Donald Trump is launching a Social Media platform
Plus: Shopify and Spotify team up & Paypal may be acquiring Pinterest
Hello there,
Former U.S President, Donald Trump announced that he will be launching his very own social media platform, TRUTH Social.
Why this matters: TRUTH Social is a part of the media network that Trump is planning to launch in order to stand up against the oppression of Big Tech - we’ll take a wild guess and say that this is his way of getting back at Twitter and Facebook for permanently suspending his accounts on their platforms. Alongside the social media app, Trump Media and Technology Group (TMTG), plans to launch a subscription video-on-demand service, more interestingly, in TMTG’s terms of service, users are required to sign away their rights to file a class-action suit. (CNBC)
Shopify and Spotify team up
Spotify (SPOT) has announced a new partnership with Shopify (SHOP) to give artists new options for merch sales.
Why this matters: Tongue Twisters. The companies are teaming up to allow artists on the Shopify platform to connect their Spotify profiles with their Shopify stores, making it easier to market their merchandise directly to fans through the Spotify app. This is also a cool way to offer an additional revenue stream for newer artists who haven’t created a merchandise website, it could also give those who already have a website elsewhere a reason to switch to Shopify’s platform. (Tech Crunch)
Paypal may be acquiring Pinterest
PayPal (PYPL) is reportedly exploring a potential acquisition of social media company, Pinterest (PINS).
Why this matters: There have been mixed reactions to this news, some analysts think that this move is an act of desperation and they struggle to see the “sense” in this acquisition, others believe that competitive pressure from Shopify (SHOP) pushed PayPal into exploring this purchase. This acquisition could present another way for PayPal to “delve deeper” into e-commerce, it would also add some of Pinterest’s 450 million active users to PayPal’s current 400 million. Upon this news, Pinterest’s stock went up 13.3% to $62.99 while PayPal fell 5.9% to $255.58. No comment has come from either of their camps. (CNBC)
That’s it from us
See you tomorrow