The Dish Network’s Internet-streaming division Sling TV is being rebranded as Sling Freestream, offering free, ad-supported streaming television (FAST) and free, ad-supported VOD in attempt to better connect with consumers who don’t want to pay monthly subscription fees. Although the Sling live TV service was already free, the move sees it doubling down in the sector by expanding from 150 to 210 free channels with 41,000-plus on-demand titles. Sling Freestream users will also be able to subscribe to 50-plus standalone streaming services, including Showtime, Discovery+, MGM+ and AMC+. Continue reading Dish Network’s Sling TV Is Reimagined as ‘Sling Freestream’

Instagram co-founders Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger are back with a personalized news feed called Artifact that that uses artificial intelligence to pattern users’ interests and the friends that most likely want to discuss them with you. The new app — whose name combines articles, facts and artificial intelligence — opened a public waiting list this week and is available on iOS and Android. The Verge calls it “TikTok for text,” adding that “you might also call it Google Reader reborn as a mobile app or maybe even a surprise attack on Twitter.” Continue reading Instagram Creators Launch Artifact, Called a ‘TikTok for Text’

Apple is preparing for the release of its upcoming mixed reality headset by engineering software that, while aimed largely at developers, would also allow users to create their own augmented reality apps in the same way as Final Cut Pro, which is used to edit video by both professionals and laymen. Apple’s highly anticipated headgear is expected to come to market this year, and a general use AR development tool would be a major coup for the company, given that AR apps are complicated to create and new technologies typically rely on fresh content to drive sales. Continue reading Apple Developing User-Friendly AR Creation App for Headset

Niantic, the mobile games company famous for the “Pokémon GO” augmented reality venture has yet to duplicate the success of that 2016 mega-hit. “Harry Potter: Wizards Unite” and “Pikmin Bloom” fell short, and last June Niantic laid off nearly 90 people, about 8 percent of its staff. The company, which was incubated by Google, has a lot riding on “NBA All-World,” its latest bid for AR virality on Android and iOS. The game releases globally this week. The concept is brand-to-boots: hoop enthusiasts are invited to play one-on-one or enjoy team time with their NBA favorites. Continue reading NBA Collaboration with Niantic Could Be AR Game Changer

The upcoming Razer Edge, a gaming handheld built for streaming, may change how players interact with cloud games. With a 6.8-inch AMOLED display at 2,400 x 1,080 FHD+ resolution with a 144Hz refresh rate, the Razer Edge and Razer Edge 5G from Verizon start at $360 and are designed for ever-connected mobile play. Razer says its latest handhelds are the first developed exclusively for the latest Snapdragon G3x Gen 1 Gaming Platform. They include active cooling “for long gaming sessions playing top AAA titles and native games on the go without having to compromise performance.” Continue reading CES: Razer Edge Cloud Gaming Handheld Arrives January 26

There are a growing number of companies working on technologies that strive to make a person’s voice more intelligible to the listener over speakers, headphones, hearing aids and other consumer audio devices. Augmented Hearing, a Danish startup launched two years ago, is one of the more interesting companies at CES 2023 focusing on this space. The firm’s software-based solution runs on iOS, Windows and other CE operating systems. Their solution could mitigate the current trend of people across all age groups turning on closed captioning because they often find video dialogue difficult to understand. Continue reading CES: Startup Leverages AI to Address Problematic Acoustics

Samsung Electronics announced its new $60 SmartThings Station, which the company describes as “an easy-to-use, affordable smart home hub and fast charging pad.” The product is designed to provide consumers with “simple control and interoperability of multiple connected devices.” SmartThings Station is one of numerous solutions touted at CES that are compatible with a growing collection of smart home products, including those that are labeled as Matter devices. The Matter home automation standard, which helps connect devices built with the Thread low-power mesh networking protocol, had a significant presence at CES. Continue reading CES: Samsung Introduces an Easy-to-Use Smart Home Hub

In the wake of overwhelming public response to recent offerings DALL-E 2 and ChatGPT, OpenAI this week introduced Point-E, a text-to-3D model generator that is garnering positive feedback. Faster and less resource intensive than comparable systems, it’s still in the early stages and prone to occasional disjointed results but has advanced the proposition. Using a single Nvidia V100 GPU, Point-E can create a 3D model in under two minutes, generating “point clouds” — data sets representing a 3D shape. Point clouds compute more easily than the wire-fame meshes traditionally used to model 3D objects. Continue reading OpenAI’s Point-E Offers a New Take on Text-to-3D Modeling

Apple is planning to allow app sideloading in response to the European Union’s Digital Markets Act, set to take effect in 2024. The move reverses long-held policies that were a source of ire to many Apple developers as well as global regulators. It is believed the new approach could spillover to other regions where lawmakers are at various stages of reining in Big Tech, with companies including Google and Meta Platforms also in the crosshairs. The news sent shares up among companies that offer dating apps, including Match Group and Bumble. Spotify also got a bump. Continue reading Apple Plans to Open iOS to Third-Parties Thanks to EU Laws

Magazine reading app Flipboard is aiming to relocate some of the online discussion taking place on Twitter to its own platform. Users — which Flipboard calls “curators” — can “write new notes and start conversations” within their magazines, a move to give content creators “more ways to connect with their followers on Flipboard.” Now, curators who open any of the magazines they manage will find in the navigation bar a new “Create” icon they can click to create a note. “Use notes to write messages to your followers, ask them questions or even welcome new readers,” Flipboard suggests. Continue reading Magazine App Flipboard Makes a Push for Social Interactivity

Twitter has reintroduced its Twitter Blue paid subscription service, which will cost $11 a month for those using Apple mobile devices and $8 monthly for those who sign up using web browsers. The iOS premium compensates for the 30 percent initial fee Apple charges developers for subscriptions purchased through its App Store (which falls to 15 percent after a year). Twitter owner Elon Musk previously tweeted complaints about Apple’s pricing policy, which has also rankled other developers. Twitter Blue subscribers get access to features including editable tweets, upgraded video and a blue verification check mark. Continue reading Twitter Reboots Blue Subscription, Charges iOS Users More

Google is starting to publicly roll out many of the new features introduced at its Search On event in September. Spanning Google Search, Shopping and Maps, the tools let consumers do things like search their favorite restaurant dish by name, like “truffle mac and cheese near me.” A visual search experience for Maps called Live View lets users glimpse street scenes in cities including London, Los Angeles, New York, Paris, San Francisco and Tokyo. And an AR shopping feature invites people to try on everything from makeup to accessories using a library of 148 models. Continue reading Google Intros New Features for Search, Maps and Shopping

As it prepares for a crackdown on password sharing next year, Netflix has introduced a feature that lets subscribers kick-off interlopers who are piggybacking onto their accounts without paying. Accessed from the account settings tab, the new “Managing Access and Devices” functionality lets subscribers see a list of recent devices that have streamed from their account, letting them log-off any unauthorized users with one click. Netflix calls this new option a “much-requested feature” and says it is now available to global subscribers through their web browser, or on iOS and Android. Continue reading Netflix Offers a Feature to Let Subs Boot Unauthorized Logins

Cinedigm, a streaming firm that debuted its Cineverse platform this summer, is introducing the ability to rent fresh theatrical films via a partnership with ROW8, a subscription-free cinema OTT service launched in 2018. Cinedigm says the partnership allows it to market content on Cineverse that’s “still in theaters” via TVOD (transactional video on-demand). The agreement is reciprocal, with ROW8 able to offer Cinedigm’s own upcoming theatrical releases to Android and iOS, Apple TV, Google TV, Roku players, Vizio and other mobile devices. Cinedigm claims to be platform agnostic. Continue reading Cinedigm Teams with ROW8 to Bring ‘Still in Theaters’ to TV

Apple announced various App Store developer updates last week, and one change getting lots of attention is that which specifies “sales of ‘boosts’ for posts in a social media app must use in-app purchase.” That means Apple will be taking its customary 30 percent fee for paid boosts on iOS devices, a move that will primarily affect Meta Platforms’ Facebook and Instagram, since they hadn’t previously been processing such transactions through Apple’s in-app purchase system, like Twitter and Tiktok have. Apple says its “guidelines have been clear” that in-app sales are required to use its In-App Purchase. Continue reading Meta, Spotify Blast Apple Over App Store Fee Enforcements