Meta Platforms’ workaround to European privacy laws regarding ad-targeting has run afoul of watchdog agencies, resulting in two complaints filed with the EU’s network of consumer protection authorities against the U.S. tech giant. Meta contends its so-called “pay-or-consent model” — requiring users of its social platforms to choose between agreeing to be tracked for ad-targeting purposes or pay a monthly subscription fee for ad-free service — falls within permissible parameters set by EU authorities. The more than 20 groups that have jointly filed suit say the strategy is illegal under EU law, describing it as “unfair, deceptive and aggressive.” Continue reading Meta’s EU Social Media Subscription Plan Draws Complaints

After introducing the Chat Lock feature in May, WhatsApp has added something called “secret code,” for an additional layer of privacy protection for extremely sensitive conversations. A secret code makes sensitive chats “harder to find if someone has access to your phone or you share a phone with someone else,” the Meta Platforms subsidiary says. With a secret code, users can set a unique password — different from that which normally unlocks the phone — to give locked chats an extra layer of privacy. An additional option allows the Locked Chats folder to be hidden from the general chatlist. Continue reading WhatsApp Rolls Out ‘Secret Codes’ Privacy for Locked Chats

American consumers set a new online shopping record for Black Friday, spending $9.8 billion on November 24, a record for the famous sales day and a 5.7 percent increase over 2022, according to Adobe Analytics. Thanksgiving Day online sales were also strong, rising 5.5 percent to $5.6 billion, per Adobe, which predicts that Cyber Monday numbers will blow past both those days, projecting U.S. consumer spending of between $12 billion and $12.4 billion for another new record. A notable trend during the holiday shopping weekend was increased reliance on “buy now, pay later” deals. Continue reading Black Friday Sets Sales and Mobile Shopping Records in U.S.

Samsung TV Plus reports it has seen enthusiastic consumer use over the past year, with a 60 percent rise in global viewership. Accordingly, the TV maker is upgrading its free streaming service — available on Galaxy devices, Samsung Smart TVs, Smart Monitors and Family Hub appliances and on the Web — with an emphasis on discoverability for kids and music programming. Launched in 2015, the free ad-supported TV (FAST) and ad-based video on-demand (AVOD) service offers content spanning news, sports, entertainment, music, and more, in 24 countries where it is accessed on 535 million TV and mobile devices. Continue reading Samsung TV Plus Hits Refresh on a 60 Percent Viewer Surge

Sweden-based digital music service Spotify has redesigned its television user interface to make it look and feel more like the platform’s desktop and mobile experiences, a move its users have been waiting for. The frequently played content now appears at the top of the interface, while playlists and favorites are also easily accessed. A playback queue that opens from the side of the screen lets you see what’s playing and program what’s coming up, and you can easily switch accounts by toggling profile options. A dark mode option has been added for the television interface as well. Continue reading Spotify Redesigns TV Interface to Better Match Its Mobile App

Meta Platforms-owned instant messaging and VoIP service WhatsApp has updated its Voice Chat feature for mobile so it can now host group calls of up to 128 participants. Voice chats allow WhatsApp users to instantly talk live with members of a group chat while still being able to message within the group. The new feature, which is being compared to a Discord server, is being rolled out globally. The idea is to have the Voice Chat be less disruptive than group calling, which rings-in all group members. Voice chats can be quietly started with an in-chat bubble users tap to join. The updated version will have end-to-end encryption by default. Continue reading Meta’s WhatsApp Launches Voice Chat for Up to 128 People

Valve’s Steam Deck OLED comes to market Thursday with an HDR OLED display that sprawls 7.4 inches, better audio, and a huge boost in battery life. Lighter, cooler, and promising faster downloads, the Steam Deck OLED comes in two storage configurations: 512GB and 1TB, priced at $549 and $649, respectively. As with its predecessor, Steam Deck OLED features a microSD card slot. A $79.95 Steam Deck Docking Station is also available to connect to external displays, wired networking, USB peripherals, and power. The release date is set for November 16. Continue reading Valve to Launch Its Overhauled Steam Deck OLED This Week

Samsung Electronics has unveiled a generative AI model called Samsung Gauss designed specifically for artificial intelligence apps on mobile devices. If Samsung deploys Gauss to its smartphones anytime soon it would be among the first handset makers to natively integrate generative AI, putting it ahead of Apple. Gauss was revealed at the Samsung AI Forum 2023 in Korea, held by Samsung Research. Gauss is a large language model that facilitates tasks such as composing emails, summarizing documents and translating content. Samsung says it also enables smarter device control when integrated into products. Continue reading Samsung Is an Early Mover in Mobile LLM Space with Gauss

YouTube is testing artificial intelligence features with YouTube viewing Premium customers and the long-form video experience. Paid subscribers on mobile platforms who opt-in can participate in the two experimental tests for AI-assisted functions that include help with the comments section and a chatbot tool that lets viewers get answers to questions about videos and recommendations for related content. To help viewers “dive deeper into content” without interrupting playback, a conversational “Ask” icon will appear beneath videos in progress, inviting questions or letting viewers select suggested prompts. Responses include answers and related content recommendations. Continue reading YouTube Premium Testing GenAI Tools for Long-Form Video

Kaiber, the AI-powered creative studio whose credits include music video collaborations with artists such as Kid Cudi and Linkin Park, has launched a mobile version of its creator tools designed to give musicians and graphic artists on-the-go access to its suite of GenAI tools offering text-to-video, image-to-video and video-to-video, “now with curated music to reimagine the music video creation process.” Users can select artist tracks to accompany visuals to build a music video “with as much or little AI collaboration as they wish.” Users can also upload their own music or audio and tap Kaiber for visuals. Continue reading Startup Kaiber Launches Mobile GenAI App for Music Videos

Apple posted fiscal Q4 earnings of $89.5 billion, down one percent year-over-year. CEO Tim Cook put the quarter’s best facts forward: “a September quarter revenue record for iPhone and an all-time revenue record in Services,” and quarterly earnings per diluted share of $1.46, up 13 percent. While net income of just below $23 billion exceeded Wall Street expectations, Q4 capped a fiscal year in which Apple revenue fell 2.8 percent, impacted by a decline in iPhone sales in China. Following the report, shares fell 3 percent in extended trading based on the prospect that the company may not rebound to growth in the important holiday sales season. Continue reading Despite China Market, iPhone Sales Still Reach $43.8 Billion

Qualcomm has debuted a new flagship platform, the Snapdragon X Elite series. Built for artificial intelligence and capable of running generative models with over 13 billion parameters, Qualcomm claims it offers “4.5 times faster AI processing power than competitors.” Described as “the most powerful computing processor it has ever created for the PC,” Qualcomm says the chipset is also one of the most efficient, “with up to multiple days of battery life.” Leading OEMs are expected to begin shipping models with the new processors in mid-2024. Continue reading Qualcomm Unveils Snapdragon X Elite Series, Created for AI

The Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA) is releasing an update to its smart home connectivity standard. Matter 1.2 adds nine new device types, including robot vacuums, washing machines, refrigerators and dishwashers. New certification and testing tools and core improvements to the specification and SDK are also rolling out in this major new release for the standard, which debuted a little over a year ago for things like door locks and light switch controls. In theory, Matter-compliant devices will be able to be controlled by smart home platforms like Amazon Alexa, Apple Home, Samsung SmartThings and Google Home. Continue reading Matter Adds Major Appliances with 9 New Device Categories

The Federal Communications Commission has moved closer to reinstating net neutrality rules. The agency adopted a notice of proposed rulemaking and opened a call for comment on classifying fixed and mobile broadband Internet service as an essential telecommunications service under Title II of the Communications Act. The Commission will also seek comment on proposals to ensure broadband services have effective oversight. If the proposals are adopted after public comments, the FCC will once again be charged with protecting Internet openness and competition, as well as guarding against broadband national security threats and other public safety issues. Continue reading Regulatory Fight Tees Up Over FCC Return to Net Neutrality

YouTube has introduced three dozen new features that do everything from improve mobile playback and search to expand creator tools. When the words “like and subscribe” are uttered by creators, the buttons will respond with animations. Bigger preview thumbnails and a “lock-screen” feature designed to prevent mishaps are also in the new toolset. The improvements build on the “new look and feel” YouTube debuted last year, adding “more modern design elements and features that helped our viewers feel more immersed,” the company says. Some of the improvements target smartphones and connected TVs, while others are for the web app. Continue reading YouTube Adds Dozens of Mobile Playback, Creator Controls