Monday’s here again, fam. Just like how vinyl records experienced a renaissance with music lovers, VHS may start to feel the love with cinephiles. Shea Serrano, the creator of Primo and Neon, is on the hunt to collect tapes, amassing a collection of 861 VHSes. But that’s nothing compared to Josh DiGangi, who has 2,860 copies of just Titanic (which is a two-cassette VHS film because it’s so long). So, if you still have some VHS tapes lying around, be kind and rewind… those bad boys may soon get a lot of play.

In other news… Uber pays to keep people from driving, Webtoon wants to be the Marvel of webcomics, and the first Presidential debate goes low.

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• YouTube – The Union

• X (Twitter) – Hit Man

• Google – Michael J. Fox & Coldplay

• Reddit – A Quiet Place: Day One

• TikTok – “Depression & Obsession” - Koe Wetzel

• Spotify – “Take Me Back” - Foster The People

.TRANSPORTATION.

Uber will pay you to leave your car in the garage

The Future. Uber wants you to ditch your car for five weeks (in exchange for credits) to try out other forms of travel and to pay you for a taste of a car-lite life. While the trial may not spur most people to turn in their vehicles, it could give Uber important data on how to build its operations more efficiently into existing public transit.

Rideshare lottery
After a test in Australia, Uber is launching its One Less Car initiative in Los Angeles, Chicago, Miami, San Francisco, Toronto, Vancouver, and Washington, DC.

• The trial, which will take place from July 22nd to August 25th, offers 175 participants $1,000 in exchange for their keys — the average monthly cost of owning a car in the US.

• The stipend is broken down into $500 on the Uber app for car trips or Lime bike and scooter share; a $200 voucher redeemable for car rental or carshare; and $300 to use on alternative transportation like public transit.

• Participants will also get a free month of membership to Uber One, which gives them 6% cash back on rides and $0 fees on eligible food and grocery deliveries.

Uber is hoping to gather more data on how people move around when they don’t have a personal vehicle and incentivize them to switch to the company’s growing transportation ecosystem.

During the trial in Australia, people reported spending more time walking, biking, and using public transit… but only three of the 58 participants said they would go so far as selling their car and using only alternative ways of moving around. People still like having a car as a backup.

86.4% of you voted Yes in Friday’s poll: Do you still own DVDs?

“I still buy them, too.”

“Heck yes. And the gear to play them. My library has my favorites, available whenever I want to watch one. Nostalgia at its best.”

“I’m a former Paramount employee, in creative, and we were responsible for ALL DVD key art, loglines, and more. I own so many DVDs I can scream. Blu-rays, trailers... it’s ridiculous.”

.A WORD FROM OUR FRIENDS AT ARMOIRE.

Dress up even if you WFH

You don’t have to make plans to dress up. You can just go to a local coffee shop or hop on a Zoom call for an hour. It’s a confidence boost, and it changes things up!

The best way to keep your wardrobe fresh? Armoire — a female-founded clothing rental service for women.

Here are some things about Armoire we know you’ll dig:

• Their style quiz. It’s quick, and their initial recommendations are legit.

• They put together some great collections that make shopping less overwhelming.

• Shipping is free and speedy! You can get stuff the same week you ordered it.

• And if you’re really obsessed with a piece, you can buy it for a steep discount off the retail value.

Choose from three monthly plans starting at $89/month. Use the code thefutureparty for up to 50% off your first month.

Media, Music, & Entertainment

• Last week’s debate between President Biden and former President Trump drew 51 million viewers across all of CNN’s channels… 30% down from their first debate in 2020. [Read More]

• Private equity giant TPG is getting back into talent representation after its majority sale of CAA with a new stake in management firm Untitled Entertainment. [Read More]

• Spotify is collabing with Swedish fashion brand Acne Studios to partner hit musicians with up-and-coming designers via Acne’s “Acne People” talent program. [Read More]

Fashion & E-Commerce

• Massachusetts passed a law requiring Uber and Lyft to pay their drivers $32.50 per hour during active driving time and receive other benefits like sick leave and a health insurance stipend. [Read More]

• Glossier has gotten new life after its “You” perfume went viral on TikTok with Gen Z. [Read More]

• Heinz is dropping only 100 bottles of its new "Every Sauce" blend — a combination of all 14 of its sauces. [Read More]

Tech, Web3, & AI

• SpaceX is offering a private tender at $112 per share, giving the space firm a valuation of $210 billion — making it the second-most valuable startup behind ByteDance. [Read More]

• Mark Zuckerberg teased a “full holographic” glasses prototype that would bring high-fidelity AR beyond the realm of headsets and smartphones. [Read More]

• Lego teamed up with the European Space Agency to make its iconic bricks out of moondust that will be on display at select stores — a test to see how the material works for building things. [Read More]

Creator Economy

• YouTube’s Culture and Trends Report found that 65% of Gen Zers now consider themselves “content creators” — up 25% from last year. [Read More]

• YouTube stars Rhett & Link are launching a new sketch comedy show on their channel titled Wonderhole. [Read More]

• Khaby Lame, the most-followed person on TikTok, is rolling out a travel show on Tubi called Khaby is Coming to America. [Read More]

.ENTERTAINMENT.

Webtoon goes public to become an IP giant

The Future. Last Thursday, mobile webcomic giant Webtoon went public on the Nasdaq, hitting a valuation of over $2.7 billion… giving the LA-based company the runway to expand its ambitions in Hollywood and the international entertainment industry. As the superhero genre loses some of its vice grip on culture, and anime and manga skyrocket in popularity, studios and streamers could turn to Webtoon as a go-to platform to mine IP for a global audience.

Marvel of webcomics
Webtoon, already a hit in Asia and North America, has 55 million titles on its platform — mostly “teenaged demo, non-superhero genres,” per THR — from 24 million creators.

That has Hollywood calling.

• Half of Netflix’s productions in South Korea are based on Webtoon IP, including Hellbound and All of Us Are Dead.

• Oscar-winning screenwriter Diablo Cody is producing an adaptation of Webtoon IP titled Death of a Pop Star, and Robert Kirkman’s Skybound Entertainment is making one of Freaking Romance.

• The company hopes to multiply the number of comics being adapted for Hollywood and other entertainment formats — only 10% of its revenue comes from adaptations, so there’s plenty of room for growth.

Webtoon already has a massive fanbase of 170 million active monthly users, which the company mines for data like who they are, what they’re reading, and where they live.

In other words, the perfect audience profile on how to market adaptations of Webtoon’s comics around the world.

• Listen: Wired chats with Pod Save America cohosts Jon Favreau and Tommy Vietor about how the Biden Administration is struggling to contain misinformation on social media.

• Watch: On the heels of their new joint album, Bad Cameo, Complex catches up with Lil Yachty and James Blake about their surprising collaboration.

• Read: Business of Fashion interviews Patagonia CEO Ryan Gellert about the innate tension of running a fashion company to save the world from climate change.

Prepare to see a lot more of this.

LATEST PODCAST EPISODE

Today, on an extra special bonus episode of Future Forecast, our hosts Boye and Chris sit down with Larry Fitzgibbon, the co-founder and CEO of Tastemade. Tastemade is an independent media company that creates award-winning video content and original programming in the food, travel, and home & design space.