Snapchat’s Discover feature is only a few months old, and already the company is kicking out content providers to make room for others that might mesh better with the typical snapper. Both Warner Music and Yahoo have been kicked off the social platform’s Discover channel in order to make way for BuzzFeed and iHeartRadio. While that’s a slap in the face for the two brands that lost their spots, the addition of BuzzFeed and iHeartRadio is a smart move for the increasinly-popular messaging app.
Snapchat seems to have been careful in choosing which content producers to remove and which to replace them with, ticking off all the right boxes in the process. Warner Music was intelligently swapped out for iHeartRadio, ensuring that music had a big presence on the app. iHeartRadio not only has a popular streaming service that reaches millions of users, but the company owns and operates hundreds of radio stations across the country. The conglomorate’s branding has been aggressive and on-point, so many younger people know the name and associate it with the music they love. The company is sure to promote their new Discover channel to the millions of people listening to music on any of iHeart’s platforms, which Snapchat is sure to enjoy. Apparently iHeartRadio is planning to focus mostly on music-related content for their vertical, including interviews, features, and the like.
Warner Music may be one of the biggest players in the music industry, but it isn’t well known to the consumer, even if they acts it works with—including Adam Lambert, Ed Sheeran, Paramore, and Skrillex—remain some of the most popular with younger crowds.
Exchanging BuzzFeed for Yahoo was also a good idea, and it is just another sign that the latter isn’t doing well in the ever-changing media landscape. BuzzFeed’s readership has exploded over tbhe past few years, and it has become an important player in the online editorial game thanks to its understanding of what millennials and post-millennials are looking to read.
Discover is a portal on Snapchat for content creators such as CNN, Vice, People, and ESPN to connect with younger demographics through very short, easily-consumed photos and videos. The feature only has a select number of companies sharing content, and it is now clear that Snapchat wants to keep the crowd small, handpicking those creators that are sharing the best stuff. By maintaining the quality of Discover, Snapchat can make sure ad revenue from the platform stays high.
