SearchCap: Penguin & link building, PPC leads & social

Below is what happened in search today, as reported on Search Engine Land and from other places across the web. The post SearchCap: Penguin & link building, PPC leads & social appeared first on Search Engine Land.

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Twitter Revises Terms of Service, Privacy Policy

Twitter Friday announced revisions to its terms of service and privacy policy.

The social network announced the changes via tweet (embedded below), and it offered more details in a support post:

We've updated our Terms & Privacy Policy. Check out what's new:
✔️https://t.co/Z9WvxIi0Yt
✔️https://t.co/uVZBuWspC3https://t.co/tSxtVPmlLk

— Twitter (@twitter) September 30, 2016

In our terms of service, we’ve reorganized and simplified the structure, removing sections that are duplicative of the Twitter rules and the privacy policy. We have also made some updates to reflect the international aspects of the service. Some of these changes are only relevant in certain jurisdictions.

In our privacy policy, we’ve added a section with information about our participation in the European Union-U.S. Privacy Shield program. In addition, we’ve made a series of updates to clarify how our various services have evolved over time. In particular, we have clarified what information you provide is public, what information is private and how you can control your information. To that end, we’ve added a new section to provide more detail about your non-public communications, like direct messages. We have also explained that you can have multiple accounts on Twitter, and that we receive information when you use our services even if you are logged out or have not created an account. We have created a new section to consolidate information about how our advertising services work and what information we use for them.

Readers: Thoughts?

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Mobile Game Roundup: Infinite Tanks, Tiny Miners and More

If you’re looking for a new mobile game to play this weekend, there are lots of new options for you to try, including Agatha Christie: The ABC Murders from Microïds and Artefacts Studio. The adventure game is based on the novel by Agatha Christie, and it allows users to become detective Hercule Poirot, on a quest to solve the case of the A.B.C. serial killer.

Next, Disney released Frozen Free Fall: Icy Shot. The level-based puzzle game is similar to Peggle, and it asks users to shoot snowballs at ice formations in the center of the screen.

In addition, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and Open Wager Studios released EXTRA Slot Stars this week. The slot machine game allows users to play on slot machines inspired by television show Extra.

Finally, Ubisoft released Face Up: The Selfie Game. The multiplayer quiz game allows users to take selfies as they act out expressions for other players to guess.

If you’re looking for a different game to play, here’s a look at some of the additional mobile games that were released this week.

Infinite Tanks ($4.99 on iOS) – This tank battle game from Atypical Games allows players to customize their tanks in terms of their engines, bodies, tracks, turrets, guns and more. Users can also change each tank’s paint color. As a player changes a tank’s parts, they may also change the tank’s stats. Users begin with a few tank parts, which are represented by collectible cards, and they can collect additional parts as they play. Infinite Tanks includes a single-player mode as well as multiplayer gameplay. The game features six different gameplay maps. Age of Heroes: Conquest (Free on iOS, Android) – This turn-based role-playing game from 5th Planet Games allows each player to create a team of heroes and defend a kingdom from enemies. Users can recruit more than 45 different heroes for their teams, each with different skills. Users can upgrade their heroes over time, and they can also give them new equipment. In addition to single-player gameplay, Age of Heroes: Conquest includes guilds and player-vs-player events. Two or More (Free on iOS) – This puzzle game from Idea Creator Games challenges players to clear colorful blocks from the board by drawing lines through two or more touching blocks of the same color. While lines can contain 90 degree turns, they can’t be drawn diagonally. In the game’s classic mode, users are challenged to earn the required number of points in each stage to move on. Elsewhere, the game’s Five Steps mode also challenges players to earn the required number of points in each stage, but users can only draw five lines per stage. Finally, the game’s Flash 60 mode challenges players to earn as many points as possible in 60 seconds. Banner Saga 2 ($4.99 on iOS, Android) – This strategy role-playing game from Stoic and Versus Evil is the sequel to The Banner Saga. In the game, players will lead their viking clans on a journey, and they must make “leadership decisions” to help their characters survive. The game allows users to compete in turn-based battles, and users can level up their characters’ stats over time. If a user has played The Banner Saga, they can bring their story and choices from the first game into Banner Saga 2. Players also have the option to start from scratch with “pre-set character options.” numDance (Free on iOS) – This number puzzle game from Pine Entertainment asks users to earn as many points as possible in each game by tapping on number tiles to cause adjacent matching number tiles to merge and form larger numbers. Specifically, on each turn, the player can tap on a tile containing the number one or the number two. When a user taps on a number, the number is cleared from the board, and any adjacent matching number tiles will merge and become the next number. Users have the ability to create chain reactions and clear large sections of the board on each move. After each move, any blank tiles are filled in with the number one or the number two, and players can take another turn. Games end when players run out of valid moves. In addition to this original gameplay mode, users can also try the “Adventure of 2” mode. In this mode, the number one has been removed, and the game board will become larger as players create larger numbers. Election Warz (Free on iOS) – This zombie shooter from Blue Angel Games allows players to help Hillary Clinton, Donald Trump, Bernie Sanders and other politicians defend the White House from zombie candidates. In addition to playing as candidates from the 2016 U.S. presidential election season, users can also unlock characters such as George Washington and Abraham Lincoln using in-game currency or real money, depending on the character. During each level, players can move their characters and aim at enemies by sliding their fingers around the left and right sides of the screen, respectively. Users can also activate power-ups while playing by shooting at them. Some power-ups temporarily give players stronger weapons. Instant Regret – “He Said / She Said” Election 2016 (Free on iOS) – This multiplayer word game from Blue Loop allows users to fill-in-the-blank in sentences related to the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Users can play with friends or strangers, and each game can support four to 11 players. In each round, players can type their own responses to fill in the blank in the current sentence. An anonymous judge is randomly assigned for each round, and they will be able to choose the submission they like best. The first player to reach seven points wins the game. Left R Right (Free on iOS, Android) – This endless survival game from Must Play Games challenges players to swipe left and right to help a shape turn around corners on an endless path. Users can collect diamonds as they play, and they can spend diamonds to continue playing when they fall off of the path. In addition, users can spend diamonds to unlock new color themes for the game. Color themes can also be unlocked by earning specific scores while playing. Tiny Miners (Free on iOS, Android) – This level-based mining game from About Fun allows players to mine for coins and crafting materials by swiping to move their miners left and right as they automatically dig into the earth. Players will need to watch out for obstacles such as rocks and bombs while playing. As players collect crafting materials such as logs, light bulbs and candles, they can use these items to create new gear for their miners. In addition, the game allows users to complete quests to earn extra coins.

In addition to these new releases, here are some of the previously released games that have come to new platforms.

Final Fantasy Brave Exvius from Square Enix – Free on Amazon; previously released for free on iOS and Android.

Looty Dungeon from Yodo1 and Taco Illuminati – Free on Android; previously released for free on iOS.

Micro Machines from Chillingo – Free on Android; previously released for free on iOS.

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What’s new and cool at Google from SMX East 2016

At this year's SMX East, Googlers Jerry Dischler and Babak Pahlavan shared recent updates and what's coming to AdWords and Google Analytics. Columnist Mark Traphagen was on hand to cover the highlights. The post What’s new and cool at Google from SMX East 2016 appeared first on Search Engine...

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Facebook Plans Major Campaign to Promote Facebook Live (Report)

Facebook is planning a major campaign backing its Facebook Live livestreaming feature, including television spots and billboards, Deepa Seetharaman of The Wall Street Journal reported.

According to Seetharaman, the social network’s in-house ad studio, The Factory, created the campaign with the aim of encouraging more “regular” Facebook users to try out Facebook Live, which has exploded in popularity with media companies, publishers, celebrities and public figures.

The campaign will feature clips of live videos explaining how the feature works, a source familiar with the effort told Seetharaman.

Readers: Are you surprised that Facebook is taking the rare step of turning to TV ads to boost awareness of Facebook Live?

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Up close at SMX: Using paid search and social together

Columnist Kristi Kellogg recaps a session at SMX East that dives into how marketers can integrate their paid search and social efforts for better marketing results. The post Up close at SMX: Using paid search and social together appeared first on Search Engine Land.

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My Day: Facebook Messenger’s Take on Snapchat Stories, Instagram Stories?

Is it time for the Facebook Messenger version of Snapchat Stories and Instagram Stories?

Reader Franciszek Georgiew, founder of Poland-based social media agency Social Tigers, shared the screenshots below with SocialTimes of a new Messenger feature called My Day.

According to Georgiew, My Day appears over the recent conversations section of Messenger, displaying tiles atop the screen with topics to post on and “days” of users’ friends.

Swiping up opens the camera, and users can prepare and curate their content, which remains live for 24 hours, Georgiew said, adding that the feature basically mimics Snapchat Stories and Instagram Stories, but with no filters or memories (although older photos from users’ camera rolls can be included).

Stickers are prominent within My Day, as Georgiew said large groups of stickers and themes cover almost the entire screen, labeled as “Your Feelings.”

Georgiew shared his opinion of My Day:

(The user interface) is really poor, on every level–nothing like Instagram Stories. I think Facebook is trying to hijack some Snapchat users with both Instagram and Messenger stories and stop the growth of the application. Looking at the stickers, it’s 100 percent targeted to younger demographics–really full of colors, big, noisy, really invasive.

SocialTimes reached out to Facebook for details, and this post will be updated when the company responds.

Readers: What was your initial reaction to this potential My Day feature for Facebook Messenger?

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Why call tracking helps improve PPC lead generation account performance

Columnist Jeff Baum explains that when properly set up, call tracking can help you both measure the value of your PPC campaigns and optimize them for better ROI. The post Why call tracking helps improve PPC lead generation account performance appeared first on Search Engine Land.

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