GamesBeat reports: “Discord announced plans to expand its successful Video Quests advertising format to mobile devices. This strategic move marks the company’s first mobile ad offering, significantly broadening reach for advertisers while maintaining Discord’s commitment to user-first, reward-focused advertising experiences.”
WIRED reports: “Nvidia has acquired synthetic data firm Gretel for nine figures, according to two people with direct knowledge of the deal. The acquisition price exceeds Gretel’s most recent valuation of $320 million, the sources say, though the exact terms of the purchase remain unknown.”
MacRumors reports: “Meta has announced the rollout of its AI chatbot across Europe starting this week. The AI assistant will appear across WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, and Messenger platforms in 41 European and 21 overseas territories. Meta AI launched in the United States in 2023, but the company paused a planned rollout in Europe due to regulatory concerns.”
The Verge reports: “LG is shutting down Art Lab, its NFT marketplace for TVs. In a notice posted to its website, LG says it has made the “difficult decision” to close the platform on June 17th. LG launched its Art Lab app during the NFT craze in 2022, billing it as a way to “buy, sell and enjoy high-quality digital artwork” from your TV.”
Business Wire reports: “M80, an international gaming and esports entertainment organization, has teamed up with IMG Academy, the world’s leading sports education brand, to launch an innovative new esports camp. Hosted at the IMG Academy campus in Bradenton, Fla., this three-week camp will offer an elite esports training experience, aimed at shaping the next generation of competitive gamers.”
Media Play News reports: “OTT.X on March 19 announced the addition of 12 new member companies the streaming trade association says “are shaping the future of OTT, CTV, and streaming.” New member companies include Amazon Web Services (AWS), home entertainment heavyweight Alliance Entertainment, research house Parks Associates, and independent film distributors Giant Pictures and Xenon Entertainment.”
Music Business Worldwide reports: “UK-based independent music company Ninja Tune has teamed up with music technology startup Reactional Music in its push into the lucrative gaming market as music companies seek new revenue streams beyond traditional platforms. The London-based label, home to artists like BICEP, Bonobo and Little Dragon, will license tracks from its catalog to Reactional Music’s interactive music personalization platform, which enables real-time integration of music in gaming, automotive and digital environments.”
TechCrunch reports: “The U.S. crossed the 100 million paid subscriber mark for music streaming services for the first time ever last year, as per a new report by the Record Industry Association of America (RIAA). The subscriber number was up from 96.8 million in 2023, with year-on-year growth of roughly 3%.”
Variety reports: “Podcast fandom is growing and deepening among the most active listeners of audio entertainment. That’s the key finding of a white paper on podcast fandom commissioned by the Wondery podcast network, ad agency Dentsu and Edison Research.”
The Verge reports: “Razer is getting into AI with a new developer platform called Wyvrn. It encompasses dev-focused automation tools like the Razer AI QA Copilot to assist with quality assurance / game testing and the AI Gamer Copilot (formerly called Project Ava) for real-time tips and guides via voice assistant while playing games.”
