• Twitter Inc. owner Elon Musk said that beginning April 15, only verified users — meaning those who pay for Twitter Blue or Twitter Verification for Organizations — will be recommended on the app’s “For You” page and allowed to vote in polls. (The Verge) Meanwhile, as Musk claims Twitter’s subscription-driven rule changes are about “treating everyone equally,” the platform reportedly has a list of more than 30 VIP users whose accounts it monitors and boosts, including LeBron James, President Joe Biden and Musk himself. (Platformer News)
• The Walt Disney Co. Chief Executive Bob Iger sent a memo to employees on Monday announcing that its first of three rounds of layoffs, which will be completed by the summer and result in 7,000 total position eliminations, is beginning this week. (CNBC) The entertainment giant’s 50-person metaverse team was among the first to be cut as part of the restructuring, according to people familiar with the matter. (The Wall Street Journal)
• ByteDance Ltd.’s TikTok unveiled a new feature, called Branded Effects, that allows brands to collaborate with TikTok creators to design custom augmented reality experiences meant to accompany any traditional ads they may be running on the app. The product launch comes as TikTok works to reassure advertisers about the platform’s U.S. future following CEO Shou Zi Chew’s grilling by the House Energy and Commerce Committee last week. (TechCrunch) 
• Interpublic Group of Cos. Inc.’s Magna revised its 2023 all-media ad revenue growth forecast down from 3.7% to 3.4%, citing mixed economic indicators. Still, the media-buying firm expects the U.S. advertising market to reach a record $326 billion by the end of the year as innovations in many media channels, including retail and streaming, buoy the industry. (MediaPost)

Pandemic Pet Adoptions Propel Rise of a $500 Billion Global Market

Bloomberg

Snapchat Hires Microsoft Ad Leader as it Rebuild its Sales Team

Garrett Sloane, Ad Age

Rob Wilk named president of Americas following high-profile departures last year.

The TV Advertising Market Is Slumping, But Sports Ads Are Booming

Alex Weprin, The Hollywood Reporter

An unrivaled audience, hardcore fandom and good timing could help some media companies boost their bottom line at a time when the rest of the market is down.

CNN Finalizing Deal to Add Gayle King as It Hits Lowest Ratings in Decades

Isabella Simonetti, The Wall Street Journal

Basketball commentator Charles Barkley also in mix as potential host.

Fox News producer who sued network last week over her Dominion testimony says she was fired

Marshall Cohen, CNN

Lawyers for Abby Grossberg, a former producer for Maria Bartiromo and Tucker Carlson who is suing Fox News over the alleged legal coercion, said that she was fired by the network on Friday. Her lawyers said the company’s official explanation for the dismissal was that she “improperly disclosed information regarding the Dominion/Fox Lawsuit that the Company purportedly believed was privileged.”

MSNBC’s ‘Morning Joe’ and CNBC’s ‘Squawk Box’ to Stream Live on Peacock in News Push

Alex Weprin, The Hollywood Reporter

The MSNBC and CNBC shows will join NBC’s ‘Today’ in a new “Morning News Live” hub.

Apple is bringing Martin Scorsese’s next movie to theaters before streaming

Andrew Webster, The Verge

Apple is the latest streamer to discover that theaters are actually kind of useful. Following a Bloomberg report last week, the company has officially confirmed its first wide theatrical release: Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon. The movie will premiere with a limited theatrical release on October 6th before opening widely on October 20th, and Apple is partnering with Paramount Pictures for the release.

Grid News’ website to shutter

Sara Fischer, Axios

The website for Grid News, the D.C.-based digital news startup that sold last week to Jimmy Finkelstein’s new media startup The Messenger, will shut down Monday afternoon, two sources told Axios. While The Messenger is still evaluating what to do with Grid’s products, it’s likely that Grid’s branding will not live on, a source told Axios.

Prince Harry and Elton John are going to court in a high-profile fight against the Daily Mail

Oliver Darcy, CNN

The lawsuit, which was filed last year, alleges that Associated Newspapers was responsible for “abhorrent criminal activity and gross breaches of privacy” in its efforts to obtain dirt on celebrities. Allegations in the lawsuit include the placing of listening devices in victims’ homes and cars, bugging phone calls, and paying police for information.

Microsoft, Google, Amazon Look to Generative AI to Lift Cloud Businesses

Tim Dotan and Miles Kruppa, The Wall Street Journal

Tech giants are touting new artificial intelligence tools that they say will revolutionize work, learning and creativity. They also have something else in mind: rejuvenating sales in their cloud-computing businesses.

Zoom’s new AI features help you catch up on meetings you’re late to 

Emma Roth, The Verge

The video conferencing app is adding several new AI-powered features — along with new Mail and Calendar integrations — to compete with Microsoft Teams, Google Workspace, and Salesforce’s Slack.

Elon Musk is hunting for the leaker who published Twitter’s source code online—and execs think it is an ex-employee

Eleanor Pringle, Fortune

An internal manhunt has been launched to find an individual who posted online parts of Twitter’s source code, which provides the basis for the entire platform to function.

Apple acquired a startup using AI to compress videos

Kyle Wiggers, TechCrunch

Apple has quietly acquired a Mountain View-based startup, WaveOne, that was developing AI algorithms for compressing video.

Read the full ‘Myth vs. Fact’ document TikTok sent to advertisers after US lawmakers grilled its CEO

Lara O’Reilly, Insider

Days after TikTok’s CEO endured a 5-hour grilling at a US congressional hearing on Thursday, the company sought to reassure advertisers they had nothing to be concerned about.

Slack backs Videowise’s approach to creating interactive, shoppable videos

Christine Hall, TechCrunch 

There have also been startups embracing this space that have received some attention from investors in the past, like Cinematique, which gave it a go in 2017, Clideo and, more recently, Kahani, which doesn’t exactly describe itself as doing “shoppable video,” but its concept of content videos for e-commerce brands can certainly be considered adjacent.

Social media’s new pay-for-play rules

Sara Fischer, Axios

Social media is getting pricier for users who want to unlock special features and privileges.Users who once believed they were contributing their time and creativity are now being asked to pay up by cash-hungry platforms.

Adidas and Tommy Hilfiger to debut cross-platform digital fashions at Metaverse Fashion Week

Zofia Zwieglinska, Glossy

Decentraland’s second annual Metaverse Fashion Week will be held March 28-31. Brands including Adidas, Coach, D-Cave, Diesel and Tommy Hilfiger are on board to engage with web3 communities while offering gifts and token-gated access at what organizers report is the largest digital fashion event. Last year, the event hosted 108,000 attendees. During its five days, more than 7,000 wearables were bought totaling around $77,000.

e.l.f and American Eagle Lean Into TikTok for New Partnership

Adrianne Pasquarelli, Ad Age 

New campaign will include ‘Outer Banks’ actress Carlacia Grant.

Amazon Starts Warning Customers About ‘Frequently Returned’ Items

Theo Wayt and Ann Gehan, The Information

Amazon’s free and easy return policy for the vast majority of its items is a key part of its pitch to consumers, but a new feature the company is rolling out shows it’s trying to get customers to send purchases back less often.

How executives at Pepsi and Abercrombie & Fitch are pushing employees to excel

Maria Monteros, Modern Retail

In a challenging operational environment that requires foresight and agility, brands have adjusted the ways in which they build and maintain highly motivated internal teams. 

If you went to college, GPT will come for your job first

Michelle Cheng, Quartz

A new report from OpenAI finds that higher-income jobs are most exposed to GPT.

CMOs Can’t Defend What They Can’t Define

Paul Hiebert, Adweek

New data suggests the struggle to prove ROI persists.

Half of US Employees Earn Extra Cash on the Side, Survey Finds

Alexandre Tanzi, Bloomberg

To meet increasing spending needs, households can generally do two things – cut spending or raise income. A large share of Americans are doing the latter, according to a new survey. Almost half of employed consumers hold a side job or have some other form of supplemental income such as selling artisan products, data released Monday by LendingClub Corp. in partnership with industry publication Pymnts.com show.

Bed Bath & Beyond plans another 1,300 layoffs

Daphne Howland, Retail Dive

Bed Bath & Beyond is laying off about 1,300 workers in New Jersey, according to WARN notices filed with the state.

Is Coffee Bringing People Back to the Office?

Julia Hobsbawm, Bloomberg 

Data show workers are staying in the office for coffee and here’s why it may be part of return to office strategies.

Lyft CEO and president to step down, former Amazon exec David Risher named as replacement

Rohan Goswami, CNBC 

David Risher, a former retail executive at Amazon, will be CEO of the ridesharing company beginning April 17, when Green will step aside to serve as chair of the board. Zimmer will transition out of his role on June 30 to serve as vice chair of the Lyft board. Lyft’s current chairman Sean Aggarwal will step down from his post but will remain on the board, the company said.

Facebook Parent Plans Lower Bonus Payouts for Some Staff

Salvador Rodriguez, The Wall Street Journal

Meta Platforms adjusts performance review process, saying it is ‘optimizing’ for year ahead.

No Longer at Starbucks Helm, Howard Schultz Is the Focus at Labor Hearing

Noam Scheiber and Julie Creswell, The New York Times

After giving up the chief executive’s job (again), Mr. Schultz still casts a long shadow over Starbucks’ policy, not least in fighting unionization.