any aspect of the service. Importantly, you should note that a character transfer doesn't include a faction change, race change, class change, or appearance change. Also, a goblin doesn't really fire you out of a cannon. New horizons await! Through this weekend and for a limited time only, you can initiate a Character Transfer to move one of your World of Warcraft characters to a new realm for 25% off the regular price. To get started, simply click here. Alternatively, you can log in to your Battle.net account at www.battle.net, select your World of Warcraft account, and then click "Character Transfer" at the bottom of the page. Don't delay -- this offer ends Monday, July 23. source So, if you have ever fancied a change of scenery -- well, OK, not scenery, but the people steering the avatars within it -- or if you fancy going from a PvP to a PvE realm or back again, now's the time! Carpe diem, people. Who knows when this will roll around again?
Disney introduces new 'Cranky's Story' levels for Where's My Water
Disney has released the very first new content pack for the extremely popular Where's My Water, "Cranky's Story." It features 40 new levels for the price of 99 cents. Instead of guiding clean water to a shower head as you did in the original game, this update has you direct dirty water to Cranky's plate so he can eat his "junk food." Where's My Water is a breakthrough title for Disney. Not only has it been phenomenally popular on iOS, but the game's also been released on other mobile platforms, and the free web version appeared in a campaign about clean drinking water. Disney is currently working on animated media about the game's characters, so this has turned into a pretty substantial franchise for the House of Mouse. This update raises the game's profile and demonstrates Disney's investment in iOS and this property. Fans of the game should find the update in the App Store now.
Atari follows up freemium Breakout Boost with paid Breakout Boost+
A little while back, Atari continued its releases of updated classic games for iOS with Breakout Boost, a freemium version of the classic brickbreaking game that offers updated graphics and a few new mechanics to go with them. This week Atari announced another title called Breakout: Boost+, and while the general trend on the App Store recently is to go more towards freemium, Atari has actually made a move away from it. Breakout: Boost+ is a paid title, currently available for 99 cents. The "plus" version includes 100 levels that aren't available in the free version, and it doesn't appear to have any in-app purchases. Other than that, the gameplay appears to be about the same, adding in power-ups and those improved graphics to the standard Breakout gameplay. It's an interesting choice; during a time when most games are dropping their price down to free to get the largest possible audience, Atari has followed up a free launch with a title that falls back on the old paid model while still leaving the freemium version available. TUAW asked Atari what the deal is. Atari CEO Jim Wilson tells us that this title is definitely not a relaunch, and the choice to offer a paid app doesn't necessarily reflect disappointment with the free version. "Breakout: Boost was a big success for Atari that generated over 2 million downloads," says Wilson, "and we plan to continue supporting the title, having released an update since launch to enhance the initial free levels." Presumably both versions will be updated going forward, so customers can either download the free version as a trial, or buy the paid version to get access to all of the content right away. This kind of experimentation definitely shows that Atari, a very traditional gaming company, is looking to grow its mobile offerings, especially on iOS. According to Wilson, "This latest release of Breakout: Boost+ is just one small step among many more to come that expands on our mobile games offering and an effort to keep iterating on our games to address consumer demands -- in this case, a call for an upfront premium download." It sounds like at least some of Atari's customers wanted the more traditional paid model rather than the freemium offering. It'll be interesting to see how these two apps do in the App Store going forward.
Theatrhythm Final Fantasy box points to first paid DLC for Nintendo 3DS
3DS owners have been waiting (and waiting) for a chance to take advantage of a downloadable content market, and while Nintendo already accomplished the tough part (read: launching it) a few days back, there's still been no word on when paid content would make an appearance. Pushing those freebies aside is Theatrhythm Final Fantasy, which is seemingly destined to be the first 3DS title in existence to offer up enhancements in exchange for a few yen. The box here is actually an "early retail dummy unit," though the verbiage on the back makes quite clear that downloadable material will be available at a cost. Furthermore, there's a heretofore unseen Nintendo Network badge on the front, which may be a new look for the existing Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. At any rate, the game is scheduled to ship on February 16th in Japan, after which all of this will-it-won't-it drama will presumably be cleared up.
Hulu Plus cracks one million paying subscribers, but what's next?
It's almost the official end of summer and just as CEO Jason Kilar forecasted back in July, Hulu has signed up more than 1,000,000 paying Plus subscribers. He made the announcement at a Goldman Sachs investor conference while also mentioning plans to invest $375 million in content this year, even as the questions of who will buy Hulu (if its owners actually follow through with a sale) and Kilar's own fate as its head continue to hang in the air. Hitting the projected numbers, rolling out service internationally and popping up at the f8 Facebook event are all signs Hulu is still making plans for its future, even if we don't know yet where that future will be.
Poll: Spotify tops two million premium subscribers -- are you one?
The competition may be nabbing most of the headlines these days, but Spotify's got some good news of its own to report. We just got word that the streaming music service has passed two million premium subscribers internationally. We attempted to get some clarification on just how many of those are based in the US, but the company doesn't break down such numbers by country. Still, it's a positive note for companies trying to monetize such services in the face of increasing free offerings. So, are you one in two million? Take the poll and tell us why -- or why not -- in the comments below. %Poll-69226%
