theverge--2020-04-29--Google Meet video conferencing is now free for anybody

Google is opening up its Google Meet videoconferencing service to anybody who wants to use it , instead of just offering it to enterprise and education customers via G Suite .
The company says anybody with a Google account will now be able to create free meetings of up to 100 people that can last any amount of time — though after September 30th it may restrict meeting length to 60 minutes .
That Google account requirement is a hard one , however .
People won ’ t be able to just click a link and join a meeting — @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in .
That is so meetings can be better controlled by their hosts , hopefully eliminating the possibility of Zoombombing .
Google will also introduce other safety measures : people not explicitly added to a meeting via a calendar invite will be automatically entered into a green room when they try to join a meeting , and only be let in when approved by the host .
The free version will also not offer landline dial-in numbers for meetings .
Google Meet is now open to anyone with a Google account Those safety-focused @ @ @ @ @ @ @ differentiating its Meet product from Zoom , which has had a meteoric rise that over the past few months and caught both Google and Microsoft flat-footed .
The increased attention on Zoom revealed a litany of security problems , which the fast-growing company has scrambled to address .
But Google is seemingly hoping there ’ s still an opening for people who distrust Zoom .
Google has trust problems of its own when it comes to conferencing and messaging products .
Google Meet only became “ Google Meet ” earlier this month — @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Meet .
That ’ s a legacy of the fractured and convoluted history of Google ’ s messaging and video apps the company is still trying to escape .
Hangouts Chat , Google ’ s Slack and Teams competitor , was also recently renamed to Google Chat .
Some Google users may remember ( or still be using ) Hangouts Video chat , another one of those legacy products .
Google says that product will be transitioned to Google Meet over time , so that there ’ s just one platform for both @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s slow-and-steady progress is laudable for enterprise users looking for stability from a company once famous for its product-killing Spring cleanings , but at this point it ’ s past time to fully sunset the Hangouts brand .
Google Meet recently updated to support “ Gallery view , ” the Brady Bunch-style of putting all participants in a single grid that Zoom largely popularized .
The new mode is available in apps on mobile platforms and inside browsers on the desktop .
Google is trying to capitalize on Zoom ’ s security controversies @ @ @ @ @ @ @ soon — unlike its competitors , Google is keeping G Suite and its related product as web-first apps .
That allows them to be always-updated and easier to manage than native Windows or macOS apps , but the approach can introduce hassles like losing your meeting in a sea of tabs or accidentally exiting out of it .
Alongside the consumer availability for Meet , Google is unveiling a new tier for G Suite that it ’ s calling “ G Suite Essentials , ” which includes Meet and also Google Drive , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Suite customers will still have free access to Meet through September 30th .
Lastly , Meet is also getting integrated into Gmail — both G Suite versions and regular consumer Gmail addresses .
In the same way that Microsoft has leveraged its Office dominance to drive people to Teams , Google is fully utilizing Gmail ’ s power to push its integrated video conferencing app .
Zoom may have captured the zeitgeist , but Google and Microsoft are going to do their best to make sure it doesn ’ t capture any more @ @ @ @

Google is opening up its Google Meet videoconferencing service to anybody who wants to use it, instead of just offering it to enterprise and education customers via G Suite. The company says anybody with a Google account will now be able to create free meetings of up to 100 people that can last any amount of time — though after September 30th it may restrict meeting length to 60 minutes.
That Google account requirement is a hard one, however. People won’t be able to just click a link and join a meeting — they’ll need to be logged in. That is so meetings can be better controlled by their hosts, hopefully eliminating the possibility of Zoombombing. Google will also introduce other safety measures: people not explicitly added to a meeting via a calendar invite will be automatically entered into a green room when they try to join a meeting, and only be let in when approved by the host. The free version will also not offer landline dial-in numbers for meetings.
Google Meet is now open to anyone with a Google account
Those safety-focused caveats are Google’s way of differentiating its Meet product from Zoom, which has had a meteoric rise that over the past few months and caught both Google and Microsoft flat-footed. The increased attention on Zoom revealed a litany of security problems, which the fast-growing company has scrambled to address. But Google is seemingly hoping there’s still an opening for people who distrust Zoom.
Google has trust problems of its own when it comes to conferencing and messaging products. Google Meet only became “Google Meet” earlier this month — before that the service was called Hangouts Meet. That’s a legacy of the fractured and convoluted history of Google’s messaging and video apps the company is still trying to escape. Hangouts Chat, Google’s Slack and Teams competitor, was also recently renamed to Google Chat.
Some Google users may remember (or still be using) Hangouts Video chat, another one of those legacy products. Google says that product will be transitioned to Google Meet over time, so that there’s just one platform for both consumers and enterprise customers. Google’s slow-and-steady progress is laudable for enterprise users looking for stability from a company once famous for its product-killing Spring cleanings, but at this point it’s past time to fully sunset the Hangouts brand.
Google Meet recently updated to support “Gallery view,” the Brady Bunch-style of putting all participants in a single grid that Zoom largely popularized. The new mode is available in apps on mobile platforms and inside browsers on the desktop.
Google is trying to capitalize on Zoom’s security controversies
That’s unlikely to change anytime soon — unlike its competitors, Google is keeping G Suite and its related product as web-first apps. That allows them to be always-updated and easier to manage than native Windows or macOS apps, but the approach can introduce hassles like losing your meeting in a sea of tabs or accidentally exiting out of it.
Alongside the consumer availability for Meet, Google is unveiling a new tier for G Suite that it’s calling “G Suite Essentials,” which includes Meet and also Google Drive, but not Gmail. All current G Suite customers will still have free access to Meet through September 30th.
Lastly, Meet is also getting integrated into Gmail — both G Suite versions and regular consumer Gmail addresses. In the same way that Microsoft has leveraged its Office dominance to drive people to Teams, Google is fully utilizing Gmail’s power to push its integrated video conferencing app.


theverge--2020-04-29--How YouTube’s moderators are keeping up with changing guidance around COVID-19

The Interface is a daily column and newsletter about the intersection of social media and democracy .
Subscribe here .
Oh hey , today is our 500th issue !
Thanks to everyone who has been with us from the beginning , and each of you who has joined along the way .
We can ’ t imagine a better use of our time during this weird era than bringing you news and analysis of the day ’ s big moments in tech , democracy , and the pandemic .
One result of the COVID-19 pandemic has been that big tech @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to intervene in questions of content moderation , have quickly become much more aggressive .
At Google , for example , the company began showing news stories from trusted sources to anyone who searched for information about the virus .
It stepped up efforts to remove videos containing misinformation about the pandemic from YouTube .
YouTube also added a “ shelf ” of high-quality breaking news videos , along with links to the World Health Organization , Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , and local health authorities .
As a result , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 75 percent from this time last year , and links to the WHO and CDC have received more than 20 billion impressions .
And on Tuesday , YouTube took a step that , among the big social platforms , has so far only been implemented by Facebook : adding fact-check articles to search results .
I wrote about it at The Verge : On Monday afternoon , I spoke with YouTube ’ s head of product , Neal Mohan , about how the company is navigating several challenges related to the pandemic .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ health organizations , scrubbing bad content from the platform , and the company ’ s increasing reliance on automated systems for moderation .
“ When users are searching on YouTube around a specific claim , we want to give an opportunity for those fact checks to show up right then and there , when our users are looking for information — especially around fast-moving , quickly changing topics like COVID-19 , ” Mohan told me .
Highlights from our interview are below , edited lightly for clarity and length .
Casey Newton : @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and India last year .
What did you learn ?
Neal Mohan : We happened to roll it out in India right around the time of their elections last year .
Those are the largest elections in the world , and as a result of the number of people that vote , the election itself occurs over the course of a month .
So there was time for the potential spread of a lot of misinformation between one election date and another .
We have information panels that we triggered in the case @ @ @ @ @ @ @ earth and anti-vaccine .
But what about fast-moving , changing news events where there might not be a robust Wikipedia article or a CDC entry or an Encyclopedia Britannica article to link to ?
And so that ’ s why we leaned on this concept of actually bringing professional fact checkers into our YouTube search results and triggering them there .
And our experience both in India and Brazil was positive .
We think that we did our job in terms of curtailing the spread of misinformation in an otherwise sort of pretty @ @ @ @ @ @ @ standpoint , we felt that we did right by our users in terms of doing our best to try to prevent this happening in those countries .
And that that sort of positive result for our users led us to expand it here in the US .
And our goal is not to just stop at these three countries — we want to continue to roll it out in other parts of the world as well .
One challenge of policing information about COVID-19 is that the disease itself is new , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ In some cases , advice like “ don ’ t wear masks ” has changed to “ everyone please wear masks.
” How should a big tech platform approach that problem ?
My perspective there is that we really do have to rely on sources — and in our case , that means channels — that have a track record of being relevant and credible in this space .
Yes , lots of guidelines are changing , every single day , every single week .
You ’ re literally seeing science being created @ @ @ @ @ @ @ And so the reason why surfacing authoritative results feels like the best thing that we can do is because even if there ’ s a change , an authoritative source is going to give the context behind it .
So let ’ s say there ’ s a change in mask guidance .
I would expect an authoritative news outlet , or a medical authority like the CDC , to give context on it and say , ‘ this used to be our guidance , and our new guidance is this , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Or a news publication covering it says ‘ CDC changes its guidelines : this is what they used to say , now they ’ re saying this , and this is the science that led them to change that.
’ And by surfacing authoritative results , I think we ’ re doing what we can as a platform to deliver the most timely , but also the most credible information to our users .
I know YouTube has also been relying on more automated systems during the past couple months due to challenges @ @ @ @ @ @ @ into offices .
How are you measuring the effect on your moderation decisions ?
A lot of of this was really very , very simple , which was protecting the health of our extended workforce .
And for me and I think for everybody else here at YouTube and Google , that was really the number one consideration , and frankly everything else we were going to do was going to be secondary .
You and I have talked before about the way that [ content moderation ] works best is through a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and the nuanced judgment of well trained raters who do this for a living .
Without that second part , we ’ ve had to rely much more on handling things through appeals .
Because there ’ s a lot of action taken by these machines , sometimes those appeals are impacted in terms of our response time .
But generally speaking , we ’ ve been able to manage this .
Finally , we ’ re in a situation in which some of the people spreading misinformation about COVID-19 are elected officials @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it comes to moderation ?
Just to be very clear , our community guidelines are based on the content .
That applies to the content within the videos , and it also applies to comments and any other surface , if you will , on the YouTube platform .
And so they ’ re not about the speaker .
The policies apply equally , whether you or I say something , an elected official does , or a national leader does .
This crisis is no different .
One of the enforcement examples @ @ @ @ @ @ @ explicitly encouraging somebody to flout state or national guidance around a stay-at-home order .
And this happened in the case of the Brazilian president .
We removed a couple of videos that happened when there was an explicit call to flout those orders .
Of course , you have to strike the right balance .
If there are people who have different opinions or would like to express an opinion — in terms of economic trade-offs versus health trade-offs — then that discourse needs to be allowed and protected on our platform .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ false information , that stay-at-home doesn ’ t actually do anything , that would be an example of a policy violation , regardless of who the speaker is .
Today in news that could affect public perception of the big tech platforms .
Trending down : Amazon may have violated federal safety standards for providing “ inadequate ” protections to warehouse workers in New York , according to the state attorney general .
( Alina Selyukh / NPR ) ⭐ In less than a month , Apple and Google launched a contact tracing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coronavirus .
The project was driven by a handful of dedicated employees .
Here ’ s Christina Farr at CNBC : Google CEO Sundar Pichai says employees will not return to their offices until at least June 1st .
But it seems far likelier , given what we know , that the actual return date will be much later .
( Jennifer Elias / CNBC ) Prices for basic items like rice and pasta on Amazon have been fluctuating wildly during the pandemic .
It turns out that dynamic pricing algorithms on the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and demand .
( Sara Harrison / The Markup ) Uber may lay off as much as 20 percent of its workforce a mid an enormous decline in the number of rides taken during the pandemic .
The chief technology officer , Thuan Pham , is resigning after seven years at the company .
( Amir Efrati / The Information ) Instagram launched a new way for users to fundraise for nonprofits via Instagram Live , amid the coronavirus pandemic .
While the company already had Donation Stickers for Stories , Live Donations @ @ @ @ @ @ @ streaming .
( Sarah Perez / TechCrunch ) TikTok added donation stickers to enable its creators to raise money for pandemic relief and other good causes .
( Sarah Perez / TechCrunch ) Facebook has been quietly doubling down on online shopping and payments over the last year , including adding shopping functionality to Instagram .
The pandemic is making that move look smarter than ever .
( Rob Price / Business Insider ) Facebook will stream a live graduation event on May 15th for students missing in-person ceremonies due to ongoing shelter-in-place @ @ @ @ @ @ @ commencement speech from Oprah Winfrey , as well as smaller speeches by Awkwafina , Jennifer Garner , Lil Nas X , and Simone Biles .
Miley Cyrus will also perform .
( Ashley Carman / The Verge ) China is installing surveillance cameras outside the front doors of people under quarantine .
And sometimes inside people ’ s homes , too .
The government is already using a digital “ health code ” system to control people ’ s movements and decide who should go into quarantine .
( Nectar Gan / CNN @ @ @ @ @ @ @ than $ 25 million to procure more than 50 million pieces of protective equipment for American medical facilities .
The relative ease with which he was able to acquire the gear stands in sharp contrast to the often chaotic government efforts .
( David Gelles / The New York Times ) Executives at Universal Pictures decided to release the new animated movie “ Trolls World Tour ” for rental on streaming platforms , rather than postponing the opening due to COVID-19 .
The movie has now racked up nearly $ 100 million in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ can be a winning strategy .
This may diminish the role of theaters even after the pandemic passes .
( Erich Schwartzel / The Wall Street Journal ) Snap ’ s reliance on direct response ads makes it well positioned for a revenue resurgence during the coronavirus crisis .
The company has also seen traffic on its Discover feature go up by as much as 75 percent for some programs since the fall .
( Tom Dotan / The Information ) Stores and workplaces are equipping security cameras with artificial intelligence to track @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and mask-wearing .
The technology could be important as businesses begin to reopen .
( Paresh Dave / Reuters ) With schools closed due to COVID-19 , parents have to play teacher ’ s aide , hall monitor , counselor and cafeteria worker — all while trying to do their own jobs under extraordinary circumstances .
( Elizabeth A. Harris / The New York Times ) People are drinking way more now that they ’ re at home so much .
“ Sales of alcohol at U.S. liquor and grocery stores have risen @ @ @ @ @ @ @ March 7 through the week ending April 11.
” ( Ray A. Smith and Bojan Pancevski / Wall Street Journal ) Total cases in the US : At least 1,002,459 .
Total deaths in the US : More than 52,000 Total test results ( positive and negative ) in New York : 844,994 Total test results ( positive and negative ) in New Jersey : 234,359 Data from The New York Times .
Test data from The COVID Tracking Project .
⭐Sen .
Josh Hawley ( R-MO ) is calling on federal prosecutors @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Amazon .
In his letter to Attorney General William Barr , Hawley pressed the Justice Department to look in to whether Amazon used data on third-party sellers to develop competing products .
Here ’ s Makena Kelly at The Verge : The CEO of the surveillance company Banjo was part of a Neo-Nazi group in his youth , according to a new investigation .
He once helped a KKK leader shoot up a synagogue .
Banjo is backed by SoftBank , among others .
( Matt Stroud / OneZero ) Enforcement agencies are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ surveillance apps .
Some say the app is faulty to the point of being unusable , inaccurately reporting their locations , failing to recognize the biometric data it relies on , and asking them to check in so often it makes daily life nearly impossible .
( Molly Osberg and Dhruv Mehrotra / Gizmodo ) ⭐ Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has overseen a broad shakeup in his board over the past several months .
Two directors have left the company , and longtime friend of the CEO has been added .
The moves @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to consolidate decision-making at the company , report The Wall Street Journal ’ s Deepa Seetharaman and Emily Glazer .
( Counterpoint : didn ’ t Zuckerberg already have near-total control over all things Facebook ? )
Facebook restructured some of its security teams in a move that displaces more than two dozen employees .
The company said it is “ investing more in automated detection ” to stay ahead of evolving threats .
( Sheera Frenkel and Mike Isaac / The New York Times ) WhatsApp video calls can now include up @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The new upper limit is available now on iOS , but it doesn ’ t appear to be available from the Google Play Store just yet .
Also : I ’ m still waiting on my Messenger Rooms !
What gives ?
( Jon Porter / The Verge ) Checkout.com , a British payments start-up , joined the Libra Association .
I have made this joke before , but this is the traditional first step toward eventually leaving the Libra Association .
( Checkout is the first payment processor to join the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ all pulled out over regulatory concerns last year . )
( Ryan Browne / CNBC ) Travis Scott ’ s first Fortnite concert was surreal and spectacular .
( Andrew Webster / The Verge ) Jay-Z ordered deepfake audio parodies of himself to be taken off YouTube .
His copyright claim cited an unusual reason for removal : “ This content unlawfully uses an AI to impersonate our client ’ s voice.
” Is this a first ?
( Andy Baio / Waxy ) The Academy voted to significantly ease Oscar-eligibility requirements in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , films can qualify for the competition if they are streamed , and do not have to be screened for at least one week in a Los Angeles-area theater .
This applies only to the period that theaters are closed .
( Scott Feinberg / The Hollywood Reporter ) Stuff to occupy you online during the quarantine .
Take the shower challenge , men !
Is it safe for work ?
No .
Is it safe for working from home ?
Also no .
Watch a late-night talk show held inside Animal Crossing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ writer of Rogue One .
Attend a virtual prom in Houseparty .
It takes place May 7th from 8 to 10PM ET , and will include DJs you can bring into your private chats with friends .
Buy a puzzle .
Or do what I do , and play Patterned on the Apple Arcade subscription service .
It ’ s a lot of puzzles for less than the cost of most puzzles .
Send us tips , comments , questions , and YouTube fact checks : casey @ theverge.com and zoe @ theverge.com @

Oh hey, today is our 500th issue! Thanks to everyone who has been with us from the beginning, and each of you who has joined along the way. We can’t imagine a better use of our time during this weird era than bringing you news and analysis of the day’s big moments in tech, democracy, and the pandemic.
One result of the COVID-19 pandemic has been that big tech companies, which long have been reluctant to intervene in questions of content moderation, have quickly become much more aggressive. At Google, for example, the company began showing news stories from trusted sources to anyone who searched for information about the virus. It stepped up efforts to remove videos containing misinformation about the pandemic from YouTube.
YouTube also added a “shelf” of high-quality breaking news videos, along with links to the World Health Organization, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and local health authorities. As a result, YouTube says, news consumption is up 75 percent from this time last year, and links to the WHO and CDC have received more than 20 billion impressions.
And on Tuesday, YouTube took a step that, among the big social platforms, has so far only been implemented by Facebook: adding fact-check articles to search results. I wrote about it at The Verge:
YouTube will begin adding informational panels containing information from its network of fact-checkers to videos in the United States, the company said. The panels, which were introduced last year in Brazil and India, appear on searches for topics where fact-checkers have published relevant articles on the subject. The move comes at a time when platforms have seen a surge in misinformation related to COVID-19 and its origin, possible cures, and other subjects. [...] YouTube says “more than a dozen” US publishers are already participating in its network of fact-checkers, including FactCheck.org, PolitiFact, and The Washington Post Fact Checker. The network is open to any publisher that is a member of the International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN) and signs its code of principles. Google recently announced that it would donate $1 million to the IFCN.
On Monday afternoon, I spoke with YouTube’s head of product, Neal Mohan, about how the company is navigating several challenges related to the pandemic. We talked about evolving advice from public health organizations, scrubbing bad content from the platform, and the company’s increasing reliance on automated systems for moderation.
“When users are searching on YouTube around a specific claim, we want to give an opportunity for those fact checks to show up right then and there, when our users are looking for information — especially around fast-moving, quickly changing topics like COVID-19,” Mohan told me.
Highlights from our interview are below, edited lightly for clarity and length.
Casey Newton: You rolled out fact checks in Brazil and India last year. What did you learn?
Neal Mohan: We happened to roll it out in India right around the time of their elections last year. Those are the largest elections in the world, and as a result of the number of people that vote, the election itself occurs over the course of a month. So there was time for the potential spread of a lot of misinformation between one election date and another.
We have information panels that we triggered in the case of more evergreen conspiracies, like flat earth and anti-vaccine. But what about fast-moving, changing news events where there might not be a robust Wikipedia article or a CDC entry or an Encyclopedia Britannica article to link to? And so that’s why we leaned on this concept of actually bringing professional fact checkers into our YouTube search results and triggering them there.
And our experience both in India and Brazil was positive. We think that we did our job in terms of curtailing the spread of misinformation in an otherwise sort of pretty flammable environment. Most importantly from my standpoint, we felt that we did right by our users in terms of doing our best to try to prevent this happening in those countries. And that that sort of positive result for our users led us to expand it here in the US. And our goal is not to just stop at these three countries — we want to continue to roll it out in other parts of the world as well.
One challenge of policing information about COVID-19 is that the disease itself is new, and the advice we get keeps evolving. In some cases, advice like “don’t wear masks” has changed to “everyone please wear masks.” How should a big tech platform approach that problem?
My perspective there is that we really do have to rely on sources — and in our case, that means channels — that have a track record of being relevant and credible in this space. Yes, lots of guidelines are changing, every single day, every single week. You’re literally seeing science being created on an hourly or daily basis. And so the reason why surfacing authoritative results feels like the best thing that we can do is because even if there’s a change, an authoritative source is going to give the context behind it.
So let’s say there’s a change in mask guidance. I would expect an authoritative news outlet, or a medical authority like the CDC, to give context on it and say, ‘this used to be our guidance, and our new guidance is this, and here’s the reason why.’ Or a news publication covering it says ‘CDC changes its guidelines: this is what they used to say, now they’re saying this, and this is the science that led them to change that.’ And by surfacing authoritative results, I think we’re doing what we can as a platform to deliver the most timely, but also the most credible information to our users.
I know YouTube has also been relying on more automated systems during the past couple months due to challenges with being able to bring third-party vendors into offices. How are you measuring the effect on your moderation decisions?
A lot of of this was really very, very simple, which was protecting the health of our extended workforce. And for me and I think for everybody else here at YouTube and Google, that was really the number one consideration, and frankly everything else we were going to do was going to be secondary.
You and I have talked before about the way that [content moderation] works best is through a combination of machines and machine learning, and the nuanced judgment of well trained raters who do this for a living. Without that second part, we’ve had to rely much more on handling things through appeals. Because there’s a lot of action taken by these machines, sometimes those appeals are impacted in terms of our response time. But generally speaking, we’ve been able to manage this.
Finally, we’re in a situation in which some of the people spreading misinformation about COVID-19 are elected officials. How is YouTube approaching that when it comes to moderation?
Just to be very clear, our community guidelines are based on the content. That applies to the content within the videos, and it also applies to comments and any other surface, if you will, on the YouTube platform. And so they’re not about the speaker. The policies apply equally, whether you or I say something, an elected official does, or a national leader does. This crisis is no different.
One of the enforcement examples that we gave around medical misinformation was explicitly encouraging somebody to flout state or national guidance around a stay-at-home order. And this happened in the case of the Brazilian president.
We removed a couple of videos that happened when there was an explicit call to flout those orders. Of course, you have to strike the right balance. If there are people who have different opinions or would like to express an opinion — in terms of economic trade-offs versus health trade-offs — then that discourse needs to be allowed and protected on our platform. But something that explicitly says, through false information, that stay-at-home doesn’t actually do anything, that would be an example of a policy violation, regardless of who the speaker is.
The Ratio
Today in news that could affect public perception of the big tech platforms.
Pandemic
⭐ In less than a month, Apple and Google launched a contact tracing software toolkit to help health officials trace coronavirus. The project was driven by a handful of dedicated employees. Here’s Christina Farr at CNBC:
That speed of development was highly unusual for Apple, a company obsessed with making its products perfect before releasing them to the world. Project Bubble also required that Apple join forces with its historic rival, Google, to co-develop technology that could be used by health authorities in countries around the world. The software, which Apple and Google now refer to by the softer-sounding term “exposure notification” instead of “contact tracing,” is due to be released on May 1. In recent weeks, the employees have been working nights and weekends to incorporate external feedback. The companies still have their critics, but the transparency has helped them win over some unlikely supporters, including in countries like Germany where officials were initially reluctant to work with Big Tech.
Google CEO Sundar Pichai says employees will not return to their offices until at least June 1st. But it seems far likelier, given what we know, that the actual return date will be much later. (Jennifer Elias / CNBC)
Prices for basic items like rice and pasta on Amazon have been fluctuating wildly during the pandemic. It turns out that dynamic pricing algorithms on the platform aren’t just about supply and demand. (Sara Harrison / The Markup)
Uber may lay off as much as 20 percent of its workforce a mid an enormous decline in the number of rides taken during the pandemic. The chief technology officer, Thuan Pham, is resigning after seven years at the company. (Amir Efrati / The Information)
Instagram launched a new way for users to fundraise for nonprofits via Instagram Live, amid the coronavirus pandemic. While the company already had Donation Stickers for Stories, Live Donations allows anyone to create fundraisers while live streaming. (Sarah Perez / TechCrunch)
TikTok added donation stickers to enable its creators to raise money for pandemic relief and other good causes. (Sarah Perez / TechCrunch)
Facebook has been quietly doubling down on online shopping and payments over the last year, including adding shopping functionality to Instagram. The pandemic is making that move look smarter than ever. (Rob Price / Business Insider)
Facebook will stream a live graduation event on May 15th for students missing in-person ceremonies due to ongoing shelter-in-place orders. The event will feature a commencement speech from Oprah Winfrey, as well as smaller speeches by Awkwafina, Jennifer Garner, Lil Nas X, and Simone Biles. Miley Cyrus will also perform. (Ashley Carman / The Verge)
China is installing surveillance cameras outside the front doors of people under quarantine. And sometimes inside people’s homes, too. The government is already using a digital “health code” system to control people’s movements and decide who should go into quarantine. (Nectar Gan / CNN)
Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff spent more than $25 million to procure more than 50 million pieces of protective equipment for American medical facilities. The relative ease with which he was able to acquire the gear stands in sharp contrast to the often chaotic government efforts. (David Gelles / The New York Times)
Executives at Universal Pictures decided to release the new animated movie “Trolls World Tour” for rental on streaming platforms, rather than postponing the opening due to COVID-19. The movie has now racked up nearly $100 million in rentals, convincing Universal that digital releases can be a winning strategy. This may diminish the role of theaters even after the pandemic passes. (Erich Schwartzel / The Wall Street Journal)
Snap’s reliance on direct response ads makes it well positioned for a revenue resurgence during the coronavirus crisis. The company has also seen traffic on its Discover feature go up by as much as 75 percent for some programs since the fall. (Tom Dotan / The Information)
Stores and workplaces are equipping security cameras with artificial intelligence to track compliance with health guidelines like social distancing and mask-wearing. The technology could be important as businesses begin to reopen. (Paresh Dave / Reuters)
People are drinking way more now that they’re at home so much. “Sales of alcohol at U.S. liquor and grocery stores have risen nearly 26% from the week ending March 7 through the week ending April 11.” (Ray A. Smith and Bojan Pancevski / Wall Street Journal)
Virus tracker
Total cases in the US: At least 1,002,459.
Total deaths in the US: More than 52,000
Reported cases in California: 45,462
Total test results (positive and negative) in California: 577,608
Reported cases in New York: 295,137
Total test results (positive and negative) in New York: 844,994
Reported cases in New Jersey: 113,856
Total test results (positive and negative) in New Jersey: 234,359
Reported cases in Massachusetts: 56,462
Total test results (positive and negative) in Massachusetts: 254,500
Governing
⭐Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) is calling on federal prosecutors to open a criminal antitrust investigation into Amazon. In his letter to Attorney General William Barr, Hawley pressed the Justice Department to look in to whether Amazon used data on third-party sellers to develop competing products. Here’s Makena Kelly at The Verge:
“These practices are alarming for America’s small businesses even under ordinary circumstances,” Hawley wrote. “But at a time when most small retail businesses must rely on Amazon because of coronavirus-related shutdowns, predatory data practices threaten these businesses’ very existence.”
The CEO of the surveillance company Banjo was part of a Neo-Nazi group in his youth, according to a new investigation. He once helped a KKK leader shoot up a synagogue. Banjo is backed by SoftBank, among others. (Matt Stroud / OneZero)
Enforcement agencies are tracking people who were recently incarcerated with surveillance apps. Some say the app is faulty to the point of being unusable, inaccurately reporting their locations, failing to recognize the biometric data it relies on, and asking them to check in so often it makes daily life nearly impossible. (Molly Osberg and Dhruv Mehrotra / Gizmodo)
Industry
⭐ Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has overseen a broad shakeup in his board over the past several months. Two directors have left the company, and longtime friend of the CEO has been added. The moves were part of Zuckerberg’s campaign to consolidate decision-making at the company, report The Wall Street Journal’s Deepa Seetharaman and Emily Glazer. (Counterpoint: didn’t Zuckerberg already have near-total control over all things Facebook?)
It is far from certain that Mr. Zuckerberg’s repositioning of Facebook, and his role at the top, will lead to a lasting turnaround in its reputation following more than three years of controversy over the spread of misinformation, loose oversight of user data and the company’s competitive practices. The departure of long-serving directors, along with those of several longtime lieutenants over the past two years, means he is navigating this moment without key advisers who might be able to help him spot potential pitfalls.
Facebook restructured some of its security teams in a move that displaces more than two dozen employees. The company said it is “investing more in automated detection” to stay ahead of evolving threats. (Sheera Frenkel and Mike Isaac / The New York Times)
Checkout.com, a British payments start-up, joined the Libra Association. I have made this joke before, but this is the traditional first step toward eventually leaving the Libra Association. (Checkout is the first payment processor to join the initiative since Visa, Mastercard and Stripe all pulled out over regulatory concerns last year.) (Ryan Browne / CNBC)
Travis Scott’s first Fortnite concert was surreal and spectacular. (Andrew Webster / The Verge)
Jay-Z ordered deepfake audio parodies of himself to be taken off YouTube. His copyright claim cited an unusual reason for removal: “This content unlawfully uses an AI to impersonate our client’s voice.” Is this a first? (Andy Baio / Waxy)
The Academy voted to significantly ease Oscar-eligibility requirements in response to the ongoing pandemic. Now, films can qualify for the competition if they are streamed, and do not have to be screened for at least one week in a Los Angeles-area theater. This applies only to the period that theaters are closed. (Scott Feinberg / The Hollywood Reporter)
Things to do
Stuff to occupy you online during the quarantine.
Take the shower challenge, men! Is it safe for work? No. Is it safe for working from home? Also no.
Watch a late-night talk show held inside Animal Crossing. It’s hosted by the writer of Rogue One.
Attend a virtual prom in Houseparty. It takes place May 7th from 8 to 10PM ET, and will include DJs you can bring into your private chats with friends.
Buy a puzzle. Or do what I do, and play Patterned on the Apple Arcade subscription service. It’s a lot of puzzles for less than the cost of most puzzles.
Those good tweets
Talk to us


theverge--2020-04-29--Samsung and LG warn that the worst financial impact of COVID-19 is still to come

Samsung and LG just reported their first quarter results for the three-month period ending in March , with earnings largely unaffected by the COVID-19 pandemic .
However , both companies warn that the impact will be felt over the current quarter ending in June .
Namely , Samsung and LG expect customers to cut back significantly on TV and smartphone purchases .
In Q1 , Samsung ’ s net profit was down slightly compared to the same quarter last year , but revenue was up 5.6 percent overall thanks to strong demand for its server and mobile components .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are restocking their chip supplies because of supply uncertainty , Reuters notes .
Mobile profitability was also up , although shipments were down .
Meanwhile , LG ’ s net profit rose 88 percent compared to the same quarter last year , despite sales being down 1.3 percent .
LG credited the strength of its home-appliance division for offsetting sluggish television and smartphone performance .
Demand for Samsung ’ s memory chips is expected to “ remain solid ” In the current quarter running from April to June , Samsung and LG both @ @ @ @ @ @ @ items like TVs and smartphones .
Reuters reports that Samsung expects mobile and TV profits to “ decline significantly.
” Similarly , LG ’ s earnings presentation warns of a “ sharp ” drop for televisions , and for demand of mobile phones to “ decline significantly ” compared to the same quarter a year earlier .
There are areas where the ongoing pandemic is increasing demand for Samsung ’ s and LG ’ s products , however , as a result of people working and studying from home .
For example , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ memory chips to “ remain solid ” as sales of servers and PCs remain high .
LG ’ s business solutions division , which includes its monitors and PCs , is also expecting strong demand .
Nevertheless , Samsung and LG are expecting the pandemic to take its toll on future results .
Samsung said that overall earnings are expected to decline due to a decreased demand for “ core products , ” and LG said it also expects a drop in both sales and profits next quarter .
With financial markets in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to “ flatten the curve ” enough to consider restarting their economies , it ’ s hard to predict the future .
“ There will be some time needed for the real economy to actually recover , ” said Jong-min Lee , vice president of Samsung ’ s mobile unit .
“ It ’ s difficult for us to see how much of a decrease in demand we ’ ll see in the second quarter .
”

Samsung and LG just reported their first quarter results for the three-month period ending in March, with earnings largely unaffected by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, both companies warn that the impact will be felt over the current quarter ending in June. Namely, Samsung and LG expect customers to cut back significantly on TV and smartphone purchases.
In Q1, Samsung’s net profit was down slightly compared to the same quarter last year, but revenue was up 5.6 percent overall thanks to strong demand for its server and mobile components. The company said that some of its customers are restocking their chip supplies because of supply uncertainty, Reuters notes. Mobile profitability was also up, although shipments were down. Meanwhile, LG’s net profit rose 88 percent compared to the same quarter last year, despite sales being down 1.3 percent. LG credited the strength of its home-appliance division for offsetting sluggish television and smartphone performance.
Demand for Samsung’s memory chips is expected to “remain solid”
In the current quarter running from April to June, Samsung and LG both warn of a decline in demand for items like TVs and smartphones. Reuters reports that Samsung expects mobile and TV profits to “decline significantly.” Similarly, LG’s earnings presentation warns of a “sharp” drop for televisions, and for demand of mobile phones to “decline significantly” compared to the same quarter a year earlier.
There are areas where the ongoing pandemic is increasing demand for Samsung’s and LG’s products, however, as a result of people working and studying from home. For example, Samsung said it expects demand for its memory chips to “remain solid” as sales of servers and PCs remain high. LG’s business solutions division, which includes its monitors and PCs, is also expecting strong demand.
Nevertheless, Samsung and LG are expecting the pandemic to take its toll on future results. Samsung said that overall earnings are expected to decline due to a decreased demand for “core products,” and LG said it also expects a drop in both sales and profits next quarter.


theverge--2020-04-29--US wireless carriers are delivering phone chargers to hospitals for COVID-19 patients

AT & T , T-Mobile , and Verizon have all partnered with iHeartMedia to deliver thousands of phone chargers to hospitals so that COVID-19 patients can charge their phones .
The companies will donate nearly 40,000 phone chargers , according to T-Mobile ’ s press release .
T-Mobile says it has already donated 20,000 chargers to hospitals in Seattle , New York City , Los Angeles , New Orleans and San Diego .
Verizon says it ’ s providing thousands of chargers to healthcare providers in New York , Chicago , Los Angeles , Seattle , Boston , New Orleans @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
AT & T says it will donate thousands of chargers to “ hospitals in cities across the country that have been hit the hardest by the virus.
” The donation efforts by the wireless carriers and iHeartMedia follow work done by local communities to collect phone chargers for patients with COVID-19 .
Patients may rely on their phones to stay in touch with loved ones during hospital stays , which can require patients to be away from their families for a long time .
The median length of hospitalization for surviving COVID-19 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ according to the Centers for Disease Control .

AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon have all partnered with iHeartMedia to deliver thousands of phone chargers to hospitals so that COVID-19 patients can charge their phones. The companies will donate nearly 40,000 phone chargers, according to T-Mobile’s press release.
T-Mobile says it has already donated 20,000 chargers to hospitals in Seattle, New York City, Los Angeles, New Orleans and San Diego. Verizon says it’s providing thousands of chargers to healthcare providers in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Seattle, Boston, New Orleans, Detroit and Philadelphia, and more. AT&T says it will donate thousands of chargers to “hospitals in cities across the country that have been hit the hardest by the virus.”


theverge--2020-04-29--Elon Musk says shelter-in-place orders during COVID-19 are ‘fascist’

Elon Musk called the shelter-in-place orders in the San Francisco Bay Area and throughout the US “ fascist ” actions that are stripping people of their freedom on a Tesla earnings call on Wednesday .
Musk ’ s comments come after a torrent of criticism for remarks he made late Tuesday night on Twitter , in which the billionaire CEO echoed President Trump by writing in all caps , “ Free America Now.
” The rant began after Musk said , “ We are a bit worried about not being able to resume production in the Bay Area , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ risk.
” Six Bay Area counties jointly extended the shelter-in-place orders affecting San Francisco , Fremont , and other cities through May 31st , with only some minor relaxing of restrictions .
“ The expansion of shelter-in-place , or as we call it , forcibly imprisoning people in their homes , against all their constitutional rights , is , in my opinion , breaking people ’ s freedoms in ways that are horrible and wrong , and not why people came to America and built this country , ” Musk said .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ somebody wants to stay in the house that ’ s great , ” Musk continued .
“ They should be allowed to stay in the house and they should not be compelled to leave .
But to say that they can not leave their house and they will be arrested if they do ... this is fascist .
This is not democratic .
This is not freedom .
Give people back their goddamn freedom.
” Tesla ’ s primary factory is located in Fremont , California , and after initially attempting to fight @ @ @ @ @ @ @ non-essential , Musk ultimately did close down the facility alongside the company ’ s Buffalo solar panel plant .
Although Musk kept the factory open for five days after the initial shelter-in-place order , Tesla defied the order once more last week by asking some Fremont factory employees to return to work .
( The company ’ s Nevada Gigafactory remains open , despite the state ’ s governor ordering all non-essential businesses to close . )
Musk said on the call that Tesla would be fine after the COVID-19 crisis , but @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Everything people have worked for all their lives is being destroyed in real time , ” he said of the state orders to close non-essential businesses .
“ I think the people are going to be very angry about this and are very angry.
” Musk has been an outspoken critic of some of the safety measures instituted in the US due to the coronavirus pandemic , primarily taking issue with the state-ordered shelter-in-place guidance that has shut down large swaths of the economy .
But Musk ’ s criticism has at times @ @ @ @ @ @ @ job market .
He has questioned basic coronavirus science and made incorrect projections about the severity of the virus , predicting there would be few US cases by the end of April .
Right now , there are about 25,000 new cases confirmed daily , and that is almost certainly an undercount , since there are problems with testing capacity .
As The Verge ’ s Russell Brandom chronicled earlier today , Musk now has a troubled history with his public communications around COVID-19 : Update April 29th , 7:55PM ET : Added @ @ @ @ @ @ @ regarding COVID-19 .

Elon Musk called the shelter-in-place orders in the San Francisco Bay Area and throughout the US “fascist” actions that are stripping people of their freedom on a Tesla earnings call on Wednesday. Musk’s comments come after a torrent of criticism for remarks he made late Tuesday night on Twitter, in which the billionaire CEO echoed President Trump by writing in all caps, “Free America Now.”
The rant began after Musk said, “We are a bit worried about not being able to resume production in the Bay Area, and that should be identified as a serious risk.” Six Bay Area counties jointly extended the shelter-in-place orders affecting San Francisco, Fremont, and other cities through May 31st, with only some minor relaxing of restrictions.
“Give people back their goddamn freedom.”
“The expansion of shelter-in-place, or as we call it, forcibly imprisoning people in their homes, against all their constitutional rights, is, in my opinion, breaking people’s freedoms in ways that are horrible and wrong, and not why people came to America and built this country,” Musk said. “What the fuck!”
“If somebody wants to stay in the house that’s great,” Musk continued. “They should be allowed to stay in the house and they should not be compelled to leave. But to say that they cannot leave their house and they will be arrested if they do... this is fascist. This is not democratic. This is not freedom. Give people back their goddamn freedom.”
Tesla’s primary factory is located in Fremont, California, and after initially attempting to fight county orders listing the car maker as non-essential, Musk ultimately did close down the facility alongside the company’s Buffalo solar panel plant. Although Musk kept the factory open for five days after the initial shelter-in-place order, Tesla defied the order once more last week by asking some Fremont factory employees to return to work. (The company’s Nevada Gigafactory remains open, despite the state’s governor ordering all non-essential businesses to close.)
Musk said on the call that Tesla would be fine after the COVID-19 crisis, but that small companies would not. “Everything people have worked for all their lives is being destroyed in real time,” he said of the state orders to close non-essential businesses. “I think the people are going to be very angry about this and are very angry.”
Musk has been an outspoken critic of some of the safety measures instituted in the US due to the coronavirus pandemic, primarily taking issue with the state-ordered shelter-in-place guidance that has shut down large swaths of the economy. But Musk’s criticism has at times extended beyond concern for the economy and job market. He has questioned basic coronavirus science and made incorrect projections about the severity of the virus, predicting there would be few US cases by the end of April. Right now, there are about 25,000 new cases confirmed daily, and that is almost certainly an undercount, since there are problems with testing capacity.
As The Verge’s Russell Brandom chronicled earlier today, Musk now has a troubled history with his public communications around COVID-19:


theverge--2020-04-29--Lime reportedly plans to lay off as many as 100 employees

Lime is planning to lay off between 80 and 100 of its workers , according to Axios , an indication the company has run into financial troubles during the global COVID-19 pandemic .
Lime did not respond to a request for comment for this story .
Bloomberg also reported that layoffs at Lime could be on the way , saying the cuts may hit staff in both the US and Europe and could affect as many as 190 workers .
However , “ our understanding is that the number is significantly lower , ” Axios reported today .
Some employees @ @ @ @ @ @ @ let go , Bloomberg said .
Bloomberg also reported back in March that Lime was considering laying off between 50 and 70 people .
Lyft , Uber , and Bird have all recently done layoffs The scooter startup isn ’ t the only on-demand transportation company to experience challenges during the pandemic — Lyft laid off 17 percent of its workforce earlier today , Uber is reportedly considering cutting up to 20 percent of its staff , and rival scooter company Bird laid off about 30 percent of its staff last month .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ its staff and exited 12 markets in January in an effort to help the company achieve profitability .
The scooter startup has acquired the assets of the electric skateboard company Boosted , The Verge reported on April 15th , and Lime bought those assets with more than 61 million shares of the company ’ s common stock .

Lime has laid off 13 percent of its workforce due to financial difficulties presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, the scooter startup announced today. The layoff affects about 80 employees across “all teams and all regions around the globe,” CEO Brad Bao said in an email sent to employees.
“Almost overnight, our company went from being on the eve of accomplishing an unprecedented milestone — the first next-generation micromobility company to reach profitability — to one where we had to pause operations in 99% of our markets worldwide to support cities’ efforts at social distancing,” Bao said in the email. “Needless to say, while we thought we had planned for all possibilities this year, we did not anticipate a global pandemic.”
“I can assure you that we turned over many, many stones before today”
“Previously, I said that while layoffs were a possibility, we have been delaying that decision for as long as possible to ensure that no stone was left unturned,” Bao continued. “I can assure you that we turned over many, many stones before today, from reducing all non-essential spend, real estate, software, and travel costs to raising additional capital.”
“We have made the very difficult decision to reduce our workforce today,” a Lime spokesperson said in a statement to The Verge. “The world changed overnight, impacting the lives of our employees, riders and the very communities we love and serve. We are taking these necessary steps to ensure long-term resilience of the business so that we remain a safe and reliable transportation option for cities around the world as we come out of this crisis.”
Yesterday, Axios and Bloomberg reported that layoffs at Lime were on the way. The scooter startup isn’t the only on-demand transportation company to experience challenges during the pandemic — Lyft laid off 17 percent of its workforce on Wednesday, Uber is reportedly considering cutting up to 20 percent of its staff, and rival scooter company Bird laid off about 30 percent of its staff last month. Lime also laid off 14 percent of its staff and exited 12 markets in January in an effort to help the company achieve profitability.
Lime acquired the assets of the electric skateboard company Boosted, The Verge reported on April 15th, and Lime bought those assets with more than 61 million shares of the company’s common stock.


theverge--2020-04-29--Qualcomm expects phone shipments to drop by 30 percent next quarter due to COVID-19

Qualcomm expects smartphone shipments to fall 30 percent in the comings months due to the coronavirus pandemic , the company said today , cutting its previous projections for the next quarter .
That ’ s in addition to the 21 percent reduction in demand for phones that the company noted in the past quarter , which it reported in an earnings release this afternoon .
Qualcomm did still manage to beat its Q2 revenue expectations despite that drop in demand , with Q2 revenue of $ 5.2 billion ( compared to the projected $ 5.02 billion ) , but net @ @ @ @ @ @ @ percent year-over-year to $ 468 million .
Qualcomm says there are three coronavirus-related factors that could impact sales in the coming months : • How the COVID-19 virus , and government policies around the world to prevent its spread , will impact business and consumer confidence • Demand for new smartphones sold by customers or licensees that use Qualcomm products • The state of the global wireless supply chain , distribution networks , and workforces The company also also cites other , non-coronavirus-related factors that may impact its revenue in the company quarter @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , network rollouts , and its dependance on “ a small number of customers and licensees ” and the premium-tier device segment of the market .
Despite the expected drop in demand for new devices , Qualcomm is still sticking to its original estimate for 5G devices shipped in 2020 , with the company expecting to see 175 million and 225 million 5G phone shipments this year .
The nascent 5G market is a big part of Qualcomm ’ s business , with the company ’ s modems serving as some of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ support the next-generation network — to the point where Apple was forced to settle its ongoing disputes with the company in order to get access to those modems for its upcoming 5G iPhones .

Qualcomm expects smartphone shipments to fall 30 percent in the comings months due to the coronavirus pandemic, the company said today, cutting its previous projections for the next quarter.
That’s in addition to the 21 percent reduction in demand for phones that the company noted in the past quarter, which it reported in an earnings release this afternoon. Qualcomm did still manage to beat its Q2 revenue expectations despite that drop in demand, with Q2 revenue of $5.2 billion (compared to the projected $5.02 billion), but net income was down dramatically, dropping 29 percent year-over-year to $468 million.
Qualcomm says there are three coronavirus-related factors that could impact sales in the coming months:
How the COVID-19 virus, and government policies around the world to prevent its spread, will impact business and consumer confidence
Demand for new smartphones sold by customers or licensees that use Qualcomm products
The state of the global wireless supply chain, distribution networks, and workforces
The company also also cites other, non-coronavirus-related factors that may impact its revenue in the company quarter, including its licensing dispute with Huawei, network rollouts, and its dependance on “a small number of customers and licensees” and the premium-tier device segment of the market.


theverge--2020-04-29--Amazon says it’s a victim of Trump admin’s ‘personal vendetta’ after landing on counterfeit list

Amazon is not pleased with the decision from the Trump administration to list a number of its foreign websites as havens for counterfeit products in its annual report on “ notorious markets ” released Wednesday .
The report , which looks into intellectual property protection and hot spots for counterfeiting and piracy , put Amazon ’ s Canada , UK , Germany , France , and India websites on the list as online markets for knockoff goods .
It ’ s the first time a US business has been put on the notorious markets list .
“ The Review of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 38 online markets and 34 physical markets that are reported to engage in or facilitate substantial trademark counterfeiting and copyright piracy , ” reads the press release from the Office of the US Trade Representative .
There is no financial penalty or regulatory oversight as a result of being placed on the list , but it does harm Amazon ’ s reputation and lumps it together with notorious counterfeit-friendly websites .
“ This activity harms the American economy by undermining the innovation and intellectual property rights of US IP owners in foreign markets @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nearly half a trillion dollars ’ worth , of imports worldwide are counterfeit and pirated products , ” the release goes on to say .
The report ’ s focus remains on mostly on the “ distribution of pirated content and counterfeit goods online , ” with a new focus on “ the nexus between online piracy and malware.
” “ Another example of the administration using the US government to advance a personal vendetta against Amazon.
” Amazon , in a statement , accused the Trump administration of advancing the president ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and its chief executive , Jeff Bezos .
“ This purely political act is another example of the administration using the US government to advance a personal vendetta against Amazon , ” a company spokesperson told Politico .
“ Amazon makes significant investments in proactive technologies and processes to detect and stop bad actors and potentially counterfeit products from being sold in our stores.
” The company even went so far as to publish a blog post calling its inclusion on the list “ wrongful.
” “ The Administration today wrongfully named Amazon @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Germany , India and the UK to the U.S. Trade Representative ’ s ( USTR ) annual Notorious Markets List , despite the fact that more than 99.9 percent of pages viewed worldwide by customers on Amazon have never had a report of counterfeit , ” the blog posts reads .
“ We strongly disagree with the characterization of Amazon in this USTR report.
” Amazon says it invested $ 500 million in 2019 and now employs 8,000 people for the purpose of combating fraud and abuse .
The company also says @ @ @ @ @ @ @ policies have also blocked 2.5 million suspected “ bad actors ” from listing on its third-party Marketplace platform , which generates more than half of all Amazon retail sales and includes sellers from all over the world .
In doing so , Amazon claims it “ blocked more than 6 billion suspected bad listings before they were published to our stores.
” But the company has a history of turning a blind eye to knockoffs , especially in the apparel and footwear department , and it was the US American Apparel and Footwear @ @ @ @ @ @ @ investigate Amazon ’ s role in the surge of online sales of counterfeit clothing and shoes .
In some cases , Amazon has struck deals with companies , like Apple and Nike , to perform so-called brand gating that prevents third-party sellers , whether genuine or otherwise , from selling products under a trademarked banner .
Just last November , however , Nike ended its participation as a wholesaler on Amazon over a reported lack of control over third-party sellers , some of whom trafficked in Nike counterfeits , and the stiff competition @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the results of such deals can have the effect of kicking out legitimate resellers , as Apple ’ s did .
That ’ s a situation the Federal Trade Commission began looking into last summer as a possible antitrust violation .
But regardless , cutting a deal directly with Amazon , if that deal persists and doesn ’ t sour as Nike ’ s did , does indeed appear to protect a company 's brand identity on the platform .
Other programs the company runs to cut down on knockoffs include its @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , that lets companies flag and remove counterfeit listings without requiring Amazon ’ s intervention .
Amazon has a complex and lengthy history with counterfeits and knockoffs Yet sandal-maker Birkenstock notably left the platform altogether over counterfeiting issues it claims Amazon refused to help with .
Shoe company Allbirds also accused Amazon of ripping off its signature design for one of its private label brands .
Just last week , a Wall Street Journal report found that Amazon ’ s own employees accessed third-party seller information to help develop private label copycat products @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ) is now urging the US attorney general to investigate the company over antitrust concerns .
Even Amazon ’ s own private label brands , including its hugely popular AmazonBasics line , have been hijacked by counterfeiters looking to cash in on the name and the associated trust and search ranking it carries .
Still , Amazon considers this recent move by the White House to be a punitive measure related to Bezos and Trump ’ s long-running feud .
The company cites the lack of resources put toward charging caught counterfeit traffickers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ unabated and why , in this case , Amazon considers this more of a move to harm its reputation rather than a way to actively protect legitimate retail brands .
“ Our store is a safe place to shop and that ’ s a testament to our continued innovation , collaboration , and commitment to fighting counterfeit and other forms of fraud , ” reads Amazon ’ s blog post .
“ We are an active , engaged stakeholder in the fight against counterfeit .
However , in the last year for which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of filed federal criminal cases in the US involved charges for trafficking in counterfeit goods , and 56 percent of counterfeiters sentenced that year received no jail time .
”

Amazon is not pleased with the decision from the Trump administration to list a number of its foreign websites as havens for counterfeit products in its annual report on “notorious markets” released Wednesday. The report, which looks into intellectual property protection and hot spots for counterfeiting and piracy, put Amazon’s Canada, UK, Germany, France, and India websites on the list as online markets for knockoff goods. It’s the first time a US business has been put on the notorious markets list.
“The Review of Notorious Markets for Counterfeiting and Piracy highlights 38 online markets and 34 physical markets that are reported to engage in or facilitate substantial trademark counterfeiting and copyright piracy,” reads the press release from the Office of the US Trade Representative. There is no financial penalty or regulatory oversight as a result of being placed on the list, but it does harm Amazon’s reputation and lumps it together with notorious counterfeit-friendly websites.
“This activity harms the American economy by undermining the innovation and intellectual property rights of US IP owners in foreign markets. An estimated 2.5 percent, or nearly half a trillion dollars’ worth, of imports worldwide are counterfeit and pirated products,” the release goes on to say. The report’s focus remains on mostly on the “distribution of pirated content and counterfeit goods online,” with a new focus on “the nexus between online piracy and malware.”
“Another example of the administration using the US government to advance a personal vendetta against Amazon.”
Amazon, in a statement, accused the Trump administration of advancing the president’s “personal vendetta” against Amazon and its chief executive, Jeff Bezos. “This purely political act is another example of the administration using the US government to advance a personal vendetta against Amazon,” a company spokesperson told Politico. “Amazon makes significant investments in proactive technologies and processes to detect and stop bad actors and potentially counterfeit products from being sold in our stores.” The company even went so far as to publish a blog post calling its inclusion on the list “wrongful.”
“The Administration today wrongfully named Amazon’s stores in Canada, France, Germany, India and the UK to the U.S. Trade Representative’s (USTR) annual Notorious Markets List, despite the fact that more than 99.9 percent of pages viewed worldwide by customers on Amazon have never had a report of counterfeit,” the blog posts reads. “We strongly disagree with the characterization of Amazon in this USTR report.”
Amazon says it invested $500 million in 2019 and now employs 8,000 people for the purpose of combating fraud and abuse. The company also says its automated systems and its manual review policies have also blocked 2.5 million suspected “bad actors” from listing on its third-party Marketplace platform, which generates more than half of all Amazon retail sales and includes sellers from all over the world. In doing so, Amazon claims it “blocked more than 6 billion suspected bad listings before they were published to our stores.”
But the company has a history of turning a blind eye to knockoffs, especially in the apparel and footwear department, and it was the US American Apparel and Footwear Association that urged the Trump administration to investigate Amazon’s role in the surge of online sales of counterfeit clothing and shoes.
In some cases, Amazon has struck deals with companies, like Apple and Nike, to perform so-called brand gating that prevents third-party sellers, whether genuine or otherwise, from selling products under a trademarked banner. Just last November, however, Nike ended its participation as a wholesaler on Amazon over a reported lack of control over third-party sellers, some of whom trafficked in Nike counterfeits, and the stiff competition on Amazon’s platform.
Additionally, the results of such deals can have the effect of kicking out legitimate resellers, as Apple’s did. That’s a situation the Federal Trade Commission began looking into last summer as a possible antitrust violation. But regardless, cutting a deal directly with Amazon, if that deal persists and doesn’t sour as Nike’s did, does indeed appear to protect a company's brand identity on the platform. Other programs the company runs to cut down on knockoffs include its Project Zero initiative, launched last year, that lets companies flag and remove counterfeit listings without requiring Amazon’s intervention.
Amazon has a complex and lengthy history with counterfeits and knockoffs
Still, Amazon considers this recent move by the White House to be a punitive measure related to Bezos and Trump’s long-running feud. The company cites the lack of resources put toward charging caught counterfeit traffickers as one reason why the practice continues unabated and why, in this case, Amazon considers this more of a move to harm its reputation rather than a way to actively protect legitimate retail brands.


theverge--2020-04-29--Xbox Game Pass hits 10 million subscribers

Microsoft says more than 10 million people now subscribe to Xbox Game Pass , its subscription service offering access to a growing selection of PC and Xbox Games .
The service launched in 2017 with more than 100 Xbox games for $ 9.99 per month .
Recently , Microsoft began launching a PC version of the service , which is currently available at an introductory price of $ 4.99 per month .
Microsoft also offers a bundled subscription that includes access to both Xbox games , PC games , and Xbox Live for $ 14.99 per month .
The statistics @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Q3 2020 earnings report this afternoon , and it ’ s the first time we ’ ve seen Xbox Game Pass numbers .
Microsoft says that gaming in particular “ benefited from increased engagement ” due to stay-at-home orders .
This led to “ record engagement , ” according to Microsoft communications chief Frank Shaw .
Xbox Live also saw nearly 90 million monthly users this quarter .
Microsoft ’ s games streaming service , Project xCloud , hit “ 100s of thousands ” of active users across its seven preview countries .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ huge disruptions around the globe , it ’ s also had the effect of hugely increasing usage of at-home work and entertainment services .
Microsoft is evidently among the beneficiaries of that trend , but today ’ s numbers suggest that some of its gaming services — Game Pass in particular — had already been growing to far larger numbers than expected .
EA ’ s competing subscription services , EA Access and Origin Access , hit 5 million subscribers last year , showing Microsoft has a significant lead .

Microsoft says more than 10 million people now subscribe to Xbox Game Pass, its subscription service offering access to a growing selection of PC and Xbox Games. The service launched in 2017 with more than 100 Xbox games for $9.99 per month. Recently, Microsoft began launching a PC version of the service, which is currently available at an introductory price of $4.99 per month. Microsoft also offers a bundled subscription that includes access to both Xbox games, PC games, and Xbox Live for $14.99 per month.
The statistics came as part of Microsoft’s Q3 2020 earnings report this afternoon, and it’s the first time we’ve seen Xbox Game Pass numbers. Microsoft says that gaming in particular “benefited from increased engagement” due to stay-at-home orders. This led to “record engagement,” according to Microsoft communications chief Frank Shaw. Xbox Live also saw nearly 90 million monthly users this quarter. Microsoft’s games streaming service, Project xCloud, hit “100s of thousands” of active users across its seven preview countries.


theverge--2020-04-29--Reddit is launching built-in subreddit chat rooms

Reddit is introducing a new chat room tool , in a throwback to the old days of the internet when those were a thing .
The feature , called “ Start Chatting , ” will randomly sort users of popular subreddits into small , private group chats .
Reddit says the feature is rolling out to around 16,000 SFW subreddits this week .
To use the feature , you ’ ll want to visit a popular subreddit that has the feature enabled .
You ’ ll see a button labeled “ Start Chatting ” beneath the community ’ s description @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ll be randomly matched with a small group of up to seven other users who are also in the subreddit .
The group will be entered into a chat room for private discussion and meme-ing .
Reddit isn ’ t the only platform increasing its focus on chat .
Facebook revealed earlier this year that its vision has shifted to prioritize its messaging services , including WhatsApp and Messenger , as the majority of new users show low interest in Facebook ’ s traditional website and mobile app .
Last week , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ service for groups of up to 50 people .
It also doubled the capacity of WhatsApp ’ s video calls and added the functionality to Facebook Dating .
Mark Zuckerberg wrote in a recent blog post that Facebook hopes to make Instagram Direct , WhatsApp , and Messenger interoperable with SMS .
These are tools to help you stay in touch , though ; what ’ s unique about Reddit ’ s service is that it ’ s focused on forming new connections .
It seems like a smart idea — plenty of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ connections with other Reddit users , but might be wary of reaching out themselves .
And while the random chat rooms of internets past often led to awkward ( or creepy ) experiences , the fact that Start Chatting takes place in a subreddit means participants already have a shared interest and an easy conversation topic .
At a time when in-person opportunities to make friends are limited , this could be a fun way to form virtual contacts .
Reddit has experimented with private group messaging in the past .
The platform @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but it wasn ’ t a huge success ; most of them weren ’ t particularly active , and many had their share of jerks and spammers that you ’ d expect from a quasi-anonymous online community .
Whether this new iteration sees greater success may depend on if Reddit can effectively moderate chat rooms ’ content while still letting users feel comfortable expressing themselves .
In a statement to The Verge , a Reddit spokesperson said that chat rooms will be moderated by Reddit admins .
“ We have a number of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have integrated our general reporting flow , so users can report any messages or policy-violating content within the group chat , ” the spokesperson said .

Reddit is introducing a new chat room tool, in a throwback to the old days of the internet when those were a thing. The feature, called “Start Chatting,” will randomly sort users of popular subreddits into small, private group chats. Reddit says the feature is rolling out to around 50 percent of SFW subreddits this week.
To use the feature, you’ll want to visit a popular subreddit that has the feature enabled. You’ll see a button labeled “Start Chatting” beneath the community’s description.
Click that, and you’ll be randomly matched with a small group of up to seven other users who are also in the subreddit. The group will be entered into a chat room for private discussion and meme-ing.
Reddit
Reddit isn’t the only platform increasing its focus on chat. Facebook revealed earlier this year that its vision has shifted to prioritize its messaging services, including WhatsApp and Messenger, as the majority of new users show low interest in Facebook’s traditional website and mobile app. Last week, the company released Messenger Rooms, a video-chat service for groups of up to 50 people. It also doubled the capacity of WhatsApp’s video calls and added the functionality to Facebook Dating. Mark Zuckerberg wrote in a recent blog post that Facebook hopes to make Instagram Direct, WhatsApp, and Messenger interoperable with SMS.
These are tools to help you stay in touch, though; what’s unique about Reddit’s service is that it’s focused on forming new connections. It seems like a smart idea — plenty of folks would probably love to develop close connections with other Reddit users, but might be wary of reaching out themselves. And while the random chat rooms of internets past often led to awkward (or creepy) experiences, the fact that Start Chatting takes place in a subreddit means participants already have a shared interest and an easy conversation topic. At a time when in-person opportunities to make friends are limited, this could be a fun way to form virtual contacts.
Reddit has experimented with private group messaging in the past. The platform tested community-wide chat rooms in 2018, but it wasn’t a huge success; most of them weren’t particularly active, and many had their share of jerks and spammers that you’d expect from a quasi-anonymous online community. Whether this new iteration sees greater success may depend on if Reddit can effectively moderate chat rooms’ content while still letting users feel comfortable expressing themselves.
In a statement to The Verge, a Reddit spokesperson said that chat rooms will be moderated by Reddit admins. “We have a number of safety tools built into the feature and have integrated our general reporting flow, so users can report any messages or policy-violating content within the group chat,” the spokesperson said.


theverge--2020-04-29--Microsoft Teams jumps 70 percent to 75 million daily active users

Microsoft said last month that Teams usage had grown to 44 million daily active users during the coronavirus pandemic , and it ’ s now jumped another 70 percent .
During an investor call today , Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella revealed that Teams usage has increased to more than 75 million daily active users .
Nadella also provided a new statistic for Teams usage : Microsoft saw 200 million meeting participants in a single day this month .
That ’ s a statistic that Zoom has been using to detail its own impressive growth , and Zoom noted 300 million @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has confused the comparisons , though .
Zoom originally stated it had “ more than 300 million daily users ” and that “ more than 300 million people around the world are using Zoom during this challenging time.
” Zoom later quietly deleted these references from its blog post , and it now only claims “ 300 million daily Zoom meeting participants.
” The differences are important , as is Zoom ’ s transparency around them .
Daily meeting participants counts multiple meetings , so if you have five Zoom or Teams meetings @ @ @ @ @ @ @ re counted five times .
Zoom has not yet revealed exact daily active user counts , and it looks like Microsoft could be a lot closer to Zoom usage than many had assumed .
Nadella also noted that two-thirds of Teams users are also interacting with or collaborating with files inside the app and that Microsoft has seen triple the amount of organizations integrating apps with Teams .
Microsoft also has 258 million paid seats for Office 365 , which includes access to Microsoft Teams .
It ’ s clear the company still @ @ @ @ @ @ @ its existing Office user base to switch to Teams .
Still , it ’ s possible nearly 30 percent of its Office 365 paid seats are using Teams already .
That all depends on how many people are using the free version of Microsoft Teams right now , and Microsoft isn ’ t breaking down those numbers just yet .

Microsoft said last month that Teams usage had grown to 44 million daily active users during the coronavirus pandemic, and it’s now jumped another 70 percent. During an investor call today, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella revealed that Teams usage has increased to more than 75 million daily active users.
Nadella also provided a new statistic for Teams usage: Microsoft saw 200 million meeting participants in a single day this month. That’s a statistic that Zoom has been using to detail its own impressive growth, and Zoom noted 300 million meeting participants earlier this month.
Zoom has deleted references to 300 million daily users
Zoom has confused the comparisons, though. Zoom originally stated it had “more than 300 million daily users” and that “more than 300 million people around the world are using Zoom during this challenging time.” Zoom later quietly deleted these references from its blog post, and it now only claims “300 million daily Zoom meeting participants.”
The differences are important, as is Zoom’s transparency around them. Daily meeting participants counts multiple meetings, so if you have five Zoom or Teams meetings in a day, then you’re counted five times. Zoom has not yet revealed exact daily active user counts, and it looks like Microsoft could be a lot closer to Zoom usage than many had assumed.
Nadella also noted that two-thirds of Teams users are also interacting with or collaborating with files inside the app and that Microsoft has seen triple the amount of organizations integrating apps with Teams.


theverge--2020-04-29--Lenovo’s new ThinkPad keyboard is the best way to get the infamous nub on your desktop

The ThinkPad mouse nub — i.e.
, the TrackPoint — is a controversial piece of technology .
People tend to either despise the red dot-shaped substitute for a real mouse , or adore it as the single best mouse solution around .
For those in the second camp is Lenovo ’ s new $ 99 ThinkPad TrackPoint Keyboard II , an updated version of its old wireless keyboard that lets you use that good TrackPoint nub UI with your desktop computer .
The TrackPoint II — which was announced at CES , but goes on sale today — is pretty @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Keyboard with TrackPoint model , albeit with a new design that ’ s based on the more modern ThinkPad X1 ’ s keyboard design and layout .
Unlike the old model , though , the TrackPoint II only offers wireless connectivity , either through Bluetooth or an included USB dongle ( although it supports both Windows and Android ) .
The trade-off for wired connectivity is a switch over to USB-C for charging , instead of Micro USB , which seems like a worthwhile swap .
The ThinkPad TrackPoint II is available today @ @ @ @ @ @ @

The ThinkPad mouse nub — i.e., the TrackPoint — is a controversial piece of technology. People tend to either despise the red dot-shaped substitute for a real mouse, or adore it as the single best mouse solution around. For those in the second camp is Lenovo’s new $99 ThinkPad TrackPoint Keyboard II, an updated version of its old wireless keyboard that lets you use that good TrackPoint nub UI with your desktop computer.
The TrackPoint II — which was announced at CES, but goes on sale today — is pretty similar to the old ThinkPad Compact Bluetooth Keyboard with TrackPoint model, albeit with a new design that’s based on the more modern ThinkPad X1’s keyboard design and layout.
Unlike the old model, though, the TrackPoint II only offers wireless connectivity, either through Bluetooth or an included USB dongle (although it supports both Windows and Android). The trade-off for wired connectivity is a switch over to USB-C for charging, instead of Micro USB, which seems like a worthwhile swap.


theverge--2020-04-29--Facebook usage is surging, but the company warns it may be temporary

Facebook ’ s business is booming , thanks to worldwide shelter-in-place and quarantine orders due to the COVID-19 pandemic that have everyone using social networks and staring at screens far more than average .
The company , which reported first quarter earnings for 2020 on Wednesday , says “ a record number of people ” are using its services , primarily its Messenger and WhatsApp chat apps as well as Instagram .
Last month , as the pandemic intensified , Facebook said it was seeing spikes of more than 50 percent on its messaging products and now logs about 700 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Facebook knows its growth is temporary , and it could make less money than expected next quarter But the company knows its popularity is likely only temporary .
And those products that are seeing spikes are not the ones Facebook can most easily monetize , as analytics chief Alex Schultz and engineering chief Jay Parikh admitted last month in an illuminating blog post .
“ We don ’ t monetize many of the services where we ’ re seeing increased engagement , and we ’ ve seen a weakening in our ads @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reduce the spread of COVID-19 , ” the duo wrote .
“ We ’ re just trying to keep the lights on over here , ” Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg told The New York Times in an interview .
Combined with the pandemic ’ s effects on consumer buying habits and marketing budgets , both of which are expected to continue falling dramatically in the coming months , Facebook ’ s core advertising business may take a serious hit come next quarter .
Both Facebook and Google are the most dominant web advertising @ @ @ @ @ @ @ some of the biggest spenders , including travel and dining-related websites and companies , are all slashing marketing spend during the coronavirus crisis .
That will , over time , create big holes in both companies ’ ad revenue , so long as the shelter-in-place orders remain in effect for large ad markets like the US and Europe .
“ Our business has been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and , like all companies , we are facing a period of unprecedented uncertainty in our business outlook , ” reads the company ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ our business performance will be impacted by issues beyond our control , including the duration and efficacy of shelter-in-place orders , the effectiveness of economic stimuli around the world , and the fluctuations of currencies relative to the US dollar.
” 3 billion people now use a Facebook product at least once a month In particular , Facebook says it ’ s watching out for drops in engagement .
“ We expect that we will lose at least some of this increased engagement when various shelter-in-place restrictions are relaxed in the future.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the global advertising industry over the course of the last month .
“ We experienced a significant reduction in the demand for advertising , as well as a related decline in the pricing of our ads , over the last three weeks of the first quarter of 2020 , ” the company said .
For now , however , Facebook ’ s key numbers are looking good .
The company reported revenue of $ 17.7 billion and profit of $ 4.9 billion , 18 percent and 102 percent jumps from this time last @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people who log into Facebook daily jumped 11 percent from Q1 2019 to 1.7 billion , while the number of monthly active users increased by 10 percent to 2.6 billion .
The “ Family daily active people ” and “ Family monthly active people ” figures , both of which measure when a user has used at least one of Facebook ’ s various products in those time frames , both hit record highs of 2.4 billion and 3 billion , respectively .
Another bright spot is that Facebook ’ s non-ad business @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Portal family of video chat devices , is up 80 percent this quarter from a year ago , to nearly $ 300 million .
Facebook is also currently investing heavily in improving its messaging products to take advantage in the boom in video chatting , teleconferencing , and live-streaming .
The company last week announced Messenger Rooms , a more robust version of its chat platform that will allow up to 50 people to join a video call .
It also said it would double the capacity of WhatsApp video chatting from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ chatting to its dating platform , and add new live-streaming features to the main Facebook app and Instagram .
Despite Facebook ’ s warnings about the future , investors seem pleased with its present performance .
The company ’ s stock is now up nearly 10 percent in after-hours trading .

Facebook’s business is booming, thanks to worldwide shelter-in-place and quarantine orders due to the COVID-19 pandemic that have everyone using social networks and staring at screens far more than average.
The company, which reported first quarter earnings for 2020 on Wednesday, says “a record number of people” are using its services, primarily its Messenger and WhatsApp chat apps as well as Instagram. Last month, as the pandemic intensified, Facebook said it was seeing spikes of more than 50 percent on its messaging products and now logs about 700 million daily calls across Messenger and WhatsApp.
Facebook knows its growth is temporary, and it could make less money than expected next quarter
But the company knows its popularity is likely only temporary. And those products that are seeing spikes are not the ones Facebook can most easily monetize, as analytics chief Alex Schultz and engineering chief Jay Parikh admitted last month in an illuminating blog post.
“We don’t monetize many of the services where we’re seeing increased engagement, and we’ve seen a weakening in our ads business in countries taking aggressive actions to reduce the spread of COVID-19,” the duo wrote. “We’re just trying to keep the lights on over here,” Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg told The New York Times in an interview.
Combined with the pandemic’s effects on consumer buying habits and marketing budgets, both of which are expected to continue falling dramatically in the coming months, Facebook’s core advertising business may take a serious hit come next quarter.
Related Mark Zuckerberg on how video chat needs to evolve for the pandemic
Both Facebook and Google are the most dominant web advertising platforms in the industry, and yet some of the biggest spenders, including travel and dining-related websites and companies, are all slashing marketing spend during the coronavirus crisis. That will, over time, create big holes in both companies’ ad revenue, so long as the shelter-in-place orders remain in effect for large ad markets like the US and Europe.
“Our business has been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and, like all companies, we are facing a period of unprecedented uncertainty in our business outlook,” reads the company’s forward-looking statement. “We expect our business performance will be impacted by issues beyond our control, including the duration and efficacy of shelter-in-place orders, the effectiveness of economic stimuli around the world, and the fluctuations of currencies relative to the US dollar.”
3 billion people now use a Facebook product at least once a month
In particular, Facebook says it’s watching out for drops in engagement. “We expect that we will lose at least some of this increased engagement when various shelter-in-place restrictions are relaxed in the future.” It also starting feeling the downturn in the global advertising industry over the course of the last month. “We experienced a significant reduction in the demand for advertising, as well as a related decline in the pricing of our ads, over the last three weeks of the first quarter of 2020,” the company said.
For now, however, Facebook’s key numbers are looking good. The company reported revenue of $17.7 billion and profit of $4.9 billion, 18 percent and 102 percent jumps from this time last year, respectively. The number of people who log into Facebook daily jumped 11 percent from Q1 2019 to 1.7 billion, while the number of monthly active users increased by 10 percent to 2.6 billion.
The “Family daily active people” and “Family monthly active people” figures, both of which measure when a user has used at least one of Facebook’s various products in those time frames, both hit record highs of 2.4 billion and 3 billion, respectively.
Another bright spot is that Facebook’s non-ad business, including its Oculus virtual reality headsets and Portal family of video chat devices, is up 80 percent this quarter from a year ago, to nearly $300 million.
Facebook is also currently investing heavily in improving its messaging products to take advantage in the boom in video chatting, teleconferencing, and live-streaming. The company last week announced Messenger Rooms, a more robust version of its chat platform that will allow up to 50 people to join a video call. It also said it would double the capacity of WhatsApp video chatting from four people to eight, add video chatting to its dating platform, and add new live-streaming features to the main Facebook app and Instagram.


theverge--2020-04-30--Sonos speakers can now play free audiobooks from your local library

You can now use your Sonos speaker to listen to free audiobooks from your local library , thanks to a @ @ @ @ @ s Libby app .
After downloading the Libby app , you ’ ll be prompted @ @ @ @ @ library card .
Then , the app can be connected to a Sonos system and @ @ @ @ @ audiobooks .
Progress syncs across devices , so you ’ ll be able to pick @ @ @ @ @ if you ’ ve been listening elsewhere .
Libby isn ’ t the only source @ @ @ @ @ we ’ re looking at you Audible ) , but unlike other services , it @ @ @ @ @ .
The downside is that your choice of audiobooks will be limited by what your @ @ @ @ @ OverDrive says that Libby works with 90 percent of public libraries in North America .

You can now use your Sonos speaker to listen to free audiobooks from your local library, thanks to a new integration with OverDrive’s Libby app. After downloading the Libby app, you’ll be prompted to register with a valid library card. Then, the app can be connected to a Sonos system and used to play any available audiobooks. Progress syncs across devices, so you’ll be able to pick up where you left off if you’ve been listening elsewhere.