Snapchat has launched a new content service called
“Discover.” Snapchat Discover enables media companies to engage with users
by posting summarizations of their content. Swiping your finger left or right
changes the story and sliding your finger up shows the full video or news
article posted by the brands. The content is refreshed every 24 hours and older
content is not accessible, which is consistent with Snapchat’s ephemeral
nature.
According to BI Intelligence, Snapchat’s user base is mostly female between
the ages of 13 and 25. Snapchat Discover gives brands a way to connect with a
younger audience. Snapchat Discover’s launch partners include CNN, Comedy
Central, Cosmopolitan, Daily Mail, ESPN, Food Network, National Geographic,
People, Vice, Yahoo! News and Warner Music Group.
“Social media companies
tell us what to read based on what’s most recent or most popular. We see it
differently. We count on editors and artists, not clicks and shares, to
determine what’s important,” said Snapchat in a blog post. “Discover is different because it
has been built for creatives. All too often, artists are forced to accommodate
new technologies in order to distribute their work. This time we built the
technology to serve the art: each edition includes full screen photos and
videos, awesome long form layouts, and gorgeous advertising.”
Snapchat is a free
ephemeral messaging app that reportedly turned down a $3 billion offer from Facebook. Snapchat co-founders
Evan Spiegel and Bobby Murphy decided to continue raising funds for their
company instead. This past summer, Snapchat raised a round of funding at an approximate $10 billion valuation. That round of funding
put Spiegel and Murphy into Forbes’ billionaires rankings with an estimated net
worth of $1.5 billion each.
Before Snapchat Discover, the company seemed to focus on user growth instead of
monetization. Snapchat’s users are now sending over 700 million photos and
videos per day and Snapchat Stories are being viewed 500 million times per day.
Snapchat Discover’s integration of content and ads in their app seems to be
their first real attempt to make money. Snapchat Discover media partners will
be sharing ad revenue with the ephemeral messaging app company. Initially Snapchat required users to request permission to send content
back-and-forth. Snapchat launched a feature called Stories in October 2013,
allowing users to collaborate at live events by sharing
snaps that can be viewed by people all over the world.
What’s my take on Snapchat
discover? A majority of my friends and colleagues are on Facebook, Twitter,
LinkedIn and Instagram so I decided to avoid Snapchat until I heard about the
Discover feature. The cornucopia of brands offered by Snapchat Discover really
appeals to me because I enjoy staying up-to-date on current events, sports and
music. The format that Snapchat Discover presents the content from its media
partners helps digest a large amount of information efficiently. And the
ephemeral nature of Snapchat Discover will make me want to use it every day.
Here is a video about how to use Snapchat Discover:
Reference:
http://www.forbes.com/sites/amitchowdhry/2015/01/28/snapchat-discover/
