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81% of VC firms don’t have a single black investor — BLCK VC plans on changing that

Venture capital has a diversity problem . BLCK VC , a new organization founded by Storm Ventures associate Frederik Groce and NEA associate Sydney Sykes to connect, engage and advance black venture capitalists, is ready for a new era in the industry. Their mission: Turn 200 black investors into 400 black investors by 2024. “We think of ourselves as an organization formed by black VCs for blacks VCs to increase the representation of black investors,” Sykes told TechCrunch. “You can look around and say well ‘I know five black VCs,’ but you can also say this firm does not have a single black VC, they may not even have a single underrepresented minority … We want to make firms reckon with the fact that there is a racial diversity problem; there is a lack of black VCs and every firm should really care about it.” BLCK VC has been at work since the beginning of 2018, building and expanding a network of black investors in the San Francisco area, Los Angeles and New York. They seek to provide a...

IAC reorg makes Vimeo and DotDash standalone segments, adds new acquisition Robokiller

IAC is changing the way its business is organized, the company reported during its Q3 2018 earnings on Wednesday. The company’s video platform Vimeo and DotDash ( previously About.com ) will become their own separate segments at IAC starting in Q4. That means they’ve reached the point their revenues can stand on their own. The company  beat on third quarter revenue expectations  in the quarter with a revenue increase to $1.1 billion from $828.4 million a year ago, ahead of FactSet analyst expectations of $1.07 billion. However, net income was $145.8 million, or $1.49 a share, down from $179.6 million, or $1.79 a share, a year earlier. The drop was attributed to a tax benefit that it received in the year-ago period. Vimeo’s revenue growth in the quarter increased 29 percent, and it grew its subscriber base by 10 percent to 932,000, IAC said. “The business has the scale and potential to now stand on its own, and we want to begin to put a spotlight on it,” said IAC CEO Joey Levin, in a ...

Spotify debuts an analytics service for music publishers

Spotify’s artist dashboard already allows musicians and their managers a way to track the success of their tracks and album releases, as well as view other data about their fans. Now, the streaming music service is debuting its first analytics tool aimed at music publishers. The new tool is launching into beta this morning, and will allow publishers to track daily streaming stats, including playlist performance, and view data across all the songwriters on their roster. “We know that there are usually many more people involved in the creation of your favorite song than just the artist whose face appears on the billboard,” explains the company, in its announcement . “Spotify Publishing Analytics is the first analytics tool from a music streaming service built specifically for publishers, so they can better serve their songwriters.” The platform was built in collaboration with partners, including BMG and Reservoir, who offered statements of their own about its launch. It’s designed to of...

White House shares manipulated Infowars video to justify CNN press ban

Read this slowly: The White House’s press secretary has tweeted a manipulated video shared by the editor-at-large of conspiracy theorist outlet Infowars to attempt to justify its decision to suspend the press credentials of CNN’s chief white house correspondent. CNN’s Jim Acosta had his press pass pulled by the White House earlier today after press secretary Sarah Sanders claimed he had “plac[ed] his hands on a young woman just trying to do her job”. Acosta disputes this. The journalist had being trying to continue asking president Trump questions during a contentious exchange at a White House press briefing. During this exchange Trump cut over him verbally — saying “that’s enough” — at which point a female White House intern moved towards Acosta and attempted to take the microphone out of his hands. The journalist dodged and then blocked several attempts to take the microphone by using his arm and the side of his hand against the intern’s arm, addressing her with “pardon me ma’am” ...

Sling TV’s growth further slows in Q3, but still leads rivals in terms of subscribers

It appears Dish’s live TV streaming service, Sling TV, has been impacted by the increased competition from rivals like YouTube TV, Hulu with Live TV, AT&T’s DirecTV Now and others. Sling TV still leads the market with 2.37 million subscribers for its TV service aimed at cord cutters, Dish reported in its Q3 2018 earnings, but its momentum is slowing. In the first quarter of the year, Sling TV added 91,000 subscribers, followed by 41,000 in Q2 and now just 26,000 additions in Q3 , according to Dish’s earnings results  out today. That allows it to retain its first-place position, but that lead may not last much longer. AT&T’s DirecTV Now had been catching up to Sling TV in recent months, leading some to believe it would surpass Sling TV by year-end. Launched two years ago , DirecTV Now added 49,000 subscribers in its Q3, it reported in October — much worse than the 247,000 added last year, when the service was newer and promos were more plentiful. But its price hikes , tec...