7 Trending Topics on DisCo in 2018
DisCo had a great year in 2018 and is already working on more tech coverage and analysis for 2019. Below are some of the topics we covered that were popular with readers, and that we expect will continue to draw attention this year.
(1) Amazon and retail. Two of DisCo’s top articles for 2018 involved myths about Amazon and retail. Glenn Manishin’s debunking of the so-called ‘retail apocalypse’ and a dissection of claims that Amazon’s retail operations lose money were widely read. It’s not surprising; as one of Americans’ favorite brands, Amazon news attracts attention.
(2) The Oracle Java litigation. DisCo’s extended coverage of the long-running copyright case continued this year, with readers taking particular interest in Jon Band’s critique of the latest Federal Circuit opinion. The case continues to be significant, as the Supreme Court will be asked to hear it in 2019.
(3) Content moderation. DisCo’s Q&A with Prof. Annemarie Bridy was the site’s second-most popular article of the year. DisCo’s coverage of Section 230 continues to interest readers, who want to know how online services navigate between providing widely accessible tools to communicate while restricting dangerous or inappropriate content.
(4) FTC hearings. DisCo’s on-the-ground coverage of the FTC’s ongoing hearings was widely viewed by competition experts. A running list of all the hearings in the series is here.
(5) Innovation in Europe. DisCo has increasingly covered tech policy news in Europe. One particularly popular post this year was on the successful app economy in Europe, while another was on the European Commission’s disappointing attack on open source software.
(6) Explainers and infographics. DisCo explainers on how ad dollars are spent and social commerce outlined new and thriving parts of the digital economy.
(7) Copyright disputes. DisCo’s reporting on other copyright cases, from the popular ‘Stairway to Heaven’ case to more niche disputes about linking and embedding tweets, also attracted readership.