Amazon is bringing new Echo devices into the whole home

These are the four key takeaways from Twitter's move to test longer tweets, Lemonade shakes up the insurance industry, Apple's Siri ditches Bing for Google, and much more

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WEEKEND ROUNDUP Amazon announces new Echo devices for the whole home Amazon announced a number of new and updated products in its Echo line at an event earlier this week. The e-commerce giant continues to try to expand the utility of its Echo smart speakers and create new offerings to push users to buy multiple devices to keep them all around their homes. The products include an updated Echo, the Echo Plus, and the Echo Spot. BI Intelligence analyst Peter Newman has the full story. BI Intelligence Daily is just a preview of BI Intelligence. Become an ALL-ACCESS member to unlock everything BI Intelligence has to offer. RESEARCH IN FOCUS The Digital Disruption in Home Loans Report In a new report, BI Intelligence looks at the fundamental problems dogging the current mortgage process and examines why these flaws are becoming impossible for incumbent mortgage providers to ignore. It also outlines the types of fintechs stepping in to drive innovation in the mortgage space, some current efforts by incumbent banks, and hurdles still standing in the way of large-scale change in the mortgage industry, as well as what can be done about them. Learn More → The Social Video Report In a new report, BI Intelligence examines the strategies of Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and Snap in their quests to usher in a golden age of digital video. The report also anticipates where these platforms are headed to help publishers and brands plan for a probable future. Learn More → The Payments Ecosystem Report In a new report, BI Intelligence explores the digital payments ecosystem today, its growth drivers, and where the industry is headed. It begins by tracing the path of an in-store card payment from processing to settlement across the key stakeholders. That process is central to understanding payments, and has changed slowly in the face of disruption. The report also forecasts growth and defines drivers for key digital payment types through 2021. Finally, it highlights five trends that are changing payments, looking at how disparate factors, such as surprise elections and fraud surges, are sparking change across the ecosystem. Learn More → BI Intelligence Daily is just a preview of BI Intelligence. Become an ALL-ACCESS member to unlock everything BI Intelligence has to offer. BRIEFING HIGHLIGHTS These are the four key takeaways from Twitter's move to test longer tweets Earlier this week, Twitter announced it would begin testing 280-character tweets, a significant increase from its longstanding 140-character limit. These are the four biggest takeaways. Read More → Lemonade shakes up the insurance industry US insurtech Lemonade, which offers renters and homeowners insurance online and via mobile, has announced a new product, Zero Everything, which offers policies with no deductibles. Read More → Apple's Siri ditches Bing for Google Google will replace Microsoft's Bing as Apple's default search engine for Siri on iOS and Spotlight on Mac. Read More → Amazon Music gains in-app Alexa functionality Amazon added the ability for users to access its Alexa voice assistant directly from the Amazon Music app on iOS and Android earlier this week. Read More → ESPN combines TV and streaming viewers ESPN will begin reporting its linear TV and streaming audiences as a single viewership number starting next week to get a more accurate count of its true audience size. Read More → Payment processor Nets acquired for $5.3 billion US private equity firm Hellman & Friedman acquired Denmark-based payment processor Nets for $5.3 billion. Read More → China's longer upgrade cycle is bad news for Apple China's smartphone upgrade market is waning, as the number of consumers who plan to purchase a new smartphone continues to decline, according to a new study by Penguin Intelligence, a Tencent-backed research organization in China. Read More → Instagram breezes past two major milestones Instagram has passed 800 million monthly and 500 million daily users. Furthermore, there are now two million active advertisers on the platform. Read More → Marie Claire and MasterCard team up to revolutionize the brick-and-mortar experience Marie Claire and MasterCard have partnered to open a pop-up shop in New York City, dubbed The Next Big Thing Concept Shop, that features a variety of innovations aimed at revolutionizing the brick-and-mortar shopping journey. Read More → Facebook adds new features to Messenger as competition heats up for business messaging Facebook unveiled three updates to Messenger on Thursday that help to offer more compelling AI-powered experiences within the chat app. Read More → BI Intelligence Daily is just a preview of BI Intelligence. Become an ALL-ACCESS member to unlock everything BI Intelligence has to offer. CHARTS OF THE WEEK Smart speakers are going in the living room and kitchen — for now US consumers are confused about Bitcoin's legality Instagram is the top social media site for luxury retail shoppers BI Intelligence Daily is just a preview of BI Intelligence. Become an ALL-ACCESS member to unlock everything BI Intelligence has to offer. BECOME A MEMBER You can gain access to everything BI Intelligence produces - ALL of our extensive research reports, newsletters, and data - when you claim your BI Intelligence ALL-ACCESS pass. 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