The Future of Commerce - Issue #185
Tech / Innovation
Japan is opening its first ever esports gym in Tokyo, where people can book 3-hour slots at PCs and pay for coaching from professional gamers — www.insider.com Similar spaces have opened in Singapore and South Korea as the industry stands to surpass $1 billion in global revenue this year.
International Olympic Committee makes landmark move into virtual sports by announcing first-ever Olympic Virtual Series — olympics.com Inaugural Olympic Virtual Series to include International Federations and Game Publishers in Baseball, Cycling, Rowing, Sailing and Motor Sport.
Business/Marketing/Adv
"Do you take crypto?" - How long before we can all pay with cryptocurrency? — www.chargedretail.co.uk With Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies moving closer to the forefront of digital payments, how long will it be before cryptocurrencies are widely accepted by retailers?
Sorrell reveals £500m 'firepower' for more S4 mergers — www.campaignlive.co.uk S4 Capital is targeting stronger growth this year as economies bounce back from the pandemic, but Sorrell warns "chickens could come home to roost" in 2023.
Interestingness
UK economy set to grow at fastest rate in more than 70 years — www.bbc.co.uk Economy expected to grow by 7.25% in 2021 as lockdown restrictions are eased, says Bank of England.
Klarna storms ahead of rivals across Europe and US, counting 16m+ new users in 2020 — sifted.eu We looked at how many moble downloads the top BNPL players recorded last year, and how Klarna ranks against its competitors.
Wellness
Friday afternoons off? Kellogg’s launches scheme so workers can ‘switch off’ from work — www.itv.com The company has also launched ‘meeting-free’ afternoons and an extra day’s annual leave.
Opinion: Zoom CEO: My advice for remote workers who are on video meetings all day — www.cnn.com Leaders must find ways to make meetings more manageable as employees continue to work remotely.
No full-time return to the office for over a million — www.bbc.com Almost all of 50 big UK firms tell the BBC staff will divide their time between home and office in future.
Platform News
Snap to launch a new Creator Marketplace this month, initially focused on Lens Creators — techcrunch.com
Snap on Wednesday announced its plan to soon launch a Creator Marketplace, which will make it easier for businesses to find and partner with Snapchat creators, including Lens creators, AR creators and later, prominent Snapchat creators known as Snap Stars.
YouTube 'Shorts' Is Rolling Out To All Creators In The U.S., Will Replace ‘Explore’ Tab On App Homescreen — www.tubefilter.com
TikTok competitor 'Shorts' rolls out more widely across YouTube.