Paperless Imposter

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TGIF, Future Party. Well, here’s one of the most embarrassing ways to end up in jail: a Japanese man named Wataru Takeuchi has been arrested for spoiling the latest Godzilla movie, Godzilla Minus One. Takeuchi ran a “spoiler site,” and the studio behind Godzilla, Toho, had had enough, reporting to authorities that the site featured a plethora of copyrighted material. For his actions, Takeuchi will serve 18 months in prison and pay a fine. Consider that a warning to anyone rushing to spoil a movie on social media… a spoiler warning, if you will. (Sorry, we had to.)

Musicians (and, by extension, their managers and labels) are manufacturing sold-out shows through a variety of strategies — some legit, and others a bit shady.

The Big Play: There’s no better hype engine than declaring an artist’s concert sold out, turning musicians from up-and-comers into hitmakers overnight. It’s no wonder an artist’s team might be willing to bend perceptions — but it can frustrate fans who feel forced to jump through unnecessary hoops just to see them live.

Behind The Curtain: Be a little wary the next time you hear a show is “sold out.”

Encore: Why would an artist want to leave money on the table by playing a smaller venue? It lets them boast that their shows are sold out, boosting demand on the secondary market (just look at how expensive it is to see rock breakout Geese) and for shows in other regions. It can also help them “circumvent radius clauses” that prohibit artists from playing back-to-back shows at different venues in the same vicinity.

But often, it’s about the creative benefits. Playing a sold-out show in a small venue is a powerful way to showcase a musician’s talent — the kind of energy that becomes legend among fans, catnip for the press, and a catalyst for record-label execs to get behind them.

Next Tour: Given the conflict of interest between ticket sales and venue bookings that “sold-out” shows can represent, expect the issue to take center stage in the ongoing Live Nation/Ticketmaster antitrust case.

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Fraudulent event invitations are becoming the latest phishing scam used by hackers.

Why It Hurts: The vast majority of people love getting invited to things, so using invitations for phishing scams is a new level of despicable… especially since they can set off a chain reaction of identity theft. Not a fun party.

Behind The Emails: Goodbye, Nigerian Prince. Hello, Paperless Post.

Final Draft: Email-invite startups are aware of these scams and have been setting up a range of measures to combat them. For example, Paperless Post offers a forwarding address you can use to verify whether an email you’ve received is legit. Messages deemed suspicious are then passed along to the cybersecurity nonprofit Anti-Phishing Working Group, which works to shut down fraudulent links.

But these companies also want users to recognize the telltale signs of a suspicious invite — they may seem “random,” “generic,” or come from someone “you haven’t spoken to in 10 years.” In other words, if that one camp friend from 20 years ago suddenly sends you a birthday invite, delete that email straight away.

Next Scam: Maybe we’ll all just go back to inviting people the old-fashioned way — over a large, chaotic group text.

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63.8% of you voted I avoid it altogether in yesterday’s poll: What’s your experience with Spirit Airlines?

“It’s the Metro Bus of the sky — no thank you.”

“I’ve flown it a few times when there were no other options. I’m only 5'8", and my knees were pressed into the seatback. The whole experience, from start to finish, was miserable. Now, when we’re talking about the worst in any industry, my husband and I call it ‘the Spirit Airlines of [industry].’”

“It’s a good, affordable option for flight times under 90 minutes. Any longer and that seat squeeze REALLY starts to feel uncomfortable.”

“I did a short flight to Vegas once, and it was fine. I wouldn’t seek it out, but I could do it for a quick trip.”

“I’ve actually had some of the best service on Spirit.”

Let’s keep the conversation going. Join Poll Of The Day, so your opinions can shine. Discover how your views line up with your peers’, check out cool insights, and have some fun. It’s data with personality.

👍 Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders have overwhelmingly approved Paramount’s $111 billion takeover offer.

💰 Former Disney CEO Bob Iger is returning to Thrive Capital as an advisor.

📺 Peacock appears set to join the other major streamers in finally turning a profit, driven in large part by its sports content.

🤖 Anthropic has surpassed OpenAI in valuation on private-marketplace exchanges, exceeding $1 trillion.

👔 LinkedIn exec Daniel Shapero has been elevated to CEO, while Ryan Roslansky will move on to oversee Microsoft’s Office 365 apps.

🫠 Meta is laying off 8,000 employees (10% of its workforce) and closing 6,000 open jobs in yet another AI-focused reorganization.

📱 Threads is introducing Live Chats as part of a new deal tied to the NBA Playoffs.

🪦  Meanwhile, X is pulling the plug on its Communities feature due to spam and low engagement.

💳 Visa is collabing with TikTok in the UK on a debit card with perks tailored specifically for digital creators.