Lab Weekly - 05/12/2023
Google I/O 2023 event recap; plus, the latest news from Disney, Amazon, and Uber, along with some must-know stats on digital marketing and innovation
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Google I/O 2023 Keynote Recap: Tunnel Vision on Generative AI
What marketers need to know from Google’s annual developer conference about its grand plan to integrate generative AI across its core products
In case you missed it…
Social Media In Flux: Existential Threats and Generative AI’s Impact
Key questions about the future of social media that brand marketers should keep a close eye on
Generative AI’s “iPhone” Moment, AI Trust Gap, and the Monetization Dilemma
Generative AI has our attention, but can it find the right product-market fit & path to monetization at scale to sustain its momentum?
What Brands Need to Know from Snap Partner Summit 2023
Snapchat maker explores new frontiers in live events and generative AI while doubling down on local discovery and AR commerce
Disney Plans To Merge Hulu Content into Disney+ [THR]
It’s been a long time coming — Disney is finally merging Hulu content into its flagship streaming service Disney+ under a “one-app experience” in the U.S. by the end of this year, although users will still have to have a Hulu subscription to access the content. This is an integration similar to how Paramount is planning to integrate Showtimes content into Paramount+. Along with the influx of Hulu content, Disney+ ad-free tier will be raising its price, even after just being raised by $3 in December. In its latest quarterly earnings report, Disney+ subscribers were down 2% (about 4 million) from the previous quarter, signaling that the price raise has not gone unnoticed. Hulu, and ESPN+ will still be available as standalone options, but the consolidated Disney+ should provide a more streamlined user experience and provide greater opportunities for advertisers.
Related: Netflix canceled its in-person upfront, probably to avoid the WGA’s picket lines [The Verge]; NBC Sports to stream all 2024 Olympic games on Peacock [The Desk]
Amazon Pursues In-Game Shopping With Amazon Anywhere [Retail Dive]
Move over, social commerce! There’s a new type of shoppable feature in town. Amazon launched a new in-game shopping tool called Amazon Anywhere, which allows users to make purchases directly within any app, especially mobile games. The first game to feature this tool is Niantic’s AR pet game Peridot. By connecting their Amazon account to the game, users can view and purchase relevant products, such as Peridot-branded merchandise, without leaving the game. With a simple click of the “Buy Now” button, the item will be delivered to their doorstep. This innovative approach provides Amazon with a new avenue to reach consumers, mobile gamers in particular, while also opening a potential new revenue stream for game publishers.
Related: Apple announces 'shop with a specialist over video' feature for buying an iPhone [MacRumors]; Amazon to close eight Go convenience stores in a cost-cutting move [CNBC]
Uber Launches Flight Bookings In UK [Financial Times]
Uber is expanding its services in the UK by introducing a flight booking feature. This move is part of the company’s goal to become a travel “super app” that offers a range of services, including ride-hailing, food delivery, and now flight booking. By providing a one-stop shop for all travel needs, Uber hopes to retain customers and remain competitive. The flight bookings will be powered by Hopper, a Montréal-based startup specializing in flight tracking and booking. By adding flight booking to its app, Uber could also attract more users to its ride-booking service, such as offering discounted rides to the airport with a flight booking.
Uber’s introduction of a flight booking feature is part of CEO Dara Khosrowshahi’s long-term vision to transform the company into a broader “mobility-as-a-service” platform. This plan was first announced in 2018 but was delayed due to the pandemic’s impact on the travel and transport industry. Instead, the company focused on its food delivery business. In 2019, Uber experimented with offering helicopter rides between Manhattan and JFK Airport under the now-defunct Uber Copter brand. Time will tell if this is the right path for Uber.
Related: Both Lyft and Uber are starting to blend third-party robotaxis into their ride-hailing fleets in multiple cities [Axios]; Uber Eats delivering order tracking on iPhone with Live Activities and Dynamic Island [9to5Mac]; Google is bringing YouTube, Waze, and Zoom to cars with native Android software [The Verge]
Smartphone shipments declined 14% YoY globally to 280.2 million units in Q1 2023, according to the latest tracking data from Counterpoint Research. Not all brands suffered sales drop equally though: While Samsung declined 19% and Xiaomi by 22%, Apple only saw a mere 2% drop in the latest quarter, per the report.
Customer satisfaction with air travel is way down for the second year in a row, heading into what could be another summer of nightmare travel, J.D. Power found in its annual survey. Overall satisfaction this year was 791 (on a 1,000-point scale), down 7 points from 2022 — following a 22-point decline from 2021.
A new Gartner survey found that the exploding popularity of OpenAI’s ChatGPT has spurred 45% of executive leaders to invest more in generative AI. Customer experience is the most commonly cited application while more than two-thirds of execs said the benefits of the tech outweigh the risks.
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