Street Fight Daily: Facebook Tweaks Algorithm, Airbnb Shuffles Amid IPO Speculation
A roundup of today’s big stories in hyperlocal publishing, marketing, commerce, and technology
Facebook Updates Its Algorithm (Yet) Again (GigaOm)
The company wants to make the posts that appear in your feed more relevant based on the context of “when.” That way, you’re not seeing your friends statuses about the Emmys days after they’re over, or coming across news articles that are already outdated.
Silicon Valley Looks to Put a Cloud Over Main Street (Street Fight)
Steven Jacobs: Listening to folks in Silicon Valley, it seems like there’s never been a better time to run a small business. The data suggests otherwise. But as automation spreads, SMBs are poised to up their game.
Airbnb Finance Chief Swain Departs Amid IPO Speculation (Bloomberg)
Airbnb said Chief Financial Officer Andrew Swain has left the company and no replacement has been named. Investors and analysts have speculated that Airbnb may go public. As startups approach a size where they may need to do an initial public offering, they sometimes recruit a new CFO.
Eaze Sees Local Opportunity in Medical Marijuana On-Demand (Street Fight)
Like other on-demand services, Eaze lets users easily order a specific strain and quantity of marijuana, finds the nearest deliveryperson with that specific strain in stock, and then tracks the delivery in real-time to get an accurate ETA. Eaze says it can deliver marijuana in San Francisco in roughly 10 minutes.
The End Is Near For Panoramio, Google To Migrate Photos To Google Maps Views (VentureBeat)
Googler Evan Rapoport announced this week that Google would be closing Panoramio, the geolocation photo site that lets users upload photos to Google Maps and Google Earth. In place of Panoramio, Google will be migrating photos to its Google Maps Views platform.
Uber Banks on World Domination (Fortune)
Given Uber’s torrid growth and rabid cadre of drivers—“hundreds of thousands” of them are active on its platform, it says—the opportunities are huge for the disruption of purchases of everything from cars to insurance. Ten months ago the startup introduced a modest program to help its drivers finance car purchases.
45 Percent Made Retail Purchase After Seeing Mobile Ads (MarketingLand)
Greg Sterling: A new report from NinthDecimal found that within the last month roughly 45 percent of consumers reported making a retail purchase as a result of seeing a mobile ad. Nearly three-quarters of survey respondents said they were more likely to engage with a retail-related ad before they went shopping.
Why Apple Pay Could Be Huge — And It’s Not What You Think (AdAge)
Scott Gillum: Apple is a “big play” kind of an organization. So where’s the “big play” with Apple Pay? It’s mobile advertising. According to Mary Meeker’s “2014 Internet Trends” report, mobile advertising represents a $30 billion opportunity in the U.S. alone. But mobile ad spend has lagged because of issues relating to tracking and measurability.
VenueNext, Startup Behind Niners’ New Stadium App, Eyes More Teams (Recode)
Nearly 30 percent of the fans used the app during the game, and the stadium filled 2,100 in-seat delivery orders, nearly triple the number filled during the last preseason game in August. And while these early adoption numbers are exciting for the team, VenueNext may have the most to gain by a successful season at Levi’s.
PayPal Here Arrives On Android Tablets (TechCrunch)
PayPal Here, the company’s dongle-based mobile payments solution, is now available for Android tablets, the company announced this afternoon — a move that will address a large and growing swath of the tablet market. According to Gartner, PayPal notes, 62 percent of tablets sold last year run Android.
Small Businesses Have Their Own Social Network Today in Brazzlebox (VentureBeat)
Do small businesses need their own social network? A new online community, launching today, is betting they do. Called Brazzlebox, the new environment is designed specifically for the needs of Mom and Pop stores and other businesses that often have to plan carefully just to buy a new office chair.
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