Snap's Rollback of Redesign May Signal an Identity Crisis
*By Britt Terrell*
Snap is doing something that is unprecedented in social media. The maker of Snapchat has answered angry users' protests and revamped its app to make it more similar to the original version.
"It's a sign of humility in a way for Snapchat," said Marty Swant, a staff writer at Adweek. "In a way, I wonder if they have a bit of an identity crisis."
Is Snap making a tool for publishers or is the app catering to its core users?
Snapchat's 2017 redesign was meant to bring more people to its publishing page. But loyal users revolted: A petition called for the app maker to revert to the old design, the platform saw its user growth [decline in the last quarter](http://deadline.com/2018/05/snap-inc-snapchat-slowest-growth-earnings-stock-plunges-1202380663/).
As Snap's stock continues to plummet ーit's down nearly 50 percent year-over-year ー the company must figure out ways to appeal to advertisers.
"I think the big picture that Snapchat has now is their ads are a lot more creative than the ads you're seeing on Instagram stories - Snapchat's main competitor," said Swant in an interview Monday with Cheddar. "They're just cooler looking, they're more engaging. I think that's a big play, but the question is, do users actually spend time with them?"
For the full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/snap-redesigns-its-redesign).
You could be seeing more electric delivery vans on the road soon. Walmart and FedEx have inked deals with GM's all-electric brand BrightDrop to add thousands of vehicles to their fleets. Walmart has reserved 5,000 vans for the first time, while FedEx is expanding an initial order of 500 vehicles. Michael Zimmerman, partner and head of logistics at Kearney, joined Cheddar to discuss what this means for the electric vehicle market moving forward.
After nearly a century, General Motors is no longer the top-selling automaker in America. Toyota has dethroned the long-reigning champ to become the leader in U.S. auto sales for the first time, and the first non-domestic automaker to take that title. The Japanese automaker outsold GM by about 114,000 vehicles, or 5% more, in 2021. Al Root, senior writer for Barron's, joined Cheddar to discuss the meaning behind these numbers.
This year's worldwide semiconductor shortage limited the supply of everything from new cars to smart phones.
Looking ahead, several experts in the chip industry expect the shortage to continue deep into 2022, and maybe even 2023. Syed Alam, Accenture's Global Semiconductor Lead, joined Cheddar Movers to discuss.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is investigating roughly 580,000 Tesla vehicles due to their front touch screen 'passenger play' gaming feature amid concerns over possible distracted driving. The investigation covers Tesla models ranging from the years 2017-2022. Brian Moody, Executive Editor at Autotrader, joined Cheddar Movers for more.
After a two-week delay of 5G deployment at airports due to the airline industry's claims it will cause "catastrophic disruption," AT&T and Verizon are set to roll out the service on January 19. Michael Boyd, CEO of aviation consultancy Boyd Group International, joined Cheddar to discuss the concerns being voiced by the airlines. "If the airline industry thinks it's going to be something to disrupt our system or impair safety, it shouldn't roll out at all, period," Boyd said, noting that the telecom giants should rethink the activation over safety and security.
Breakthrough Energy Catalyst, a private-public fund backed by Bill Gates, is planning to invest up to $15 billion in clean technology initiatives across the U.S., UK, and European Union. It will target four key areas and help fund large projects that otherwise would not be financially possible. Bobby Hollis, Director of Breakthrough Energy Catalyst, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
