Facebook and advertisers scramble after an Apple policy change, Netflix will enter the video game market, and Apple looks at a new way for customers to pay.
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It’s all the biz/tech news that’s popular right now. Welcome to Hashtag Trending! It’s Thursday, July 16th and I’m your host, Tom Li.
Facebook users on iOS are opting out of cross-app tracking thanks to Apple’s latest iOS 14.5 update, leaving advertisers short on relevant information. Analytics firm Branch is reporting that a paltry 25% of iOS users are opting into the tracking, making it much harder for Facebook advertisers to see if their ads are working. Also problematic for Facebook is the impact of the mass opt-outs in preventing them from showing products to potential new customers or targeting recurring users. While Facebook declined to respond to a request from Bloomberg, the company does say they are working on creating new features to make up for the lost data, including delivering ads based on data stored on a user’s device.
Netflix is looking to make a bold leap into the world of video games in an effort to expand beyond television and film. The streaming giant has hired a former Electronic Arts executive to lead the effort, with hopes of offering video game streaming by next year according to a Bloomberg report. With this move, Netflix is trying to expand their place in an increasingly saturated streaming market, particularly after it added fewer new subscribers than expected last quarter. The move would make Netflix the first major streaming service to dip their toes into the gaming industry, as well as potentially making it easier to justify price increases in coming years.
And finally, Apple is reportedly looking into introducing a “Buy Now, Pay Later” model for Apple Pay purchases. The service, which rumour says is called “Apple Pay Later”, will work with Goldman Sachs for the loans needed for installment offerings. This marks the second venture that Goldman Sachs has partnered with Apple. The first is, of course, the “Apple Card” credit card, though the Pay Later feature will not be tied to the card. The service would involve either four interest-free payments every two weeks, or a longer payment plan over several months involving interest. It is unclear at this point when Apple will announce its new idea, if at all.
That’s all the tech news that’s trending right now. Hashtag Trending is a part of the ITWC Podcast network. Add us to your Alexa Flash Briefing or your Google Home daily briefing. Make sure to sign up for our Daily IT Wire Newsletter to get all the news that matters directly in your inbox every day. Also, catch the next episode of Hashtag Tendances, our weekly Hashtag Trending episode in French, which drops every Friday at 3 pm. Thanks for listening, I’m Tom Li.