Happy's marketing news - 30.06.17
It’s been a busy week in the marketing world, here’s what has caught our eye!
Facebook has hit two billion users. CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced the milestone on his Facebook page on Tuesday, only a few days after he shared the company’s new mission statement of “bringing the world closer to together.” With 2 billion users, Facebook is used by roughly two-thirds of the world’s population with internet access, according to 2016 data from the International Telecommunications Union.Facebook reported 1.94 billion monthly and 1.28 billion daily users for its last quarterly earnings in May.
Microsoft is to set up a new office in Manchester, at Neo, Bruntwood’s £8m redevelopment in the city centre. The space on the 7th floor will accommodate around 100 staff, with the tech giant set to move in next month. “We are thrilled to welcome Microsoft to Neo – an organisation perfectly suited to a place, purposely-designed to inspire creative thinking and collaborative working,” explained Phil Kemp, Bruntwood’s chief commercial officer. Manchester was of course the birthplace of modern computing in the late 1940s and 1950s so to welcome a true world leader in 21st century technology to our city is not only a perfect fit, but it’s a proud moment for us too.”
Google has been fined a record £2.1bn by the European Commission after a seven-year investigation into its Shopping search comparison service. The regulator handed out its largest penalty to date after ruling the tech giant had abused its power by systematically giving a more prominent placement to its own comparison shopping service. Google has also been ordered to end its anti-competitive practices within 90 days or face a further penalty. Google had previously suggested that Amazon and eBay had more influence over the public’s spending habits and that the commission’s views “failed to fit the reality of how most people shop online”.
Instagram has introduced a filter that automatically prevents offensive or inappropriate comments from appearing, in order to reduce spam in comments and to help keep Instagram a “safe place for self-expression”. “Many of you have told us that toxic comments discourage you from enjoying Instagram and expressing yourself freely. To help, we’ve developed a filter that will block certain offensive comments on posts and in live video,” said Kevin Systrom CEO & co-founder of Instagram. “We believe that using machine learning to build tools to safeguard self-expression is an important step in fostering more inclusive, kinder communities.” The tech firm will use advanced machine learning technology to detect and filter out comments so the user never has to see them. It will be rolled out in English first.
Ten years ago this month, work began to transform a docklands wasteland in Salford into MediaCityUK. In the 1960s, 5,000 people worked at the dock there, before it essentially became an overflow carpark for The Lowry theatre, which was opened in 2000. There are 7,000 people who work, live and study at MediaCityUK, which is home to the BBC, ITV and many independent production companies. “Our initial success in securing the BBC as an anchor occupier at MediaCityUK was the result of a strong partnership with Salford City Council and the Central Salford Urban Regeneration Company,” said John Whittaker, chairman of The Peel Group.
