WebProNews

Tag: the verge

  • Twitter Payments Head Esther Crawford Has Been Laid Off

    Twitter Payments Head Esther Crawford Has Been Laid Off

    The carnage at Twitter continues, with Twitter Payments head Esther Crawford laid off, along with most of her team.

    Esther Crawford was head of Twitter Payments, putting her in charge of Twitter Blue. According to Platformer’s Zoë Schiffer, Crawford is the latest to be purged from Twitter since Elon Musk’s takeover.

    Crawford’s departure is especially surprising since she was viewed as a Musk loyalist. in fact, she was one of those employees that answered Musk’s call to fully commit to the company.

    The Verge’s Alex Heath says the layoff extends to most of “product org.”

    Crawford’s departure makes one thing crystal clear: No one is safe in Musk’s Twitter.

  • Dish.com Is Down, Employees Unable to Work

    Dish.com Is Down, Employees Unable to Work

    Dish Network is experiencing a major outage, one that has crippled its website and stopped employees from working.

    According to The Verge, Dish began experiencing issues Thursday morning. The company’s website displays a notice saying it is experiencing problems, and the company’s internal apps and customer support systems are also impacted. What’s more, employees are reportedly being kept in the dark about what is going on.

    The outage began around the same time as the company’s Q4 earnings, giving CEO Erik Carlson an opportunity to address the problems. He said that Dish, Sling, and the company’s wireless network are operational, but that “internal communications, customer care functions, Internet sites” are all down.

    The Verge also goes on to point out that customers are unable to pay their bills, although company reps are assuring customers they won’t lose service if they can’t pay their bill as a result of the outage:

  • Get Ready For a Major Microsoft Teams Performance Boost

    Get Ready For a Major Microsoft Teams Performance Boost

    Microsoft Teams is on the verge of receiving a major performance boost thanks to a complete rewrite that should be released next month.

    The Verge has learned from sources familiar with the matter that Microsoft has been completely rebuilding Teams, with a focus on improved performance. The new version is slated to have the 2.0, or possibly 2.1, designation.

    Rish Tandon, former Microsoft Teams’ CVP of Engineering, teased these coming improvements as early as mid-2021:

    It appears the architecture change is finally paying off, paving the way for this current rewrite of Teams. Microsoft has already begun testing the new version internally, with plans to release a preview in March.

    According to The Verge’s sources, “the app should use 50 percent less memory, tax the CPU less, and result in better battery life on laptops.”

    Given Teams’ status as the most widely used corporate messaging platform, a boost this significant is good news indeed.

  • Satya Nadella: ‘We Made Google Dance’ With AI-Powered Bing

    Satya Nadella: ‘We Made Google Dance’ With AI-Powered Bing

    Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella is enjoying putting pressure on Google using ChatGPT, saying he has “been waiting for it.”

    Microsoft unveiled an AI-powered version of Bing on Tuesday, offering a limited preview of its next-gen search engine. Microsoft is using a new and improved version of the OpenAI tech behind ChatGPT, and Nadella believes it will finally bring some real competition to the search market.

    In an interview with The Verge, Nadella acknowledged that Google is the undisputed leader but that Microsoft has a real chance to make some headway:

    We competed today. Today was a day where we brought some more competition to search. Believe me, I’ve been at it for 20 years, and I’ve been waiting for it. But look, at the end of the day, they’re the 800-pound gorilla in this. That is what they are. And I hope that, with our innovation, they will definitely want to come out and show that they can dance. And I want people to know that we made them dance, and I think that’ll be a great day.

    Many experts believe AI is poised to revolutionize the search market and represents the biggest threat to Google’s dominance. Nadella is right that Microsoft’s announcement ‘made Google dance,’ with the company scrambling to come up with an answer.

    Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai issued a “code red” in response, and founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin began taking a hands-on role in the company for the first time in years. Google unveiled its answer in the form of its Bard AI, only to see it provide the wrong answer to a question in its debut ad.

    If Microsoft is able to execute effectively and capitalize on its position, it could greatly benefit customers, resulting in some of the biggest search innovations in the last two decades.

  • Instagram’s Founders Are Launching An AI-Powered Social News Feed

    Instagram’s Founders Are Launching An AI-Powered Social News Feed

    Instagram’s founders are on to their next venture, launching Artifact, an AI-powered social news feed app.

    Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger launched Instagram and helped lead the company through its acquisition by Facebook. After reported tension over Mark Zuckerberg taking a more hands-on approach to Instagram’s day-to-day operations, the pair left the company.

    Systrom and Krieger are now launching their new project in an effort to utilize AI and machine learning in the social media space. The company’s site describes Artifact as “a personalized news feed driven by artificial intelligence.”

    According to The Verge’s Casey Newton, the app will show users a personalized and curated news feed. Clicking on a story will show similar stories, TikTok-style. The company is also beta testing features that will let users post links to stories and allow other users to follow them. Another feature would allow users to offer commentary and privately discuss linked news items.

    Systrom emphasized the importance of machine learning to the new app.

    “Throughout the years, what I saw was that every time we use machine learning to improve the consumer experience, things got really good really quickly,” he told Newton.

    The two founders saw the possibilities of combining machine learning with a TikTok-like approach but with a focus on text rather than video.

    “I saw that shift, and I was like, ‘Oh, that’s the future of social,’” Systrom said. “These unconnected graphs; these graphs that are learned rather than explicitly created. And what was funny to me is as I looked around, I was like, ‘Man, why isn’t this happening everywhere in social? Why is Twitter still primarily follow-based? Why is Facebook?’”

    Given Systrom and Krieger’s past success, there’s a good chance Artifact could be the next big thing in social media.

    Users can join the waitlist here.

  • Amazon Fresh Quadrupling the Threshold for Free Delivery

    Amazon Fresh Quadrupling the Threshold for Free Delivery

    Beginning February 28, Amazon Fresh customers will need to order quite a bit more to qualify for free delivery.

    Amazon Fresh is the company’s grocery division, with physical stores that offer local delivery. Until now, the threshold for free delivery was $35 per order. According to The Verge, the threshold is being raised to $150, effective February 28.

    “We’re introducing a service fee on some Amazon Fresh delivery orders to help keep prices low in our online and physical grocery stores as we better cover grocery delivery costs and continue to enable offering a consistent, fast, and high-quality delivery experience,” Amazon spokesperson Lara Hendrickson told The Verge. “We will continue to offer convenient two-hour delivery windows for all orders, and customers in some areas will be able to select a longer delivery window for a reduced fee.”

    Orders under $50 will cost $9.95 for delivery. Orders between $50 and $100 will cost $6.95, and orders between $100 and $150 will cost $3.95.

  • Microsoft Now Offering Unlimited Vacation to Some Employees

    Microsoft Now Offering Unlimited Vacation to Some Employees

    Microsoft is giving salaried employees in the US a major perk, offering unlimited vacation under its new “Discretionary Time Off” policy.

    Companies are trying to find a new normal post-pandemic, and Microsoft’s change to its vacation policy is being pitched as an adaptation to new, flexible ways of working. The company outlined its thinking in an internal email sent by Kathleen Hogan, Microsoft’s chief people officer, and seen by The Verge:

    “How, when, and where we do our jobs has dramatically changed. And as we’ve transformed, modernizing our vacation policy to a more flexible model was a natural next step.”

    The new policy goes into effect January 16 and will be in addition to the paid holidays Microsoft already provides. As an added benefit, the policy will also apply to new employees, meaning they will not need to be at the company a certain amount of time in order to build up vacation days.

    Those employees that have already accumulated unused vacation days will get a one-time payout in April.

    While hourly employees are not included in the new policy, Microsoft says the reason is because of the complexity of US federal and state laws, which would make it difficult to extend the policy to include them. The same is true for employees outside the US.

  • Twitch Addresses Major Outage

    Twitch Addresses Major Outage

    Twitch has addressed a major outage that impacted virtually all users and made it impossible to watch streams.

    The issue manifested Tuesday, with the company acknowledging the outage on its status page:

    Investigating – We have received reports of impacted services. This could manifest in chat not working, login difficulties, search impaired, etc. We’re looking into the issue.

    During the outage, users were unable to access streamers’ pages, and were met with “error loading followed channels” errors, according to The Verge.

    Twitch says the issue has been resolved.

  • Facebook Threatens to Remove US News Over Journalism Bill

    Facebook Threatens to Remove US News Over Journalism Bill

    Facebook is once again threatening to remove news from its platform, this time in the US in response to a journalism bill before Congress.

    Congress proposed the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act (JCPA) with bipartisan support. The bill would provide a way for news publishers to negotiate with Facebook, Google, and other online platforms for access to and distribution of their content, according to The Verge.

    As it has done with Australia and Canada, Facebook is threatening to pull US news from its platform if the bill goes through.

    Andy Stone, Meta’s head of policy communications, tweeted about the company’s response to the bill.

    “If Congress passes an ill-considered journalism bill as part of national security legislation, we will be forced to consider removing news from our platform altogether rather than submit to government-mandated negotiations that unfairly disregard any value we provide to news outlets through increased traffic and subscription. The Journalism Competition and Preservation Act fails to recognize the key fact: publishers and broadcasters put their content on our platform themselves because it benefits their bottom line — not the other way around. No company should be forced to pay for content users don’t want to see and that’s not a meaningful source of revenue. Put simply: the government creating a cartel-like entity which requires one private company to subsidize other private entities is a terrible precedent for all American businesses.”

    Ultimately, despite its bluster, Facebook ultimately backed down in the face of Australia’s similar bill, making it unlikely Facebook will follow through on its threats in the US.

  • Xbox Game Studios Prices Increasing to $70 per Title

    Xbox Game Studios Prices Increasing to $70 per Title

    Microsoft is raising the prices of its Xbox Game Studios titles by $10, impacting new games starting in 2023.

    Microsoft develops and releases its first-party games via its Xbox Game Studios. The studio is responsible for titles such as Forza Motorsport, Redfall, and Starfield. Until now, titles were $59.99, but the company will begin charging $69.99 in 2023, according to The Verge.

    The company confirmed the change in statement to the outlet:

    We’ve held on price increases until after the holidays so families can enjoy the gift of gaming. Starting in 2023 our new, built for next-gen, full-priced games, including Forza Motorsport, Redfall, and Starfield, will launch at $69.99 USD on all platforms. This price reflects the content, scale, and technical complexity of these titles. As with all games developed by our teams at Xbox, they will also be available with Game Pass the same day they launch.

  • 565 Palm Pilot Apps Are Now Available via Your Web Browser

    565 Palm Pilot Apps Are Now Available via Your Web Browser

    The Internet Archive has helped resurrect 565 Palm Pilot apps, all of which can be run in your web browser.

    Palm was once one of the leading personal digital assistant (PDA) and smartphone makers, before eventually succumbing to Microsoft, Blackberry, and Apple. Despite its demise, the Palm ecosystem was responsible for a variety of popular apps, including some that served as precursors to many modern ones.

    According to The Verge, The Internet Archive has brought back a massive collection of those apps, including Space Trader, Dope Wars, SFCave, and more.

    Users interested in taking a look at a piece of history can get started here.

  • HBO Max Is Trying to Fix Playback Issues on Apple TV 4K

    HBO Max Is Trying to Fix Playback Issues on Apple TV 4K

    HBO is aware of an issue with HBO Max running on Apple TV 4K devices and is working to address it.

    Many users have reported “can’t play title” errors. The issue seems to be impacting all generations of Apple TV 4K devices, especially those running tvOS 16.1.

    HBO’s SVP of Communications Chris Willard confirmed to The Verge that the company is “aware and working on a fix.”

  • EU Steps Up Its Investigation Into Microsoft’s Activision Deal

    EU Steps Up Its Investigation Into Microsoft’s Activision Deal

    Microsoft’s purchase of Activision Blizzard has hit another snag, with the EU opening an “in-depth investigation.”

    Microsoft announced at the beginning of the year that it was purchasing Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion, making it one of the biggest deals in tech history. Almost immediately, regulators on both sides of the Atlantic expressed concern over the potential impact of Microsoft — the maker of the Xbox gaming console — owning the publisher of some of the world’s most popular gaming titles.

    Although the EU has already been investigating the deal, The Verge is reporting that it is moving to an “in-depth investigation.” The EU Commission plans to carry out its investigation over a period of 90 work days, meaning the deal could be delayed until March 23.

    The Commission said it was “concerned that the proposed acquisition may reduce competition in the markets for the distribution of console” and PC titles. The concerns don’t stop there, however, with the Commission afraid that Microsoft owning Activision could even help it shut out rivals in the broader PC market.

    “The Commission is concerned that Microsoft may reduce the ability of rival providers of PC operating systems to compete with Microsoft’s operating system Windows, by combining Activision Blizzard’s games and Microsoft’s distribution of games via cloud game streaming to Windows,” the Commission said in a statement. “This would discourage users to buy non-Windows PCs.”

    As recently as September, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said he was “very, very confident” the deal would be approved. Only time will tell if that sentiment proves true.

  • Google and Renault Working on an Automotive Software Platform

    Google and Renault Working on an Automotive Software Platform

    Google and Renault are working on a software platform for future vehicles that is based on Google’s platforms.

    The two companies are building on their four-year-old relationship and are looking to redefine automotive software by utilizing the power of Google Cloud and Android Automotive. According to The Verge, the companies want to create a “software-defined vehicle,” one that will send a steady stream of data to Google’s cloud servers for analysis.

    As part of their expanded partnership, Renault is making Google its “preferred cloud provider,” although that only applies to the automaker’s Renault, Dacia, Alpine, and Mobilize brands.

    While the two companies already worked together to bring Android to the automakers vehicle, this new deal will add far more advanced capabilities. For example, the software will create a “Digital Twin” of a vehicle using AI “for an easier and continuous integration of new services into the vehicle and the creation of new onboard (In-Car Services) and offboard applications.”

    The expanded deal is a big win for Google as the company works to gain traction as the industry’s third-largest cloud provider. Many other automakers have gone with Google’s larger rivals.

    At the same time, it remains to be seen if users will be comfortable with yet more of their data making its way to Google servers.

  • T-Mobile May Build Out a Fiber Internet Service

    T-Mobile May Build Out a Fiber Internet Service

    T-Mobile may be preparing to expand its Home Internet service, this time in the form of a major fiber investment.

    T-Mobile is already known for its 5G Home Internet, an internet services that uses its wireless network to serve homes in remote locations. According to a new report by Bloomberg, by way of The Verge, T-Mobile may be preparing to invest billions in a fiber network in an effort to expand its Home Internet service.

    The report says the magenta carrier is working with Citigroup to find a “commercial partnership” or to find other financial partnerships that could help it build out the network.

    As The Verge points out, if T-Mobile is successful, it would help the second-largest US wireless carrier better compete with Verizon and AT&T, both of whom already have their own fiber networks.

  • Warner Bros. Discovery Accelerating HBO Max/Discovery+ Merger

    Warner Bros. Discovery Accelerating HBO Max/Discovery+ Merger

    Warner Bros. Discovery is moving up its merger of HBO Max and Discovery+, crediting better-than-anticipated progress.

    As covered by our sister site, HiTechEdge, Warner Bros Discovery CEO David Zaslav has been working to merge the company’s HBO Max and Discovery+ in an effort to take on its larger rivals in the streaming space. Together, the two streaming services account for more than 90 million subscribers.

    According to The Verge, efforts to merge the two services are going so well that the company is moving up its targeted completion date. Whereas the initial plan was to launch the combined service in the summer of next year, the new target is the spring of 2023.

    As HiTechEdge noted, Zaslav’s goal is to have 130 million subscribers by 2025, so it certainly doesn’t hurt to get an early start.

  • Apple Could Be Forced to Tear Down Its Walled Garden

    Apple Could Be Forced to Tear Down Its Walled Garden

    The European Union (EU) has passed legislation that could be the single biggest threat to Apple’s walled garden.

    The EU approved the Digital Markets Act (DMA) in March 2022, legislation that is aimed at so-called “gatekeeper” companies. Gatekeepers are companies that run a “platform,” have at least 45,000 active users, and a market cap of at least $82 billion.

    The DMA’s goal is to prevent gatekeeper companies from preferring their own apps or services over those of competitors. In addition, the legislation would ensure users could choose the default apps of their choice.

    The DMA went into effect Tuesday and could completely upend how Apple does business. According to MacRumors, the DMA could force Apple to allow third-party app stores, allow users to sideload apps, and even make iMessage compatible with other messaging services.

    Although the DMA went into effect Tuesday, there are several implementation steps before companies are required to comply. Once the various steps are taken, companies impacted by the DMA will be required to comply by March 6, 2024, at the latest.

    While the legislation promises to address many of the inequities with Big Tech, experts worry that it may cause as many problems as it solves. In particular, the requirement that companies make their messaging apps interoperable with competing services could open a Pandora’s Box of problems.

    Because many messaging services use end-to-end encryption (E2EE), exports worry that the DMA will force companies to weaken, or outright break, encryption in an effort to pass messages from one service or another. There is also the possibility that companies may simply decide it is too difficult to maintain cross-platform encryption and abandon it altogether.

    There are still many unanswered questions about how the DMA will operate, including whether it will hold up to legal challenges. In our previous coverage, we quoted a Facebook engineer’s statement to The Verge regarding the issues the DMA raises:

    “If you went into a McDonald’s and said, ‘In the interest of breaking corporate monopolies, I demand that you include a sushi platter from some other restaurant with my order,’ they would rightly just stare at you,” Alec Muffett, former Facebook engineer and internet security expert, said. “What happens when the requested sushi arrives by courier at McDonald’s from the ostensibly requested sushi restaurant? Can and should McDonald’s serve that sushi to the customer? Was the courier legitimate? Was it prepared safely?”

  • FedEx Ends Its Robot Delivery Program

    FedEx Ends Its Robot Delivery Program

    FedEx is pulling the plug on its robot delivery efforts following a pilot program to test using robots instead of humans for last-mile delivery.

    FedEx is one of several companies that has been investigating the possibility of using robots for delivery. The company was running a pilot program in conjunction with DEKA Research and Development Corp. According to Robotics 24/7, the company is ending the program.

    “Although robotics and automation are key pillars of our innovation strategy, Roxo did not meet necessary near-term value requirements for DRIVE,” Sriram Krishnasam, chief transformation officer, wrote in an email to employees. “Although we are ending the research and development efforts, Roxo served a valuable purpose: to rapidly advance our understanding and use of robotic technology.”

    The company confirmed the news to Robotics 24/7, saying it was focusing on “several nearer-term opportunities.”

    It’s been a bad week for robotics, with The Verge reporting that Amazon has similarly canceled its robot delivery pilot program.

  • Microsoft to Challenge Apple and Google With Xbox Mobile Gaming Store

    Microsoft to Challenge Apple and Google With Xbox Mobile Gaming Store

    Microsoft is getting into the app store game with an Xbox mobile gaming store that will challenge Apple and Google.

    Microsoft is in the process of purchasing Activision Blizzard, although the deal is undergoing intensive scrutiny by the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). According to The Verge, Microsoft has filed documents with the CMA outlining its plans to launch an Xbox mobile game store.

    The filing outlines the company’s goals and vision:

    The transaction will improve Microsoft’s ability to create a next generation game store which operates across a range of devices, including mobile as a result of the addition of Activision Blizzard’s content. Building on Activision Blizzard’s existing communities of gamers, Xbox will seek to scale the Xbox Store to mobile, attracting gamers to a new Xbox Mobile Platform. Shifting consumers away from the Google Play Store and App Store on mobile devices will, however, require a major shift in consumer behavior. Microsoft hopes that by offering well-known and popular content, gamers will be more inclined to try something new.

    Microsoft clearly sees the opportunity as a major potential money-maker:

    The transaction gives Microsoft a meaningful presence in mobile gaming. Mobile gaming revenues from the King division and titles such as Call of Duty: Mobile, as well as ancillary revenue, represented more than half of Activision Blizzard’s … revenues in the first half of 2022. Mobile customers account for around three-quarters of its MAU. Microsoft currently has no meaningful presence in mobile gaming and the Transaction will bring much needed expertise in mobile game development, marketing and advertising. Activision Blizzard will be able to contribute its learnings from developing and publishing mobile games to Xbox gaming studios.

    Microsoft faces significant challenges to its Activision deal, with the CMA looking closely at the acquisition. Should the deal go through, however, it looks like Apple and Google may have some major competition on their hands.

  • GM Taking on Tesla With New Energy Division

    GM Taking on Tesla With New Energy Division

    GM is ramping up the pressure on Tesla, setting up a new energy division to more directly compete.

    GM has made no secret of its desire to dethrone Tesla as the top electric vehicle (EV) maker. Unfortunately for GM, one of Tesla’s advantages is its wide portfolio of electric energy tech. The older automaker appears poised to address that disparity with its new division.

    According to The Verge, the new GM Energy division will go far beyond merely selling EVs and will also sell batteries, solar panels, charging equipment, and software for both residential and commercial customers. The goal is to create an entire ecosystem that will support its EV lineup and provide a direct answer to Tesla.

    Travis Hester, GM’s chief EV officer, compared his company’s approach with smaller, lesser-known companies that are producing equipment to support the EV market.

    “They don’t have a vehicle,” Hester told The Verge. “And frankly, they don’t have the dealer network that we have.”

    Hester sees tremendous potential to go beyond just selling EVs, instead providing customers with the entire package.

    “At that moment, that electrification moment, they have to decide how they’re going to run that vehicle,” he said. “They have to decide are they going to buy a standard charger for their home? Is it going to be a bi-directional charger? Do they want to add stationary storage as a fixed box? Do they want to do solar? And they can go as far into that ecosystem or as little as possible depending on their individual needs.”

    Ultimately, Hester says GM Energy is the company’s path forward.

    “It’s not a business unit,” Hester said. “It is our business as we go forward.”

  • Instagram Developing Method to Securely Detect Unsolicited Nudes

    Instagram Developing Method to Securely Detect Unsolicited Nudes

    Instagram is reportedly working on a new feature that would securely detect and protect users from unsolicited nudes in chats.

    Instagram prohibits nudes or sexual content in posts, but users can send such content in chats and direct messages. Unfortunately, users who don’t want to receive nudes have little recourse or any way to preemptively block them. According to The Verge, that is about to change, with Instagram working on a way for users to finally block unsolicited nudes.

    The news was originally broke by researcher Alessandro Paluzzi via Twitter.

    https://twitter.com/alex193a/status/1571924946183397377?s=20&t=VBB0ltu0TpO-G89aMEIpkQ

    Instagram parent Meta confirmed to The Verge that the feature is in development, although there is no release date yet.

    Whenever the feature does appear, it should be a welcome option for people who want to keep their Instagram chats on the PG side of things.