TECH

Protest-Related Inventory Flies Off App Store Shelves

Like we saw in quarantine, app download patterns can be reshaped by major global events. Now, it's the protests over police brutality and racial inequality that are shaking up the App Store. 

These apps are doing big numbers

Citizen has been downloaded 234,000 times since May 25, according to App Annie. 

• What Citizen does: conveys location-based safety alerts in real time by funneling 911 reports to users, who can also comment and post footage. Protesters and others are probably using it to get immediate updates on demonstrations. 

Signal is an encrypted messaging, calling, and video app; users are drawn to its extra layer of security. It was downloaded a record 37,000 times last weekend, and on Tuesday it became one of the top 10 most downloaded social apps on iOS for the very first time. 

• Not only is Signal end-to-end encrypted, it can’t turn over user data to law enforcement...because it doesn’t collect user data. 
• Yesterday, Signal announced a new tool that allows users to blur faces in the photos they post. Though it doesn’t completely anonymize photo subjects, the feature boosts the app’s privacy-first brand. 

Twitter overtook rivals Facebook and Instagram, which it usually lags, in downloads earlier this week. On Wednesday, it smashed its previous records for both downloads (677,000) and daily active users (40 million). Why? There may be no better place to get instantaneous news updates.

Apptopia

The top five police scanner apps also saw a 125% spike in downloads last weekend compared to the weekend before, per Apptopia.

Zoom out: These apps have seen their share of “hey-hey, ho-ho”s. Participants in last year’s Hong Kong protests used Signal and its U.K. competitor, Telegram. And protesters relied on Twitter for organizing and information-sharing in the Arab Spring and Ferguson uprisings of 2011 and 2014, respectively. 

One app with a more complicated relationship to the protests? Instagram. When millions of users posted solid black squares on Tuesday and tagged #BlackLivesMatter in solidarity with protesters, they actually crowded out protest communications from organizers.

CSR

Match That

As more corporations pledge to fight racial inequality, consumers are demanding they show their receipts. That pressure is moving the needle: Over the last week, companies pledged millions in the form of donations, portions of their profits, and, increasingly, matching employee donations. 

In a public letter yesterday, Apple CEO Tim Cook said his company would do more to fight systemic racism and injustice. Apple will donate to nonprofit groups including the Equal Justice Initiative and, for the month of June, match $2 for every $1 employees give. 

• Other companies offering double matching include EA, Visa, Micron, and VC giant Sequoia Capital. Companies with 1:1 matching include Google, Disney, Airbnb, and Spotify (up to $10 million). 
• Some employees whose donations will be matched are encouraging others to funnel contributions through them to amplify the $$$ amount. 

Matching isn’t just for the Fortune 500. Social media users, including celebrities, have been posting screenshots of their donations and challenging friends and followers to match. Those efforts helped the Minnesota Freedom Fund, a Minneapolis-based bail fund, raise $20 million in just five days.

LUXURY

LVMH Might Have Le Buyer’s Remorse

It’s time for an update on French luxury conglomerate LVMH’s pending $16.2 billion acquisition of jeweler Tiffany, which has apparently hit the skids.

LVMH is reportedly trying to restart negotiations as 1) the luxury market suffers from a loss of boutique shoppers and 2) some protests have led to looting and vandalism in upscale retail areas.

• Renegotiating would be tough—LVMH did sign the dotted line on a legal contract. In M&A, those usually include firm “no take-back” clauses. 
• Tiffany can reportedly back out for a $575 million fee, but LVMH would have to go to court. 

We haven't heard much from LVMH, but it confirmed yesterday it won’t buy Tiffany shares on the open market.

• Why that matters: LVMH agreed to buy Tiffany in November at a price they’re both familiar with—high. Buying public Tiffany shares, now that their price has dropped during the pandemic, would be one way to push it down.  

Looking ahead...one potential workaround is Tiffany’s debt pile, the FT reports. If it misses a payment, that would give LVMH leeway to renegotiate, but that’s not looking likely: Tiffany is still issuing dividends, so it's in at least reasonable financial health. 

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GAMBLING

"Nice Hand, Bro. Er—I Mean Elbow"

At 12:01am yesterday, aka the middle of the afternoon Las Vegas time, Nevada’s casinos were allowed to open for the first time since March 17. 

• The grand reopening was marked by (what else?) a water fountain show at the Bellagio. MGM Resorts International also joined the festivities by ringing the opening bell at the NYSE. 

Zoom out: The pandemic has disproportionately harmed tourism-dependent states like Nevada, which hit a record-high 28.2% unemployment rate in April. So casinos and the businesses that support them were desperate to get back to work. 

So what was the first day like? Let’s just say you wouldn’t know there’s a pandemic. Videos circulated online showed large crowds with many patrons not wearing masks (guests are encouraged, but not required to wear them; employees are).

Bottom line, per Morning Brew COO Austin Rief: The pent-up demand for casinos could be a “bullish signal” for related industries like airlines, cruises, theme parks, and more.

+ While we're here: The huge tech trade show CES will take place in Vegas in 2021, say organizers. Emerging Tech Brew's Ryan Duffy explains why that matters. 

QUIZ

Quiz and Tell

How closely did you read the Brew this week? Take our news quiz to find out. If you get 0/5 we expect a written apology. 

WHAT ELSE IS BREWING

• Elon Musk on Twitter: “Time to break up Amazon. Monopolies are wrong!”
• Medical journal The Lancet retracted a study it published that said the anti-malaria drug hydroxychloroquine raised the risk of death and heart side effects in COVID-19 patients.
• American Airlines stock flew 41% after it said it would add significantly more flights in July.
• Slack reported strong but not Zoom-like revenue growth this past quarter, and shares fell as much as 17% after hours. 
• ZoomInfo (no relation) soared in the first tech IPO of the coronavirus-era.
• The number of new coronavirus cases is growing faster than ever globally.

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BREW'S BETS

On-the-ground reporters: We scoured Twitter to find journalists who are covering protests in...

• Houston and San Antonio, TX: Marcelino Benito and Jaleesa Irizarry
• Washington, DC: Hunter Walker
• NYC: Mike Marza
• LA: Veronica Miracle
• Oakland, CA: Ericka Cruz Guevarra

Paddle out: If you don’t know what it means to get pitted, you might not know that a “paddle out” is when a group of surfers gathers in the big blue to honor someone who has died. Recently, surfers have started gathering in solidarity with protesters to honor George Floyd. Here’s an explainer from Surfer Magazine, plus images from Encinitas, Maui, and Santa Monica.

For 4pm today when your brain isn't working: Play this game called "Can't Unsee."

FRIDAY PUZZLE

This puzzle dates back to the eighth century, but it's no less weird today:

Two men marry each other’s mothers. What is the relationship between their sons?

FRIDAY PUZZLE ANSWER

They are uncle/nephew to each other. (H/t The Guardian)

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