Netflix posted record profit of $2.9 billion in Q1, a 24 percent increase year-over-year that exceeded its forecast of $2.44 billion. Revenue was up nearly 13 percent to $10.54 billion for the three month period. The streamer attributed the strong performance to “slightly higher subscription and ad revenue and the timing of expenses.” The company is looking ahead to a strong 2025 and robust growth in upcoming years, with an internal goal of doubling annual revenue to $80 billion by 2030 and global ad sales aiming to hit $9 billion. Full-year revenue is forecast to land between $43.5 billion and $44.5 billion. Continue reading Netflix Reports Another Record Quarter with $2.9 Billion Profit

Instant messaging and VoIP social platform Discord is experimenting with a feature that requires some users to verify their age by scanning their face or a photo ID. The technique is being implemented in Australia and the United Kingdom, where recently passed laws seek to crack down on minors accessing potentially harmful online content. The safeguard applies only to users who haven’t previously verified their age on the chat platform. Discord says age verification aims “to help users manage content filter settings and sensitive content visibility,” explaining it is a one-time process that can be completed when users first adjust their settings. Continue reading Discord Testing Facial Scans to Verify Age in UK and Australia

ByteDance is testing TikTok for Artists, a free feature performers can use to manage music and mesh with fans. Aimed at generating exposure and building engagement, the feature also provides analytics — from fan insights to performance metrics and trend reports. The Artists platform is now being tested in Australia, Indonesia, Japan, Korea and New Zealand. Though the U.S. deadline for ByteDance to remove TikTok from Chinese control was extended by 75 days (a second time) from April 5 to June 19, the social media app’s future here is more uncertain than ever. Continue reading ByteDance Tests TikTok for Artists with Its U.S. Fate in Limbo

Google’s YouTube is rolling out new tools to make YouTube Shorts even more competitive with social-video platform TikTok. The new publishing suite includes an improved video editor, a tool for generating AI stickers, enhanced templates, and a feature that can synchronize content to a musical beat. YouTube says the upgraded editing feature will provide users with the ability to make more precise adjustments, fine-tuning the timing of each clip. Users can “move or remove clips to create a rough version, add music or timed text, and preview their Short to make sure it tells the story the way they want it to,” according to YouTube. Continue reading YouTube Shorts Updates Video Tools to Compete with TikTok

The QVC Group has launched TikTok U.S.’s first 24/7 live third-party social shopping stream with a berth on TikTok Shop. The move builds on QVC’s existing presence on TikTok Shop, a tab within the TikTok app where it debuted in August 2024. QVC, which launched in 1986 as the Quality Value Channel, built its business around live cable TV shopping but has seen the sector contract due to cord cutting. QVC Group CEO David Rawlinson is tasked with reinventing the network by engaging younger shoppers through social media. QVC Group is a subsidiary of John Malone’s Liberty Media. Continue reading QVC First with Live 24/7 Branded Shopping Stream on TikTok

Gamers have been waiting for years for Nintendo’s new gaming device and now they only have to wait until June 5 when the Switch 2 hits shelves starting at $450. The device has a larger, 1080p LCD screen, and supports 4K and in-game chat. Details were revealed during a Nintendo Direct online presentation. Nintendo, which announced details of the new console in January, will over the next few months be holding a series of global roadshow events aimed at letting people have a hands-on experience with Switch 2. The original has sold more than 150 million units. Continue reading Nintendo Switch 2 Out in June with 4K Support, In-Game Chat

OpenAI has closed a $40 billion funding round, a record for a private tech firm. The infusion gives the nine-year-old San Francisco startup a $300 billion valuation making it the second most richly apprised private firm in the world, second only to SpaceX at $350 billion and tied with ByteDance, according to CNBC. The round was led by SoftBank Group contributing $30 billion, which likely gives the Japanese holding company the second largest stake, after Microsoft, which is said to have received a commitment for 49 percent of any profits in exchange for nearly $14 billion. Continue reading OpenAI Closes the Largest Private Tech Funding Round Ever

TikTok has rolled out a Security Checkup tool designed to help users secure their accounts. Security settings can now be reviewed and updated from a single screen, similar to security dashboards used by Google and Instagram. A step-by-step guide to the new feature encourages users to make their accounts safer by enabling more security features. The social media platform owned by China-based ByteDance is in the final days of a 75-day extension allowing it to continue U.S. operations after Congress deemed it a national security threat and enacted legislation requiring it to be sold or banned by January 15. Continue reading TikTok Adds Security Checkup to Help Users Secure Accounts

OpenAI is urging the Trump Administration to declare AI training fair use, seeking unfettered access to copyrighted material for the purpose of educating models. The company is also asking for relief from state AI rules and more permissive AI export rules in a response to President Trump’s call for a U.S. “AI Action Plan.” The deadline to submit responses to the National Science Foundation and Office of Science & Technology Policy (OSTP) request for information (RFI) regarding the plan was Saturday. Google also publicized its response, which largely echoed OpenAI’s points. Continue reading OpenAI and Google Press for Relief on Copyright, State Laws

Taiwan semiconductor firm TSMC, the world’s largest chipmaker, has vowed to add another $100 billion to its existing $65 billion plan to expand its U.S. manufacturing base. The total allocation — $165 billion over the next four years — sees TSMC further building out its advanced semiconductor fabrication complex in Phoenix, Arizona, which has been producing at volume since late 2024. The expansion plays a key role in strengthening the U.S. computer ecosystem by increasing U.S. production of advanced semiconductors, TSMC says, adding that it will “complete the domestic AI supply chain” with advanced packaging investments. Continue reading TSMC Will Boost Its Factory Build-Out in U.S. by $100 Billion

Apple unveiled a big “made in the USA” initiative, with plans to spend more than $500 billion on U.S. factories over the next four years. The company will upgrade operations in California, Arizona, Nevada, Washington, Oregon, Iowa, Michigan, North Carolina and Texas, adding a new server facility in Houston. The move comes as U.S. international relations enter a period of flux. Apple’s plans include opening “a manufacturing academy” and accelerated investments in educating stateside workers in AI and silicon engineering. “We are bullish on the future of American innovation, and we’re proud to build on our long-standing U.S. investments,” Apple CEO Tim Cook said. Continue reading Apple Will Invest $500B in U.S. Manufacturing and Education

A federal appeals court axed the FCC’s net neutrality rules, punctuating a 20-year battle to classify broadband Internet providers as utilities. The Cincinnati-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit — with jurisdiction over Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee — said the FCC lacks the authority to prevent ISPs from thwarting access to Internet content. Citing the Supreme Court’s Loper Bright decision from June, the three judge panel wrote that government agencies lack the authority to deploy and administer such regulations. Since Sixth Circuit decisions aren’t precedent in other states, California says it will keep existing rules intact. Continue reading California Backs Net Neutrality, Despite Recent Court Reversal

Meta is changing its content moderation policies, eliminating third-party fact checking in lieu of a “community notes” model that will be phased in over the coming months, starting in the U.S. The changes were outlined by Joel Kaplan, the company’s new chief global affairs officer, who was promoted following the recent resignation of Nick Clegg, who managed Meta’s public image since 2018 and set up its oversight board. Kaplan says the policy shift “will allow more speech by lifting restrictions on some topics that are part of mainstream discourse and focusing our enforcement on illegal and high-severity violations.” Continue reading Meta Platforms Replaces Fact Checking with Community Notes

CTA President Kinsey Fabrizio introduced X Corp. CEO Linda Yaccarino and journalist Catherine Herridge for a CES keynote conversation on the social media company established by Elon Musk in 2023. Herridge skipped the pleasantries and went straight to the news that Meta was abandoning third-party fact checking, and replacing it with Community Notes, adopting X’s policy on the topic. “Mark [Zuckerberg], Meta, welcome to the party,” said Yaccarino. “How exciting when you think Community Notes are good for the world. It couldn’t be more validating that Mark and Meta realize this.” Continue reading CES: X Corp. Chief Exec Linda Yaccarino Talks Social Media

Reports indicate that Meta Platforms is preparing to introduce advertising to Threads, perhaps as soon as January. Threads is the year-old social platform it launched to compete with Twitter in July 2023, the same month Elon Musk was rebranding that platform as X. Meta is looking to begin Threads’ transition to ad support by initially allowing only a small group of advertisers to create and publish ads before opening the platform to the ad industry at large later in the year. Head of Instagram Adam Mosseri, who also runs Threads, has said Meta is “definitely” planning to open ad inventory on Threads. Continue reading Meta Readies Year-Old Threads for Advertising in Early 2025