Online Dating Wingman

PRESENTED BY 1440 MEDIA

Monday has arrived once again, fam. If you thought US or EU fines on tech companies seemed high, Russia said, “Hold my vodka.” Moscow has fined Google $20 decillion — $20 billion trillion trillion, to put that into perspective — for blocking pro-Kremlin propaganda. However, we’re sure that CEO Sundar Pichai and Google’s lawyers are laughing it off — there’s no way the tech giant will ever be forced to make that absurd payment.

DAILY TOP TRENDS

Cable Brands May Get Spun Out To Pasture

Comcast’s potential plan to spin off its cable channels into a separate, “well-capitalized” company is sending positive shockwaves to Wall Street that could reshape the business next year.

The Big Picture: Streaming killed the cable star as consumers cut the cord and went a la carte with their entertainment offerings. But, economically, cable has been a good business… so media conglomerates are hoping to hold onto it as long as possible in a way that doesn’t drag down their overall business.

Between The Lines: THR reports that Comcast president Michael Cavanagh was vibe-checking Wall Street with its idea of spinning off its cable business. Turns out, the vibes are immaculate.

• Not only did Comcast’s shares pop 4%, but Warner Bros. Discovery, Paramount, and Disney all enjoyed gains at the thought of following Comcast’s lead.

• The idea gained traction because a spinout may lead to a company that could become a rollup firm for several cable brands (imagine Comcast’s NBC, WBD’s TBS, and AMC Networks’ IFC in the same bundled company).

• The consolidation could lead to a few sizable, pure-play cable companies that are more flexible to make deals, look attractive to consumers, and aren’t chained to the growth narratives of conglomerates pursuing streaming success.

Closing Credits: The hypothetical cable-brand companies wouldn’t be without their issues — divorcing news networks is especially difficult, and how to actually value assets that are inevitably declining in subscribers and revenue is complicated. But working through the issues could keep cable brands alive longer as actual businesses… instead of just turning into labels for streamers.

Alternative Take: Despite toying with the idea, Disney is the only company that’s publicly stated — at least for now — that it won’t take that route.

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Cheers Lets Your Friends Swipe For You

Cheers wants to reshape online dating by bringing back a tried-and-true tradition — letting your family and friends set you up.

Why It Hits: With young people valuing friendships over relationships, offloading matchmaking to their opinions seems like a natural step — potential dates are vetted by people they trust (nothing more attractive than a curated recommendation).

Between The Profiles: Cheers founder Sahil Ahuja says that Cheers is a mix of Hinge and Instagram.

• When users sign up, the app asks them several get-to-know-you questions, like if they drink and where they went to school.

• The Instagram part: Once onboarded, users can add their contacts, where they can then post pictures of you and tag you. People who follow your contacts can find and message you if interested.

• The Hinge part: Users can swipe independently, or friends can swipe on behalf of their mutual contacts.

• The app launched last month in beta on iOS, starting as a “New York City-focused, invite-only platform and focused for now on South Asian people,” per Fast Company.

The Closer: Nearly 80% of millennials and Gen Zers are burnt out with the frustrations of online dating — too many choices, too much ghosting, too few genuine connections. So, allowing mutual connections to… well… connect you adds a layer of accountability between both parties. No one wants to embarrass a family member or friend. Because of that, expect Cheers to take off with people looking for a serious relationship, not a hookup.

DEEP DIVES

• Read: NYT profiles AI startup Metaphysic, whose software was used to real-time de-age stars Tom Hanks and Robin Wright in Robert Zemeckis’ new movie, Here.

• Watch: Fast Company interviews stylist Law Roach about his retirement from celebrity styling and the launch of his educational online platform School of Style.

• Listen: The Future of Everything chats with former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick about his new Seven Seven Six-backed storytelling AI company, Lumi Story.

63.2% of you voted Yes in Friday’s poll: Do lo-fi visuals make horror content scarier?

“There’s something visceral and horrifically tangible when it comes to lo-fi horror and traditional practical effects.”

“Lo-fi can be an effective technique to create dread, because it can add ambiguity or withhold information, but it’s not the lo-fi aspect alone that makes a scene scary.”

“It’s not about ‘scarier;’ horror shares with punk culture a willingness to embrace and find value in the cheap, discarded, forgotten, and abandoned.”

Let’s keep the conversation going. Join our Poll Of The Day newsletter so your opinions can shine. Discover how your views line up with your peers’, check out cool insights, and have some fun. It’s data with personality.

QUICK HITS

→ Entertainment / Media

🤖 Disney created the Office of Technology Enablement to explore new opportunities in AI and mixed reality.

🍾 Live Nation is launching a new show called Side Hustles, which profiles celebrities and their brands.

📺 Nielsen got the greenlight to combine its streaming and TV ratings into a single measurement.

→ Fashion / E-commerce

💳 Americans aged 18 to 29 have accrued a lot of debt — $1.12 trillion, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

🏃‍♀️ Marathons are now fashion shows as run clubs take off in popularity.

🤑 Dr Pepper and Coke are now people’s splurge-spends as budgets tighten.

→ Creator Economy

📱 Gen Alpha-focused messaging app Daze already has 187,000 people on its waitlist as it launches on iOS today.

🤳 Troveo has raised $4.5 million to build out its platform that allows creators and rights-holders to license their content to AI companies.

🥤 “Dirty soda” shops like Swig and Cool Sips went viral on TikTok… and are now trying not to fizz out.