Pink's Bottom Line on Media, Money and Sports
Top apps, mortgage rates and the NBA three-point shooting contest
In today’s newsletter, I discuss the top grossing non-gaming apps worldwide in February, rising mortgage rates and the NBA three-point shooting contest.
MEDIA: Top Apps in February
Two video apps — TikTok and YouTube — grossed the most money worldwide among all non-gaming apps last month, according to data from Sensor Tower, an app data and research company.
Notably, China accounted for the vast majority of revenue generated by TikTok while roughly half of YouTube’s revenue was from the United States.
Pink's Bottom LineIn fact, among the top ten grossing non-gaming apps worldwide last month, seven were video, video sharing or live streaming apps, according to Sensor Tower.
That suggests that video monetization on mobile devices has emerged as a major revenue driver for companies around the world.
While gaming apps generate huge mobile revenue, video related apps are becoming more and more important in the global mobile marketplace.
MONEY: Mortgage Rates
Mortgage rates, which have been hovering at historically low levels recently, are now on the rise.
According to Freddie Mac, the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, the average 30-year mortgage stands at 3.02% this week compared to 2.97% last week.
The average 30-year mortgage rate stood at 2.65% in early January, according to Freddie Mac data.
Pink's Bottom LineWhile that mortgage rate has climbed, it is still below the rate for the same week in 2020 when the average 30-year stood at 3.29%, according to Freddie Mac data.
As such, mortgage rates — assuming they don’t move too much higher — shouldn’t be much of a drag on the overall housing market.
That’s crucial particularly now as spring is usually the traditionally strongest sales season of the year for housing.
SPORTS: NBA Three-Point Shooting Contest
It’s NBA All-Star weekend beginning tomorrow, and it will be a muted celebration compared to previous years because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Still, there will be the traditional all-star game itself with a dunk contest at halftime plus there will also be a skills contest and a three-point shooting contest that will take place before the game.
It’s the three-point shooting contest that intrigues me the most as Golden State’s Stephen Curry, arguably the greatest three-point shooter of all time, will be participating.
Pink's Bottom LineCurry currently has the most made three-point shots of any NBA player this season with 169. Damian Lillard of Portland is in second place with 138.
While Lillard isn’t in the three-point shooting contest this year, Curry will face other top NBA players in the event including Devin Booker of the Phoenix Suns, Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics and Donovan Mitchell of the Utah Jazz.
Whether or not Curry wins is immaterial — it will just be good to see the best three-point shooter ever participating.
Jeremy Pink is currently COO of Geniecast, a leading virtual content and experience company. He is the former CEO of private-equity backed Broadcast Sports International where he helped lead the company to a successful sale and exit during his tenure there. He is also a former CNBC television executive in New York, London and Singapore.
The information contained in this communication is strictly for general informational and entertainment purposes and is not meant to be construed as financial, investment, tax, or legal advice. This communication is not a solicitation to buy or sell any securities. I am not a financial advisor or offering professional advice of any kind. Users should not act upon the content or information found within this communication without first seeking professional advice appropriate for their individual situation. Decisions based on information contained in this communication are the sole responsibility of the user, and use of this communication and its contents constitutes an explicit understanding and acceptance of the foregoing disclaimers.
(Newsletter Editor: Karina Pink)