Mike's Industry View - Issue #124
AI / Creativity / Voice
The New York Times is betting big on Amazon Alexa as voice assistants take hold in US households — www.businessinsider.com The Times has created a daily news briefing, a weekly quiz, and culture recommendations for the Amazon devices as it tries to stay ahead of the curve.
Skittles Is Creating a Broadway Musical Instead of an Ad for Super Bowl Sunday — musebycl.io
A periodic reminder that when everyone zigs, it has more cut through and impact to zag.
Business/Marketing/Adv
The circle of brand life: retail is dying as retail is thriving — medium.com
With each generational transition, a new crop of leading brands emerged that did a better job reflecting the sensibilities of their generation and servicing their needs, which allowed them to rise to popularity and win their loyalty.
AiFi markets NanoStore, a tiny white-label cashierless store — venturebeat.com AiFi's new NanoStore is a tiny storefront packed with sensors that enable a cashierless experience akin to Amazon Go.
Interestingness
What the next 20 years will mean for jobs – and how to prepare — www.weforum.org Updating education, rethinking benefits and greater employee flexibility are just three of the ways we should rethink work for the 21st-century, says the founder of freelancer platform Upwork.
The Death of the Sick Day — www.nytimes.com For many office workers, “working from home” has replaced a day spent recovering under the covers.
Americans Drank Less Alcohol in 2018 for the Third Straight Year — www.bloomberg.com
The trend towards health and wellness continues.
Video
Publishers are mostly recycling YouTube videos for IGTV — digiday.com Instagram's attempt to compete with YouTube is looking a lot like YouTube more than six months after its launch.
Platform News
Sorry I Forgot Your Birthday, I’ve Stopped Checking Facebook — www.wsj.com
Facebook gives you a daily reminder of your friends’ special day. Now that people are deactivating their accounts or taking breaks, those key dates are getting forgotten.