The pushback against Libra is increasing. BBC News writes:
Financial bigwigs are upset because Facebook, a corporation, appears to want to take on a government-like role, creating a currency and perhaps even setting monetary policy.
Big Money is power. Facebook is trying to seize power at a governmental level. Sparks are gonna fly.
ViacomCBS is the name of a merged corporation between CBS and Viacom. It will create a joint media library including over 140,000 TV episodes and 3,600 movies.
In their announcement, the companies note that the merger creates a joint content library that includes more than 140,000 TV episodes and 3,600 films, and “reunites fan-favorite franchises such as Star Trek and Mission: Impossible” (which were previously split between Paramount on the film side and CBS on the TV side). They also say that this will allow them to “accelerate” their direct-to-consumer strategy, which includes offerings like CBS All Access, Showtime and Pluto TV. The deal is expected to close by the end of 2019.
Amazon, Apple, and Google listened to user audio files to help analyze the data. Now we have news that Facebook contractors did the same.
Andrew Orr and Charlotte Henry join host Kelly Guimont to talk about RESOLVE and Salmon Gold, and when gift cards go wrong.
WhistleOut is looking for someone to review the iPhone 11 for them. You’ll get paid US$1,000 plus you can keep the phone when you’re done.
You’ll be putting the new iPhone through its paces—testing the camera, getting into the nitty gritty of the interface, seeing what kind of battery life you’re able to squeeze out of it—and writing a comprehensive review based on your findings. We’ll need your written review within a week of you receiving the phone. We’ll give you a review form for this.
MacStadium’s new Orka technology is a new virtualization layer for Mac-based infrastructure using Kubernetes and Docker.
Data from Leichtman Research Group showed the rise in cord cutters continues unabated. Cable companies lost 455,263 subscribers in Q2 2019. Traditional TV as a whole lost 1.53 million subscribers in the quarter. Fast Company took a look at the research.
Leichtman says this is the fourth consecutive quarter of record losses for the industry, but the bigger story is that cable TV losses are in line with where satellite providers were a year ago. In Q2 2018, Dish Network and DirecTV combined for a loss of 478,000 subscribers, and last quarter, their losses nearly doubled year-over-year, to 857,000 subscribers. Without big changes, cable TV could be looking at similarly bleak results a year from now. Not that they care too much. While satellite providers don’t have other clear business models to fall back on, cable companies can profit from cord cutting by selling more internet service at faster speeds.
Check out today’s deal on a Nomad Lightning cable that has its own built-in 2,800mAh portable battery. It’s a 1.5 meter nylon-wrapped MFi -certified Lightning charging cable, and the housings at either end are made of aluminum. And then embedded in the cable is that 2,800mAh battery, enough to charge iPhone 8/X/XS from flat to full, and put a good dent into the iPhone XR and the Max models. This device is just $19.99 through our deal.
Apple revealed details of a partnership to support gold remining and environmental restoration efforts in Alaska – so-called salmon gold.
Spotify took its podcasters dashboard out of beta Tuesday, The Verge reported. It aims to give podcasters useful data as it establishes itself as a podcasting platform.
Podcasters have long lacked data about their listeners, which poses problems when they’re trying to sell ads. Spotify is uniquely qualified to give podcasters that data because every Spotify user requires an account to listen, where they’ve provided basic demographic data about themselves, as well as their music listening habits. Nothing about the dashboard will change when it comes out of beta, although Hellman says it’ll be refined over time as podcasters respond to the product. The idea is to mirror Spotify for Artists, the dashboard it provides for musicians, but optimized for podcasters.
