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Mobile-First Instagram Brings its Content to the Web (SocialTimes)
Instagram users can now access their photo feeds via the desktop Web, according to co-founder Kevin Systrom. Instagram, perhaps the most successful mobile-first company to date, is nevertheless playing catch-up on the Web. CNET Photos are displayed single file in reverse chronological order, and standard mobile features such as double-clicking a photo to “like” it and inline comments have also been carried over. Unfortunately, Web site users cannot upload photos to Instagram.com, which means the photo-sharing piece of the Instagram equation remains mobile-only. Adweek The move is only Instagram’s latest in the past year to make its service accessible to more users. Since launching in October 2010 Instagram had been only available to iPhone users until last April when it finally introduced an Android version. But even still, desktop and tablet users (and whoever owns a BlackBerry or Windows Phone) were iced out. Mashable You could previously browse your own pictures at a specific URL — instagram.com/futurechris, for example — but this is the first time a real-time feed of the mostly mobile service has been made available on a browser. There are advantages to Web viewing. First and foremost, the site can inform you when new pictures arrive. ReadWrite The thing that makes Instagram special is that — until Tuesday — it was a social network with no Web presence. There’s an inestimable charm to how Instagram feels walled-off in its mobile-only realm.
As Pinterest Grows, Startup Seeks $2.5 Billion Valuation (The Wall Street Journal)
Pinterest’s continued growth, engagement and business potential has attracted growing interest from investors who have put sky-high valuations on a company with little to no revenue that is unprofitable. The company is in talks to raise a new round of financing at a $2 billion to $2.5 billion valuation, said people familiar with the matter. GigaOM The company was a stealthy startup success, and most recently raised a funding round of $100 million in May 2012 that put its valuation at $1.5 billion. A Pinterest spokeswoman said the company has no comment on “speculation or rumors.” The Next Web comScore has reported that Pinterest has more than 28 million users in December 2012, up from 7.5 million a year ago. What has been causing this huge spike in users? TNW’s Brad McCarty reported that Pinterest’s rapid rise to popularity was due to its appealing nature towards the female audience.
Nasdaq Reportedly to Be Fined for Facebook IPO Mishandling (AllFacebook)
It appears that Nasdaq is about to be punished for its mishandling of Facebook’s initial public offering last year. However, as The Wall Street Journal reports, it’s more of a slap on the wrist than a major penalty.
Bluefin Labs Officially Joins Twitter’s Flock (VentureBeat)
Twitter confirmed Monday’s rumors of its Bluefin Labs purchase in a blog post detailing why the startup is an important addition to Twitter’s overall strategy. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
Brand Excitement For Social Media Marketing Has Declined, Says Report [Study] (AllTwitter)
Social media, the digital marketer’s overwhelming favorite in 2012, is very much on the decline. Social media engagement placed third among all leading digital marketing priorities for this year, dropping a single percentage point on 2012 to 38 percent.
Analysis: Zynga Offers Surprising Results (USA Today)
Game over for Zynga? Hardly, if the social-gaming company’s fourth-quarter results are any indication.
Twitter Won’t Make ‘Sacrifices’ Required to be in China: CEO (CNET)
Twitter CEO Dick Costolo said that the social-networking giant won’t “make the kind of sacrifices” necessary to be allowed to work in China and Iran. In an interview with The Wall Street Journal published Tuesday, Costolo addressed the question of whether Twitter would like to be available in China and Iran by replying that the company is not willing to filter out the kind of politically sensitive material that government officials in those two countries would require in order to be allowed to function there.
Most Facebook Users Have Taken a Break From the Site, Survey Finds (The New York Times)
A new survey by the Pew Research Center‘s Internet and American Life Project, conducted in December, found that 61 percent of current Facebook users admitted that they had voluntarily taken breaks from the site, for as many as several weeks at a time. The main reasons for their social media sabbaticals were not having enough time to dedicate to pruning their profiles, an overall decrease in their interest in the site, and the general sentiment that Facebook was a major waste of time.
Site Plagiarizes Blog Posts, Then Files DMCA Takedown on Originals (ars technica)
A dizzying story that involves falsified medical research, plagiarism, and legal threats came to light via a DMCA takedown notice on Tuesday. Retraction Watch, a site that followed (among many other issues) the implosion of a Duke cancer researcher’s career, found all of its articles on the topic pulled by WordPress, its host.
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