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🔼 Saudi Aramco. The oil giant announced profits of US$161b in 2022. That’s 47% above 2021—and the largest ever annual profit for an energy firm »»

🔽 Demand for coal in the UK. It fell 15% in 2022, breaking a 266-year record »»

💬 “There’s going to be more.” The sudden collapse of Silicon Valley Bank has sent shockwaves across Washington, DC »»

🛩️ Saudi unveiled a new airline designed to make Riyadh a hub to compete with Doha, Dubai and Abu Dhabi »»

👗 Versace put on a blockbuster AW23 show in LA »» More: What went down at Versace’s big Hollywood takeover »»

💎 Ferrari’s new SUV will set you back US$400K »»

Sephora opened its first store in the UK. More than 5,000 people queued up from midnight the night before »»

The fall of Silicon Valley Bank, explained »»

Unfortunately, we’re only beginning to see the impact of SVB’s implosion »»

Meanwhile, SVB’s UK subsidiary was shut down by the Bank of England »»

And hedge funds are offering to buy startups’ deposits stuck at SVB for 60-80¢ on the dollar »»

Analysis: the digital age has ushered in a speedier, more viral breed of bank run »» 🔐 

The California wine industry is also facing crisis: thousands of vineyards banked at SVB »»

The Ukrainian economy just keeps on going »»

Eliminate these 11 phrases that ‘make people question your credibility,’ says public speaking expert »»

22 things you should’ve learned in high school (and where to learn them now) »»

This ‘Skims dupe’ top is going viral on TikTok —here’s where you can buy it »»

The Carlton hotel in Cannes is open for business after a 2 year refurb »»

3 red flags your boss is toxic—and how to get out »»

The 8 best places to live in Italy for a better quality of life »»

A “lavish” series charting the life of Karl Lagerfeld is coming to Disney+ »» 

A brief history of South Indian Kuthu and Teenmaar music in 10 songs »»

Spotify just redesigned itself to look like TikTok. It’s a defensive maneuver. Sooner or later, TikTok’s going to do everything Spotify does

SPOTIFY’S DROPPING ITS "biggest evolution" ever.

• And they’re not coy about why.

• Spotify’s co-president unveiled the “redesign by noting that today's world ‘pulls us in a million different directions.’ ”

• The music streaming app is responding to that reality by designing a home screen that will “autoplay a video podcast you might like.”

• If you don’t, “tapping into the music or podcasts section will bring up a vertical scrolling feed of content, keen to entice you into trying new things.”

• But is that what Spotify’s users want?

SPOTIFY’S NEW TIKTOK-esque look is a clear attempt to earn more of both of the currencies that fuel the creator economy:

• Those would be: attention and discovery.

THINK ABOUT IT: most apps nail one or the other.

• YouTube, for instance, is huge on discovery.

• It’s the world’s second largest search engine, after Google/Google Images.

• And YouTube’s ubiquitous, sporting even more users than even TikTok. (1.7b unique monthly visitors compared to TikTok’s 1.5b.)

• But YouTube actually falls pretty far short when it comes attention: users “only” spend an average of 19 minutes per day on it.

SPOTIFY, ON THE other hand is long on attention.

• North American users spend over 140 minutes a day on Spotify.

• But it’s spotty as a discovery engine.

• Many labels loathe Spotify’s recommendation process, and it’s not clear that users like it any better.

TIKTOK, OF COURSE, nails both.

• TikTok grew off the back of its impressive discovery engine, but it also has everyone’s attention, as everyone knows.

OK, WHAT’S THE point here?

• Spotify’s redesign looks like TikTok, because it is all about TikTok.

• But not in the way you think.

DID YOU KNOW that ByteDance has a “secret” music app called Resso?

• Longtime readers do: I’ve been writing about Resso since last year.

• It’s currently only available in India, Brazil, and Indonesia, and its automatic music recommendations have been described by users as “freakishly good.”

• Resso’s a huge threat to Spotify, because people currently use TikTok as a music discovery engine, and then move to Spotify to enjoy the longer track.

ONCE RESSO ROLLS out worldwide, there will be no reason to leave the TikTok ecosystem when you hear a catchy hook you like.

• Spotify knows this.

• This new design is an attempt to build up Spotify’s discovery credentials before Resso (or “TikTok Music”) comes in and vacuums all of Spotify’s attention.

More:

Spotify's redesign isn't going down well »»

Spotify Revenue and Usage Statistics (2023) »»

Spotify users left baffled by dramatic change »»

Inside Spotify’s recommender system: a complete guide to Spotify recommendation algorithms »»

ByteDance’s music app Resso offers hints about TikTok Music’s launch »»

Resso official site »»

Resso on the Google Play store (Note no reference to ByteDance whatsoever) »»

Written by Jon Kallus. Any feedback? Simply reply.