Instagram has 1m monthly advertisers

"Instagram has undergone more changes in the last year than during the previous five. We introduced Instagram Stories – a new way for businesses to share everyday moments – and the use of video exploded. We welcomed a new brand identity and the community grew to more than 600 million globally. At the same time, we were building a thriving business. We now have eight million businesses using business profiles, with the greatest adoption coming from the United States, Brazil, Indonesia, Russia and the United Kingdom. We also have more than one million active monthly advertisers. – up from 200,000 this time last year. And in the last month, over 120 million Instagrammers visited a website, received directions, called, emailed or direct-messaged to learn about a business."

Source:  Blog post from Instagram, 22nd March 2017

100m hours of video are watched per day on Facebook

Latest Facebook metrics #OCPSummit pic.twitter.com/Al36elmzl9

— Jim Carroll (@ConvergeDigest) March 8, 2017

The Guardian has more than 200,000 paying members

"I’m delighted to let you know that today we have reached an important milestone in our efforts to rebalance the Guardian’s business model to offset the dramatic decline in advertising: the Guardian now has the financial support of more than 200,000 members. In addition, we have 185,000 subscribers and people are buying the paper on newsstands more regularly than we expected. After responding to lots of feedback from readers suggesting they would be happy to give money to support the Guardian’s journalism, we have also now received more than 160,000 one-off contributions from around the world.
We greatly appreciate the role you all play in the Guardian. Thank you. Whether by joining as a member, taking out a print or digital subscription, buying the paper or giving a one-off contribution, you are providing crucial financial support for our independent journalism, and showing how much you value the Guardian’s fair and factual reporting, informed by our progressive and liberal values. This feels more important now than ever."

Source:  Letter from editor Kath Viner, 13th March 2017

Note - Membership was introduced in September 2014

More than 1m 360° videos and 25m 360° pictures have been posted to Facebook

"Today, Facebook is intertwining the real and virtual worlds of Facebook a bit by launching its first dedicated app, Facebook 360. The app will serve as a hub for the 360 video and photo content posted to the site. Facebook boasts that there have been more than one million 360 videos posted to the site alongside more than 25 million 360 photos to date. At launch, the Facebook 360 app will be available only for the Gear VR mobile headset. Users can download the app in the Oculus Store."
Source:  Techcrunch, 8th March 2017

Apple Music has more than 20m paying subscribers

Apple Music has "well past 20 million subscribers," says @cue.

— Vindu Goel (@vindugoel) February 14, 2017

@Cue is Eddie Cue, Apple's senior vice president of Internet Software and Services, reporting to CEO Tim Cook.

3/4 of the UK population sometimes use a connected device when watching TV

"Three-quarters of the British population use a connected device while watching TV, a trend that rises to 93% in the under 25 age range, according to a new report from Google that highlights the rise of smartphone adoption.
The Google Consumer Barometer Report, a five-year study that includes 625 thousand interviews with consumers around the world, finds that in the UK three in four people now use a smartphone, a number that has nearly doubled in five years. The average Briton uses 3.3 internet-connected devices.
The proportion of daily internet users has increased from 56% in 2012 to 68% today. What's more, the public increasingly looks to the internet when they need information, with 84% of consumers choosing the internet over other mediums.
But the rise of smartphone usage has not eclipsed the use of desktop; 65% of respondents said they access the internet the same amount on smartphone as computer. That’s almost twice as many as in 2012, when the number was 35%.
Two in five Britons use a computer, a tablet and a smartphone, compared to one in ten people five years ago. On average, the British use 3.4 internet-connected devices, an increase from 2.3 devices in 2012.
More than half of the British public prefer to do a task digitally is they have a choice; with half of smartphone users choosing their phone as an alarm clock. For one third of the public the smartphone is their primary source of news and music."

Source:  Google Consumer Barometer, reported by The Drum, 27th February 2017

More than 10 million google Cardboard viewers have been shipped worldwide

"We first launched Cardboard in 2014 as a simple and affordable way for everyone to try virtual reality. With only Cardboard and the smartphone in your pocket, you can travel to faraway lands, ride a roller coaster, or take a guided tour of the solar system. Today, more than 10 million Cardboard viewers have shipped worldwide. There have been 160 million downloads of Cardboard apps on Google Play—and 30 of those apps have more than 1 million downloads."
Source:  Google blog, 28th February 2017

More than 10,000 'skills' (apps) have been developed for Amazon Alexa

"If voice assistants really are the next big user interface, then Amazon is off to fantastic start — by the numbers, at least. As this chart from Statista shows, Amazon’s Alexa assistant now has more than 10,000 “skills” (i.e., third-party voice-enabled applications). That’s double the amount that was available just last quarter.
To be clear: That developers are interested in Alexa is good news for Amazon, and Alexa itself seems to be well ahead in the home compared to rivals like Google Assistant, the AI found in the Google Home speaker that competes directly with the Alexa-centric Amazon Echo.
But, as always, quantity isn’t quality. Calling up an Uber or ordering a pizza just by yelling across the room is convenient enough, but for every useful skill, there are 500 CorkOrnaments.com deal alerts or “Flat Earth Facts.”"

Source:  Business Insider, 27th February 2017

The top 5 markets for mobile game downloads

Source:  Data from App Annie, reported by Tech in Asia, 28th February 2017

One Bitcoin is now worth more than one ounce of gold

Source:  Techcrunch, 2nd March 2017

Sony's Playstation VR has sold nearly 1 million units

"The PlayStation VR was a risky prospect for Sony. As a relatively pricey (£350) add-on for the PS4, centred on technology that's still a niche to the mainstream, it could have been an expensive blunder for the gaming company. Instead, it's been a bigger success than Sony hoped.
Speaking to the New York Times, Sony Interactive Entertainment chief executive Andrew House revealed sales for the VR headset hit 915,000 on February 19.
That figure exceeds what already looked to be a warm reception for the PS4 peripheral. Earlier this month, analytics firm SuperData estimated the PSVR had shipped 750,000 units since launch.
In fact, the PSVR has been so popular, it even caught Sony off guard."

Source:  Wired, 27th February 2017

Spotify has 50m paying subscribers

Thank you to our 50 million subscribers. #Spotify50 pic.twitter.com/eXkOV71bwu

— Spotify (@Spotify) March 2, 2017

Earlier -
37m paying subscribers estimated in June 2016

US smartphone users spend 92% of their time with apps

Source:  Blog post from Flurry, 2nd March 2017