Lab Weekly - 01/20/2023
Outlook 2023 trend report; new Floor 9 podcast episode; plus, the latest must-know news and stats
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Outlook 2023: Interregnum
Our annual Outlook is a level-setting overview of the trends and topics that we expect to break out in the next few years, why we’re convinced they’re important, and how you should respond. Today, we’re proud to present our latest Outlook report, covering the following four major trends in media, tech, and culture:
Read the full report on Medium now! If you like what you read and want to learn more about how your brand may best respond to these epoch-defining trends, please reach out to Josh Mallalieu, at josh@ipglab.com. to inquire about a deep-dive presentation.
In case you missed it…
CES 2023 Trend Recap
Must-know innovation trends in auto, smart home, digital health, and more, as seen on the CES show floors
Ten Questions on Tech & Innovation for 2023
Highlighting key aspects of digital media and innovations to which we hope 2023 will bring answers
Ep. 147: CES 2023 Trend Recap
Welcome back to Floor 9! As usual, we are kicking off the year with a CES recap episode that features the entire IPG Media Lab team, plus Chad Stoller, Global Chief Innovation Officer of UM Worldwide. Listen now to hear about our team’s thoughts on the biggest trends in digital health, entertainment, mobility, smart home, and vice economy emerging from this year’s CES!
As always, you can find Adam on Twitter @adamjsimon, and Ryan on LinkedIn. Follow the Lab on Twitter @ipglab and on Medium for our latest insights.
Click here to listen and subscribe! If you enjoyed the episode, please consider giving us a five-star review on Apple Podcast. Thanks for listening!
HomePod & HomePod Mini Now Feature Temperature And Humidity Sensor [MacRumors]
Apple is giving its smart home lineup a refresh this week — not only did the company re-launched the full-size HomePod, two years after its discontinuation, the iPhone maker is also activating the previously dormant temperature and humidity sensors embedded in the HomePod and HomePod Mini speakers.
At the moment, Amazon and Google dominate the U.S. smart speaker market, jointly accounting for more than 90% of the U.S. market share, per CIRP data. Apple’s move to reintroduce the HomePod can be seen as a strategic attempt at grabbing some of the high-end market from both Amazon and Google, both of which mostly focus on the more affordable side of the market.
Furthermore, the activation of the indoor environment sensors could also contribute to more functionality for devices like smart thermostats, air humidifiers, and air conditioners. Viewed in the context of the recent Matter rollout, this move is also a way to ensure that Apple’s smart speakers are capable of being the control hub for smart home devices, regardless of their brands or ecosystems.
Related: Apple announces revamped full-size HomePod two years after discontinuing original [The Verge]; Apple developing ‘iPad-based’ HomeKit smart display and combo HomePod + Apple TV with camera [Bloomberg]
Ryan Reynolds Reads From AI-Generated Script In New Mint Mobile Ad [Fast Company]
Generative AI tools, especially ChatGPT, are getting a lot of buzzy headlines lately, which means that, sooner or later, a savvy marketer will decide to capitalize on the buzz. And that’s exactly what Ryan Reynolds did for his wireless telecom company, Mint Mobile (which is rumored to be an acquisition target for T-Mobile). This minute-long video took a meta-humor approach, having Ryan Reynolds simply reading aloud the script that ChatGPT wrote with mild skepticism and amazement, which mirrors most people’s initial reaction to the Generative AI output lately. It is a clear way of jumping on this cultural trend to capitalize on the buzz without relinquishing any real creative control over to the AI. The video has garnered over 1.2 million viewers on YouTube since its release ten days ago.
Related: McDonald’s ‘tech-forward’ Lunar New Year push features AI-powered ad [Marketing Dive]; OpenAI released the DALL-E API in public beta, allowing developers to integrate DALL-E directly into their apps and products. [VentureBeat]
Esports Team FaZe Clan And Porsche Rev Up Multi-Year Partnership [VentureBeat]
While car companies doing esports partnerships or sponsorships is nothing new these days — brands like BMW and Mercedes-Benz have also heavily invested in the space — this partnership is a noteworthy one because it is targeting a premium luxury audience via esports. FeZ Clan, along with 100 Thieves, are the two teams that have the luxury market cornered in terms of esports partnerships, thanks to these two teams building out their lifestyle branding.
Ultimately, this partnership is a good reminder for brand marketers that gaming has become such a mainstream part of the media diet that you can find nearly all segments of audiences, especially those of the younger generations, with the right partners in the space. Millennials and Gen Z accounted for all of the luxury market’s growth last year, according to a report from Bain & Co.
Related: TikTok to launch standalone gaming channel [Financial Time]; A list of the top 10 highest-viewed esports events of 2022 [Esports Insider]
TikTok Is Quietly Testing A Podcast Feature [Business Insider]
TikTok is reportedly testing a new “Podcasts” feature that allows users to continue listening to a program while TikTok runs in the background. While this is simply a rumored feature that may never see the light of day, the fact that TikTok is likely testing a podcasting feature is a testament to how big the podcast ad market has grown. Per data from Insider Intelligence, worldwide podcast ad spend is expected to reach $2.25 billion this year. While expanding into podcasting may be too much of a stretch for a visual-first app like TikTok, there’s certainly ad dollars that TikTok could generate from this excursion into podcasts.
Related: Why TikTok bans have spread onto college campuses in multiple states [USA Today]; TikTok sensation Pink Sauce now available at Walmart [Delish]; Podcast marketers are transforming singular feeds into multi-show channels [Bloomberg]
Electric vehicles marked a global sales milestone. EVs accounted for 10% of new cars sold globally in 2022, with the market segment recording particularly strong growth in Europe and China.
New podcast creation has fallen off a cliff. The number of new podcasts that debuted in 2022 was down 80% since 2020, according to data compiled by Chartr. New episode creation has fared somewhat better. Though still lower than 2020 and 2021 figures, Listen Notes logged 26.1 million new episodes published in 2022, up from the 18.1 million episodes in 2019.
Netflix beat forecasts for subscriber gains for the fourth quarter, but pressure on earnings per share reflected broader challenges in the streaming business. The company added almost 7.7 million subscribers during the fourth quarter, reaching 230.75 million globally. That was well ahead of Wall Street guidance of almost 4.6 million new customers, Deadline reports.
If you find our insights valuable and would like to have a deeper conversation on technology and media innovations, or need to sound smarter in a client meeting or a pitch, please feel free to reach out to our Group Director Josh Mallalieu!