YouTube’s Going Live

YouTube’s new feature will be added to the main mobile app, they explained in a company blog post: Did you catch that last line? YouTube’s clearly leaning into the major difference between them and their new major competitor Facebook: YouTube relies on their search functionality to let users locate their next video, while Facebook uses algorithms to push videos on users. Users’ reaction to the “push vs. pull” mentality is probably the biggest reason those users have to pick one over the other, especially now that both video platforms have similar live mobile options. Although if you always wanted a Step Up TV show, you should definitely get YouTube Red. Because it’s built right into the YouTube app, mobile live streaming will have all the features your regular videos have—you’ll be able to search for them, find them through recommendations and playlists and protect them from unauthorized uses. And since it uses YouTube’s peerless infrastructure, it’ll be faster and more reliable than anything else out there.”

Facebook Gets Masks

The Verge has the skinny on Facebook’s creepy Snapchat love: Need we remind you that Snapchat is now more popular than Twitter? Brands love it, and their billions of views per day means that everyone else does, too… even if those “views” include every single Snapchat story that people immediately swipe past. And what is Snapchat doing while other video platforms are focusing on it? It’s focusing on its audience, its advertisers, and the best way to pair the two up. Smart.