• In this exclusive clip from Wednesday's episode of The CW's "Riverdale," Veronica listens to her father, Hiram, when he gives her advice on how to best Elio during her casino night.
• Hiram warns Veronica that Elio is going to cheat her out of money, and he tells her to hire a card dealer named Johnny Goldwater to help her beat Elio at a game of blackjack.
• Johnny Goldwater is played by Jesse Goldwater, the son of Archie Comics CEO Jon Goldwater. 
• "Being able to step into 'Riverdale' was truly a dream come true," Jesse told INSIDER. "Seeing first hand this incredible world come to life and watching everyone in action was simply a magical experience. Thank you so much to [creator and showrunner Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa] for letting me be a part of this. Hopefully Johnny Goldwater can repay the favor and provide exactly the good luck charm Veronica needs!"

• Read all of our "Riverdale" coverage here.

• "Riverdale" airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET on The CW. 
• Watch the clip below.

Visit INSIDER's homepage for more.

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NOW WATCH: 7 places you can't find on Google Maps

This is a preview of a research report from BI Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service. To learn more about BI Intelligence, click here.

Social media is becoming increasingly influential in shoppers' purchasing decisions. In fact, the top 500 retailers earned an estimated $6.5 billion from social shopping in 2017, up 24% from 2016, according to BI Intelligence estimates.

In addition to influencing purchase decisions, social media is a large part of the product discovery and research phase of the shopping journey. And with more and more retailers offering quick access to their sites via social media pages, and shoppable content becoming more popular, it's likely that social media will play an even larger role in e-commerce. 

In this report, BI Intelligence examines the advantages and disadvantages of each platform, and reviews case studies of successful campaigns that helped boost conversion and increase brand awareness. Additionally, we explore how retailers can bring social aspects into their own sites and apps to capitalize on consumers' desire for social shopping experiences.

Here are some key takeaways from the report:

• Social media is becoming more influential in all aspects of the purchasing journey.
• Facebook is the clear winner in social commerce, with its huge user base and wide-ranging demographics.
• However, retailers should have a presence on every platform their target market is on. Each platform will require a different strategy for retailers to resonate with its users.
• Retailers can also benefit from bringing social aspects in-house. They can do this by building their own in-house social networks, or by embedding social media posts into their sites.

In full, the report: 

• Provides an overview of the top social media platforms — Facebook, YouTube, Instagram — that retailers should be using, the demographics of each platform, as well as their individual advantages and disadvantages. 
• Reviews tools recently developed by these platforms that help retailers create engaging content.
• Outlines case studies and specific strategies to use on each platform.
• Examines how retailers like Sephora, Amazon, and Poshmark are capitalizing on consumers' affinity for social shopping by creating their own in-house social networks.

Interested in getting the full report? Here are two ways to access it:

1. Subscribe to an All-Access pass to BI Intelligence and gain immediate access to this report and over 100 other expertly researched reports. As an added bonus, you'll also gain access to all future reports and daily newsletters to ensure you stay ahead of the curve and benefit personally and professionally. >>Learn More Now
2. Purchase & download the full report from our research store. >> Purchase & Download Now

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• Amazon's cargo planes are poised to take market share from UPS and FedEx, Morgan Stanley said.
• The online retailer had leased 40 Boeing 767 cargo planes and invested aggressively in its first air-cargo hub.
• Amazon's air-delivery system could lead to as much as a combined 10% drop in revenue for UPS and FedEx.
• Watch UPS, FedEx, and Amazon trade live.

Amazon's cargo planes are poised to take market share from the logistics giants UPS and FedEx, Morgan Stanley says.

"The market is missing the risk Amazon Air poses to UPS/FDX growth," a group of Morgan Stanley analysts led by Ravi Shanker said Tuesday. 

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Why you shouldn't be afraid to fly, according to a pilot with over 20 years of experience

• Barbara Corcoran says she loves business partnerships between people with different skill sets.
• When she's trying to figure out if a partnership will work on "Shark Tank," Corcoran simply asks contestants, "What do you do?"
• She said her most successful investments on "Shark Tank" support teams with opposite yet complementary talents. 

Barbara Corcoran is known for her extroverted persona and sometimes edgy advice— but one of her most successful business partnerships was with a particularly quiet woman named Esther Kaplan.

"She's the most conservative person you ever want to meet," Corcoran said at IGNITION, Business Insider's flagship media and technology event. "You almost couldn't even hear her talk. That’s how quiet she was in her manner and the way she demonstrated herself."

But Corcoran quickly saw that Kaplan had just about everything Corcoran needed as she built her own business.

"I was able to recognize she was my opposite," Corcoran continued. "She was great at file systems, personnel systems, computers, finance, legal. Everything that I sucked at. And I was great at marketing, recruiting, brainstorming, PR, the bullcrap area of business. And she hated it. So, we were perfect partners."

Read more:'What the hell were we thinking?': Startup founders who landed a $55,000 deal on 'Shark Tank' nearly missed their big break

Opposites attract, and in Corcoran's case, they helped make for excellent business partnerships. Corcoran has taken that lesson from her real estate mogul days as the founder of The Corcoran Group — which she sold in 2001 for $66 million — to her present role as a judge on reality TV show "Shark Tank."

To figure out if potential investors have that ideal mix of talents, Corcoran simply asks, "What do you do?"

When she asks that deceptively simple question, Corcoran is trying to figure out whether or not the contestants contribute different yet complementary talents to the business. 

"You can start to size up as to whether they're compatible partners with opposite skill sets," Corcoran said at IGNITION. 

Ultimately, as she's noted previously, Corcoran said her most successful Shark Tank investments have been partnerships — like Cousins Maine Lobster, in which Corcoran invested $15,000 in 2012. Today, the food truck business has restaurants and locales nationwide. 

"It's almost like two for the price of one," Corcoran said at IGNITION. "I'm paying the same money, getting the same stock, but I'm getting two great entrepreneurs instead of one. My odds of winning are much better."

SEE ALSO: Shark Tank star Barbara Corcoran reveals how getting dumped for her secretary and sending 1 gutsy email helped turn her into a business mogul

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NOW WATCH: There's so much CO2 in the atmosphere that planting trees can no longer save us

• Meghan Markle reportedly had a secret meeting with Michelle Obama while the former first lady was in London Monday night.
• A friend of the Duchess of Sussex told the Evening Standard that the two discussed shared causes, such as supporting and empowering women.
• Obama has canceled the rest of her European tour dates to attend former President George H.W. Bush's funeral in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday.

The Obamas have long been friends of the British Royal family, especially when it comes to Prince William and Prince Harry.

So it's perhaps no surprise that Harry's new wife, Meghan Markle, met with former first lady Michelle Obama while she was in London for her book tour on Monday.

A friend of the Duchess of Sussex told the Evening Standard that Meghan "had a long private audience with Michelle" after Obama gave a sold-out speech at the Royal Festival Hall.

Read more: The Queen thinks royal protocol is 'rubbish,' according to Michelle Obama

The friend said the two discussed shared causes such as girls' education, as well as pregnant Markle's impending motherhood.

The palace confirmed that Markle attended Obama's talk in a private capacity, but released no other details to the newspaper.

Obama was scheduled to make two more stops in Europe to publicize her new memoir, "Becoming," but she canceled those events after former President George H.W. Bush died on Friday.

She will be attending the 41st president's funeral in Washington, D.C. along with her husband.

• Read more about Michelle Obama and Meghan Markle:
• Michelle Obama says Meghan Markle should not 'be in a hurry to do anything' when it comes to her new royal life
• Michelle Obama says even she still sometimes feels like a fraud: 'It doesn't go away, that feeling that you shouldn't take me that seriously'
• 25 things we learned from Michelle Obama's new memoir 'Becoming'

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: There's so much CO2 in the atmosphere that planting trees can no longer save us

Former President George H.W. Bush died last Friday at the age of 94. 

Bush was widely respected for his lifelong dedication to public service and calm, quiet demeanor. 

Over the course of his long, distinguished life, Bush served his country in an array of capacities. He was a war hero, US congressman, diplomat, CIA director, and vice president in the years before he ascended to the highest office in the land. 

Here are some of the more striking images as the nation remembers its 41st president. 

Former President George H.W. Bush died on November 30 at the age of 94.

The nation is remembering him as a lifelong public servant and dedicated family man.

Bush's service dog, Sully, was among the first to mourn her owner's passing in the days leading up to his funeral.

• Kohl's is being hailed as a winner of the retail apocalypse as other department stores like Sears struggle.
• Comparable sales were up 2.5% at Kohl's in the third quarter.
• Part of why it's doing so well is thanks to the changes it's making to stores, like adding pickup lockers and selling Amazon devices. 
• We visited Kohl's and saw why it has been so successful lately.

Kohl's is thriving as other department stores struggle. 

In November, Kohl's reported that comparable sales were up 2.5% in the third quarter of 2018. Meanwhile, other department stores like Sears and JCPenney have been struggling through crippling sales declines.

One major advantage that Kohl's has over other department stores is that nine out of 10 Kohl's stores are in suburban strip malls rather than enclosed shopping malls, so it isn't as strongly effected by declining foot traffic to malls. Kohl's has about 1,100 stores.

The low-price department store has also been benefiting from a disappearing middle class and a higher demand for budget options — two factors that have been hurting more high-end department stores.

Kohl's has been making some major changes to its stores. In March, the company announced a plan to bring the discount grocery chain Aldi to 10 of its stores in a pilot test. 

"This quarter, we launched two pilot stores where we are testing a new customer service center concept, that includes a centralized checkout, a new impulse merchandising approach, self-checkout, new self-service kiosks and buy online, pick up in-store lockers," CEO Michelle Gass said in the company's third-quarter earnings call.

The department-store chain has also expanded its partnership with Amazon and is now accepting returns from the e-commerce giant in about 100 stores. Kohl's has tripled the amount of Amazon pop-up shops inside Kohl's from 10 to 30 stores, and it will continue selling Amazon-branded products in all stores to help drive traffic.

We visited a Kohl's store in Jersey City, New Jersey, and saw for ourselves why the retailer's changes are helping it thrive:

SEE ALSO: We shopped at Kohl's and Burlington to see which was a better store, and there was a clear winner

Unlike most Kohl's stores, the location we visited in Jersey City, New Jersey, was in a shopping mall.

Menswear was at the front of the store. Kohl's carries name brands like Under Armour, Adidas, and Nike in its stores.

Kohl's prices are generally inexpensive to begin with, and many products in store were on sale.

• On paper, and in technical comparisons, the iPhone XS ranks among the world's best smartphones when it comes to photography.
• But in a blind test conducted by popular YouTube tech vlogger Marques Brownlee, the iPhone XS flunked out in the first round.
• Crazier still, it lost against a BlackBerry smartphone. Google's Pixels, renowned for their camera quality, fared just as poorly.

One of the main reasons that people buy the iPhone is for its ability to take high-quality, detailed photos. And it certainly does that!

But based on the results of a new video from YouTube vlogger Marques "MKBHD" Brownlee, it seems like another factor may be far more important: Brightness.

In a massive blind photo test that Brownlee conducted over social media, he pit 16 different smartphones against each other. Both the iPhone X and the iPhone XS flunked out in the first round to less capable smartphones — Xiaomi's Pocophone F1 and TCL's BlackBerry Key2, respectively.

That's right: Apple's flagship iPhone from this year and last failed out in the first round, against phones that are barely considered competition normally.

Google's flagship Pixel line did just as poorly, albeit against more technically competitive devices.

His test was simple: Put two photos of the same subject next to each other and have his millions of social media followers vote on which looked better to them. 

It's hardly a scientific poll, but that's not the point — what you see is what matters.

Most people are looking at photos on smartphone screens, through social media apps that compress images. They're using apps on their smartphone to edit images before sharing. They're trying to see faces clearly. Does the image "pop?" Is it bright? 

That kind of interaction with photos leads to a different type of preference.

"The most important thing to people, when viewing these photos straight out of camera, was just exposure — brightness, basically," Brownlee says in the video. "Nine times out of ten, the brighter, more saturated, more punchy-contrasty photo, won. Every single round — it's pretty consistent." 

It says a lot about what actually matters in smartphone cameras, and what may matter to you.

Are you taking a lot of extremely detailed photos with your smartphone? If the answer is no, then maybe you can wait a little longer next time before upgrading your smartphone — or maybe it's finally time to start considering those mid-range, less expensive smartphones.

If nothing else, the video is a fascinating look into modern smartphone camera options — see it for yourself right here:

SEE ALSO: The iPhone XS has a few new camera tricks hiding under the hood — here's what they do

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NOW WATCH: Amazon wants to open 3,000 cashier-less grocery stores — and they'll have a major advantage over their competitors

• Barbara Corcoran spoke at Business Insider's IGNITION Conference Tuesday morning in New York City and discussed how Trump used his salesman tactics to his advantage in the 2016 election. 
• She recounted a real-estate story about Trump selling land to a wealthy international family in addition to New York City's The Plaza. They were originally only interested in the hotel, according to Corcoran.
• Corcoran said it was that acumen and ability to pick out someone's weakness that he used in the election to sell himself.
• "He put his finger on what the weakness was, the vulnerability of people and he knows how to touch it just so," said Corcoran. "People go along for the ride."

Before Donald Trump was president, Barbara Corcoran knew Trump very well. The two started their real estate careers in the 1970s. 

"I've done a lot of work with Donald and I can tell you he is the best salesman I've ever met in my life," the "Shark Tank" star said Tuesday morning at Business Insider's IGNITION Conference in New York City.

Corcoran recounted a story of how she watched Trump successfully pitch and sell not only the Plaza Hotel in New York City, but a giant plot of land as well that wasn't originally part of the deal.

"Donald was near bankruptcy and really needed the money to bail out," Corcoran told the crowd. "I thought he was so off. He wasn't. They bought the land and built all those towers on the west river as we know it today and all those Trump towers along the river."

In 1995, the New York Times reported Trump sold the Plaza Hotel to a Saudi Arabian Prince and one of Singapore's leading entrepreneurs for $325 million. Corcoran said she believes it was that same tenacity and awareness as a salesman, which resulted in him being able to win over American people and ultimately win the 2016 presidential election. 

"I'll tell you what his masterful mind does. He is a genius at picking out the vulnerability of someone's personality," said Corcoran of witnessing Trump in action over the years. "He can smell it, sense it, and trust it. So, for example, if you were to walk into a business meeting with Donald and you were saying whatever you're saying, I've seen it time and time again, he could see what your weakness is and, not physically reach out and put his finger on it, but he just could see what your weakness is and play into it."

"Not the nicest thing in the world, but it's a certain gift I've never seen in anyone else," added Corcoran. "That's exactly what he did in the election — he put his finger on what the weakness was, the vulnerability of people and he knows how to touch it just so. And people go along for the ride. He is a phenomenal salesman, I have to say. He can sell anything, and he did."

You can follow along with our IGNITION coverage here. 

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: This mind-melting thought experiment of Einstein's reveals how to manipulate time

• Stocks plummeted Tuesday after optimism for a US-China trade deal faded and as Treasury yields fell.
• Global markets had rallied a day earlier. 
• Watch the major US indexes trade in real time here.

Wall Street fell sharply Tuesday after optimism for easing trade tensions between Washington and Beijing waned and as Treasury yields turned lower, stirring worries about the prospect of slowing economic growth around the world.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 3%, or nearly 800 points. The Nasdaq Composite plunged 3.8%, meanwhile, and the S&P 500 shed 3.2% to below its 200-day moving average. The three US indices had all jumped more than 1% on Monday as President Donald Trump touted his weekend meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

But trade expectations unwound after key details on the framework of negotiations appeared unsettled. Trump called himself “a Tariff Man” in a tweet about China early Tuesday, a reminder that further escalations are on deck if a deal isn’t reached within 90 days. Trade-sensitive stocks were among the Dow’s biggest losers, with Caterpillar down nearly 7% and Boeing 4.8% lower.

Not helping the mood, Trump named US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer to lead negotiations going further. Lighthizer is seen as a hardliner on China, so the pick cast doubt on expectations for a quick agreement.

"While this outcome is preferable to many alternatives, investors should be clear that agreeing to negotiate is no guarantee of resolution,” said Ron Temple, managing director and head of US Equities at Lazard Asset Management. "Details are scant and the two sides have offered different statements of what was agreed."

Treasury yields continued to slide, with the 10-year down 7.6 basis points to 2.915%. Spreads between long- and short-term bonds inverted, an occurrence seen as a potential recession signal, for the first time since the financial crisis.

"The inversion of parts of the yield curve is further evidence that investors are coming round to our downbeat view of the prospects for the US economy, and points to further weakness in the S&P 500," said John Higgins, an analyst at Capital Economics.

Adding to concerns, Brexit debates in the UK’s House of Commons got off to a rocky start. Prime Minister Theresa May suffered a series of setbacks Tuesday, and the British government was found in contempt of Parliament after not publishing the full legal advice on plans to leave the European Union.

The dollar stumbled 0.7% against the Japanese yen, a closely-watched exchange rate during times of financial stress. The VIX, meanwhile, jumped by nearly a quarter to 20.48.

Oil prices climbed from recent lows ahead of a meeting Thursday and Friday among OPEC and other major producers led by Russia, who are expected to make a deal to cut coordinated output levels. West Texas Intermediate fell to trade just below $53 per barrel, and Brent was down 0.5% to $61.58.

SEE ALSO: Trump's newest pick to lead the trade fight against China reportedly took the Chinese by surprise and could be bad news for a deal

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NOW WATCH: Why you shouldn't be afraid to fly, according to a pilot with over 20 years of experience

The Insider Picks team writes about stuff we think you'll like. Business Insider has affiliate partnerships, so we get a share of the revenue from your purchase.

At least once a year, you get to thank your best friend for being your own personal saint for the other 364 days of the year.

They're the ones you rely upon, confide in, and plague with everything from menu choices to whether or not you should move across the country for this new job. So when the holidays roll around, it can be difficult to find something adequately thoughtful to give to that most important person — especially within the relatively affordable under-$100 range.

To make things easier for you, we put together a list of 39 unique, thoughtful gifts that your best friend will actually love to get — all for less than $100.

Looking for more gift ideas? Check out all of Insider Picks' holiday gift guides for 2018 here.

A high-tech towel that's better for their hair

Aquis Lisse Luxe Long Hair Towel, available on Sephora and Amazon, $35

Aquis' cult-favorite hair towels have inspired a slew of rave reviews online, including one from our own team of reviewers.

The towels are made from a proprietary fabric called Aquitex that's composed of ultra-fine fibers (finer than silk) that work to reduce the amount of friction the hair experiences while in its weakest state. It also prevents hygral fatigue — the stretching and swelling of wet hair that makes it vulnerable to frizz and damage — by cutting the hair's drying time by 50%.

Note: Currently unavailable on Amazon

A customized map of their favorite place on earth

Customized Grafomap, available on Grafomap, from $49

Memories tend to be tied to specific locations — places that start to signify whole periods of our lives: where you met your best friend, where they grew up, where they met their significant other, where they went to college. Grafomap lets you take that place and those memories with you through customized maps. You can adjust, pan, and zoom to specific spots; add or remove text; select the size, frame, and orientation; and opt for a specific color theme that matches their interior.  

Insider Picks senior editor Ellen Hoffman tried it, and the process of turning an ordinary map into a work of art only took five minutes. At $49 for a 18-inch by 24-inch print, it's affordable, too.

A small but powerful Bluetooth Bose speaker

Bose SoundLink Micro Bluetooth Speaker, available on Amazon, $79 (Originally $99) [You save $20]

The term "small but mighty" gets thrown around a lot, but this small Bose speaker is only a little larger than the phone used to control the music — and has a much bigger sound. It comes in three colors and has a six-hour battery life. 

• Kate Middleton just wore trousers to a royal outing.
• It's a total style switch-up for the duchess, who usually wears dresses or fitted pants.
• Trousers also happen to be a signature piece for Meghan Markle, so perhaps Middleton was inspired by her sister-in-law.

Kate Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge, was spotted getting off a plane in Cyprus with Prince William on Wednesday.

The duchess is usually known for her fabulous dresses (coatdresses in particular), but this time she was wearing a pair of trousers.

It may look familiar to fans of the royals because Meghan Markle is known for being a fan of smart suits, including breezy dress pants.

While Middleton has been known to wear jeans and other fitted, tapered pants every now and then (she's a particular fan of J Brand, per Marie Claire), this pants and blazer look was new. At least, new for Middleton.

It may look familiar to fans of the royals because Markle is known for being a fan of smart suits, including breezy dress pants.

Over the summer, Markle wore a white pair of flowy pants to Wimbledon, where she sat next to Middleton.

Since her marriage to Prince Harry, Markle has been seen out and about several times in flowy business chic pants.

Her suit was made by Altuzarra, according to Glamour.

Middleton style blog Kate's Closet identified the pants as the brand's Jigsaw High Waisted Sport Luxe Trousers in Navy. They retail for about $165.

While Middleton is no stranger to a blazer, these trousers were new territory for her during a royal outing. The Evening Standard reported that it was the first time she'd ever donned such a look.

Considering that trousers are one of Markle's go-to looks, it's quite possible she was the inspiration behind Middleton's style switch-up. So much for all those rumors that they don't get along.

Visit INSIDER's homepage for more.

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NOW WATCH: Why you shouldn't be afraid to fly, according to a pilot with over 20 years of experience

• The Chartwell Estate in Los Angeles is for sale for $245 million.
• That makes it the most expensive home for sale in the US.
• The historic California estate is 960 times more expensive than the typical American home, which costs $255,000.

A Los Angeles mansion is on the market for $245 million, making it the most expensive house for sale in the US — and about 960 times more expensive than the typical American home. 

The median US home price was $255,000 as of the second quarter of 2018, according to data compiled by ATTOM Data Solutions.

Sitting on nearly 11 acres, the main home of the Chartwell Estate was designed by Sumner Spaulding in 1930, according to the listing. In the 1980s, the mansion's interiors were renovated by designer Henri Samuel — but no recent photos have been released, keeping the inside of the home a mystery. 

The expansive grounds of Chartwell include manicured gardens, a 75-foot pool, and views that span from downtown Los Angeles to the Pacific Ocean. There's also a car gallery that fits 40 vehicles, a five-bedroom guest house, a tennis court, and a 12,00-bottle wine cellar. Last year, the property was listed for $350 million.

Chartwell is listed with several agents: Jeff Hyland, Drew Fenton, and Gary Gold of Hilton & Hyland (a Christie's International Real Estate affiliate), along with Jade Mills, Joyce Rey, and Alexandra Allen of Coldwell Banker Global Luxury, and Drew Gitlin and Susan Gitlin of Berkshire Hathaway Home Services.

Here's a look at the sprawling estate's grounds.

SEE ALSO: The iconic mansion from ‘The Godfather’ is on the market for $135 million — here's a look inside the 29-bedroom Beverly Hills estate

The Chartwell Estate sits on 10.39 acres in Bel Air, Los Angeles, one of the most "prestigious residential communities in the city of Los Angeles," according to luxury real estate firm Hilton & Hyland.

Source: Hilton & Hyland

The 25,000-square-foot mansion has 11 bedrooms, 18 bathrooms, and a ballroom.

Source: Realtor

The home was built in the 1930s for civil engineer Lynn Atkinson and later purchased by late Univision billionaire A. Jerrold Perenchio.

Source: Los Angeles Times

• Google will soon be shutting down its smart messaging app, Google Allo, according to a report from 9to5Google.
• Back in April, Google product chief Anil Sabharwal confirmed that Google Allo had "not achieved the level of traction that we’d hoped for." 
• The company also announced in April that it's working on Google Chat, which would create a new universal standard for text messaging known as rich communication services (or RCS). 
• Allo will soon join the legacy of Google's failed messaging apps including Gchat, Google Buzz, and Google Wave. 

Another Google messaging app is about to bite the dust — this time, it's Google Allo. 

According to a report by 9to5Google, the search giant's "smart" messaging app — which came equipped with Google Assistant — will be shutting down soon. 

Google did not immediately reply to Business Insider's request for comment on the report. 

Read more:Google is surprisingly bad at building messaging apps, but there are 4 reasons its plans to replace texting may work

Allo was announced at the company's developer conference in May 2016, and after lackluster adoption, the company said in April 2018 it would be "pausing investment" on the app. 

"The product as a whole has not achieved the level of traction that we’d hoped for,” Anil Sabharwal, vice president of product at Google, told The Verge at the time. 

The decision to shutter Allo makes strategic sense, since the company announced — also in April 2018 — that it was working on an initiative known as Google Chat. Google Chat will be similar to SMS and Apple's iMessage, creating a new universal standard for text messaging for Android users known as rich communication services (or RCS). 

Still, it's hard to ignore the difficulties Google has had launching a consumer messaging app throughout the history of the company. Once Google confirms the shutdown of Allo, it will join Google Buzz, Google Wave, and Gchat — technically called Google Talk— in the chat app graveyard. 

SEE ALSO: The 29 best tech companies to work for in 2019, according to employees

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Why autocorrect makes so many mistakes, according to the former Apple engineer who helped create it

• Internal Facebook emails released on Wednesday by British Parliament reveal the discussions leading to the "log scraping" practice that collected call and SMS text logs from Facebook users on Android devices.
• Facebook initially planned to make the practice an "opt-in" feature that gave users a choice, and even then it was deemed a "high risk" move.
• The company eventually found a way to implement the log scraping feature without user consent. 
• The practice became known to the public in March of this year.

Facebook's practise of collecting call and SMS logs from users on some Android devices — a practice known as log scraping — was discovered back in March, causing a privacy scandal among users who said they never agreed to let the social network scrape that data.

At the time, the company denied that it did this without permission, though it does provide tools to opt out.

Now, recent documents released by the British Parliament on Wednesday show the discussions that led to Facebook deciding to collect call and SMS text logs without explicitly asking for user consent.

According to the documents, which include internal email communication from 2015, Facebook leadership was aware that log scraping from Facebook users on the Android mobile platform was a "pretty high risk thing to do from a PR perspective."

Despite the "high risk" move, the company's growth team would "charge ahead and do it."

In the same email, Facebook had supposedly planned to make such log scraping an opt-in feature, which would require users to explicitly give the social network permission to grab those call and text logs. 

However, subsequent emails showed that Facebook looked for ways to sneak the feature through "without subjecting [Facebook users on Android] to an Android permissions dialog at all." Essentially, the feature would be enabled when a user updated the Facebook app via the Google Play Store, bypassing the normal process where an app asks the users to allow more security permissions.

Log scraping was designed to improve Facebook's "People You May Know" feature, which suggests potential contacts for you to befriend on Facebook, as well as contributing data towards certain Facebook features and algorithms. 

That might sound innocuous enough, but Facebook's "People You May Know" feature itself had come under fire in 2016, when Facebook wound up denying its original explanation of how the feature works. At first, the company said it uses location data, among other data, to suggest new contacts. Later, the company would do a U-turn and say that location data was not a point of data for the feature. 

Business Insider requested clarification on certain elements of the internal emails included in the documents, but spokespeople for Facebook have yet to reply.

• Read more about the leaked Facebook documents:
• Facebook documents show Mark Zuckerberg presided over a list of competitors and restricted their access to data
• Internal emails show Mark Zuckerberg saying what's good for the world is not necessarily what's good for Facebook
• Emails show Mark Zuckerberg personally approved Facebook's decision to cut off Vine's access to data
• Mark Zuckerberg defends the leaked Facebook documents he never wanted the world to see: The scrutiny is 'healthy,' but don't 'misrepresent our actions or motives'
• Facebook considered charging companies for access to user data, according to explosive internal documents — now Mark Zuckerberg says it was because of Apple's restrictions on iPhone apps
• Mark Zuckerberg once suggested that a Facebook user's data was worth ten cents a year

SEE ALSO: The secret Facebook documents have just been published by British Parliament

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: NYU professor says Facebook should pay taxes for making us less productive

• Small changes to your daily routine can make you happy— or happier.
• Those changes include journaling, practicing gratitude, and even ordering takeout dinner.
• We collected a list of 10-minute tweaks you can make starting today, and explained why they're helpful.

You don't need to conduct a major life overhaul to be happy in 2019.

Small changes to your daily routine can go a long way. Think capturing the most beautiful photo of a flower garden on your way to work, or hugging a friend you haven't seen in a while.

Below, Business Insider has listed seven tweaks to your daily routine — all of which take 10 minutes or less — that can make you happier, healthier, and more productive. Read on for ideas you can implement starting today.

SEE ALSO: The age when people feel the most — and least — happy with life, in one chart

Jot down your thoughts and feelings

Author and investor Tim Ferris recommends jotting down your thoughts in a journal every morning.

Ferris uses "The Artist's Way Morning Pages Journal" by Julia Cameron, and emphasizes that the process of writing matters more than the final product. What's more, journaling allows you to get fears and worries out of your head so you can stop fixating on them.

Another journal option is the "Five Minute Journal," which comes with inspirational quotations and thought-provoking questions.

You can switch things up and journal in the evening if that's more convenient.

Chat with a fellow commuter

A 2014 study, published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, found that people are much happier during their commutes when they engage another passenger in conversation.

Still, most people surveyed said they expected their commute to be less positive and productive if they talked to a stranger.

If you can get over the fear that you'd be bothering someone else, you might be doing them — and yourself — a favor.

Take one beautiful photo on your way to work

That's a tip from Mo Gawdat, who is an executive at Alphabet's moonshot lab, X, and the author of "Solve for Happy." Every day during his walk to the office, Gawdat searches for something beautiful and snaps its photo.

The idea behind searching for one perfect photo is that it prevents Gawdat from thinking distressing thoughts, since he's fully engaged in searching for beauty. He calls it a form of meditation: Instead of focusing on his breath, or a spot on the wall in front of him, he's focusing on the world around him.

• China released a statement on Tuesday offering reassurances about the preliminary trade deal made between President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
• While the statement was light on specifics, the Chinese official attempted to assuage skepticism about the deal that helped contribute to a major selloff in US stocks.
• The Chinese also made a concrete step toward addressing US concerns by releasing a new set of punishments for intellectual property theft.
• But confusion over the deal and ineffective communication by the Trump team has left many worried.

China is trying to catch up to President Donald Trump's trade deal promises as questions linger about the agreement he made with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the G20 summit.

After two days of relative silence, a spokesperson from China's Ministry of Commerce offered a short statement on the preliminary agreement Tuesday night:

• The official confirmed for the first time that China had agreed to the 90-day "timetable and road map" to negotiate a further trade deal with the US.
• The official also said China is committed to implementing certain actions agreed to during the Trump-Xi dinner but did not provide specifics.

According to reports, China is planning to reopen up its markets to American soybeans and natural gas. US soybean farmers in particular have been hard hit by the trade fight, as China's tariffs on US product have choked off their largest market.

But it was still unclear whether the tariffs on those American goods would be eliminated, how much of each good China would buy, and the timetable for the purchases.

Additionally, the official made no mention of the Trump administration's issues with China's broader economic policies such as intellectual property theft, forced technology transfers, forced partnerships with Chinese firms, and more.

The statement from the Chinese comes after skepticism over the deal began to grow, which helped contribute to a sharp sell off in US stocks on Tuesday. Discrepancies between the US and Chinese accounts on the meeting, Trump's promise that China would lower auto tariffs going unconfirmed by the Chinese, and a lack of follow up from Beijing all cast doubts on the nature of the negotiations.

Read more:Trump calls himself 'Tariff Man' during raging tweetstorm on China trade war»

Trump touted the Chinese statement in a tweet on Wednesday, pointing to it as an example that China is serious about reaching a more detailed agreement.

"Very strong signals being sent by China once they returned home from their long trip, including stops, from Argentina," Trump said. "Not to sound naive or anything, but I believe President Xi meant every word of what he said at our long and hopefully historic meeting. ALL subjects discussed!"

A small concrete step

The most concrete step toward fulfilling the agreement appears to be an announcement from China's National Development and Reform Commission on punishments for violating intellectual property protections.

Chinese firms stealing US IP, either through counterfeiting or coercing companies to hand over trade secrets, was a major focus of the US Trade Representative's initial investigation into unfair trade practices. That investigation was the mechanism that allowed Trump to impose the tariffs on China.

Beijing said there would be 38 different punishments for violations of IP protections, including restrictions on government contract opportunities and access to loans.

Read more:Trump's newest pick to lead the trade fight against China reportedly took the Chinese by surprise and could be bad news for a deal»

Eswar Prasad, a professor of trade policy at Cornell University, told Business Insider that the announcement is beneficial both for China — which is trying to encourage more domestic innovation — and for the US-China trade tensions.

But Prasad warned that it depends on how strictly Beijing enforces the rules.

"The vigor and consistency with which these regulations are going to be enforced, especially in the case of state-owned enterprises and large private companies, remains the key open question," he said in an email. "China does not exactly have a stellar record of keeping to its commitments to other countries, especially in the context of industries that are part of the government’s plan to restructure the economy towards high-tech, high-value added sectors."

Derek Scissors, a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute who previously advised the Trump team on China, held a dimmer view.

"Punishment for IP violations was the major issue 10 to 15 years ago," Scissors said in an email. "It has since been emphatically replaced by the Chinese government actively seeking to acquire IP — legally, through coercion, or through cyber-theft. So this addresses about 5%" of the complaint.

Questions remain

While China seems to be trying to catch up to the Trump administration's pronouncements about the trade deal, the Trump team is also struggling to gets its story straight, as well.

The most obvious instance of crossed wires came Monday when Larry Kudlow, Trump's top economic adviser, said the 90-day delay to tariff rate increases would start on January 1. The White House had to scramble to correct the timeline, saying the timeline actually began December 1.

But Kudlow's slip is indicative of a messy communications pattern from the Trump team that has only fueled confusion. Multiple members of the administration spent the early part of the week walking back Trump's surprise declaration that China would lower tariffs on US-made cars, a deal that Kudlow later admitted was not set in stone.

And Trump's dubbing of himself as a "Tariff Man," as well as general skepticism that the two sides can reach an agreement in such a short time means that the next 90 days of China-US talks will be incredibly volatile.

SEE ALSO: Trump's 'Tariff Man' tweet was an homage one of his favorite presidents who ran on a platform of tariffs

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NOW WATCH: This top economist has a radical plan to change the way Americans vote

• The special counsel Robert Mueller sent a big message this week: cooperate with investigators and they'll show you leniency. Refuse, and they'll bite back.
• Mueller's office recommended little to no jail time for former national security adviser Michael Flynn, who they said provided "substantial assistance" to multiple ongoing investigations, including the Russia probe.
• Flynn's sentencing memo was heavily redacted, but one DOJ veteran said that "if you read around all that black ink, Mueller did say enough to let us know this: Flynn gave up the goods, and Mueller's work is far from over."
• President Donald Trump's former lawyer, Michael Cohen, also pleaded guilty in the Russia probe last week and has shown a keen willingness to tell prosecutors everything he knows.
• Cohen's and Flynn's cases stand in stark contrast to that of former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort, who prosecutors accused of breaching his plea deal and committing additional crimes after pleading guilty.

The special counsel Robert Mueller sent a clear message this week: cooperate with investigators and be forthcoming about what you know, and they'll show you leniency. Refuse, and they'll bite back.

Late Tuesday, prosecutors filed a highly anticipated sentencing memorandum in the case of former national security adviser Michael Flynn, who pleaded guilty last year to lying to the FBI.

In it, they recommended that Flynn get little to no jail time, citing the "substantial assistance" he provided to the special counsel's investigation into Russia's interference in the 2016 election, as well as other, separate ongoing investigations.

Flynn was among the first defendants to plead guilty in the Russia probe and has been cooperating with Mueller for over a year. His sentencing was delayed five times after prosecutors said they needed more information from the former national security adviser, who also served as a key adviser to President Donald Trump's 2016 campaign.

In their Tuesday filing, prosecutors emphasized that Flynn began cooperating early, that his assistance was critical in encouraging other witnesses to come forward and be candid, and that he helped the investigation in several ways.

'Flynn gave up the goods'

In typical fashion, Mueller's office revealed very little information, if any, about the specifics of what Flynn told them. Prosecutors also attached a largely-redacted 6-page addendum to the sentencing memo laying out how Flynn had cooperated in what appears to be a separate investigation not being conducted by Mueller's office.

In the original sentencing memo, prosecutors laid out the crux of what Flynn was charged with: his lies to the FBI about conversations he had during the transition period with then-Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak about US sanctions on Russia.

But that's not the only thread of which Flynn may have had valuable information.

The former national security adviser was also not forthcoming about his involvement in three key areas: his now defunct lobbying firm's work for the Turkish government in 2016, his efforts with Russia and Saudi Arabia to develop nuclear reactors in the Middle East, a project that would have benefited from the US lifting sanctions on Russia, and payments he received from the state-owned media outlet Russia Today that he failed to disclose when he applied to renew his security clearance in January 2016.

Flynn was also a participant in a controversial meeting with Kislyak and senior adviser Jared Kushner during the transition period, in which Kushner reportedly discussed setting up a secret back channel between the Trump team and Moscow using Russian diplomatic facilities.

And he served as an adviser to the campaign when Kushner, then campaign chairman Paul Manafort, and Donald Trump Jr. met with two Russian lobbyists offering dirt on the Hillary Clinton campaign. The meeting, which took place at Trump Tower in June 2016, is a key investigative focus for the special counsel and congressional committees.

Flynn's sentencing memo said he provided "firsthand information" about contacts between Russian officials and members of the Trump transition team.

"We do not yet know everything about Flynn's cooperation," said Elie Honig, a former federal prosecutor from the Southern District of New York, in an interview with INSIDER. "The heavy redactions in the filing hide nearly all the details that Mueller provided to the court."

Jens David Ohlin, a vice dean at Cornell Law School and an expert on criminal law, echoed that view.

"There is more to come, but we don't know what that is," told INSIDER. The substantial redactions in Flynn's sentencing memo indicate that the targets of other investigations he's cooperated with have not yet been charged, he said. "It could be a reference to an obstruction of justice investigation, possibly involving the president, but we don't really know. So this is a known unknown."

Honig emphasized, however, that "if you read around all that black ink, Mueller did say enough to let us know this: Flynn gave up the goods, and Mueller's work is far from over."

'Manafort tried to play both sides and got caught'

To be sure, Mueller recently secured a guilty plea from another crucial player: Trump's former longtime lawyer and fixer, Michael Cohen, who pleaded guilty last week to one count of lying to Congress in 2017.

Like Flynn, Cohen has signaled a willingness to tell prosecutors everything he knows in exchange for leniency. His first meeting with Mueller came in early August, before he pleaded guilty to separate charges in a Manhattan US attorney's office investigation into his and Trump's financial dealings before the 2016 election.

Cohen has voluntarily met with Mueller's team, New York prosecutors, and investigators in the New York attorney general's office several times since, his lawyers said.

They also dropped a number of bombshells about what Cohen knows in a sentencing memo they filed on his behalf last week. Cohen has asked for an early sentencing date so he can go about rebuilding his life, his lawyers said, but that does not signal that he doesn't want to help the investigation.

On the contrary, they said, "he expects to cooperate further."

Jeffrey Cramer, a longtime former federal prosecutor who spent 12 years at the Justice Department, told INSIDER the fact that Cohen and Flynn both pleaded guilty to lying to investigators and have cooperated extensively is a key indication that Mueller is gaining traction.

"When you see people pleading guilty or getting indicted on similar facts, that's when you start building a path forward as a prosecutor," he said. 

The Cohen and Flynn memos stand in stark contrast to what prosecutors said about Manafort, whom they accused last month of breaching his plea deal by lying to investigators after pleading guilty and allegedly committing more crimes. They were also reportedly furious when they learned that Manafort's lawyers were regularly in touch with Trump's lawyers about what Manafort was being questioned about.

Prosecutors are expected to lay out Manafort's alleged misdeeds in intricate detail in a court brief Friday. And Politico reported that the special counsel is weighing putting Manafort on trial again in the wake of his decision to breach his plea deal.

"Even if Manafort decides to cooperate now, there's no chance Mueller accepts it because he's basically a useless witness," Cramer said. "Cohen fell on his sword and has shown that he's a valuable cooperator. Manafort tried to play both sides and he got caught."

Trump, for his part, has defended Manafort extensively in recent days and praised his refusal to cooperate with Mueller. And experts say a presidential pardon may be Manafort's last hope after his plea deal fell through.

"He's like a guy at the casino table who's lost all his money at craps," Cramer said. "And now he heads to the ATM to try to turn things around. Donald Trump is basically the ATM."

Grace Panetta contributed reporting.

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NOW WATCH: Lindsey Graham once warned there would be 'holy hell to pay' if Trump fired Jeff Sessions

• 2018 has been a great year for movies, with major critical and box office hits like "Black Panther" and "A Star Is Born."
• But there are a handful of excellent movies that flew under the radar that you probably didn't see, so we made a list of them all, from "Paddington 2" to "First Man."

2018 has been a great year for movies, big and small.

At the beginning of the year, "Black Panther" set a great tone for the year, being both a critical and box office smash hit. Other big hits throughout the year include "Avengers: Infinity War,""Crazy Rich Asians,""A Star Is Born," and "Venom," all of which were major hits at the box office.

But what about the smaller movies you didn't see? We gathered a list of our favorite movies of 2018 that flew under the radar and weren't talked about enough and didn't pick up much traction at the box office, from "Paddington 2" to "The Favourite."

Here are the 10 greatest films of 2018 that you probably didn't see.

"Paddington 2"— released January 12

Imaginative and inspiring, “Paddington 2” is not only the cutest movie of the year, but one of the most original. It has one of the best performances of the year in Hugh Grant’s role as the villain and disgraced actor Phoenix Buchanan. We hope Grant gets nominated for best supporting actor at the 2019 Oscars, because he deserves it more than anyone. 

"Annihilation"— released February 23

"Annihilation" came out amid the awards season, so a lot of people missed it. It's one of Natalie Portman's best movies and tells a a visually-stunning, imaginative story that will leave you thinking for hours or even days after you see it. Its strong female cast, which includes Gina Rodriguez and Tessa Thompson, is inspiring. If you haven't seen it yet, you can rent it on digital now to catch up. 

"The Death of Stalin"— released March 9

From Arnando Iannucci , the creator of HBO’s hit comedy and satire “Veep,” “The Death of Stalin” is an astonishing comedy rooted in political reality that is filled with memorable one-liners and clever visuals but never makes fun of the devastating reality that inspired it. It’s also filled with underrated performances from Jason Isaacs, Rupert Friend, and Steve Buscemi.

• The XFL is set to return in 2020, with eight teams playing spring football under Vince McMahon's business stewardship.
• On Wednesday, the eight cities that would host teams were announced, including New York, Los Angeles, and Tampa.
• McMahon isn't the only one hoping to start a spring football league, with the American Alliance of Football set to kick off its inaugural season in 2019.

In January, WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon announced that he would be reviving the XFL.

On Wednesday, the eight cities getting teams were announced, as well as the stadiums that would host them.

While the original iteration of the XFL was a monumental failure, running for just one season in 2001 and losing WWE and NBC millions in the process, McMahon promised a new vision for the league this time around, selling the league as "football reimagined."

McMahon won't be without competition — a competing spring football league, the Alliance of American Football, is set to start play in 2019. The league was created by Charlie Ebersol, who worked with McMahon extensively while directing the "30 for 30" documentary "This is the XFL" for ESPN.

While the AAF will get a headstart on the XFL, McMahon certainly has an advantage when it comes to brand recognition, and with the cities that will play host to XFL teams now public, he can begin campaigning for the league to help ensure it doesn't meet the same brief end it did in its first run.

Take a look below at the cities that will have XFL teams come 2020 and the stadiums that will be hosting them.

New York City — MetLife Stadium

Capacity: 82,500

Year opened: 2010

Current residents: New York Giants, New York Jets

Washington D.C. — Audi Stadium

Capacity: 20,000

Year opened: 2018

Current residents: D.C. United

Los Angeles — StubHub Center

Capacity: 27,000

Year opened: 2003

Current residents: LA Galaxy, Los Angeles Chargers