EU Cracks Down on Consumer Rights Violations on Social Media
In this era of “fake news,” hateful trolling, and increasing privacy concerns, the negative aspects of social networking have never been more clear. While social media app developers scramble to address these issues, governments around the world are becoming more involved with proposed laws and regulations designed to turn up the heat on the major […]
Why Aren’t Developers Chasing the iMessage App Boom?
Messaging apps — which is to say, apps that existing within messaging platforms like iMessage, Line, Messenger, and etc. — have been a huge growth area in the mobile tech industry. Sticker sets alone drove over $250 million in revenue for Line, and Western chat apps have seen similar success stories adding-on services to their […]
Dogtown Media & Craftsman Oyster Shuck a Huge Success
SXSW has rounded out to be a wild experience this year, and our Oyster Shuck event with Craftsman and Mongers Market was no exception. Thanks to everybody who came out to enjoy good food and great drink specials in the Texas sun! We got into app development to make great products, but it can be […]
Facebook Introduces Stories on the Heels of Snapchat IPO
Facebook has grown to the point where virtually every smartphone user on the planet has the app on their phone — and those who don’t almost certainly use it at home. That popularity has come at a price for the company’s app developers, though, as the original use cases that brought users to the platform […]
H-1B Visa Policy Remains Unclear for Tech Companies
While the Trump administration has made no bones about their policy plans for illegal and unskilled immigrants, immediate plans for overhauling highly-skilled immigration via H–1B visas remains unclear. This is bad news for app developers, since it’s actually an area that needs serious attention — between the lottery-style assignment system and the ease of abuse […]
The New Apple Headquarters is Steve Job’s Final Product Launch
San Francisco iPhone app developers have been watching with interest as Apple readies to launch their iconic new headquarters in Silicon Valley. In many ways, the building has taken on a new significance after Steve Jobs passed away — it was one of the final “products” he pitched and developed as head of the company, […]
SNAP, Spectacles, and the Social Media App Clone Wars
SNAP, the IPO from social media platform SnapChat, is set to arrive sometime in the next few weeks. SnapChat, for their part, has been pulling some odd moves around the launch, setting the valuation lower than most Bay Area app developers expected. The company also seems keen to prove to investors that they can and […]
Huawei will Launch a Google Now AI Assistant Competitor
Huawei isn’t the new kid on the block anymore — in fact, it’s the third-largest smartphone manufacturer in the world. While not the go-to smartphone for San Fran app developers, it’s a household name worldwide thanks to their affordable, dependable hardware. The company is aggressively working towards claiming the second place in the next year, […]
Finally, A “Turk” That Works for Bootstrapped Startups
Algorithms and machine learning are pretty much a given for serious mobile startups these days. Unfortunately, machine learning takes data, and data isn’t always available — at a startup-friendly price point, anyway. A new startup out of India called Playment aims to solve that problem, and their clever solution deserves a spot in any mobile […]
Are Users Ready to See Ads in their Personal Chats?
Are users ready for ads to enter the personal chat space? Facebook seems to think so, as they recently announced they’ll be integrating ads with their messaging platform in small tests in Australia and Thailand. The move has sparked both approval and outrage from different corners of the app development industry. Predictably, many iOS app […]