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TL;DR
In a hurry? Here's our pick of the top news items of the week.
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Microsoft has made OpenAI's o1 reasoning model freely available to all Copilot users through its 'Think Deeper' feature, previously a paid-only service for Copilot Pro subscribers. (The Verge)
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Meta has reported a strong Q4 with revenue of $48.4B and net income of $20.8B (up 49% YoY), as CEO Zuckerberg expressed optimism about the new Trump administration and projected Meta AI to reach 1B users. (The Hollywood Reporter)
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UK advertising spend has grown 9.7% to £10.6B in Q3 2024, driven by search and online formats, with AA/WARC forecasting continued growth of 6.9% to £43.5B in 2025. (Performance Marketing World)
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Chinese AI company DeepSeek has risen to prominence with its efficient, cost-effective AI models challenging U.S. dominance, with its R1 reasoning model competing with OpenAI's o1. (TechCrunch)
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Graze, a startup offering custom feed-building tools for Bluesky's 30.3M users, is attracting investor attention with its monetization strategy including ads and subscriptions, achieving significant growth through word-of-mouth adoption. (TechCrunch)
Audiences
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Asia's streaming market is projected to grow 40% to $89B by 2029, with SVOD subscriptions expected to rise from 644M to 870M users. (The Hollywood Reporter)
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YouTube is dominating Gen Alpha's digital consumption and will surpass linear TV viewership among US children by 2026, while platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and Roblox have gained traction as the generation gets their first smartphones. (Emarketer)
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Viewers increasingly prefer unified streaming platforms that combine free, paid, and ad-supported content options, leading content providers to adopt platform-agnostic distribution strategies for viewer satisfaction. (Advanced Television)
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Netflix's "Fool Me Once" was Europe's most-watched streaming show in 2024, reaching 46% of subscribers, among other top-performing streaming titles for European audiences reported. (Advanced Television)
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In 2025, 21.7% of US digital shoppers will make purchases through livestream shopping, despite mixed consumer interest in this emerging retail format. (Emarketer)
Platforms
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Meta is enhancing its AI assistant with new personalization features that will remember user preferences from WhatsApp, Messenger, and profiles, as part of its $65B AI investment. (Social Media Today)
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As Meta relaxes its content moderation policies in 2025, advertisers are accepting that complete brand safety online is impossible, shifting focus from elimination to management of digital advertising risks. (Digiday)
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Bluesky is set to launch Flashes, a photo-sharing app that will function as a simplified alternative to Instagram, focusing solely on photos and short videos. (Nerdist)
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Snapchat introduced "Challenge Tags," offering monthly cash prizes for AR developers, as well as student pricing for AR Spectacles to encourage educational engagement with AR. (Social Media Today)
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Instagram introduced new Views insights, including View Rate and Views Over Time metrics, with Watch Time confirmed as the primary driver of reach in 2025. (Social Media Today)
Content
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The National Rugby League's broadcast rights are up for grabs in 2025, with Netflix and Amazon potentially joining traditional networks as the sport's viewership hits record highs. (B&T)
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HBO's 'The White Lotus' season three launch has sparked luxury brand collaborations, with Bloomingdale's, Banana Republic, and others releasing Thailand-inspired collections beginning February 2025. (The Hollywood Reporter)
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Spotify and Universal Music Group have announced a new multiyear licensing deal focusing on growth and innovation, including new subscription tiers and content bundles. (The Hollywood Reporter)
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Netflix surpassed 300M subscribers in Q4 2024 and announced price increases, including its ad-supported tier, while reporting strong growth in ad-tier signups and success with live sports. (Marketing Brew)
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Streaming platforms are pivoting to shorter web series formats to compete with social media shorts, as India's premium VoD category reached $1.04B in the first half of 2024. (Exchange4Media)
Tech &
AI-
Google launched new Performance Max updates enhancing brand safety, search capabilities and customer targeting through AI integration, following successful beta testing. (Performance Marketing World)
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Generative AI has become marketers' most critical technology trend in 2025, while social media spending is set to increase for 68% of marketers despite platform uncertainties. (Marketing Brew)
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Apple Intelligence will expand beyond English to support eight new languages and two additional English localizations in April 2025, with a contextual Siri update planned for later in the year. (TechCrunch)
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Google quietly launched Gemini 2.0 Pro Experimental, its next-generation AI model, offering improved factuality and performance for coding and mathematics tasks to Advanced users. (TechCrunch)
Location-based
entertainment-
The ticketing industry is set to reach $99.2B by 2032, with 2025's key trends including AI-driven pricing, enhanced fraud prevention, digital wallets, and improved accessibility features. (Softjourn)
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Disney's Hollywood Studios announced MuppetVision 3D's closure to take place on June 8, 2025, making way for a new Monsters, Inc. land, while Rock 'n' Roller Coaster will be reimagined with Muppets characters and music festival theme. (Attractions Magazine)
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Five UK Sea Life aquariums will host "Animal Crossing: New Horizons"-themed tours throughout 2025, featuring character meet-and-greets and interactive exhibits. (Attractions Magazine)
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The Metropolitan Museum of Art launched Art Links, its first blockchain-powered mobile game, allowing players to discover artworks while earning NFT badges and real-world rewards through challenges. (blooloop)
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Key attraction industry trends were announced for 2025, spanning from gaming brand expansions and AI integration to sustainable innovations, with a focus on immersive experiences, family-friendly offerings, and accessibility. (blooloop)
Travel &
hospitality-
The James Beard Foundation has announced its 2025 Restaurant and Chef Award semifinalists across 25 categories, recognizing exceptional talent in the culinary and food media industries. (James Beard)
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New York City's 2025 winter Restaurant Week runs January 21-February 9, offering special prix fixe menus at 602 participating restaurants. (Eater New York)
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The sustainable travel market is booming, expected to nearly double to $116.46B by 2029, as travelers increasingly prioritize environmentally and culturally responsible tourism. (Travel Weekly)
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2025 reveals four major travel trends: beauty tourism, work-leisure fusion, spiritual experiences, and sustainable dining, with food sustainability discussions up 65% in reviews. (Hospitality.today)
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Rome has been named the world's top food destination, with the city expecting to draw 35M visitors during its Jubilee year. (Travel + Leisure)
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VisitBritain launches 'Starring GREAT Britain' campaign targeting Australian tourists, with projected visits of 1.2M and spending of £1.7B in 2025. (KarryOn)
Gaming
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Xbox Game Pass hit record revenue in Q2 2025, with PC subscriptions growing 30% and strong performance from Activision Blizzard content. (GamesIndustry.biz)
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Developer Poti Poti Studio partnered with Wholesome Games to launch 'Is This Seat Taken?', a cozy puzzle game debuting on Steam, Google Play, and App Store, with a public demo releasing February 10. (Variety)
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Pixion Games secured a new funding round reaching $12.4M total investment for its web3 RPG Fableborne, led by Delphi Ventures with support from Animoca Brands and Sky Mavis. (PocketGamer.biz)
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Surveys show a record of 80% of game developers are now working on PC titles, up from 66% last year, coinciding with Steam's record 18,974 game releases in 2024. (Ars Technica)
