TIP JAR, PODCAST COMPETITION AND I LOVE YOU VEGAN FOOD
Have you ever loved a meme so much you wished you could somehow compensate whoever came up with the original Tweet? Well, now you can, with Twitter’s introduction of a Tip Jar (for a limited subset of creators on the platform). The just-released feature (still being beta tested) allows users to send money to fellow tweeters using PayPal, Venmo, Patreon, Cash App, or Bandcamp. Twitter called it the “first step in our work to create new ways for people to receive and show support on Twitter–with money.”
I’ve written a lot here about the heated competition brewing in the podcast space. And this Friday, I’m back to report that things are (potentially) about to get even more heated with another cook entering the kitchen. Netflix is apparently dipping its toe in the audio space with a feature called “N-Plus”. According to a reporter at Protocol who was prompted with a survey on the platform, “Netflix queried people in a survey about a wide range of features and content, including podcasts, user-generated playlists, how-tos and more.” In regards to the content itself, it looks like it might be largely IP-based, as the survey described N-Plus as a “future online space where you can learn more about Netflix shows and things related to them.” Personally, when I am into a show I like to eat up all the content that I can get related to it—and then some—so I’m vocally registering my support to make this idea real, stat.
In news that happened off the internet this week, according to Variety, Jaden Smith is evolving his I Love You vegan food truck into a restaurant, where LA’s homeless population can eat for free, following the “buy one give one” model of a TOMS or Warby Parker. He says: “It’s for homeless people to get free food...but if you’re not homeless, not only do you have to pay, but you have to pay for more than the food’s worth so that you can pay for the person behind you.” Feels like a really cool way to extend that social impact model from retail to the food space, where arguably, people have the greatest, most fundamental need.
And finally, two of the best pieces of content I came across on TikTok this week: This video unexpectedly explores the thought process behind the creation of the analog clock and this crowd-created videoshows just how far the internet will go to troll a random dude.
—Darlene Kenney, Digital Strategist
