Google is attacking slow-loading web pages with the new JPEG image encoder/decoder Jpegli, which offers a 35 percent compression ratio improvement using high quality compression settings, the Alphabet company says. The Jpegli JPEG coding library offers backward compatibility via “a fully interoperable encoder and decoder complying with the original JPEG standard and its most conventional 8-bit formalism, and API/ABI compatibility with libjpeg-turbo and MozJPEG,” Google says. The resulting images compressed using Jpegli are “more precise and psychovisually effective” as a result of computations that make images “look clearer” with “fewer observable artifacts.” Continue reading Google Introduces Faster, More Efficient JPEG Coding Library

In news rocking the publishing world, two of the largest newspaper chains in the U.S. have drastically downsized their contracts with the Associated Press, eliminating AP journalism from their combined 230 news outlets, including Gannett’s USA Today and McClatchy’s The Miami Herald. Though neither chain disclosed how much the move will save, the AP assesses “it is likely to be in the millions of dollars” for each. Gannett announced it has chosen another newswire partner, Reuters, and says it will continue to subscribe to the AP Stylebook and election results data. AP says its Gannett contract runs through the end of 2024. Continue reading Gannett, McClatchy Cancel Associated Press News Contracts

Authentic Brands Group, which owns the rights to Sports Illustrated, has selected the London-based Minute Media to continue publishing the storied magazine in print and digital editions in a deal that runs for 10 years, with an option to extend for up to 20 more years. The Minute partnership will “usher in the future of the SI brand,” announced Authentic, whose portfolio includes fashion and sports, as well as IP rights to celebrities like Marilyn Monroe, who it is leveraging into a chatbot. Minute owns sports and culture resources including athlete-driven The Players’ Tribune, the FanSided network of websites and newsletters, and sports highlights platform STN Video. Continue reading Minute Media Secures a 10-Year Future for Sports Illustrated

News site Semafor has teamed with Microsoft to create a new breaking news product called Signals it says is a template for “the newsroom of the future.” Using AI tools from Microsoft and OpenAI to assist its journalists, the multi-source Signals will offer “perspectives and insights on the biggest stories in the world as they develop,” Semafor says. Microsoft simultaneously announced deals with the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY and the Online News Association. “In a year where billions of people will vote in democratic elections worldwide, journalism is critical to creating healthy information ecosystems,” Microsoft says. Continue reading Semafor Teams with Microsoft on AI-Driven Newsfeed Signals

Japanese triple-A game publisher Square Enix rang in the New Year with an open letter from President Takashi Kiryu emphasizing that the 20-year-old firm intends to reinforce its core business of content development and game publishing while aggressively exploring new areas like artificial intelligence and extended reality. In the short term, AI will be used “to enhance our development productivity and achieve greater sophistication in our marketing efforts,” Kiryu wrote in his letter, explaining that “in the longer term, we hope to leverage those technologies to create new forms of content.” Continue reading Square Enix to Explore New Content Possibilities with AI, XR

Paramount Global has agreed to sell publishing giant Simon & Schuster to private equity firm KKR for $1.62 billion in an all-cash transaction. Paramount Global President and CEO Bob Bakish said the transaction “delivers excellent value to Paramount shareholders while also positioning Simon & Schuster for its next phase of growth with KKR.” On closing, expected in the first half of 2024, Simon & Schuster will become a standalone private company under the continued leadership of President and CEO Jonathan Karp and COO and CFO Dennis Eulau. Continue reading KKR Will Pay $1.62 Billion for Paramount’s Simon & Schuster

Google has been demonstrating a new AI tool that writes news articles. Currently known as Genesis, which is a working title, the app is reportedly able to take topical information as pertains to things like new products or current events and weave it into something approximating a logically developed news story. The Alphabet company’s new product has been quietly pitched to organizations including The Washington Post, The New York Times and News Corp, owner of The Wall Street Journal and The New York Post. One observer described the new tech as a copilot for journalists, rather than a replacement. Continue reading Genesis: Google Demos New Generative AI Newswriting Tool

The Parliament of Canada passed a law requiring technology companies to pay news outlets when linking to their articles, a move that has Meta Platforms threatening to pull news content from Facebook and Instagram in that country. Canada’s Online News Act, which applies to domestic outlets, is the latest move in a global battle between publishers and Big Tech, and follows a similar law in Australia. “A strong, independent and free press is fundamental to our democracy,” a member of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s administration tweeted when the law cleared the vote last week. Continue reading Canadian Law Requires That Tech Firms Pay for News Links

Roll, a new app for web and iOS, puts an AI spin on timeworn video capture and editing techniques, delivering virtual bokeh, motion graphics and multicam shots, as well as sliders, cranes, dollies and jibs. As the latest consumer artificial intelligence entry, Roll professes to empower anyone to create professional-quality remote video quickly using just an iPhone and Roll’s proprietary software. The Roll app is free to use, with the whole platform offered as a free trial with a paid subscription option. Roll lets users record broadcast-quality remote video calls, add generative AI special effects, and publish quickly. Continue reading Roll Uses Generative AI to Simulate Jibs, Dollies, Much More

Vice Media, the digital company once valued at nearly $6 billion, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Monday. After launching as a magazine 29 years ago in Montreal, the startup expanded, launching a flagship website and acquiring the Virtue ad agency, Pulse Films and the women-focused Refinery29. Vice’s businesses will continue operations throughout the bankruptcy process, which includes a sale to take place within 55 days. Vice lenders including Fortress Investment Group and Soros Fund Management have joined forces to acquire the company, submitting a bid of $225 million and agreeing to assume “substantial debt.” Continue reading Vice Media Files Chapter 11 with Sale Set for Within 55 Days

Twitter appears to be angling for a slice of the newsletter market, with tweets of up to 10,000 words now available to Twitter Blue subscribers in the U.S. That’s more than double the 4,000-character limit paid accounts were extended in February. Those using the platform’s free tier are still allowed only 280-character tweets. The lengthy posts are intended to help users monetize through subscriptions, which can be priced at $2.99, $4.99 or $9.99 per month. In addition to the character cap increase, Twitter Blue subscribers will also gain access to support for bold and italics text formatting. Continue reading Twitter Pushes Subscriptions and Increases Its Character Cap

Substack, the web-based publishing and discovery platform, has opened an investment round to its writers and potentially other retail investors. Founded in 2017, the company has already raised more than $85 million, most recently from venture firm Andreessen Horowitz and entrepreneur Audrey Gelman. But last year, in a rough economic climate, it reportedly came up dry and is now asking the many writers who rely on it to put skin in the game. Based on early response, Wednesday’s announced goal of $2 million was upped to $5 million the next day. Continue reading Substack ‘Community Round’ Outperforms Its Funding Goal

Canva, the web-based design platform, is debuting “Magic” AI-powered tools that can automate a variety of tasks, from logo design to video editing. The idea is to empower people without design training to do these things, and more. Infographics, advertising materials, illustrations and presentations are among the types of output Canva AI offers. The company is also adding brand management tools to its Visual Worksuite, including a Brand Hub that provides assets for creative application, with permission settings that can restrict off-brand use of things like color or fonts. Continue reading Canva Launches New Branding Features and Magic AI Tools

Weeks after CNET drew media attention for quietly publishing stories generated by artificial intelligence, the outlet announced layoffs of several longtime employees yesterday, representing about 10 percent of the public masthead. The move was reportedly made by Red Ventures, the private equity-backed media firm that acquired the tech news outlet three years ago. CNET editor-in-chief Connie Guglielmo will step down and transition to SVP of AI content strategy. The new editor-in-chief will be Adam Auriemma, who previously held the same position at NextAdvisor, also owned by Red Ventures. Continue reading Layoffs Are Under Way at CNET, Editor-in-Chief Steps Down

Observers are weighing the potential effect of chatbots on the publishing industry, as works written by or with an assist from artificial intelligence come to market. Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing arm currently lists more than 200 e-books that credit OpenAI’s ChatGPT as author or co-author on topics ranging from stories for children to self-help, science fiction and poetry. Tutorials on how to use AI to create publishable work in a few hours have sprung up on YouTube, TikTok and Reddit. As with all things AI, this trend has prompted equal amounts of curiosity and concern. Continue reading From Self-Help to Kid Lit, Generative AI Triggers Book Boom