Bitcoin News Australia

Wanna slam some pogs? Winner’s got a slap bracelet with their name on it.

Look, every era has its own fleeting sensations, and this era isn’t any different — except the fads come in app form.

Just ask BeReal

The French social app was last year’s darling. Prompting users to speedily document their lives, sans artifice, at random intervals, BeReal grew to ~15m users and scored a 2022 app-of-the-year honor from Apple.

But peaks don’t last long in this game; BeReal’s glory days may already be real over — per The New York Times, users dipped sub-6m in March (though BeReal disputes that number).

Next in social fads

Blame user fatigue. Blame established social networks cloning new platforms’ popular features. But for every TikTok that strikes gold, there are 20 Meerkats that strike out.

Still, app developers keep churning out challengers for the (almost certainly temporary) throne.

• To what end? You already know this answer: fat wallets. (BeReal, for example, has raised $90m to date.)

The next ephemeral ascension is already bubbling up. Here are some of the rising-star apps you may need to know about — until you won’t:

• Nocam: Friends exchange challenges, except — pause for dramatic effect — nobody can see how they look while filming.
• Kiwi: Called “BeReal for music,” it randomly prompts users to share their most recently played song. (Spoiler: Our friends are getting Celine Dion’s “It’s All Coming Back to Me Now” every single time.)
• Wavelength: This group chat facilitator looks great — in a world where texting, Reddit, WhatsApp, Discord, and online message boards don’t exist.
• Minus: When a wannabe philosopher at a party musing, “What if social media were, like, finite? And you only have 100 posts… ever?” reaches transcendence, what remains is this minimalistic app.

RIP in advance, sweet applications.

Netflix announced a $2.5B investment in Korean content over the next four years — 2x the amount it has invested in the market since 2016 — in a recent press release.

Co-CEO Ted Sarandos spoke of Netflix’s confidence in Korean storytelling and its impact on the world’s interest in the country.

“Hallyu” (meaning “Korean wave”) refers to that global phenomenon, spurred by K-pop bands, Parasite’s Best Picture win, and, of course, Netflix’s “Squid Game.” In 2021, South Korea saw a record $12.4B in content exports.

For Netflix, the move is obvious

Over 60% of its 230m+ global subscribers watched Korean content in 2022, while the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region has been a source of consistent growth, accounting for 1.46m of Netflix’s new 1.75m subscribers in Q1.

Contentwise:

• “Squid Game” was a global sensation. Netflix’s most-watched non-English series kept people hooked for 1.6B+ hours.
• Other Korean hits include revenge drama “The Glory,” legal drama “Extraordinary Attorney Woo,” and reality competition show “Physical: 100.”

Throughout 2023, Netflix’s slate of Korean content will feature 34 new and returning titles across genres.

Other streamers…

… are catching up or missing out.

Warner Bros. Discovery’s new Max rollout won’t hit the Asia-Pacific region until 2024, which Variety noted was a “particularly egregious” part of a “dreadful blunder.”

Disney+ wisely teamed up with K-pop superstars BTS and, in late 2022, announced numerous Asian titles for 2023, saying stories from the region would be a “key pillar” for the platform for the next 100 years.

Meanwhile, Amazon recently tried to gain APAC market share via ads in the region featuring anime and Korean dramas.

Fun fact: “Zombieverse” — an upcoming Netflix reality competition show set in a zombie apocalypse — recruited the team behind another Korean hit, “All of Us Are Dead,” to make the game’s monsters.