some of us embraced the platforms and their opportunities to reach users we already lost long ago. The others were sceptical and started their fight against Facebook, Snapchat etc.

Now Snapchat shifts around its Discover section as they like and every now and then there are new reports on how Facebooks Instant Articles affect the reach of publishers - and not always to the better.

I know, the discussion isn't new - but what do you think? Do you have thoughts on that? Join our #all-social channel, it's wide open for all your opinions. :-)

Rock on & read you in Slack!
Lina

ROCKS REPORT

 #design 

Ever wondered why enjoy reading certain websites more than others? Maybe it's just a design thing, for example the size of the body text. 

Channel Rockstar: @thomasweyres. Check out the channel for more or contact Thomas for questions.

 #facebook 

• Facebook has again been having issues with its Trending Topics sections, which is no more run by people. As @henrik.stahl reported - Washington Post has found the social network has repeatedly trended fake news and it is not getting better.

Channel Rockstar: @davidtvrdon. Check out the channel for more or contact David for questions.

 #snapchat 

• Big news at the “Discover” section! From the next update on you will see your friend’s stories first (again) - and the publisher’s content will be pushed almost out of sight. This will be very convenient for the users - but the publishers won’t be amused. From now on it will be more difficult to reach the audience.
• “It’s yet another example on how dependent publishers are when it comes to platforms. They can’t choose how and where to place their content, it’s the platforms’ choice”, says @linatimm.
• Or, as @martinhoffmann has put it: “Congratulations to everyone who built up a 12 person Snapchat team in the last few months…”

What else?

• Snap builds Engineering Team in San Francisco. Particularly interesting: "Snap hired a handful of engineers to work out of a small San Francisco office to work on search, among other areas. It shows how search is an increasing focus for the company."

• There’s a stylus for Snapchat now.

• This is how the stats for Snapchat UK look like! ;)

Channel Rockstar: @textautomat. Check out the channel for more or contact Anna for questions.

 #startups 

Huge merger for digital media startups:

• Discovery Communications invests $100 Million to merge popular homeless media brands NowThis, The Dodo, and Thrillist. The result: Group Nine Media. Read more on that topic in the artice by Variety, found by @martinhoffmann.
   
• Positive startups? @martinhoffmann found a new startup from Germany called The Good News App which focuses on only sending you positive stories. There was a discussion about this new concept, with @henrik.stahl pointing out a Swedish example Aftonbladet Goda Nyhete and the BuzzFeed Feel Good section.

Channel Rockstar: @jankoenig. Check out the channel for more or contact Jan for questions.

 #storytelling 

• Channel rockstar @henrik.stahl recommended Co.Exist’s piece What Climate Change Data Sounds Like As Haunting Music, which reminded @martinhoffman of the NY Times article Fractions of a Second: An Olympic Musical from 2010. If you haven’t already, you should check out both articles!

Channel Rockstar: @henrik.stahl. Check out the channel for more or contact Henrik for questions.

 #video 

• @nils.lindenstrauss is looking for an ultra-lightweight hd or full hd camera for a small drown (perhaps with an own power unit). You have any suggestions? Please let him know!

Recommended reads:

• Facebook lets you AirPlay or Google Cast web and mobile videos to your video by TechCrunch
• Refreshing The Verge: Facebook video, Google AMP, and the (non)future of the web by The Verge.

Channel Rockstar: @henrik.stahl. Check out the channel for more or contact Henrik for questions.

 #vr-ar 

• Google Daydream generated quite a discussion after its announcement at the start of October. @johannesklingebiel is very excited – and he especially likes the idea of using fabric instead of plastic. @simon is mostly interested in the content cooperations mentioned by Adrienne McCallister (Google’s Director of VR/AR Business Development). According to McCallister, there will be more than 50 cooperations.

• @henrik.stahl recommended everyone to keep an eye on the crowdfunding project 2VR on Indiegogo. @johannesklingebiel predicts that the VR-smartphone combo is what will make VR appeal to the masses, since “the combination of smartphone and VR makes sense, because you're much more likely to use a device you already own, than a completely new one like the Oculus, which is expensive and needs a powerful PC as well.” @simon on the other hand thinks that Playstation VR will be the breakthrough for virtual reality. ”It's a lot cheaper than Oculus Rift and HTC Vive (especially as you don't need a fully equipped gaming PC) and should be much more powerful than Google Cardboard/Daydream.”

• @tilman was impressed by what Mark Zuckerberg presented for Oculus on October 6th. “It’s also pretty scary coming from Facebook, thinking of what kind of data and access to our lives it will get from this”, @tilman said. @linatimm pointed out that the communication of the last decades have shifted more and more to asynchronus ways. “Don’t know yet if it’s going to be a step forward or backward or just sideways”, she says.

What are your thoughts on all of this? Tune in one #vr-ar and join the discussion!
 

Channel Rockstar: @flight_1, who was on vacation this week. @henrik.stahl was so awesome to take over. Check out the channel for more or contact Susanne for questions.

 GIF of the week 

carefully selected by @textautomat.