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- The Know Daily - Wednesday 5 June 2024
The Know Daily - Wednesday 5 June 2024
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Read in 5m 24s â Listening to Maya Hawke â
đ˛ Unskippable ads
đ¨ A birth control breakthrough
đŹ Chatting to your future self
The Spanish city of Valencia has launched an ambitious new project to create the largest urban solar farm in the country - and itâs doing that by installing thousands of solar panels in the cityâs cemeteries. The project has been dubbed âRequiem in Powerâ, and while most of the energy generated will be used to power municipal buildings, 25% will go to 1,000 vulnerable households đ
đ˛ Unskippable ads
Instagram has begun testing adverts that users cannot swipe past.
Tell me more.
While ads have appeared on Instagram for a while now, users were always able to scroll past them - but this is no longer the case, as the Meta-owned platform has begun trialling a feature called âad breakâ:
Instagram is reportedly testing unskippable ads
The 'ad break' requires users to wait a set amount of time before they're allowed to scroll again
â Culture Crave đż (@CultureCrave)
10:41 PM ⢠Jun 3, 2024
In a statement, Meta said itâs âalways testing formats that can drive value for advertisersâ - but the change has not gone down well with users, with many taking to X to complain. According to the BBC, itâs not entirely clear whether making users watch more ads actually helps companiesâ profits, with a study carried out by TikTok suggesting it may lead to less engagement.
Whatâs the bigger picture?
Instagramâs move shows âthe latest trend in late-stage tech mediaâ, said Gizmodo: âdriving more value for advertisersâ. As massive companies like Meta canât grow their user bases any further, theyâve instead turned their attention to making a profit from each user - and the same thing is happening with streaming companies.
Just yesterday, Netflix discontinued its Basic tier, automatically moving UK users to its cheaper âStandard with Adsâ package. And earlier this year, Amazonâs Prime Video began showing ads to paying subscribers, asking for an extra ÂŁ2.99 a month to watch ad-free.
What else is going on at Instagram?
By showing unskippable ads, Instagram is becoming more like YouTube, which has long done the same. And according to TechCrunch, it makes sense that Instagram would consider going this route, âgiven it has also shifted over the years to become more of a video-sharing networkâ.
Instagram is certainly going through a bigger shakeup, as earlier this year it began limiting by default the amount of political content users see in their feed - although as we reported on previously, itâs not entirely clear what counts as âpolitical contentâ.
As a result of Instagramâs changes, a number of you told us that our Instagram posts arenât appearing in your feed as often as before. Follow these steps to change that.
đââď¸ TRIVIA TIME
The full line-up for Glastonbury 2024 is finally here - which Afrobeats sensation will be taking to the stage this summer?
A) Tems
B) Asake
C) Wizkid
Scroll to the very bottom for the answer.
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