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☆ Snap stock trading at highest price in over a year on Wells Fargo upgrade
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-11 | by ( Ashley Capoot | In | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Shares of Snap notched their highest price in over a year on Monday after analysts at Wells Fargo released a bullish report on the stock. The analysts upgraded the shares from equal weight to overweight and raised their price target from $8 to $22. Snap was trading around $15.75 as of market close Monday, the highest it has been since July 2022. Snap shares closed up more than 4% Monday. The Wells Fargo analysts added that Snap's recent changes to its products and leadership have been key to the company's revenue reacceleration and innovation.

Persons: Evan Spiegel, Spiegel, — CNBC's Michael Bloom Organizations: Wells, Google, Meta, CNBC PRO

☆ Tech companies to sign agreement with UK government to tackle online fraud
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsLONDON, Nov 30 (Reuters) - Eleven of the world's biggest tech companies, including Amazon.com (AMZN.O), Alphabet's (GOOGL.O) Google and Microsoft (MSFT.O), will sign an agreement with the British government on Thursday to step up their efforts to tackle online fraud, the interior ministry said. Under the "Online Fraud Charter," due to be signed at a meeting chaired by Interior Minister James Cleverly in London, the companies pledge to take further action to block and remove fraudulent content from their sites, the government said. "Fraud is now the most common crime in the UK, with online scammers targeting the most vulnerable in society," British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said in a statement. "By joining forces with these tech giants we will continue to crack down on fraudsters, making sure they have nowhere to hide online." The British government says fraud accounts for around 40% of all crime in England and Wales, with data from industry body UK Finance showing almost 80% of all authorised push payment fraud originates online.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, James, ByteDance's, Rishi Sunak, Kylie MacLellan, Matthew Lewis Organizations: REUTERS, Google, Microsoft, Interior, eBay, Facebook, YouTube, Finance, Thomson Locations: London, England, Wales

☆ Execs of color at TikTok and Snapchat open up about the influencer pay gap and how they're trying to level the playing field for creators from diverse backgrounds
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( Shriya Bhattacharya | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Today, Girma is TikTok's Black creator community development manager, leading # BlackTikTok , a virtual space on the social-media platform that amplifies the voices and content of Black creators. To address this, platforms from Meta to TikTok have introduced various programs over the years that intentionally center nonwhite communities. BI spoke with executives at TikTok and Snapchat who lead the initiatives short-form content creators say have been the most helpful to them. These programs offer tailored knowledge, connections, and funding for diverse creators like Gabrielle Cerberville, who has 1.1 million followers on TikTok . "Discrimination is baked into TikTok's algorithm because it centers on whiteness, so programs like CasaTikTok help normalize content by creators of color," Cerberville said.

Persons: Alexzi Girma, Girma, she's, execs, they've, Jessica Ufuoma, who's, Janice Gassam Asare, Snapchat, Gabrielle Cerberville, Kayla Zapata Fory, Fory, Varshini Shah, Francis Roberts, Roberts, Shah, that's, I've, AJ, Brooke Berry, Cerberville, Colin Rocker, Gen Z, BlackTikTok, He's, you'll Organizations: Business, Influencer Locations: Meta, CasaTikTok

☆ Snap workers say they're being closely 'tracked' to enforce compliance with the RTO mandate
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-16 | by ( Kali Hays | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Snap is doing what it can to get employees working in the office again. The Snapchat parent at the start of September enacted its return to office mandate , requiring workers to be in an office at least four days a week. Besides that, Snap is also "badge tracking," the people familiar said. Snap workers' adherence to RTO rules will become part of their performance reviews going forward, the people familiar added. Snap's attempts to enforce the RTO mandate come alongside piecemeal layoffs , executive departures , ongoing business struggles, and advertising woes.

Persons: It's, Snap's, Evan Spiegel, Evan, Spiegel, he's, We're Organizations: Business, Meta

☆ Snap employees say CEO Evan Spiegel is in his 'Elon era' and promoting a 'hardcore' work culture
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-15 | by ( Sawdah Bhaimiya | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Evan Spiegel is having an "Elon moment," according to a report from the The Information citing staff. The 33-year-old Snap CEO is taking a hands-on approach and asking employees to work harder. Business Insider reported in October that staff in Snap's ad business are struggling with nitpicking and micromanagement. Several employees who left the company recently told The Information that Snap's 33-year-old cofounder and CEO Evan Spiegel is in his "Elon era" or "Elon moment," as he makes decisions emulating the billionaire's "hardcore" work culture at X — formerly Twitter. Snap's advertising business makes up a huge chunk of its revenue.

Persons: Evan Spiegel, Elon, —, Elon Musk, Spiegel hasn't, Musk, Spiegel, Nima Khajehnouri, Jeremi Gorman, Peter Naylor, Snap's, Jerry Hunter, we're Organizations: Business, Service, Employees, Santa Locations: Santa Monica

☆ Snap's longtime vice president of engineering and monetization is exiting the company
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Kali Hays | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Biswanath Panda, vice president of monetization engineering who reported to Khajehnouri, left the company in May after just a year in the role and joined Uber. Jacob Andreou, Snap's former senior vice president of product and growth, left after working there since 2015 and then joined Greylock. Vice president of product Peter Sellis left Snap in September after eight years, taking on a similar role with Discord. Snap in June hired Eric Young as its new senior vice president of engineering, with Khajehnouri then reporting to him. In addition to Young, Darshan Kantak joined as senior vice president of revenue product, Patrick Harris joined as president of Americas, Ronan Harris joined as president of EMEA, and Ajit Mohan joined as president of APAC.

Persons: Nima Khajehnouri, Khajehnouri, Evan Spiegel, Spiegel, he's, Jeremi Gorman, Peter Naylor, Jerry Hunter, Gorman, Ben Schwerin, Biswanath Panda, Uber, Jacob Andreou, Greylock, Peter Sellis, Hunter, Eric Young, Young, Darshan Kantak, Patrick Harris, Ronan Harris, Ajit Mohan Organizations: Snap, EMEA Locations: Snapchat

Alphabet (GOOGL.O) and Snap surpassed third-quarter revenue expectations on Tuesday, with the tech giant seeing strong growth both at its core Search and YouTube units. Meanwhile, Snap's efforts to revamp its ad targeting tools with technology also paid rich dividends, as average revenue per user increased in the third quarter. "We expect the larger platforms like Meta and Google to lead the wallet share growth at least initially in this ad spend recovery," analysts at Evercore ISI said. Meta has also leaned heavily on AI-powered marketing planning and ad measurement features in recent years to drive its growth. "Facebook/Instagram's tools for creating a (marketing) campaign are vastly quicker and easier to use" than smaller rivals including Snap, RBC analysts said, which could potentially give Meta an edge.

Persons: Arnd, Philipp Schindler, Max, Samrhitha Arunasalam, Aditya Soni, Sriraj Organizations: REUTERS, Google, Facebook, YouTube, Evercore, Meta, RBC, Thomson Locations: Zurich, Switzerland, Middle East, Bengaluru

The $3.5 billion range ($36.5 billion to $40 billion) compares to a $2.5 billion range the company typically offers in its quarterly revenue forecast. Susan Li, Meta's finance chief, told analysts on the earnings call that the reason for the change is the unpredictability in the Middle East due to the Israel-Hamas war. At the mid-point of its guidance range, Meta would be expecting revenue of $38.25 billion, compared to the average analyst estimate of $38.85 billion, according to LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv. For the third quarter, Meta beat on the top and bottom lines, boosting its shares in extended trading on Wednesday. Meta's commentary surrounding the Middle East conflict, which escalated this month after Hamas attacked Israel, follows cautionary statements from Snap on Tuesday.

Persons: Susan Li, Li, Meta, Joe Biden Organizations: Meta, White Locations: Israel, Ukraine, Russia, Gaza

☆ Startup workers are on edge
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-25 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

In today's big story, we're looking at why startups that have navigated multiple rounds of layoffs have left their workers feeling defeated. It's a question more and more startup employees are contemplating amid a historic downturn in the industry coupled with a pullback in VC funding. But as Insider's Samantha Stokes and Madeline Renbarger detail, employees are on edge nowadays because of the threat of multiple layoffs in a short time. Why work for a corporate entity and be a cog in the wheel when you can get hands-on experience at a startup? AdvertisementAdvertisementiStock; Rebecca Zisser/InsiderBut just because layoffs are a necessary evil of the startup industry, that doesn't mean employees' concerns aren't warranted.

Persons: —, Jamie Dimon isn't, JPMorgan's Jamie Dimon isn't, Samantha Lee, Samantha Stokes, Madeline Renbarger, Samantha, Madeline they've, Rebecca Zisser, Severance, Jamie Dimon, David Rosenberg, Myriam, Airism, Arantza Pena Popo, Chris Rondeau, it's, Katy Perry, Pablo Picasso, Kiersten, Dan DeFrancesco, Naga Siu, Hallam Bullock, Lisa Ryan Organizations: Service, What's, JPMorgan, EV, Microsoft, TikTok, IBM, Boeing, Meta, Mattel Locations: Southern California, New York City, San Diego, London, New York

☆ Loop Capital's Rob Sanderson makes the contrarian case for Snap ahead of earnings
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-24 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailLoop Capital's Rob Sanderson makes the contrarian case for Snap ahead of earningsRob Sanderson, managing director at Loop Capital Markets, joins 'Power Lunch' to discuss the decline of Snap's ad revenue, skepticism about how Snap will perform going forward, and expectations for earnings from internet advertisers.

Persons: Rob Sanderson Organizations: Loop

☆ Snap sees upbeat fourth quarter as new ad features start to pay off
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-24 | by ( Khushi Mandowara | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Revenue for the third quarter ended September rose 5% to $1.19 billion, beating analysts' expectations of $1.11 billion, according to LSEG data. For the fourth quarter, the Santa Monica, California-based company expects revenue to be between $1.32 billion and $1.38 billion. Snap, however, said it saw a risk to its sales in the fourth quarter as a war in the Middle East could tamp down spending from a large number of brand-oriented advertising campaigns. Daily active users on Snapchat were 406 million, beating Wall Street expectations of 405.7 million. Snap's net loss widened to $368 million in the quarter from $360 million a year earlier.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Scott Kesler, Evan Spiegel, Thomas Monteiro, Khushi, Anil D'Silva Organizations: REUTERS, Revenue, Meta, Investing.com, Thomson Locations: Santa Monica , California, Bengaluru

☆ Snap revenue view above estimates on boost from new ad targeting tools; shares soar
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsOct 24 (Reuters) - Snap (SNAP.N) forecast fourth-quarter revenue largely above estimates on Tuesday after posting better-than-expected revenue and user growth for the latest three months as efforts to revamp the ad targeting tools of its photo messaging app paid off. The Santa Monica, California-based company said it expected fourth-quarter revenue to be between $1.32 billion to $1.38 billion. Revenue for the third quarter ended September rose 5% to $1.19 billion, beating analysts' expectations of $1.11 billion, according to LSEG data. Daily active users on Snapchat were 406 million, beating Wall Street expectations of 405.7 million. Snap's net loss widened to $368 million in the third quarter from $360 million a year earlier.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Khushi, Anil D'Silva Organizations: REUTERS, Facebook, Meta, Revenue, Thomson Locations: Santa Monica , California, Bengaluru

☆ Snap stock rises as sales grow 5% from last year
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-24 | by ( Jonathan Vanian | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Revenue : $1.19 billion vs. $1.11 billion expected, according to LSEG. : $1.19 billion vs. $1.11 billion expected, according to LSEG. Global Daily Active Users (DAUs) : 406 million vs. 405.7 million expected, according to StreetAccount. : 406 million vs. 405.7 million expected, according to StreetAccount. Average revenue per user: $2.93 vs. $2.74 expected, according to StreetAccount.

Persons: Evan Spiegel, Snap, Spiegel, Jerry Hunter Organizations: Inc, New Locations: , California, U.S

☆ Buying on weakness in Google stock is the 'right move for Meta': Roth's Rohit Kulkarni
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-24 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

In this videoShare Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailBuying on weakness in Google stock is the 'right move for Meta': Roth's Rohit KulkarniRohit Kulkarni, Roth Capital Partners Managing Director, 'Closing Bell Overtime' to talk Meta earnings on deck, the advertising space, Snap's quarterly results and more.

Persons: Roth's Rohit Kulkarni Rohit Kulkarni Organizations: Meta, Roth Capital Partners

☆ Watch CNBC's full interview with Loop Capital's Rob Sanderson on the contrarian case for Snap
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-24 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailWatch CNBC's full interview with Loop Capital's Rob Sanderson on the contrarian case for SnapRob Sanderson, managing director at Loop Capital Markets, joins 'Power Lunch' to discuss the decline of Snap's ad revenue, skepticism about how Snap will perform going forward, and expectations for earnings from internet advertisers.

Persons: Rob Sanderson Organizations: Loop

☆ Read an exclusive 24-page deck about Snapchat's invite-only creator program Snap Stars, which breaks down best practices, how to get in, and more
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-12 | by ( Amanda Perelli | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Whispers about Snap's invite-only creator program have swept the industry in recent months. Creators want to know how to be accepted into the program and gain access to Snap's lucrative payouts. Berry spoke about Snapchat's invite-only Snap Stars monetization program, sharing tips on getting accepted and details about how the program works. The Snap Stars program pays creators based on an ad-sharing model. And Berry highlighted important steps creators should take once accepted to maintain their engagement and growth on Snap.

Persons: Nuseir Yassin, Samir Chaudry, Brooke Berry, Eric Wei, Berry, David Dobrik, Hannah Stocking, Fortune Organizations: Nas, Facebook, Nas Company, YouTube, Karat Locations: Los Angeles

☆ Snap AI chatbot investigation in UK over teen privacy concerns
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-06 | by ( Jake Piazza | In Jakepiazza | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Snap is under investigation in the U.K. over privacy risks associated with the company's generative artificial intelligence chatbot. If the ICO's provisional findings result in an enforcement notice, Snap may have to stop offering the AI chatbot to U.K. users until it fixes the privacy concerns. The AI chatbot, which runs on OpenAI's ChatGPT, has features that alert parents if their children have been using the chatbot. Other forms of generative AI have also faced criticism as recently as this week. Bing's image-creating generative AI has been used by extremist messaging board 4chan to create racist images, 404 reported.

Persons: John Edwards, chatbot Organizations: Commissioner's, ICO, CNBC, Washington Post

☆ The rise of Snap CEO Evan Spiegel, once one of the youngest billionaires in the world
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-07 | by ( Lakshmi Varanasi | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: 1 min

At the same time, Spiegel was forced to reckon with charges against the lack of diversity in Snap's workforce. Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel Michael Kovac/Getty ImagesAt an internal meeting in July 2020, Spiegel said that the company keeps its diversity reports private because releasing data would reinforce the idea that minority groups are underrepresented in the tech industry. Later that month, though, the company released its first diversity report. The report broke down employee demographics going back all the way back to when Snap was first founded in 2011. It showed that Black and Latinx employees comprised less than 11% of the company's staff and less than a third of the company's staff identified as women.

Persons: Spiegel, Evan Spiegel Michael Kovac

☆ Snap is ending employees' cash food benefit, citing 'on-site' meals ahead of full RTO mandate
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-17 | by ( Kali Hays | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

That benefit is disappearing as Snap wants to get people in the office at least four days a week. Instead of the food benefit, workers have been told to "explore" on-site lunch offerings. Snap is ending a benefit for employees to buy food during the work week. It also afforded Snap employees who worked in other offices that did not offer catered food some parity on a company perk they'd never had access to. Snap was one of the first tech companies, after Apple, to reveal to employees such a strict RTO policy .

Persons: they'd, It's, RTO, Elon Musk's, Kali Hays Organizations: Santa, Apple, Meta, Facebook, Twitter Locations: Santa Monica, khays

☆ Exclusive: Snapchat under scrutiny from UK watchdog over underage users
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-08 | by ( Martin Coulter | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Under UK data protection law, social media companies need parental consent before processing data of children under 13. Social media firms generally require users to be 13 or over, but have had mixed success in keeping children off their platforms. Snapchat declined to give details of any measures it might have taken to reduce the number of underage users. It also found Snapchat was the most popular app for underage social media users. However, other apps take more proactive measures to prevent underage children accessing their platforms.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Snapchat, Martin Coulter, Matt Scuffham, Alexander Smith Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters, Inc, Social, ICO, Ofcom, National Society for, Thomson Locations: U.S, Britain

☆ Google and Meta are creating so much new ad inventory, it's causing big price drops. Here's how much ads cost across the Big Tech giants.
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-04 | by ( Lauren Johnson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Ad prices declined in the second quarter as new formats like Reels and Shorts rolled out. After some rough quarters, Google's and Meta's ad businesses are on the rebound , and they're creating so much short-form video ad inventory that the surge in supply is driving ad prices down. "Anytime you've got an influx of newer ad inventory, typically that inventory does come with lower ad pricing," he said. And Instagram Reels ad inventory is both plentiful and 39% cheaper than Instagram Feed ads, according to Tinuiti. Meta also added more ads to its Marketplace on Facebook, which dropped Facebook ad prices by 25%, Taylor said.

Persons: Shawndu Stackhouse, Tom Williams, Andy Taylor, Pacvue, Taylor, Tinuiti's Taylor, Mike Ryan, Meta, TikTok TikTok Organizations: Inc, Getty, Tinuiti, Brands, Google, Anadolu Agency, Meta, Facebook, CPM Locations: Google's, Northeast Washington, lockstep

☆ Snapchat is paying augmented-reality developers for silly, viral lenses, opening up a new way for creators to earn beyond branded effects
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-03 | by ( Dan Whateley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Snapchat is launching a new fund for augmented-reality lens creators. Traditionally, AR creators have leaned on branded effects to make money. For years, augmented-reality creators who make amusing visual effects for Snapchat have relied on brand work to make money. It's also tested a program where AR creators could charge users for access to variations and upgrades of certain lenses. Other social-media platforms have also recently launched funding programs for AR creators.

Persons: Philip Walton, he'd, Walton, we're, Joseph Darko, It's, TikTok Organizations: Inc, Developer Locations: United States, India, Mexico

☆ Snapchat augmented-reality creators can now earn thousands of dollars for lenses that go viral
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-01 | by ( Dan Whateley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Snapchat is launching a new fund for augmented-reality lens creators. Traditionally, AR creators have leaned on branded effects to make money. For years, augmented-reality creators who make amusing visual effects for Snapchat have relied on brand work to make money. A Snap spokesperson declined to share the total amount of funds available to AR creators, but said that "many creators" will earn rewards each month. It's also tested a program where AR creators could charge users for access to variations and upgrades of certain lenses.

Persons: Philip Walton, he'd, Walton, we're, Joseph Darko, It's, TikTok Organizations: Inc, Developer Locations: United States, India, Mexico

☆ Google stock jumped 10% this week, fueled by cloud, ads and hope in AI
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-29 | by ( Jennifer Elias | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Shares of Alphabet's stock jumped 10% this week after the company reported second quarter earnings that showed growth despite a tough ad market. Among growth, revenue rose 7% to $74.6 billion from $69.7 billion in the year-earlier period. Google's ad revenue only increased 3.3% from a year earlier, but that's an improvement from the first quarter, when ad revenue fell. Google's YouTube and Cloud units also showed revenue growth despite competition. "We believe this bodes well for the broader online advertising environment," Citi analysts wrote in a note about Google's earnings.

Persons: Snap's, Bernstein, Ruth Porat, she's Organizations: Google, YouTube, Microsoft, Citi Locations: OpenAI

☆ The advertising winter may finally be starting to thaw
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-27 | by ( Lara O'Reilly | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The long advertising winter could be coming to an end in the second half of this year. There are tentative signs that the advertising winter is starting to thaw. Meta, which derives more than 98% of its revenue from advertising, reported revenue well ahead of analysts' estimates for the second quarter. To be sure, some pure-play advertising companies remain challenged. Indeed, on Thursday, the US Commerce Department said the US economy grew by 2.4% in the second quarter, which was up from 2% in the first quarter.

Persons: spenders, Kimberly, Clark, Brian Wieser, Groupe, IPG, Arthur Sadoun, It's, they're Organizations: Companies, Meta, Google, PepsiCo, Wall, Tech, Microsoft, US Commerce Department Locations: Madison

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