Happy Monday Flux Fam!

*Drum roll pls*...

BIG congrats to our Flux Quiz winner .... Aulia. She's taken away the $100 Uber Eats voucher for last week. This week: $100 JB Hi Fi voucher. Get on it!

Here's everything you need to know today - in under 3 minutes.

Today's big stories:

🦁 Lion buys Byron Bay-founded craft brewer Stone and Wood

💬 Media companies will be responsible for third-party comments on their socials 

😎 Facebook launches smart glasses in partnership with Ray-Ban

Oh, and get this...

Westpac's CEO Peter King reckons Australia's housing affordability is going down the drain thanks to ultra-low interest rates. But he's hoping it'll slow down on its own. Fingers crossed.

Beer giant Lion swallows up craft brewer Stone & Wood for ~$300m

Background: Lion is the big alcoholic beverage company that operates across Australia and New Zealand. It owns some classic bev brands like Tooheys and XXXX, but it's also got a big portfolio of craft brewers. 

What happened: It's now bought Byron Bay-founded craft brewer Stone & Wood in a deal reportedly worth more than $300 million. 

What else: Until now, Stone & Wood have run with the approachable and independent brewery brand story. In fact, their website even says: "The difference between us and the big breweries is that we’re not owned by a multinational corporation." Not for long though.

So what's the key learning?

💡 An important part of a brand's worth is its brand story. They have an origin...and a history. And we see this big time with food. Carmen's bars were made out of the kitchen of the owner...Nando's peri peri chicken owes its roots to historic Portuguese chicken. 

💡These stories add value to companies. But when you become a big multi-national, and your food and drink becomes mass-produced, you lose your unique appeal. Ya never hear people talking about Carlton Draught's origins...just that big ad. 

💡This "story" is why smaller, premium products are so attractive to multi-nationals. And why they often end up snapping them up, even when they promise they'll remain independent.

Media companies are responsible for third-party comments on their socials...Yikes

Background: Let's rewind to 2019. The UK locked in a Brexit deadline, the Amazon was on fire...and a man named Dylan Voller sued Fairfax Media for defamation.

What happened: The big Q on everyone's lips was: could media companies be held responsible for the comments of Facebook users on their page? And the answer is...YES.

What else: It's safe to say media companies were pretty shocked by this. So they appealed the decision. Fast-forward to today, and the High Court says the answer is still yes. Now, it means media outlets can be held responsible for the comments on their corporate social media pages.

So what's the key learning?

💡On the one hand, this ruling is a big step forward in giving victims of social media attacks a way to seek justice. On the other, it could be seen as limiting freedom of speech.

💡Whatever the case, it puts a whole heap of responsibility on these media companies to be watching their social media pages like a hawk. 

💡This will definitely have some consequences for what these companies can post on social media in the future - and what they allow people to post as part of a discussion forum. This ruling might not just affect media companies, but also individuals, influencers and bloggers.

Facebook's brought out its new smart glasses in partnership with Ray-Ban

Background: Get ready to be creeped out, Flux fam. Facebook's been talking about these smart glasses for a while, but now, they've finally launched them.

What happened: The smart glasses, called Ray-Ban Stories, just look like a regular pair of Wayfarers. Except, you can take photos, videos, answer phone calls and listen to music with them. 
What else: A small LED light will light up when you're doing it, so hopefully people will understand that you're recording your conversation with them. 

So what's the key learning?

💡 Normally, when a company releases a brand new product, they want their name all over it. A big Nike tick...a colourful Apple logo. But not Facebook in this case. 

💡Facebook has damaged its brand trust so much, it knows that adding its logo to people's faces may just add to this distrust - especially when this new product could be used to infringe on people's privacy. 

💡It all started back in 2018, when the Cambridge Analytica scandal broke. Since then, FB's been involved in anti-trust complaints...and damaged its relationship with Aussie news publishers. So it's safe to say their brand isn't the most-loved, which is why you won't see a FB logo on the Ray-Ban Stories.