Snapchat expands Discover
It adds Tastemade, Mashable and IGN to its coveted platform for media outlets.
Snapchat Inc. is adding three more publishers to its Discover feature, a coveted platform for media organizations to share articles and videos as well as generate advertising revenue on the popular social media app.
Added to the lineup are Tastemade, a digital food network; Mashable, an online news site; and IGN, a website that largely covers video gaming.
The additions, which are to be made Thursday, come a month after Snapchat replaced Yahoo and Warner Music Group with iHeartRadio and Buzzfeed on Discover.
None of the current 12 publishers on Discover — which include ESPN, Vice and CNN — are being replaced.
The Discover feature works much like the short video clips that users share on Snapchat, except they don’t disappear after one view.
The feature is a major ad generator for the Venicebased and privately owned Snapchat, whose value is pegged at $16 billion based on recent investments.
Unlike existing publishers on Discover, the new ones are still up-and-coming and stand to benefit from the exposure and marketing that will come from a partnership with Snapchat.
“Mashable is very excited to be joining Snapchat Discover, which we believe is a unique storytelling format that puts the narrative first and allows for an exciting mix of videos, shareable interactives, animations, illustrations and articles like nothing else in digital storytelling,” Stacy Martinet, Mashable’s chief marketing officer, said in a statement. “The Mashable Discover channel will feature nextlevel tech and digital culture in a way that’s native to Snapchat.”
Meantime, Snapchat announced it’s hired Drew Vollero, a longtime executive at Mattel Inc., to serve as vice president of finance.