Friday's economy stories
Amazon's video app may finally come to Apple TV
While you can find many Amazon services on many Apple products, one thing you haven't been able to get is Amazon's video service on Apple TV.
But, according to Recode, the two companies are in talks that could see Amazon Video arrive on Apple TV as early as this summer.
The video battle has been particularly contentious between Apple and Amazon, with Amazon having years ago stopped selling rival streaming devices from Apple and Google in favor of its own Fire TV line. At the time, Amazon noted it didn't want to sell TV hardware that didn't support its video service.
Winners and Losers: It's hard to say without being privy to the negotiations. Apple often gets a 30 percent cut of digital goods sold on its iOS hardware, but it's unclear if different economics might be at play here.

Artificial intelligence is coming for law firms
Chances are if you're a paralegal or a junior lawyer entering the field, you'd rather spend your time doing other things than scanning documents for clients' names or other mundane information. New artificial intelligence systems designed specifically for law firms can help remedy that situation by automating some of these lower-level jobs.
Why it matters: Although some entry-level paralegal jobs could be replaced by automation, AI systems cannot replicate the creativity, empathy, and argumentative reasoning required of a lawyer — so your lawyer won't be replaced by a robot any time soon. Furthermore, these AI advancements could open new, more fulfilling opportunities for aspiring lawyers to break into the field in a role that is more closely aligned to what they would do in the court room or when working with clients.
What's next: Deloitte predicts 116,000 legal jobs will be lost to automation in the next 20 years.

Bo Dietl admits Fox hired him to discredit female accusers
Former police detective, Fox News contributor and hopeful mayoral candidate Bo Dietl admitted Thursday that he was hired by Fox News to dig up information on Gretchen Carlson and Andrea Mackris that would discredit their sexual harassment allegations.
Dietl told the WSJ that he had an investigator eavesdrop on Mackris' conversations in an effort to show she wasn't "under duress" from her alleged harassment.
Flashback: Former Fox News anchor Gretchen Carlson was given $20 million last summer to settle her sexual harassment claims — leading to Roger Ailes' ouster. And back in 2004, former producer Andrea Mackis received a $9 million settlement in her suit against Bill O'Reilly.
Timing: Dietl's interview with the WSJ comes as he is under investigation for his work with Ailes. But prior to the investigation, Dietl repeatedly denied ever doing PI work for the network.

Snap's ad product to compete with Facebook
Snapchat has rolled out a new ad product called Snapchat Ad Manager that, starting in June, will let all marketers buy ads on Snapchat and monitor them through an all-in-one digital interface. The new product makes it easier for ad buyers to buy ads quickly and at scale. They will be able to manage their ad creative and targeting. With a new dashboard, they will also be able to test their ads on a phone to see what they will look like in the app.
Why it matters: These new capabilities will lower the barrier of entry to buy Snap ads, making it easier for small and medium-sized businesses to work with the platform. Facebook-owned Instagram, which has been eating at Snapchat's user growth since launching a Stories feature, has seen enormous success using similar tools to lure small business advertisers.
Walmart beefs up e-commerce to compete with Amazon
Bloomberg Businessweek cover, "Can Wal-Mart's Expensive New E-Commerce Operation Compete With Amazon? A recent acquisition spree including Jet.com gives the retail giant much-needed digital chops," by Brad Stone and Matthew Boyle:
Wal-Mart's biggest challenge is that its primary rival isn't standing still. An estimated half of all U.S. households subscribe to Amazon Prime ... And Amazon currently takes more than $5 out of every $10 spent buying stuff online ...In Seattle, Amazon is also trying out concepts, such as the Amazon Go store, where customers are automatically charged for items they pick from shelves without going through a checkout line.

3 landmines in the GOP's epic health care gamble
House Republicans — promising that they really, really have the votes this time — plan to rush into a health-reform vote this afternoon without waiting for a Congressional Budget Office estimate of how the updated bill will affect estimates of the costs and impact.
The WashPost warns: "[I]ndependent analysts remained skeptical that the new proposal would fully address the needs of at-risk patients who receive coverage guarantees under the Affordable Care Act."
With the House in recess next week, neither end of Pennsylvania Avenue wants to take a chance on delaying the vote, which would give President Trump his first big legislative victory. The Journal says a win would "redeem" Ryan, and The Times says it'd be "redemption for both Mr. Ryan and Mr. Trump."

The kings of the internet expand their dominance
Earnings calls and industry reports this week show that Google and Facebook, the two largest advertising companies in the digital ecosystem, are thriving, despite controversies that have raised questioned about how safe their platforms are for advertisers.
- Google's ad revenue grew 18.8% to $21.41 billion last quarter, mostly due to YouTube video ads and mobile search ads
- Facebook revenue beat expectations for the first quarter, with, $7.86 billion in ad revenue, up 51% from the prior year, which is especially positive since the company has continually warned investors that ad revenue would "come down meaningfully" beginning in the middle of this year due to Newsfeed ad saturation.
- Google and Facebook took 89% of all digital ad growth in 2016, according to the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB)
Why it matters: Despite controversial content on their platforms upsetting users, these numbers suggest marketers are willing to take a risk on using imperfect technologies to market their brands, because it's convenient and effective.
Here's why buyers say they aren't deterred: Axios spoke with several ad buyers and agency executives, most of which offered similar thoughts on how Google and Facebook can be useful and necessary, despite some of the risks.
- Users aren't dropping, so ad potential is still there: "At the end of the day, if brand marketers choose to opt out, their competitors won't, and this creates an interesting dynamic," Unified CEO Jason Beckerman said. "As we just saw with Facebook earnings, the audience's attention on these platforms is only growing, so even if there is fake news, there are folks who are reading it who also have disposable income and make purchases. Brands cannot overlook that."
- The platforms drive results: "Google captures individuals actively searching for keywords and phrases relevant to a specific topic or issue, which is handy for intercepting someone looking for the information, product or service a brand has to offer," says Christi Burnum, VP and Group Manager, Digital Paid Media at Ketchum. "Regarding Facebook, there is an expectation from consumers nowadays that they can have a relationship with their favorite brands, and social media is where this engagement is taking place."
- Clients aren't as concerned as you'd think: "We tell our clients that Facebook in-stream advertising and YouTube pre-roll is at the top of the digital advertising pyramid," says Brian Donahue, CEO of CRAFT Digital in DC. "Despite recent controversies, there's been no decline in audiences and engagements. The era of advertisers having great concern over adjacent content is behind us."








