Twitter is testing a heightened presence in podcasting, offering a redesigned Spaces tab that includes a podcast option in an announcement that hints at a collaboration with Vox Media. Couched as an investment in audio creators, Twitter says the redesign includes personalized hubs (which it’s calling “Stations”) that group audio content together by specific themes such as News, Music and Sports. Integrating podcasts into Spaces, Twitter’s designated area for audio, is “a simple and intuitive way that allows listeners to simply hit play and go” and compile personal collections of live and recorded Spaces audio discussions. Continue reading Twitter Prioritizes Discovery in Its Podcast Tests with Spaces

Google has launched an AI Test Kitchen and is inviting users to sign up to test experimental AI-powered systems and provide feedback before the applications are deployed for commercial use. First up is the Language Model for Dialogue Applications (LaMDA), which has shown promising early results. The AI Test Kitchen has begun a gradual rollout to small groups of U.S. on Android with plans to include iOS in the coming weeks. According to Google, “as we move ahead with development, we feel a great responsibility to get this right.”  Continue reading Google Debuts AI Test Kitchen, LaMDA Language Generator

Popular short-form video platform TikTok is garnering more unwanted attention, this time for tracking users’ keystrokes via a the ByteDance-owned video app’s browser. The feature was discovered by privacy researcher Felix Krause, a former Google engineer, who reported the Chinese company embeds the tracking capability within the in-app browser that opens when someone clicks an external link. Krause noted his research is limited to the Apple iOS platform. Krause did not speculate as to how TikTok is using the capability, but suggests he finds it troubling because it indicates TikTok is able to track users’ online activity if it so chooses. Continue reading Researcher Says TikTok Can Track User Data via Keystrokes

Free streaming media service Plex is testing a new community-oriented feature called Discover Together that lets users add friends and keep tabs on their favorite programs, viewing their ratings and bookmarks. In addition to enhancing engagement by prompting online discussions, Plex hopes the crowd-sourced community data can eventually help power its recommendation engine. The idea is for Discover Together to launch with a high degree of privacy, inviting users to fill out Plex profiles with their geographic location and Plex Pass status, extending individual friend invites using a Plex username or email. The feature is currently in beta for web, iOS and Android users. Continue reading Plex Goes Social for Content Discovery, Adds Music Channels

Meta Platforms is expanding its Meta Advantage advertising automation program, an effort to mitigate fallout from Apple’s consumer privacy measures, which have substantially constrained its ability to target and personalize ads. Launched in March, Meta Advantage bundles AI and ad automation tools to simplify the process for advertisers. This week the company added Advantage+ Shopping, assisting in campaign creation, simultaneously offering up to 150 automated creative combinations. The update offers more options to e-commerce brands and is geared toward optimizing the presence of Facebook or Instagram storefronts. Continue reading Meta Expands Advantage Program with AI-Powered Ad Tools

Google is delaying plans to phase out third-party ad tracking cookies on its Chrome browser until late 2024. The move will have broad ramifications as to how ads are targeted on websites. The Alphabet unit has been working under its Privacy Sandbox initiative since 2019 to find less intrusive alternatives to cookie-tracking technology. Google has been working with developers, publishers, marketers, regulators and advertisers to test its cookie alternative, and says feedback indicates more time is needed to test and evaluate the Privacy Sandbox before it’s phased-in to Chrome worldwide. Continue reading Google Delays Alternative to Cookies for Its Chrome Browser

Avid is moving its workflow to the cloud, providing its popular on-site editing interface to distributed production teams that will now have instant access to assets across platforms, from broadcast and cable to web and social media. Geared towards news and sports operations, the Avid Media Production in the Cloud subscription service offers a secure and convenient way to integrate existing tools and workflows with the power of the cloud “without committing to a forklift overhaul or the need for additional training,” Avid director of solutions marketing, media and cloud Raul Alba said of the rollout. Continue reading Avid Debuts ‘Media Production in the Cloud’ by Subscription

Amazon is rolling out a redesigned Prime Video app for Android and connected living room devices, including Fire TV for customers worldwide, with iOS and web to follow. The company says the new interface will make discovery and navigation much easier. Among the visual enhancements are a Top 10 Chart showcasing trending Prime Video content and “Super Carousel” displays with “poster-style artwork” for Amazon Originals. Also emphasized is graphical distinction between content included with Prime memberships versus that which is available for general purchase. Continue reading Amazon Launches Updates to Its Prime Video User Interface

Apple is previewing a new security capability for its upcoming iOS 16 release that is designed to help high-value targets fend off state-sponsored cyberattacks. Politicians, journalists, industrial leaders can all benefit from Lockdown Mode, says Apple, which also shared details of a $10 million research grant to help civil society organizations battle mercenary spyware threats. Emphasizing Lockdown Mode is “an extreme, optional protection for the very small number of users who face grave, targeted threats to their digital security,” Apple says it will debut this fall, including for the iPadOS 16 and macOS Ventura. Continue reading Apple’s Lockdown Mode Combats State-Sponsored Spyware

Twitter is reportedly poised to launch a tool that enables publication of long-form content on the platform. Currently said to be in test mode, the new Twitter Notes will let users create content through a combination of rich formatting and uploaded media. Once published, the Twitter Notes can be shared. Twitter rolled out threads in 2017 as a way to accommodate longer commentary, and users today frequently create numbered threads to connect a string of related tweets (also known as “tweetstorms”). The move may be the result of increased focus on monetization following Elon Musk’s purchase offer. Continue reading Twitter Experiments with Blogging in Long-Form ‘Notes’ Test

Netflix has unveiled new mobile game titles, including some derived from the streamer’s popular shows. Games developed from “The Queen’s Gambit,” “Too Hot to Handle” and “Shadow and Bone” join a gaming lineup that Netflix hopes to grow from an existing library of 22 to at least 50 titles by December, the company revealed at its annual Geeked Week virtual event, which wrapped on Friday. The games are available on iOS and Android, requiring users to authenticate their Netflix accounts. The streamer also introduced game-inspired animated series, including “The Cuphead Show!” and “Sonic Prime.” Continue reading Netflix Builds-Out Its Game Portfolio and Unveils New Series

Twitter is expanding its online shopping initiatives with features including “Product Drops,” which allow e-commerce merchants to tease upcoming availabilities. “People come to Twitter to talk about products and product drops every day. And merchants have long been dropping products on Twitter without any native product support,” Twitter explained. Product Drops connects the two. Participating merchants can add a “Remind Me” button on upcoming product tweets. Users who tap it receive in-app notifications around the drop that connects to a “shop on website” button, while clicking the tweet itself opens a product page with pricing and details. Continue reading Twitter Expands Its E-Commerce Efforts with ‘Product Drops’

YouTube has reimagined the remote control with a new feature that not only controls basic TV functions using an app, but lets users integrate more deeply with YouTube content — sharing videos, browsing and leaving comments, using Super Chat and Super Stickers and signing-up for channel memberships. YouTube on TV head of design Brynn Evans says the feature is the result of “hundreds of hours” researching user experiences with YouTube on televisions. Traditional remotes make it difficult to navigate on most TV sets, which typically don’t have web browsers built in, Evans says. Continue reading YouTube Helps Integrate TVs and Smartphones with New App

Buzz is heating up on Apple’s new mixed reality headset, with the company reportedly securing “Iron Man” director Jon Favreau to create content for the new platform that brings to life the dinosaurs from “Prehistoric Planet,” the Apple TV+ documentary on which he served as executive producer. The headset, anticipated for 2023 release, is expected to offer both virtual- and augmented-reality experiences, and will run realityOS, or rOS software. Details broke on the eve of Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference, June 6-10, but has not been announced during WWDC. The device will position Apple to compete with Meta, Microsoft and soon Google in the AR/VR space. Continue reading Apple realityOS Headset Reportedly on Deck for 2023 Release

Meta Platforms announced new features for Reels on Facebook and Instagram, including the ability to import audio, new templates to assist in video creation, a Suggested Reels feature, the ability to generate short-form Reels directly from Live content, upcoming editing and scheduling tools and more. These updates — in addition to a Sound Sync feature for Facebook Reels and Instagram Reels of up to 90-seconds — should help Meta keep up with ByteDance’s TikTok on the social media front, even as it has one foot planted in the metaverse. Continue reading Meta Takes on TikTok with Updated Video Features for Reels