Antivirus platform Avast is shutting down Jumpshot, after an investigation by Motherboard and PCMag found the subsidiary was harvesting browsing data and selling it to advertisers. With clients including Google, Yelp, Microsoft and Pepsi, Jumpshot would package data and allow clients to see all user clicks on individual domains. “As CEO of Avast, I feel personally responsible and I would like to apologize to all concerned,” wrote Ondrej Vlcek, CEO for the past seven months, in a blog post. “Protecting people is Avast’s top priority and must be embedded in everything we do in our business and in our products. Anything to the contrary is unacceptable.”

Snap’s new Bitmoji TV format will enable Snapchat and Bitmoji users to incorporate their own avatars into an animated show. First season will feature 10 episodes that air Saturday mornings on Snapchat, beginning Saturday, Feb. 1.

Media company Newsmax is launching a cloud TV service powered by the Kaltura TV platform, available on devices including Apple TV, Roku, Android and iOS devices. Service is available free on more than 100 million OTT devices nationwide and will include its 24/7 live channel and a VOD content catalog. “Streaming is the new TV and this is also true for news and real time content. Especially as mobile video consumption is growing dramatically as it’s a perfect platform for consumption of short form content,” Gideon Gilboa, SVP of product and marketing for media & telecom at Kaltura, tells Cynopsis. “In a world where streaming giants are expanding their services on global scale, media companies that want to stay competitive need to use a global scalable platform with all the relevant features, stability and the ability to use data to make the service more personalized.”

Microsoft announced a $40 million program, AI for Health, aiming to accelerate medical research; increase understanding of mortality and longevity; and reduce health inequity. The program “is underpinned with a strong foundation of privacy, security, and ethics, and was developed in collaboration with leading health experts who are driving important medical initiatives,” wrote Microsoft President Brad Smith in a blog post. “AI for Health is a philanthropic initiative that complements our broader work in Microsoft Healthcare. Through AI for Health, we will support specific nonprofits and academic collaboration with Microsoft’s leading data scientists, access to best-in-class AI tools and cloud computing, and select cash grants.”

Roku is launching a software update that gives its line of Roku Smart Soundbars the ability to offer surround sound when paired with Roku TV Wireless Speakers. “We want to simplify home theater the same way we simplified streaming and we’re taking a big step towards that vision by expanding our Roku Smart Soundbars to support surround sound capabilities,” said Mark Ely, VP, Retail Product Strategy at Roku. “We want customers to be able to expand their system over time without having to spend a lot of money or run wires throughout the home. The Roku Smart Soundbar is an incredible two-in-one device that adds exceptional sound and powerful streaming to a TV and when Roku TV Wireless Speakers and a Roku Wireless Subwoofer are paired with the Smart Soundbar you get truly immersive surround sound without breaking the bank.” Roku Wireless Surround Speakers will be available at Walmart.com and in stores for $149 next month.

Coalition for Innovative Media Measurement launched a new study with Janus Strategy and Insights and Sequent Partners exploring what drives the difference in attribution results from six national, linear television campaigns that aired in 2019. CIMM and the 4A’s will be working with Alphonso, Ampersand, Comscore, Hive, iSpot, Kantar, Nielsen, Samba, TVSquared, 605 and more. Following the study, Janus Insights and Strategy and Sequent Partners will analyze the data to develop conclusions and recommendations from the results. (For more, go here.)

IPG Mediabrands is the first agency client to subscribe to the Nielsen Podcast Buyer Listening service. IPG agencies Universal McCann, Initiative, ID Media, Cadreon, Brand Programming Network, Orion, MAGNA and Healix will have access to podcast insights for planning and buying. “IPG Mediabrands is redefining how media, technology and data power our client’s marketing in today’s dynamic marketplace,” said Brian Hughes, EVP of Audience Intelligence and Strategy at MAGNA. “We are excited about the value that this data will provide in servicing all of the agencies with the insights and intelligence paramount for the success of monetization opportunities. This is beneficial to us, and the industry as a whole, as the rapidly growing podcast industry is requiring meaningful data to make sense of listenership.”

The CW, Tastemade, AccuWeather and Microsoft Advertising have joined Xandr’s Community marketplace. “Community creates a relevant advertising experience for consumers, and a welcoming environment for marketers and publishers,” said Brian Lesser, CEO of Xandr. Community launched in May, with video inventory from AT&T Watch TV, DirecTV, WarnerMedia, Vice, Hearst Magazines, Newsy, Philo, Tubi and Xumo.

TV analytics company FourthWall Media and MRI-Simmons, provider of consumer insights, announced a partnership that allows marketers in the television ecosystem to incorporate MRI-Simmons audiences in advanced TV campaigns. The audience solution will use FourthWall’s Reveal analytics platform and Reveal Connect, its secure household matching tool, to create actionable MRI-Simmons audience segments for targeted TV planning, optimization, and attribution. (For more, go here.)

Fiksu, a demand-side platform for digital advertising, announced the launch of its self-serve DSP, allowing advertisers to access inventory from premium supply-side platforms in various environments, and deliver their ads on connected TV as well as mobile. Key metrics that advertisers can view include total viewability time, video completion rate, and view-through rate. “We foresee more and more advertisers seeking ultimate control over their campaigns, so we launched the Fiksu self-serve DSP to provide them with a high level of autonomy and transparency,” said Anna Kuzmenko, COO at Fiksu.

RESEARCH

With the 2020 presidential election season underway and the upcoming Iowa Caucus, consumer insights platform DISQO took a look at voter behavior; specifically, how political affiliation impacts the way people consume digital news sources. Highlights include:

· Republican over-indexed on Breitbart (by 305%) and Fox News (by 284%)
· Democrats over-indexed on MSNBC (by 190%) and the New York Times (by 114%)
· Those not registered to vote under-indexed across all new properties, suggesting an overall disconnect with the news media.
“The study reveals that while media consumption behaviors vary wildly by an individual’s political affiliation, our attitudes and motivators around the election process are more harmonious,” Carl Van Ostrand, VP of Consumer Insights at DISQO, tells Cynopsis. “Yes, Democrats over-index on MSNBC by 189%, Republican over-index on FOX by 284%, and those not re glistered to vote under-index across the board with respect to mainstream news media by upwards of 72%. To which degree political attitudes affected the behaviors – or that media behaviors affected political attitudes – was not assessed in this study, though many may make their own inferences.

“However, we are all relatively aligned in our plans to vote this November, and in our motivations for doing so,” Van Ostrand continues. “For instance, 59.7% of Democrats, 60.2% of Republicans and 55% of independents all strongly agreed that they would vote in November. Likewise, the majority of people across all groups vote to support policies they believe in, even if very few enjoy the actual voting process.”

Mobile video viewing in India is growing fast, according a new study from software company Penthera, but almost half of viewers experience a delay of 5 seconds or more after they hit the play button. While 88% of users in India stream mobile video at least weekly, 93% say they experience streaming frustrations when they watch, including the video taking too long to start, the video re-buffering, and the advertisements being annoying. Eighty percent say they expect a service to offer downloading capabilities and 84% would pay extra for the feature. “While the competition for eyes in India is intense, OTT providers can position themselves at the top of the pack by providing a user friendly feature such as mobile downloading,” says the report. “Even better, offering download functionality to their viewers can pay for itself in monetized ads, increased subscription costs, and a decrease of churn.”

Netflix’s The Witcher and Disney+’s The Mandalorian top the list of streaming debuts for 4Q19, but Apple TV+ held six of the top ten spots, reports Parrot Analytics. Apple TV+ Originals delivered strong audience demand, with its sixth best-performing debut series, The Morning Show, showing 16.5x more demand over its 30 day premiere period than the average TV series with US audiences. For more, go here.