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Happy Tuesday, FutureParty people. After years of calling countless metaverse projects “the Ready Player One of…” the actual Ready Player One franchise is getting its own metaverse. Dubbed “Open,” the team at Readyverse Studios (which includes original book author Ernest Cline) dropped a teaser and opened the waitlist. Does this mean our virtual avatar will drive the Back to the Future DeLorean? If so, we’re in.

In other news… the US could be forced to log off from TikTok, and Universal just had a good year.

We hope you enjoy this and all upcoming issues, but we have one request: please share your feedback. If you have any thoughts at all about our new look, format, and direction, please reply to this email. It’ll go straight to us. Do not hold back.

LATEST PODCAST EPISODE

YT: Inside Out 2, X: The Book of Carol, G: American Fiction, R: Al Pacino, TT: “Space Song”, S: “All in Good Time”

📺 The Oscars scored 19.5 million viewers — the highest since the pandemic but still way under 2019’s 29.6 million viewers. Read More → variety

🍔 In-N-Out, as far as brands go, was easily the biggest winner of the Oscars, solidifying itself as an awards season ritual for the A-list. Read More → thr

💸 Reddit’s IPO on March 21st just added a new wrinkle, making it ripe for meme-stock status — top Redditors who are eligible to participate will be able to sell their shares immediately. Read More → techcrunch

👸🏻 Press agencies retracted a Mother’s Day photo of Kate Middleton after it was discovered that it had been doctored (which the Princess admitted to), fueling a debate over the veracity of official images online. Read More → wired

⚡ Prime scored the first-ever brand sponsorship with the WWE that slaps the energy drink’s logo right on the center of the wrestling mat. Read More → variety

75.5% of you voted Yes in yesterday’s poll: Would you move to a foreign country if you could buy a home for dirt cheap there?

“No brainer.”

“It depends on which country, though.”

“I have lived as a US citizen contracting in Baghdad for a few years. Been an ‘expat’ long enough to know for damn sure that there is no place like home.”

.A WORD FROM OUR FRIENDS AT RYSE.

Missed out on RYSE? Here’s another chance

RYSE is on the cusp of making automated ‘smart shades’ a staple. And if you missed investing in their previous opportunity, it’s not too late.

Along with their recent launch in over 120 Best Buy retail stores, they’ve just opened a new public offering. You can invest in their company at just $1.50/share.

The smart home industry is booming, with double-digit growth projected until 2033 — and billion-dollar acquisitions for companies like RYSE with retail distribution and patented technologies.

Early investors have seen their shares grow by over 20 times. Don’t miss out on another opportunity to become a shareholder.

.SOCIAL MEDIA.

TikTok faces a forced divorce from ByteDance

The Future. A bipartisan bill to force ByteDance to sell TikTok’s operations in the US or face a ban is making its way through Congress… and has enough wind in its sails to potentially become law. If ByteDance does decide to sell, it would be a deal worth hundreds of billions of dollars, potentially making it the biggest acquisition deal in modern history.

Anger over the algo
With the “Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act” unanimously passing the House Energy and Commerce Committee, the stage is set for TikTok to be forced to log off in America.

• Voting in the House of Representatives starts tomorrow, where it’s expected to pass, and then it’s off to the Senate.

• President Biden stated that, if the bill hits his desk, he’ll sign it… which could fuel the Senate to pass it.

• That’s made big names in tech and media especially interested, including former Activision Blizzard Bobby Kotick, who floated partnering with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman on a bid.

Is a potential sale from ByteDance or full-on ban in the US really possible? It’s been floated since 2020 during Donald Trump’s presidency and has led to endless efforts to avoid those fates.

But after TikTok urged users to call their representatives and protest the bill, lawmakers seem more convinced that they should pull the trigger.

• Watch: WSJ details how hit songs are becoming investable assets for retail traders.

• Listen: Filmmaker Cord Jefferson breaks down how he wrote American Fiction, which just won the Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar.

• Read: DevSquad has the go-to overview of the SaaS (Software as a Service) industry.

.ENTERTAINMENT.

Universal rules the box office and the Oscars

The Future. Universal was the most financially successful studio at the box office in 2023 and the studio that won the most Oscars this past weekend — the first time that has happened this century. Don’t be surprised if every studio in Hollywood pivots to follow Universal’s strategy and releases a lot of movies in varied genres… ending a decade of over-reliance on past franchises.

Winning slate
How good of a year has Universal had?

• It sold almost $5 billion in tickets thanks to a mix of massive hits like The Super Mario Bros. Movie, Oppenheimer, and Five Nights at Freddy’s, and smaller successes like Cocaine Bear and Asteroid City.

• It’s the first time a studio has beat Disney at the box office in eight years… and may repeat it by releasing 19 films in cinemas this year (more than any other studio).

• And with Oppenheimer taking home Best Picture, it’s both the first from a legacy studio in a decade and the first one to make over $100 million at the domestic box office since Argo in 2013.

What’s Universal’s secret sauce? Studio head Donna Langley is known for taking creative risks and signing top talent like Steven Spielberg, Jordan Peele, and the Daniels to rich deals that keep them on the lot and away from competitors.

Canoo Lifestyle Vehicle… aka the closest estimation to the Apple Car. The minivan could’ve been cool again.