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YouTube will make it easier for 'edgy' creators to find advertisers
YouTube has a tricky job of making sure ads don't show up alongside videos promoting extremist, hateful views or violence, yet also making sure it doesn't strip creators, who may post things like violent video game scenes, of their revenue-earning potential. In an attempt to get better at that, YouTube is experimenting with ways to match "edgy" videos with advertisers who are okay with content that's not totally PG.
Facebook may restrict highly targeted political ads
Facebook may be reluctant to overhaul key parts of its political ad policies, but it appears willing to make a few changes to stop the spread of misinformation. Wall Street Journal sources say Facebook is mulling a ban on political ads that target small audiences (aka microtargeted ads) -- a common tactic for those spreading false claims. It would bump the minimum target size for a political ad from 100 people to a "few thousand," according to the tipsters. While it's not clear how close Facebook is to shifting its policy, the social network has reportedly asked large Democrat and Republican ad buyers for input on that minimum and "other ideas."
Google bans political ad targeting by affiliation and voter records
Google is the latest internet giant to rethink its approach to political ads. The company is limiting the targeting options for election ads to age, gender and general location. US advertisers will no longer be allowed to target based on political leanings or public voting records, for example. The new strategy will take effect in the UK next week (just before the country's General Election), in the EU by the end of 2019, and all other countries by January 6th, 2020.
NY Attorney General sues Juul for deceptive marketing
Yesterday, California filed a lawsuit against e-cigarette company Juul for allegedly targeting underage Californians with its marketing and sales practices. Today, New York Attorney General Letitia James announced a similar lawsuit against Juul "for deceptive and misleading marketing of its e-cigarettes, which contributed to the ongoing youth vaping epidemic in New York State."
Snapchat fact-checks political ads where Facebook won't
Snapchat may have another way to compete against rival apps like Instagram: truth in advertising. Snap chief Evan Spiegel told CNBC in an interview that his company has a team that fact-checks all political advertising -- a sharp contrast to Facebook, which has refused to verify the accuracy of political ads so far. The company wants to "create a place" for these ads, Spiegel said, and it's particularly important given Snapchat's young audience. It wants these people to "engage with the political conversation," but it doesn't want false claims to slip into those ads.
Twitter's political ad ban will also curb ads for hot-button issues
Twitter has finally outlined how its ban on political ads will work, and it's considerably clearer -- if not as clear as some would like. When the ban takes effect on November 22nd, it'll bar ads for anything referring to candidates, parties, existing officials, legislation, regulation, ballot measures and referendums. They also can't rally for votes or financial help. Politicians effectively can't run ads, in other words. It also forbids ads from PACs and other organizations that fuel campaigns. However, the bigger changes for some may involve new policies limiting "cause-based advertising" on the social network.
Antitrust investigation of Google reportedly expands to Android
Tonight CNBC reports that an ongoing antitrust investigation of Google undertaken by 50 attorneys general is expanding. While it started by looking into Google's advertising business, it has apparently, as expected, expanded its scope to include search and the Android platform. Over the years Google has reached into more services -- next up: checking -- and platforms with increasingly deep ties to one another, and as the investigation concerns the use of customer data, it seems obvious that it will reach every part of the company eventually. The 48 state AGs, as well as two representing Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico, did not comment on the latest report, while Google said in a September blog post that it would cooperate with investigations.
Brave says 8.7 million people use its privacy-focused browser every month
Almost four years after its first release, privacy-focused web browser Brave is officially launching. Starting today, you can download version 1.0 of Brave on Android and iOS, as well as on Windows 10, macOS and Linux. With Brave 1.0, you can now use the company's opt-in ad platform and enroll in Brave Rewards on both iPhone and iPad. In short, this is the release where you can seamlessly use almost all of Brave's marquee features across all platforms.
Even on YouTube you're not safe from Google Shopping ads
With the holidays approaching, YouTube is about to get even more cluttered with advertisements. You'll soon start to see Google Shopping ads in your YouTube search results and homefeed. Even if you don't know them by name, you're probably familiar with how Google Shopping ads work. They pop up almost anytime you search on Google. They're particularly prone to show up if you look for something like clothing or electronics.
Uber Eats might start showing ads, too
You might soon see ads while you're looking for dinner in Uber Eats. The company recently posted a job listing, first spotted by TechCrunch, for an Uber Eats Ads Lead, and a spokesperson confirmed that Uber is exploring bringing relevant ads to Eats. So, while you're deciding where to order from, Uber could be tossing a few paid suggestions at you.
Facebook will let politicians run false ads during UK elections
Facebook's policy of allowing politicians to run false ads is going to get tested in short order. CNN Business has confirmed that the social network won't fact-check candidates' ads in the weeks ahead of the UK election on December 12th. It will bar candidates from linking to debunked or pro-violence material, and will still scrutinize groups like Leave.EU, but voters will have to rely on skepticism beyond that.
The writer of ‘The Social Network’ rails on Zuckerberg in open letter
Aaron Sorkin, the screenwriter of The Social Network, has become the latest high-profile individual to criticize Facebook for its policy on political ads. In a new open letter addressed to Mark Zuckerberg and published in The New York Times, Sorkin relates how sensitive Facebook was about the biopic when he wrote it almost 10 years ago.
Mark Zuckerberg still won't ban 'political' ads from Facebook
For the better part of the past four years, Facebook just hasn't been able to keep its name out of the bad news cycle. The latest backlash the company is facing has to do with its political ad policies, which essentially allow politicians to spread misinformation on the site. CEO Mark Zuckerberg addressed the topic during Facebook's Q3 2019 earnings call today, saying he doesn't agree with "critics" who claim the company won't ban these controversial ads because "all we care about is money." Zuckerberg said ads from politicians will be less than 0.5 percent of Facebook's revenue this year, noting that the $5 billion FTC fine was more than 10 times more costly for the company.
Twitter will put a stop to political ads on November 22nd
Twitter has found a way to get around the ethical questions surrounding political ads: like TikTok, it's getting rid of them entirely. Jack Dorsey has announced that the social network is stopping all political ads outside of non-partisan exceptions (such as voter registration), whether they come from candidates or interest groups. It'll provide the finished policy on November 15th, and will start enforcing it on November 22nd.
Amazon told to stop tricking UK users into signing up for Prime
Think Amazon is a little too eager to sign you up for Prime? You're not alone. The UK ad industry's Advertising Standards Authority has ruled that an Amazon promo for Prime was "likely to mislead" and could have tricked users into subscribing to the service. A page in the checkout process pitched a 30-day Prime trial and prominently displayed a gold "order now with Prime" button, complete with a gray box promising "free one-day delivery," but relegated the skip option to a plain, subdued "continue and don't gain Amazon Prime benefits" link. This may have made it look like the only two options were the gold and gray boxes signing you up for Prime, the ASA said.
Hundreds of employees criticize Facebook's political ad policies
Over the past month, Facebook has come under criticism for allowing politicians to run false or misleading ads. Now, employees are speaking out. More than 250 Facebook employees wrote a letter addressed to CEO Mark Zuckerberg and top Facebook officials calling Facebook's political ad policies "a threat to what FB stands for."
Facebook takes down fake political ad meant to test its fact checking
Facebook's stance on truth in political ads has been put to the test. The social media giant has removed a 'stunt' ad from a Political Action Committee, the Really Online Lefty League, that falsely claimed Republican Senator Lindsey Graham supported the Green New Deal proposed by some Democrats. A company spokesman told Reuters that the ad was eligible for a fact-checking review since it came from a political action group rather than a politician.
Roku spent $150 million so it can sell more ads
Roku is no longer just a company making TV streaming boxes and dongles. It's become a powerful advertising company, too. By some estimates, it streams more ad-supported hours than any other over-the-top (OTT) platform. Today, it announced plans to double down. It has acquired the Boston-based ad-tech firm Dataxu for $150 million in cash and stocks.
Amazon debuts ad-supported News video app for Fire TV
After launching IMDb Freedive earlier this year, Amazon is preparing to offer another ad-supported video streaming service. This time, the app is called News and it will allow you to watch news coverage from organizations like CBS, Reuters, Bloomberg and more. It'll offer both live and on-demand content.
Google avoids serving repeat ads with machine learning
Like it or not, ads keep the internet running. However, they've become obnoxious and intrusive over the years, leading some to install anti-tracking software on their devices. This makes it difficult for advertisers to show a variety of ads to those users, rather than showing the same ad over and over again. As a privacy-focused workaround, Google -- which dominates the online advertising world -- will use machine learning to manage how frequently an ad is shown to a user when third-party cookies are blocked by users.