theverge--2020-02-28--Imagine a world without YouTube

Imagine a world without YouTube

Fifteen years ago this month , one of the most important web domains in history was registered : youtube.com .
Today ’ s teenagers have never known an internet that couldn ’ t host as much video as they want for free , server costs be damned .
YouTube has helped elect politicians , create entire industries , and taught millions of people how to use eyeliner .
It ’ s not a stretch to say it shaped the internet as we know it .
But what if YouTube had failed ?
Would we have missed out on decades of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we have avoided a wave of dystopian propaganda and misinformation ?
Or would the internet have simply spiraled into new — yet strangely familiar — shapes , with their own joys and disasters ?
Here ’ s one idea of what it might have looked like , tracing the line from why YouTube might have failed to what the world would have looked like without it .
It ’ s far from the only option — but if you ’ re struggling to imagine a world without YouTube , it may not be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is a creative work of fiction .
Any references to real-life companies , persons , or historical events have been fictionalized for the purposes of furthering this narrative story .
Other names , characters , places , companies , and events are imagined , and any resemblance to actual companies , events , or persons , living or dead , is entirely coincidental .
It ’ s 2005 , and three guys named Steve Chen , Jawed Karim , and Chad Hurley have just launched a dating website called YouTube .
While nobody @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Tune In , Hook Up , ” people do love sharing pop culture clips and little videos about their lives .
By 2006 , YouTube ’ s viewership has exploded , but reporters raise ominous questions about its financial strategy and legal risks .
NPR , for example , declares that “ YouTube does for video what Napster did for audio ” — and that , like Napster , its days might be numbered .
YouTube discusses an acquisition offer with Google , Microsoft , and Oracle , but all three deals fall @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to eat through the company ’ s funding .
YouTube has its first viral hit in early 2006 with a bootleg upload of SNL ’ s “ Lazy Sunday ” ( also known as the “ Narnia rap ” ) .
Faced with an obvious copyright violation , NBC must decide whether to sign an ad deal with YouTube or try to destroy it .
The network chooses the path of war , filing aggressive legal requests and rushing the launch of Hulu , which is soon available through popular websites like Microsoft @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s social network Myspace .
With Hulu established as a legitimate content source , networks view YouTube as a piracy vector for valuable movie and TV clips at a time when the music industry and internet service providers are aggressively pursuing copyright infringers .
Companies file lawsuits against YouTube instead of signing deals , and a flood of legal challenges from content-holders threatens to damage the platform ’ s safe harbor status under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act .
Without YouTube , Google focuses on its existing Google Video service .
It @ @ @ @ @ @ @ stake in AOL , reviving plans for a joint venture with Comcast .
Focusing on search and advertising services for other web portals , it ’ s largely seen as a web software and infrastructure company .
Facing high bandwidth costs and no revenue stream , YouTube declares bankruptcy .
Apple quietly hires most of its talent , assigning them to an iPhone video chat system codenamed “ Venice.
” As YouTube descends into bankruptcy , media companies start buying up lower-profile video sites .
Instead of letting anyone immediately post a video @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and focus on nurturing stables of internet stars often poached from YouTube — including a teenage singer named Justin Bieber .
The resulting services often look more like the Sony-acquired platform Grouper than the chaos of YouTube .
Some leverage user-generated content into new business models , particularly NBCUniversal , which acquires a life-streaming platform called Justin.tv in 2007 .
Results are mixed .
Sponsorship deals with “ lifecasters ” offer 24/7 exposure for brands but create an ongoing trickle of PR gaffes , including a Law & Order ad campaign that derails @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the broadcaster ’ s apartment .
( The incident is dramatized three months later in a Law & Order episode . )
Similarly , a licensing process for cosplay live streams earns criticism from fans who object to a prudish dress code and sweeping contract agreement .
The incident fuels a broader discussion of the relationship between fandom and corporate media , alienating many potential streamers .
NBCUniversal nudges the platform toward semi-curated reality and talent show formats .
Hosting a giant streaming repository is expensive and legally risky .
But there ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Without YouTube , decentralized streaming services are developed and popularized earlier .
What these systems lack in user-friendliness , they recover in anarchic fun ( and a fair amount of pirated content , especially when The Pirate Bay builds a YouTube-style landing page for discovering original videos ) .
Their distributed design makes videos easy to create and difficult to fully erase , and dedicated local networks also spring up on college campuses and high schools .
As Apple ’ s recently released iPhone grows in popularity , the company launches FaceTime @ @ @ @ @ @ @ both one-on-one chats and small-scale broadcasting .
It promotes the feature with a series of heartwarming ads , including an estranged family that reconnects over a shared viewing of a high-school musical .
Somewhat unpredictably , the appetite for group broadcasting drives performers and audiences to hold events in massively multiplayer games and virtual worlds , particularly Second Life , which is acquired by Microsoft in 2010 .
Major telecoms respond by attacking peer-to-peer systems at the network level .
Some internet service providers block peer-to-peer streaming in a violation of fledgling net @ @ @ @ @ @ @ between ISPs and the Federal Communications Commission .
These services find an unlikely ally in Apple , whose own FaceTime app runs into similar problems .
And rampant copyright infringement alarms Hollywood and record labels , which begin lobbying Congress for stricter intellectual property laws .
By 2011 , legitimate online video services have seen moderate success .
Their submission review process , powered by a combination of automated tools and human moderators , drastically slows the posting of videos .
But it heads off some serious problems , quickly stemming the growth @ @ @ @ @ @ @ aimed at kids .
Small-scale group broadcasting has also taken off .
Public figures regularly use Apple ’ s group broadcasting options to host intimate discussions — including a variety of streaming stars and noted iPhone fan President Barack Obama who kicks off a virtual tour of American classrooms using FaceTime .
Microsoft integrates Skype support into Second Life , letting webcam users “ dial in ” to virtual book readings and other live events .
These systems create an expectation of intimacy and personalization as well as a certain level of privacy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ decentralized streaming is a free-for-all .
Its openness creates a wellspring of creativity , but also persistent problems with harassment and quasi-ironic bigotry .
One peer-to-peer streaming subculture is devoted almost entirely to “ griefing ” mainstream video sites and virtual worlds — clogging submission queues with nonsensical meme videos , launching raids on Second Life , and running elaborate hoaxes to trick celebrities into personal FaceTime and Skype broadcasts .
Pirated content continues to circulate , including rips of legitimate video sites ’ biggest shows .
The combination of lobbyist pressure and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ crack down .
Lawmakers begin debating a sweeping bill called the Stop Online Piracy Act ( SOPA ) , which requires ISPs to block any foreign sites that host illegal copies of photos , videos , or music .
This includes any peer-to-peer services with users outside the US .
Internet advocacy groups protest SOPA , holding an online “ blackout ” in protest .
But they lack the support of web giants like Google — its partner , Comcast , staunchly supports the bill — and peer-to-peer platforms ’ reputation for unsavory @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The law passes in 2012 , and ISPs quickly block P2P streaming systems without the threat of FCC censure .
The resulting crackdown scuttles some innovative projects , including a popular Lego-like game called Minecraft , which had integrated a peer-to-peer streaming system for players .
And it galvanizes young voters into political awareness .
Some of their enthusiasm is captured by a growing right-wing extremist movement , which has operated under the radar , thanks to decentralized video .
The internet interprets censorship as damage and routes around it Peer-to-peer video @ @ @ @ @ @ @ services like DailyMotion and Tudou , and people flock to services like FaceTime , Hulu , and Justin.tv .
This sudden growth adds both technical and social pressure .
Users submit swathes of popular videos like the peer-to-peer hit “ Charlie Bit My Finger , ” offering welcome ad revenue but requiring arduous hunts for the original creators .
Griefers launch all-out swatting campaigns against live performers .
AT & T attempts to justify blocking Apple ’ s FaceTime under SOPA , making the service unavailable to many iPhone users on its network @ @ @ @ @ @ @ scrutiny , disturbing reports suggest that conglomerates like Sony and NBCUniversal turned a blind eye toward streamers accused of sexual misconduct , or even offered help by suppressing rumors on their platforms .
It ’ s especially troubling because kids ’ content is thriving on the services .
Children ’ s channels are filtered to remove disturbing content , but they ’ re also filled with product placement , free from the requirements placed on broadcast TV .
And while their young stars have the support of a studio system , it also @ @ @ @ @ @ @ which , combined with the always-on ethos of streaming , can prove psychologically damaging .
Peer-to-peer video devotees take increasingly extreme measures to stay online .
They respond to the ISP bans by developing local mesh networks that can stream video across limited ranges , creating pocket subcultures split along geographical lines .
Some popular videos make the leap between meshnets .
Re-edited versions of a 9/11 conspiracy documentary called Loose Change becomes a rare national hit across the meshnets , circulating throughout California and across the northern Appalachian region .
Aspiring streamers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ York and Los Angeles whose networks are still closely watched by mainstream sites ’ talent scouts .
( Similar scouts watch international sites , poaching stars like DailyMotion streamer Felix “ PewDiePie ” Kjellberg to host Comedy Central ’ s Pew.0 . )
Others gather in smaller cities like Kansas City , Missouri , and Akron , Ohio , creating regional media hubs colloquially known as “ streamtowns.
” Streamers from isolated areas with a strong survivalist tradition are often lured into a burgeoning network of far-right media compounds , intermittently monitored by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more atomized , regionalized , and personal .
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg puts a premium on encryption , declaring in 2013 that “ the future is private.
” ( Encryption and limited virality make Facebook less attractive for both pirates and anti-piracy enforcers . )
In 2014 , public micro-blogging platform Twitter becomes a wire news service for verified businesses and journalists , following a widely criticized public shaming frenzy on the site .
Microsoft acquires a buzzy VR startup called Oculus and integrates its technology into Second Life , offering a virtual @ @ @ @ @ @ @ real-money economy , although its crackdown on sexual content — particularly quirky subcultures like furries — draws some criticism .
To fight griefers , mainline sites downrank and demonetize most political discussion , limiting divisive topics like vaccine denial and climate change to a handful of carefully vetted channels .
Movements like Occupy Wall Street , organized through a local New York meshnet , have earned little mainstream attention .
Private networks can avoid censorship but breed unverified rumors and conspiracy theories , which incubate with little outside awareness or intervention .
Streaming @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and mining sensitive user data gathered by ISPs , which is made possible by consolidation deals like the 2011 merger between Comcast and NBCUniversal .
Drawing on Google ’ s AI research , Comcast-NBCUniversal ’ s juggernaut Justin.tv carefully parses the most minor shifts in video performance to set advertising rates and surface content , leaving streamers at the mercy of an unknowable algorithm .
The internet ’ s immune system is weaker than we think The internet of 2016 has its critics .
Media theorists question the “ mind-numbing wasteland of sanitized @ @ @ @ @ @ @ few media gatekeepers produce limited quantities of web television for the broadest possible audience , padded with some superficially personalized elements like custom title cards that look different for each user .
A housing bubble within Second Life has made the thriving virtual world inaccessible to many lower-income Americans , leading to accusations of “ virtual gentrification ” and debilitating digital mortgages for some unlucky residents .
Even so , it ’ s seen as widely superior to the chaos of the meshnet , which becomes a persistent target for law enforcement after @ @ @ @ @ @ @ domestic extremist attacks .
With no centralized point of attack , hacking and misinformation campaigns by meshnet griefers and Russian cyber-operatives fail to land , and Hillary Clinton defeats opponent Ted Cruz by a narrow margin in the 2016 presidential election .
President Clinton leads a meshnet compound crackdown with bipartisan congressional support — although ardent progressives see it as a cynical gift to the telecom industry and a substitute for meaningful gun control , while populist conservatives decry the advent of a “ Waco 2.0.
” The newly merged Comcast-Google-AOL-NBCUniversal offers glowing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ campaign .
( Disclosure : Comcast-Google-AOL-NBCUniversal is a minority investor in Vox Media . )
While aimed at violent extremists , the crackdown embitters many local streamtowns , and large networks grow paranoid over fears of police infiltration .
Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones rallies political support from the local Austin meshnet , running for state Congress on a platform of Texan independence .
Political concerns leave other networks nearly untouched — including the Miami meshnet , a hotbed for organized crime in the swing state of Florida .
Some small networks are repurposed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ trawl their nodes for nude photos and other embarrassing material .
Clinton ’ s FCC starts a massive push for municipal internet development , hoping to unify a geographically polarized country .
But powerful telecom-internet-media conglomerates immediately mire the plan in litigation .
As the 2020 election approaches , a superficial national calm belies a series of brewing secessionist campaigns and potent localized conspiracy theories .
A DC-area network plays host to a supposed Department of Energy operative codenamed “ Q ” who offers dire warnings about President Clinton and a network of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ promotes on the popular web version of its news channel .
A grassroots “ Occupy Airwaves ” movement is spreading open-source plans for a long-wave transmitter that can bridge the gaps between networks , creating a full-scale decentralized alternative internet .
Conversely , the wealthy Mercer family is building networks that offer the illusion of a local meshnet , laced with propaganda for their preferred candidate : Donald Trump .
Amid all of this , Apple adds an extra feature to its popular FaceTime application , capitalizing on the app ’ s widespread @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dating tool where users can “ pin ” short videos to participating bars and restaurants , hoping to attract another patron on a date .

Fifteen years ago this month, one of the most important web domains in history was registered: youtube.com. Today’s teenagers have never known an internet that couldn’t host as much video as they want for free, server costs be damned. YouTube has helped elect politicians, create entire industries, and taught millions of people how to use eyeliner. It’s not a stretch to say it shaped the internet as we know it.
But what if YouTube had failed? Would we have missed out on decades of cultural phenomena and innovative ideas? Would we have avoided a wave of dystopian propaganda and misinformation? Or would the internet have simply spiraled into new — yet strangely familiar — shapes, with their own joys and disasters?
Here’s one idea of what it might have looked like, tracing the line from why YouTube might have failed to what the world would have looked like without it. It’s far from the only option — but if you’re struggling to imagine a world without YouTube, it may not be as hard as you think.
This is a creative work of fiction. Any references to real-life companies, persons, or historical events have been fictionalized for the purposes of furthering this narrative story. Other names, characters, places, companies, and events are imagined, and any resemblance to actual companies, events, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
2005–2006: The False Start
A video platform fights copyright law (and copyright law wins)
It’s 2005, and three guys named Steve Chen, Jawed Karim, and Chad Hurley have just launched a dating website called YouTube. While nobody accepts YouTube’s invitation to “Tune In, Hook Up,” people do love sharing pop culture clips and little videos about their lives. By 2006, YouTube’s viewership has exploded, but reporters raise ominous questions about its financial strategy and legal risks. NPR, for example, declares that “YouTube does for video what Napster did for audio” — and that, like Napster, its days might be numbered. YouTube discusses an acquisition offer with Google, Microsoft, and Oracle, but all three deals fall through, and growing server costs threaten to eat through the company’s funding.
YouTube has its first viral hit in early 2006 with a bootleg upload of SNL’s “Lazy Sunday” (also known as the “Narnia rap”). Faced with an obvious copyright violation, NBC must decide whether to sign an ad deal with YouTube or try to destroy it. The network chooses the path of war, filing aggressive legal requests and rushing the launch of Hulu, which is soon available through popular websites like Microsoft’s MSN portal and News Corp’s social network Myspace.
With Hulu established as a legitimate content source, networks view YouTube as a piracy vector for valuable movie and TV clips at a time when the music industry and internet service providers are aggressively pursuing copyright infringers. Companies file lawsuits against YouTube instead of signing deals, and a flood of legal challenges from content-holders threatens to damage the platform’s safe harbor status under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act.
Without YouTube, Google focuses on its existing Google Video service. It shifts focus to expanding a recently acquired stake in AOL, reviving plans for a joint venture with Comcast. Focusing on search and advertising services for other web portals, it’s largely seen as a web software and infrastructure company.
Facing high bandwidth costs and no revenue stream, YouTube declares bankruptcy. Apple quietly hires most of its talent, assigning them to an iPhone video chat system codenamed “Venice.”
2006–2007: The Power Vacuum
Old media giants meet the influencer economy
As YouTube descends into bankruptcy, media companies start buying up lower-profile video sites. Instead of letting anyone immediately post a video, these companies implement a review process and focus on nurturing stables of internet stars often poached from YouTube — including a teenage singer named Justin Bieber.
The resulting services often look more like the Sony-acquired platform Grouper than the chaos of YouTube. Some leverage user-generated content into new business models, particularly NBCUniversal, which acquires a life-streaming platform called Justin.tv in 2007. Results are mixed. Sponsorship deals with “lifecasters” offer 24/7 exposure for brands but create an ongoing trickle of PR gaffes, including a Law & Order ad campaign that derails when viewers provoke a police raid on the broadcaster’s apartment. (The incident is dramatized three months later in a Law & Order episode.)
Similarly, a licensing process for cosplay live streams earns criticism from fans who object to a prudish dress code and sweeping contract agreement. The incident fuels a broader discussion of the relationship between fandom and corporate media, alienating many potential streamers. NBCUniversal nudges the platform toward semi-curated reality and talent show formats.
2008–2011: The Divergence
Peer-to-peer video turns the internet upside-down
Hosting a giant streaming repository is expensive and legally risky. But there’s a free alternative: peer-to-peer sharing. Without YouTube, decentralized streaming services are developed and popularized earlier. What these systems lack in user-friendliness, they recover in anarchic fun (and a fair amount of pirated content, especially when The Pirate Bay builds a YouTube-style landing page for discovering original videos). Their distributed design makes videos easy to create and difficult to fully erase, and dedicated local networks also spring up on college campuses and high schools.
As Apple’s recently released iPhone grows in popularity, the company launches FaceTime: a video calling service that supports both one-on-one chats and small-scale broadcasting. It promotes the feature with a series of heartwarming ads, including an estranged family that reconnects over a shared viewing of a high-school musical. Somewhat unpredictably, the appetite for group broadcasting drives performers and audiences to hold events in massively multiplayer games and virtual worlds, particularly Second Life, which is acquired by Microsoft in 2010.
Major telecoms respond by attacking peer-to-peer systems at the network level. Some internet service providers block peer-to-peer streaming in a violation of fledgling net neutrality rules, setting up a conflict between ISPs and the Federal Communications Commission. These services find an unlikely ally in Apple, whose own FaceTime app runs into similar problems. And rampant copyright infringement alarms Hollywood and record labels, which begin lobbying Congress for stricter intellectual property laws.
2011–2012: The Crackdown
Congress takes down the video underground
By 2011, legitimate online video services have seen moderate success. Their submission review process, powered by a combination of automated tools and human moderators, drastically slows the posting of videos. But it heads off some serious problems, quickly stemming the growth of child abuse material and disturbing videos aimed at kids.
Small-scale group broadcasting has also taken off. Public figures regularly use Apple’s group broadcasting options to host intimate discussions — including a variety of streaming stars and noted iPhone fan President Barack Obama who kicks off a virtual tour of American classrooms using FaceTime. Microsoft integrates Skype support into Second Life, letting webcam users “dial in” to virtual book readings and other live events. These systems create an expectation of intimacy and personalization as well as a certain level of privacy from outside eyes.
By contrast, decentralized streaming is a free-for-all. Its openness creates a wellspring of creativity, but also persistent problems with harassment and quasi-ironic bigotry. One peer-to-peer streaming subculture is devoted almost entirely to “griefing” mainstream video sites and virtual worlds — clogging submission queues with nonsensical meme videos, launching raids on Second Life, and running elaborate hoaxes to trick celebrities into personal FaceTime and Skype broadcasts. Pirated content continues to circulate, including rips of legitimate video sites’ biggest shows.
The combination of lobbyist pressure and increasingly aggressive trolling eventually spurs Congress to crack down. Lawmakers begin debating a sweeping bill called the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), which requires ISPs to block any foreign sites that host illegal copies of photos, videos, or music. This includes any peer-to-peer services with users outside the US.
Internet advocacy groups protest SOPA, holding an online “blackout” in protest. But they lack the support of web giants like Google — its partner, Comcast, staunchly supports the bill — and peer-to-peer platforms’ reputation for unsavory content makes them easy targets for lawmakers. The law passes in 2012, and ISPs quickly block P2P streaming systems without the threat of FCC censure.
The resulting crackdown scuttles some innovative projects, including a popular Lego-like game called Minecraft, which had integrated a peer-to-peer streaming system for players. And it galvanizes young voters into political awareness. Some of their enthusiasm is captured by a growing right-wing extremist movement, which has operated under the radar, thanks to decentralized video.
2013–2015: The Backlash
The internet interprets censorship as damage and routes around it
Peer-to-peer video is increasingly inaccessible, alongside foreign streaming services like DailyMotion and Tudou, and people flock to services like FaceTime, Hulu, and Justin.tv. This sudden growth adds both technical and social pressure. Users submit swathes of popular videos like the peer-to-peer hit “Charlie Bit My Finger,” offering welcome ad revenue but requiring arduous hunts for the original creators. Griefers launch all-out swatting campaigns against live performers. AT&T attempts to justify blocking Apple’s FaceTime under SOPA, making the service unavailable to many iPhone users on its network.
And as mainstream platforms face more scrutiny, disturbing reports suggest that conglomerates like Sony and NBCUniversal turned a blind eye toward streamers accused of sexual misconduct, or even offered help by suppressing rumors on their platforms. It’s especially troubling because kids’ content is thriving on the services.
Children’s channels are filtered to remove disturbing content, but they’re also filled with product placement, free from the requirements placed on broadcast TV. And while their young stars have the support of a studio system, it also places strict rules on their conduct — which, combined with the always-on ethos of streaming, can prove psychologically damaging.
Peer-to-peer video devotees take increasingly extreme measures to stay online. They respond to the ISP bans by developing local mesh networks that can stream video across limited ranges, creating pocket subcultures split along geographical lines. Some popular videos make the leap between meshnets. Re-edited versions of a 9/11 conspiracy documentary called Loose Change become a rare national hit across the meshnets, circulating throughout California and across the northern Appalachian region.
Aspiring streamers flock to dense urban centers like New York and Los Angeles whose networks are still closely watched by mainstream sites’ talent scouts. (Similar scouts watch international sites, poaching stars like DailyMotion streamer Felix “PewDiePie” Kjellberg to host Comedy Central’s Pew.0.) Others gather in smaller cities like Kansas City, Missouri, and Akron, Ohio, creating regional media hubs colloquially known as “streamtowns.” Streamers from isolated areas with a strong survivalist tradition are often lured into a burgeoning network of far-right media compounds, intermittently monitored by the FBI.
Non-video social media becomes more atomized, regionalized, and personal. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg puts a premium on encryption, declaring in 2013 that “the future is private.” (Encryption and limited virality make Facebook less attractive for both pirates and anti-piracy enforcers.) In 2014, public micro-blogging platform Twitter becomes a wire news service for verified businesses and journalists, following a widely criticized public shaming frenzy on the site.
Microsoft acquires a buzzy VR startup called Oculus and integrates its technology into Second Life, offering a virtual world anchored by persistent identities and a real-money economy, although its crackdown on sexual content — particularly quirky subcultures like furries — draws some criticism.
To fight griefers, mainline sites downrank and demonetize most political discussion, limiting divisive topics like vaccine denial and climate change to a handful of carefully vetted channels. Movements like Occupy Wall Street, organized through a local New York meshnet, have earned little mainstream attention. Private networks can avoid censorship but breed unverified rumors and conspiracy theories, which incubate with little outside awareness or intervention.
Streaming sites begin adopting sophisticated machine learning systems and mining sensitive user data gathered by ISPs, which is made possible by consolidation deals like the 2011 merger between Comcast and NBCUniversal. Drawing on Google’s AI research, Comcast-NBCUniversal’s juggernaut Justin.tv carefully parses the most minor shifts in video performance to set advertising rates and surface content, leaving streamers at the mercy of an unknowable algorithm.
2016–2020: The Calm
The internet’s immune system is weaker than we think
The internet of 2016 has its critics. Media theorists question the “mind-numbing wasteland of sanitized, algorithm-driven monocultures” in which a few media gatekeepers produce limited quantities of web television for the broadest possible audience, padded with some superficially personalized elements like custom title cards that look different for each user. A housing bubble within Second Life has made the thriving virtual world inaccessible to many lower-income Americans, leading to accusations of “virtual gentrification” and debilitating digital mortgages for some unlucky residents.
Even so, it’s seen as widely superior to the chaos of the meshnet, which becomes a persistent target for law enforcement after a series of violent inter-network clashes and domestic extremist attacks. With no centralized point of attack, hacking and misinformation campaigns by meshnet griefers and Russian cyber-operatives fail to land, and Hillary Clinton defeats opponent Ted Cruz by a narrow margin in the 2016 presidential election.
President Clinton leads a meshnet compound crackdown with bipartisan congressional support — although ardent progressives see it as a cynical gift to the telecom industry and a substitute for meaningful gun control, while populist conservatives decry the advent of a “Waco 2.0.” The newly merged Comcast-Google-AOL-NBCUniversal offers glowing coverage and algorithmically tailored promotion of the campaign. (Disclosure: Comcast-Google-AOL-NBCUniversal is a minority investor in Vox Media.)
While aimed at violent extremists, the crackdown embitters many local streamtowns, and large networks grow paranoid over fears of police infiltration. Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones rallies political support from the local Austin meshnet, running for state Congress on a platform of Texan independence. Political concerns leave other networks nearly untouched — including the Miami meshnet, a hotbed for organized crime in the swing state of Florida. Some small networks are repurposed as honeypot operations by small-time blackmailers who trawl their nodes for nude photos and other embarrassing material.
Clinton’s FCC starts a massive push for municipal internet development, hoping to unify a geographically polarized country. But powerful telecom-internet-media conglomerates immediately mire the plan in litigation.
As the 2020 election approaches, a superficial national calm belies a series of brewing secessionist campaigns and potent localized conspiracy theories. A DC-area network plays host to a supposed Department of Energy operative codenamed “Q” who offers dire warnings about President Clinton and a network of baby-eating satanists — warnings that Fox News promotes on the popular web version of its news channel.
A grassroots “Occupy Airwaves” movement is spreading open-source plans for a long-wave transmitter that can bridge the gaps between networks, creating a full-scale decentralized alternative internet. Conversely, the wealthy Mercer family is building networks that offer the illusion of a local meshnet, laced with propaganda for their preferred candidate: Donald Trump.
Amid all of this, Apple adds an extra feature to its popular FaceTime application, capitalizing on the app’s widespread popularity. It’s a geolocation-based dating tool where users can “pin” short videos to participating bars and restaurants, hoping to attract another patron on a date.


theverge--2020-02-28--First look at 8K HDR sport streaming coming to the UK this summer

While Arsenal were busy producing what can only be described as a 360p performance on the pitch against Olympiakos last night , a production crew was huddled together bringing the football ( soccer ) action to life in 8K HDR for the first time .
BT Sport and Samsung partnered to produce an elaborate display of cutting-edge tech , and they promise that we ’ ll start to see 8K HDR streams of Premier League and Champions League matches as soon as August this year .
I got a chance to witness the UK ’ s first live 8K HDR @ @ @ @ @ @ @ London and to look behind the scenes at exactly how it was achieved .
Full disclosure : I ’ m an Arsenal fan , so while the game loss was what I ’ ve come to expect this season , the 8K HDR broadcast was far more exciting .
Samsung and BT Sport set up an 82-inch QLED 8K display in an Arsenal executive box that overlooked the pitch and rigged it up with an elaborate uncompressed 8K feed that totaled 48 Gbps at a 7680 × 4320 resolution in 50fps .
This @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , especially as the latency was around a second from what was happening on the pitch to what was presented on the 8K TV .
I could look at the TV and look outside at the pitch , and it was rather surreal to witness such a crisp digital feed of reality right next to what was happening in real time .
At the heart of the action is Sony ’ s UHC-8300 8K camera system , which retails for just shy of $ 500,000 and allows broadcasters like BT Sport to capture @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , 4K , and HD in both HDR and SDR formats .
BT ’ s 8K HDR outside broadcast involved feeding the uncompressed footage from this Sony camera system into four serial digital interface ( SDI ) coaxial cables that carry 12 Gbps of bandwidth each .
The broadcast is essentially split into four 4K feeds , each making up a quadrant of what you see on screen .
These feeds were then carried from pitch level up into a box that converts them into four HDMI 2.0 links and then into yet @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a single HDMI 2.1 cable that handles the 48 Gbps uncompressed feed straight into the back of the Samsung 8K TV .
It was a demonstration of the very bleeding edge of broadcasting , HDMI standards , and television panels .
But this blurring of reality isn ’ t what you ’ ll get at home .
BT won ’ t be pumping 48 Gbps streams into your living room anytime soon , and given that the average download rate in the UK is just 54 Mbps , BT is naturally compressing its @ @ @ @ @ @ @ witness what you ’ d see at home , a 70 Mbps compressed feed using the High Efficiency Video Coding ( HEVC ) codec and HDR10 .
BT Sport has been experimenting with 8K feeds between 60 Mbps and 80 Mbps , which means that anyone in the UK will really need Fiber To The Premises ( FTTP ) and the latest 8K TVs to take advantage of this .
The end goal for any broadcaster is a much more efficient bitrate that doesn ’ t sacrifice picture quality .
“ This is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” explains Andy Beale , chief engineer at BT Sport .
“ We ’ re thinking this could easily be down to 60 to 65 Mbps in about a year ’ s time.
” Both the 48 Gbps and 70 Mbps 8K feeds were in separate rooms , so it was difficult to directly compare the two side by side , but the differences were mostly noticeable the closer you got to the screen .
It was easy to spot softness around player movement just a few inches from the screen on the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ like stewards ’ shirt numbers were still clearly visible .
Sadly , BT Sport didn ’ t provide a 4K HDR stream of the game to directly compare the future to what exists today .
I think average consumers might not even notice the differences between compressed 4K HDR and 8K HDR footage unless they own an 80- or 90-inch TV and sit pretty close to it .
The uncompressed 48 Gbps feed looked phenomenal , and as someone who begrudgingly watches “ 4K ” streams from Netflix at a measly 15 Mbps @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in watching Blu-ray copies in higher quality .
That will soon change , thanks to streaming services like BT Sport that are trying to push the industry toward 8K and higher bitrates .
The only issue is you won ’ t always be getting 8K ; BT Sport ’ s current 4K HDR feed includes 1080p replay and studio shots that are upscaled .
The 8K footage at the game last night was only from a single 8K camera that covers the wide-angle shot of the pitch , and other angles and shots @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The novel coronavirus impact and travel concerns prevented BT from sourcing a second 8K camera from Japan for the game last night .
“ The plan was to have two and show two , and we were going to vision mix between the two cameras , ” explains Beale .
“ They ’ re so rare these cameras that Sony won ’ t ship them without them being hand carried by humans.
” Another issue to contend with in any streaming sports broadcast is latency .
The BBC ’ s 4K HDR World @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a 1080i broadcast through satellite or antenna back in 2018 , and BT Sport 4K HDR is usually around 20 to 30 seconds behind .
I measured the latency of the raw signal coming out of the 8K HDR broadcast truck last night , hitting a distribution encoder that uploads it to Amazon Web Services ( AWS ) and then seeing the result on the compressed stream behind the truck that consumers will also receive in living rooms .
It was around 36 seconds , which is highly impressive given the formats and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ involved .
The real test now comes for BT Sport to launch into homes later this year and push the bitrate quality beyond even the likely 80 Mbps requirement .
That means investment , partnerships , and some obvious workflow changes that are being tested out right now .
BT Sport has teamed up with Samsung so the native app on the company ’ s latest 8K TVs will support this 8K stream for the Premier League next season , and other sports like Rugby will also be broadcast in 8K .
It @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that BT has already made in 4K HDR broadcasting over IP .
The company only launched its Ultimate 4K HDR sports channel last year , and it ’ s surprising to see how quickly it ’ s willing and able to be at the forefront of this push toward 8K streaming just a year later .
“ This isn ’ t a gimmick , this isn ’ t a throwaway , ” says Jamie Hindhaugh , chief operating officer at BT Sport , in an interview with The Verge .
“ If we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ over the long term , then this is what we should do.
” Hindhaugh believes that by pushing toward 8K , BT Sport will be able to improve 4K and HD broadcasts that are downscaled from this production process and still deliver a new 8K content option that drives the TV industry and sports broadcasting forward .
“ We were super early with 4K , we were super early with Dolby Atmos and HDR , ” says Hindhaugh .
“ The challenge between investing now and creating that [ 8K footage ] for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to sell it is that content is king in all of those things.
” And he ’ s right .
Most broadcasters are still catching up to 4K and HDR content , let alone getting close to 8K footage that would even get consumers to consider such a TV .
BT Sport is also looking at allowing consumers to customize the on-screen graphics they see , the audio commentary feeds , and much more .
That could make streams far more personalized and even interactive in the years ahead , in ways we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ industry right now .
Being at the forefront has allowed BT Sport to become more than just a broadcaster , too .
It ’ s also a production house that handled Amazon ’ s experiment with Premier League TV rights over the holiday period in the UK .
The team has even produced content for ITV Sport and the BBC ’ s NFL show .
“ We see ourselves as a fantastic team with fantastic expertise , ” says Hindhaugh .
“ Our approach to the industry is about partnerships and if you @ @ @ @ @ @ @ can we support it.
” Those partnerships were clear to see during this 8K HDR broadcast , with BT Sport teaming up with Fujinon for lenses , Socionext and BlackMagic Design to convert the SDI signals into HDMI , Beamr for its 8K HEVC encoder , Leader for its 8K waveform monitor , Sony with its 8K HDR camera , and Telegenic and Timeline TV for its outside broadcast .
As the team pushes toward its goal of 8K HDR streaming in August , there ’ s a possibility we might even see @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of weeks .
“ Your first live experience could be the end of this season , ” hints Hindhaugh .
That would make the Champions League final an ideal test at the end of May .
“ I couldn ’ t possibly comment , ” says Hindhaugh , before breaking out into laughter .

While Arsenal were busy producing what can only be described as a 360p performance on the pitch against Olympiakos last night, a production crew was huddled together bringing the football (soccer) action to life in 8K HDR for the first time. BT Sport and Samsung partnered to produce an elaborate display of cutting-edge tech, and they promise that we’ll start to see 8K HDR streams of Premier League and Champions League matches as soon as August this year.
I got a chance to witness the UK’s first live 8K HDR sports broadcast at the Emirates Stadium in London and to look behind the scenes at exactly how it was achieved. Full disclosure: I’m an Arsenal fan, so while the game loss was what I’ve come to expect this season, the 8K HDR broadcast was far more exciting.
Samsung and BT Sport set up an 82-inch QLED 8K display in an Arsenal executive box that overlooked the pitch and rigged it up with an elaborate uncompressed 8K feed that totaled 48 Gbps at a 7680 × 4320 resolution in 50fps. This uncompressed feed was a sight to behold, especially as the latency was around a second from what was happening on the pitch to what was presented on the 8K TV. I could look at the TV and look outside at the pitch, and it was rather surreal to witness such a crisp digital feed of reality right next to what was happening in real time.
Samsung’s elaborate 8K setup at The Emirates.
At the heart of the action is Sony’s UHC-8300 8K camera system, which retails for just shy of $500,000 and allows broadcasters like BT Sport to capture footage while simultaneously outputting it in 8K, 4K, and HD in both HDR and SDR formats. BT’s 8K HDR outside broadcast involved feeding the uncompressed footage from this Sony camera system into four serial digital interface (SDI) coaxial cables that carry 12 Gbps of bandwidth each.
The broadcast is essentially split into four 4K feeds, each making up a quadrant of what you see on screen. These feeds were then carried from pitch level up into a box that converts them into four HDMI 2.0 links and then into yet another box that switches the signals into a single HDMI 2.1 cable that handles the 48 Gbps uncompressed feed straight into the back of the Samsung 8K TV.
It was a demonstration of the very bleeding edge of broadcasting, HDMI standards, and television panels. But this blurring of reality isn’t what you’ll get at home. BT won’t be pumping 48 Gbps streams into your living room anytime soon, and given that the average download rate in the UK is just 54 Mbps, BT is naturally compressing its 8K feeds.
BT Sport’s outside broadcast truck.
I also got to witness what you’d see at home, a 70 Mbps compressed feed using the High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) codec and HDR10. BT Sport has been experimenting with 8K feeds between 60 Mbps and 80 Mbps, which means that anyone in the UK will really need Fiber To The Premises (FTTP) and the latest 8K TVs to take advantage of this. The end goal for any broadcaster is a much more efficient bitrate that doesn’t sacrifice picture quality. “This is an early implementation of this codec,” explains Andy Beale, chief engineer at BT Sport. “We’re thinking this could easily be down to 60 to 65 Mbps in about a year’s time.”
Both the 48 Gbps and 70 Mbps 8K feeds were in separate rooms, so it was difficult to directly compare the two side by side, but the differences were mostly noticeable the closer you got to the screen. It was easy to spot softness around player movement just a few inches from the screen on the compressed stream, but even tiny details like stewards’ shirt numbers were still clearly visible. Sadly, BT Sport didn’t provide a 4K HDR stream of the game to directly compare the future to what exists today. I think average consumers might not even notice the differences between compressed 4K HDR and 8K HDR footage unless they own an 80- or 90-inch TV and sit pretty close to it.
The uncompressed 48 Gbps feed looked phenomenal, and as someone who begrudgingly watches “4K” streams from Netflix at a measly 15 Mbps, I’m always more interested in watching Blu-ray copies in higher quality. That will soon change, thanks to streaming services like BT Sport that are trying to push the industry toward 8K and higher bitrates.
The distribution encoder that sends footage up to AWS.
The only issue is you won’t always be getting 8K; BT Sport’s current 4K HDR feed includes 1080p replay and studio shots that are upscaled. The 8K footage at the game last night was only from a single 8K camera that covers the wide-angle shot of the pitch, and other angles and shots were vision mixed using 4K cameras. The novel coronavirus impact and travel concerns prevented BT from sourcing a second 8K camera from Japan for the game last night. “The plan was to have two and show two, and we were going to vision mix between the two cameras,” explains Beale. “They’re so rare these cameras that Sony won’t ship them without them being hand carried by humans.”
Another issue to contend with in any streaming sports broadcast is latency. The BBC’s 4K HDR World Cup stream was around a minute behind a 1080i broadcast through satellite or antenna back in 2018, and BT Sport 4K HDR is usually around 20 to 30 seconds behind. I measured the latency of the raw signal coming out of the 8K HDR broadcast truck last night, hitting a distribution encoder that uploads it to Amazon Web Services (AWS) and then seeing the result on the compressed stream behind the truck that consumers will also receive in living rooms. It was around 36 seconds, which is highly impressive given the formats and round trip to the cloud that are involved.
Lots and lots of cables. The Linux-powered encoder.
The real test now comes for BT Sport to launch into homes later this year and push the bitrate quality beyond even the likely 80 Mbps requirement. That means investment, partnerships, and some obvious workflow changes that are being tested out right now. BT Sport has teamed up with Samsung so the native app on the company’s latest 8K TVs will support this 8K stream for the Premier League next season, and other sports like Rugby will also be broadcast in 8K.
It’s all part of significant investments that BT has already made in 4K HDR broadcasting over IP. The company only launched its Ultimate 4K HDR sports channel last year, and it’s surprising to see how quickly it’s willing and able to be at the forefront of this push toward 8K streaming just a year later.
“This isn’t a gimmick, this isn’t a throwaway,” says Jamie Hindhaugh, chief operating officer at BT Sport, in an interview with The Verge. “If we really want to deliver BT Sport Ultimate over the long term, then this is what we should do.” Hindhaugh believes that by pushing toward 8K, BT Sport will be able to improve 4K and HD broadcasts that are downscaled from this production process and still deliver a new 8K content option that drives the TV industry and sports broadcasting forward.
Behind the scenes of BT Sport’s 8K HDR stream.
“We were super early with 4K, we were super early with Dolby Atmos and HDR,” says Hindhaugh. “The challenge between investing now and creating that [8K footage] for the manufacturers and then to be able to sell it is that content is king in all of those things.”
And he’s right. Most broadcasters are still catching up to 4K and HDR content, let alone getting close to 8K footage that would even get consumers to consider such a TV. BT Sport is also looking at allowing consumers to customize the on-screen graphics they see, the audio commentary feeds, and much more. That could make streams far more personalized and even interactive in the years ahead, in ways we don’t often see across the industry right now.
Being at the forefront has allowed BT Sport to become more than just a broadcaster, too. It’s also a production house that handled Amazon’s experiment with Premier League TV rights over the holiday period in the UK. The team has even produced content for ITV Sport and the BBC’s NFL show.
“We see ourselves as a fantastic team with fantastic expertise,” says Hindhaugh. “Our approach to the industry is about partnerships and if you’ve got the expertise then how can we support it.” Those partnerships were clear to see during this 8K HDR broadcast, with BT Sport teaming up with Fujinon for lenses, Socionext and BlackMagic Design to convert the SDI signals into HDMI, Beamr for its 8K HEVC encoder, Leader for its 8K waveform monitor, Sony with its 8K HDR camera, and Telegenic and Timeline TV for its outside broadcast.
As the team pushes toward its goal of 8K HDR streaming in August, there’s a possibility we might even see the first public stream in a matter of weeks. “Your first live experience could be the end of this season,” hints Hindhaugh. That would make the Champions League final an ideal test at the end of May. “I couldn’t possibly comment,” says Hindhaugh, before breaking out into laughter.


theverge--2020-02-28--GDC watching coronavirus concerns ‘closely’ as as Epic, Microsoft, and others cancel appearances

Game Developers Conference organizers are still moving ahead with the annual conference , despite losing exhibitors such as Epic , Microsoft , and Unity amid coronavirus concerns .
In a statement published on its website today , organizers said they are “ watching closely for new developments around the Novel Coronavirus ( COVID19 or 2019-nCoV ) situation in China to keep the GDC community appraised of the latest updates.
” The novel coronavirus has had an unexpected impact on the gaming industry , from delays to game league cancellations .
Developers have pulled out of annual events like PAX East @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the weeks leading up to March ’ s annual Game Developers Conference in San Francisco , companies like Sony , Electronic Arts , Facebook , and Kojima Productions have announced that they ’ re skipping the event .
As GDC draws near , many within the games industry have wondered if it will continue as planned or wind up canceled like Facebook ’ s F8 or Mobile World Congress .
On February 25th , organizers told The Verge that the conference would be “ moving forward as planned ” in San Francisco next @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coronavirus outbreaks .
A spokesperson told The Verge that “ the California Department of Public Health , the San Francisco Department of Public Health , and the San Francisco Travel Association continue to support the convening of public events.
” “ We take our employees ’ wellbeing very seriously.
” On February 27th , companies began to pull out more rapidly , including two of the industry ’ s biggest game engines .
Unity , the company behind one of the most popular game engines in the world , says it is canceling @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to travel to the event .
“ We take our employees ’ wellbeing very seriously , ” Unity said in a statement .
“ We do not want any Unity employee or partner to compromise their health and safety unnecessarily.
” Epic followed suit on Twitter .
“ Here at Epic we were excited about participating in GDC 2020 , ” the company said .
“ Regrettably , uncertainty around health concerns has made it unviable to send our employees , and so we have made the difficult decision to withdraw attendance.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that it would also withdraw from the event , citing “ an abundance of caution ” after reviewing guidance from global health authorities .
“ The health and safety of players , developers , employees , and our partners around the world is our top priority , ” the team announced in a blog post .
“ Especially as the world is experiencing growing public health risks associated with coronavirus ( COVID-19 ) .
” It will instead hold a digital-only event from March 16th–18th .
Despite there being no reported cases of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ London Breed declared a state of emergency for the city on Tuesday ; the move will allow the city to respond to potential infections more quickly .
In a letter , San Francisco Travel Association president and CEO Joe D ’ Alessandro assured attendees that “ the official agencies are being extremely proactive to keep visitors and residents safe and healthy.
” Residents and attendees alike are encouraged to “ practice common sense prevention , ” such as hand washing , and avoid attending if they are ill.
It ’ s still unclear @ @ @ @ @ @ @ year ’ s conference overall ; last year ’ s event was its biggest yet with more than 29,000 people in attendance .
The conference is set to take place from March 16th–20th .
Update February 27th , 9:30AM ET : Added details about Unity canceling GDC presence and its impact on the event .
Update February 27th , 12:35PM ET : Added details about Microsoft ’ s Game Stack team pulling out of GDC .

Game Developers Conference organizers are still moving ahead with the annual conference, despite losing exhibitors such as Epic, Microsoft, and Unity amid coronavirus concerns. In a statement published on its website today, organizers said they are “closely monitoring the COVID19 (coronavirus) situation and want to assure everyone that your health and safety are a top priority.”
The novel coronavirus has had an unexpected impact on the gaming industry, from delays to game league cancellations. Developers have pulled out of annual events like PAX East, citing health safety concerns. In the weeks leading up to March’s annual Game Developers Conference in San Francisco, companies like Sony, Electronic Arts, Facebook, and Kojima Productions have announced that they’re skipping the event. As GDC draws near, many within the games industry have wondered if it will continue as planned or wind up canceled like Facebook’s F8 or Mobile World Congress.
“If our assessment of the situation changes, based on new and evolving developments or updated information, we will promptly update this statement regarding the status of GDC 2020 accordingly,” reads the statement from today.
On February 25th, organizers told The Verge that the conference would be “moving forward as planned” in San Francisco next month, despite concerns over the international coronavirus outbreaks. A spokesperson told The Verge that “the California Department of Public Health, the San Francisco Department of Public Health, and the San Francisco Travel Association continue to support the convening of public events.”
“We take our employees’ wellbeing very seriously.”
On February 27th, companies began to pull out more rapidly, including two of the industry’s biggest game engines. Unity, the company behind one of the most popular game engines in the world, says it is canceling all GDC-related activities and advising employees not to travel to the event. “We take our employees’ wellbeing very seriously,” Unity said in a statement. “We do not want any Unity employee or partner to compromise their health and safety unnecessarily.”
Epic followed suit on Twitter. “Here at Epic we were excited about participating in GDC 2020,” the company said. “Regrettably, uncertainty around health concerns has made it unviable to send our employees, and so we have made the difficult decision to withdraw attendance.”
Microsoft’s Game Stack team announced that it would also withdraw from the event, citing “an abundance of caution” after reviewing guidance from global health authorities. “The health and safety of players, developers, employees, and our partners around the world is our top priority,” the team announced in a blog post. “Especially as the world is experiencing growing public health risks associated with coronavirus (COVID-19).” It will instead hold a digital-only event from March 16th–18th.
Despite there being no reported cases of the virus in San Francisco, Mayor London Breed declared a state of emergency for the city on Tuesday; the move will allow the city to respond to potential infections more quickly. In a letter, San Francisco Travel Association president and CEO Joe D’Alessandro assured attendees that “the official agencies are being extremely proactive to keep visitors and residents safe and healthy.” Residents and attendees alike are encouraged to “practice common sense prevention,” such as hand washing, and avoid attending if they are ill.
It’s still unclear how the coronavirus scare will impact this year’s conference overall; last year’s event was its biggest yet with more than 29,000 people in attendance. The conference is set to take place from March 16th–20th.
Update February 27th, 9:30AM ET: Added details about Unity canceling GDC presence and its impact on the event.
Update February 27th, 12:35PM ET: Added details about Microsoft’s Game Stack team pulling out of GDC.
Update February 27th, 2:01PM ET: Added details about Epic’s withdrawal.


theverge--2020-02-28--YouTube rarely reinstates removed videos — even when creators appeal

In three months , YouTube received nearly 110,000 appeals from creators who were frustrated that their videos were taken down — but less than a quarter were later reinstated .
The data comes from YouTube ’ s new community guidelines report , and it marks the first time that YouTube is sharing information on appeals .
One of the more frustrating aspects of working as a YouTube creator is dealing with videos erroneously being taken down by the company and having to go through YouTube ’ s appeal process .
Creators have asked for more transparency regarding the appeals process @ @ @ @ @ @ @ data for the first time .
YouTube says that it removed more than 5 million videos between October 2019 and December 2019 .
Of those videos , around 109,000 removals were appealed .
YouTube reinstated around 23,000 videos , according to the report .
The vast majority of those videos were removed automatically ( meaning a human did not oversee the removal ) , and more than 60 percent were removed before the video collected any views .
YouTube ’ s report also states that just over 2 million channels were removed .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ were considered spam , according to the report .
“ Our team is focused on accurately and consistently enforcing our policies , and one of the ways we hold ourselves accountable and measure our success is by making sure that users can easily appeal our decisions and monitoring the rate at which they do , ” a YouTube spokesperson told The Verge .
Creators filed appeals on “ less than two percent of the videos we removed last quarter , ” according to the YouTube representative .
The company “ overturned less than @ @ @ @ @ @ @ removed last quarter.
” The report doesn ’ t specify how many videos were removed or taken down because of copyright infringement , one of the biggest issues within the creator space .
Of the videos that were removed , more than 50 percent were for spam or deceptive practices , 15 percent were removed for child safety , and 13 percent were removed for nudity or sexually explicit content .
Hateful and abusive content made up 2.9 percent of all videos removed .
Just under 33,000 videos ( 0.6 percent ) of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — an area where YouTube has had to answer for over the last few years .
YouTube updated its policy to prohibit creator-on-creator harassment , which became a big talking point last summer .
“ This is just one more step towards providing transparency into the work we do to quickly and consistently enforce our policies , ” the YouTube representative said .
“ We ’ re working to add more exhibits to this report over the course of 2020 .
”

In three months, YouTube received nearly 110,000 appeals from creators who were frustrated that their videos were taken down — but less than a quarter were later reinstated.
The data comes from YouTube’s new community guidelines report, and it marks the first time that YouTube is sharing information on appeals. One of the more frustrating aspects of working as a YouTube creator is dealing with videos erroneously being taken down by the company and having to go through YouTube’s appeal process. Creators have asked for more transparency regarding the appeals process, and today, YouTube is sharing data for the first time.
YouTube says that it removed more than 5 million videos between October 2019 and December 2019. Of those videos, around 109,000 removals were appealed. YouTube reinstated around 23,000 videos, according to the report. The vast majority of those videos were removed automatically (meaning a human did not oversee the removal), and more than 60 percent were removed before the video collected any views. YouTube’s report also states that just over 2 million channels were removed. More than 80 percent of these channels were considered spam, according to the report.
YouTube reinstated approximately 23,000 videos
“Our team is focused on accurately and consistently enforcing our policies, and one of the ways we hold ourselves accountable and measure our success is by making sure that users can easily appeal our decisions and monitoring the rate at which they do,” a YouTube spokesperson told The Verge.
Creators filed appeals on “less than two percent of the videos we removed last quarter,” according to the YouTube representative. The company “overturned less than half of one percent of videos we removed last quarter.” The report doesn’t specify how many videos were removed or taken down because of copyright infringement, one of the biggest issues within the creator space.
Of the videos that were removed, more than 50 percent were for spam or deceptive practices, 15 percent were removed for child safety, and 13 percent were removed for nudity or sexually explicit content. Hateful and abusive content made up 2.9 percent of all videos removed. Just under 33,000 videos (0.6 percent) of videos were removed for cyberbullying and harassment — an area where YouTube has had to answer for over the last few years. YouTube updated its policy to prohibit creator-on-creator harassment, which became a big talking point last summer.


theverge--2020-02-28--The Internet Archive’s VHS Vault will send you on a 90s nostalgia trip

The Internet Archive , perhaps best known for the extremely handy Wayback Machine you can use to find older versions of webpages , also has free movies , books , software , and music .
Yet a little known part of the organization ’ s media trove includes uploaded recordings from VHS tapes , as I learned today thanks to this Vice article .
They live on The VHS Vault , and as of this writing , there are more than 20,000 recordings you can peruse .
A lot of the recordings are from the 90s , which is when @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ ve found a lot of stuff that has given me all sorts of nostalgic feels .
Take , for example , this collection of Nickelodeon commercial breaks recorded in April 1998 : True 90s kids will also remember the greatest late-90s/early 2000s trend — competitive cup stacking .
If you somehow missed this trend , here ’ s a video about it : The archive also has some weird stuff .
Vice found this great/terrifying video of an anthropomorphic , cigar-holding VCR discussing how to keep your VCR clean : There ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to explore here , and it seems as if new videos are being added all the time .
I could honestly spend hours combing through all of the fascinating stuff in the VHS Vault , and I ’ m glad it ’ s being preserved for whenever I need some 90s nostalgia .

The Internet Archive, perhaps best known for the extremely handy Wayback Machine you can use to find older versions of webpages, also has free movies, books, software, and music. Yet a little known part of the organization’s media trove includes uploaded recordings from VHS tapes, as I learned today thanks to this Vice article. They live on The VHS Vault, and as of this writing, there are more than 20,000 recordings you can peruse.
A lot of the recordings are from the 90s, which is when I was a kid, so I’ve found a lot of stuff that has given me all sorts of nostalgic feels. Take, for example, this collection of Nickelodeon commercial breaks recorded in April 1998:
True 90s kids will also remember the greatest late-90s/early 2000s trend — competitive cup stacking. If you somehow missed this trend, here’s a video about it:
The archive also has some weird stuff. Vice found this great/terrifying video of an anthropomorphic, cigar-holding VCR discussing how to keep your VCR clean:


theverge--2020-02-28--GDC postponed to later this year over coronavirus concerns

This year ’ s annual Game Developers Conference has been postponed amid growing concern about the international coronavirus outbreaks .
The event , which has run since 1988 , was expected to take place from March 16th–20th in San Francisco .
“ After close consultation with our partners in the game development industry and community around the world , we ’ ve made the difficult decision to postpone the Game Developers Conference this March , ” reads a note posted to the official GDC post Friday evening .
“ Having spent the past year preparing for the show with our @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and event partners , we ’ re genuinely upset and disappointed not to be able to host you at this time.
” GDC is postponed after big names like Epic Games and Microsoft withdrew The GDC organizers say they “ fully intend to host a GDC event later in the summer , ” and that the “ we will be working with our partners to finalize the details and will share more information about our plans in the coming weeks.
” The organization behind the conference , exhibition company Informa , intends to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ although it ’ s unclear if a system will be in place to transfer tickets to the planned summer version of the conference .
It ’ s also unclear how GDC will fit into an already-packed summer of game events include E3 in June and Gamescom and Pax Prime in August , all three of which may ultimately be similarly impacted by the coronavirus .
In the weeks leading up to GDC , companies like Sony , Facebook , Electronic Arts , Kojima Productions , Unity , Amazon , and Epic all withdrew @ @ @ @ @ @ @ safety concerns regarding the event .
All of GDC ’ s China-based exhibitors also pushed their attendance to 2021 , while China-based conference attendees would not be present .
Organizers also announced that it would expand its flu season protocol to include additional sanitation measures .
A spokesperson previously told The Verge that , as of February 25th , the conference would move forward as planned .
In order to better prepare for potential infections , San Francisco ’ s mayor declared a state of emergency for the city .
San Francisco itself @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ; at least one Californian from Solano County has contracted the illness from an unknown source .
Events such as PAX East also lost several exhibitors due to coronavirus concerns .
Mobile World Congress , the world ’ s biggest mobile trade show , was canceled this year in mid-February , while Facebook canned its F8 developer conference February 27th .
GDC caters to a variety of game industry professionals and journalists .
Last year , it hit record attendance with more than 29,000 people .
Following the event ’ s postponement , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ game developer conference started to make the benefits of GDC more accessible around the world , announced a fundraiser to raise money for developers who ’ ve already spent significant amounts of money planning to attend GDC .
“ Even though GDC has committed to refunding the tickets of attendees that haven ’ t cancelled , many developers around the world do not have a way to refund their visas , lodging , and travel costs .
Many worry that they did not just lose the opportunity of attending this years ’ conference @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the funds spent to other opportunities throughout the year , ” reads the fundraiser announcement .
“ In response , Gamedev.world is announcing a week-long public fundraising effort , starting March 27th until April 3rd , ” Gamedev.World says .
“ For the duration of the week , we will present — for free , live-translated , and online — various talks from both marginalized developers and the sponsors that made the event possible.
” Gamedev.World says it will be accepting donations throughout the course of the fundraiser and “ every single dollar @ @ @ @ @ @ @ partners at the GDC Relief Fund and the marginalized developers most affected by these cancellations.
” There wil also be game bundles and a game jam in collaboration with indie storefront Itch.io , with all proceeds of the pay-what-you-want bundle , which will include existing games developers decide to donate and those created during the game jam , going toward the relief fund .

This year’s annual Game Developers Conference has been postponed amid growing concern about the international coronavirus outbreaks. The event, which has run since 1988, was expected to take place from March 16th–20th in San Francisco.
“After close consultation with our partners in the game development industry and community around the world, we’ve made the difficult decision to postpone the Game Developers Conference this March,” reads a note posted to the official GDC website on Friday evening. “Having spent the past year preparing for the show with our advisory boards, speakers, exhibitors, and event partners, we’re genuinely upset and disappointed not to be able to host you at this time.”
GDC is postponed after big names like Epic Games and Microsoft withdrew
The GDC organizers say they “fully intend to host a GDC event later in the summer,” and that the “we will be working with our partners to finalize the details and will share more information about our plans in the coming weeks.”
The organization behind the conference, exhibition company Informa, intends to refund attendees the cost of tickets, although it’s unclear if a system will be in place to transfer tickets to the planned summer version of the conference. It’s also unclear how GDC will fit into an already-packed summer of game events including E3 in June and Gamescom and Pax Prime in August, all three of which may ultimately be similarly impacted by the coronavirus.
In the weeks leading up to GDC, companies like Sony, Facebook, Electronic Arts, Kojima Productions, Unity, Amazon, and Epic all withdrew their attendance. Each cited health and safety concerns regarding the event. All of GDC’s China-based exhibitors also pushed their attendance to 2021, while China-based conference attendees would not be present. Organizers also announced that it would expand its flu season protocol to include additional sanitation measures.
A spokesperson previously told The Verge that, as of February 25th, the conference would move forward as planned. In order to better prepare for potential infections, San Francisco’s mayor declared a state of emergency for the city.
San Francisco itself has yet to have any confirmed cases; at least one Californian from Solano County has contracted the illness from an unknown source. Events such as PAX East also lost several exhibitors due to coronavirus concerns. Mobile World Congress, the world’s biggest mobile trade show, was canceled this year in mid-February, while Facebook canned its F8 developer conference February 27th.
GDC caters to a variety of game industry professionals and journalists. Last year, it hit record attendance with more than 29,000 people.
Following the event’s postponement, the team behind Gamedev.World, an international game developer conference started to make the benefits of GDC more accessible around the world, announced a fundraiser to raise money for developers who’ve already spent significant amounts of money planning to attend GDC.
“Even though GDC has committed to refunding the tickets of attendees that haven’t cancelled, many developers around the world do not have a way to refund their visas, lodging, and travel costs. Many worry that they did not just lose the opportunity of attending this years’ conference, but also the possibility to re-route the funds spent to other opportunities throughout the year,” reads the fundraiser announcement.
“In response, GameDev.world is announcing a week-long public fundraising effort, starting March 27th until April 3rd,” GameDev.World says. “For the duration of the week, we will present — for free, live-translated, and online — various talks from both marginalized developers and the sponsors that made the event possible.” GameDev.World says it will be accepting donations throughout the course of the fundraiser and “every single dollar the event makes will go towards our partners at the GDC Relief Fund and the marginalized developers most affected by these cancellations.”
There will also be game bundles and a game jam in collaboration with indie storefront Itch.io, with all proceeds of the pay-what-you-want bundle, which will include existing games developers decide to donate and those created during the game jam, going toward the relief fund.
The International Game Developers Association, the nonprofit organization that organizes the annual Game Developers Choice Awards at GDC, says its partnering with Gamedev.World for the relief fund.


theverge--2020-02-28--Another coronavirus case of unknown origin identified in California

A second case of COVID-19 with an unknown origin has been identified in Santa Clara county , California on Friday .
This indicates to health experts that the novel coronavirus — which causes the disease COVID-19 — is likely spreading through more than one community in the US .
The Washington Post first reported news of the second case of community transmission in the US — a 65-year-old woman who had no known history of travel to any of the countries that have been hardest-hit by the disease .
She has chronic health conditions and was originally hospitalized for a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Santa Clara County Health Officer .
Her doctor contacted health officials on Feb. 26 to test her for the novel coronavirus .
“ This new case indicates that there is evidence of community transmission , but the extent is still not clear , ” Cody said in a press conference .
Officials said that eight California counties are now able to test for coronavirus .
Up to 1,200 people can be tested with the CDC kits , the California Department of Public Health announced today .
So far , more than 84,000 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the world , and more than 2,800 people have died of the respiratory disease .
Most of these cases are concentrated in China , where the virus was first identified , but the disease has since spread around the world , with South Korea , Italy , Japan , and Iran among the hardest-hit .
“ I think there ’ s a strong possibility that there ’ s local transmission going in California.
” Despite the global spread , the US has lagged in testing people who showed symptoms of the disease .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Disease Control and Prevention had only tested people who had traveled to one of the most affected areas or had been in close contact with someone who had been diagnosed with the disease .
In the case of the first patient who had COVID-19 of unknown origin , the hospital where she was being treated immediately requested a CDC test on February 19th , when the patient arrived .
The CDC didn ’ t get around to testing the patient until February 23rd .
The positive test results were announced on February 26th @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coupled with a complicated test and convoluted rollout led to an intense public backlash .
The agency expanded their testing requirements on Friday to include people who had traveled to a wider swath of geographic areas during the past 14 days .
It also began allowing testing for people who had both severe symptoms and no diagnosis of other diseases like the flu .
The case announced in California today appears to be part of that last group .
The woman apparently had no connection to any patients who were confirmed to have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ traveled to any area where the virus is known to be circulating .
That means she may have gotten it from someone in the US who has not been diagnosed .
Both cases were diagnosed in the San Francisco Bay Area , a geographical region that includes nine counties .
The first case , in Solano County , was in the north part of the region ; the second case , in Santa Clara , is about 90 miles away .
“ I think there ’ s a strong possibility that there ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” said Jennifer Nuzzo , senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security , in an interview with The Washington Post .
“ In other words , the virus is spreading within California , and I think there ’ s a possibility other states are in the same boat .
They just haven ’ t recognized that yet.
” Update 7:47PM ET : Adds details about the Santa Clara patient and test kits .

A second case of COVID-19 with an unknown origin was identified in Santa Clara county, California on Friday, and two other potential cases of unknown origin were identified in Oregon and Washington state. This indicates to health experts that the novel coronavirus — which causes the disease COVID-19 — is likely spreading through more than one community in the US.
The Washington Post first reported news of the second case of community transmission in the US — a 65-year-old woman who had no known history of travel to any of the countries that have been hardest-hit by the disease. She has chronic health conditions and was originally hospitalized for a respiratory illness, said Sara Cody, the Santa Clara County Health Officer. Her doctor contacted health officials on Feb. 26 to test her for the novel coronavirus.
“This new case indicates that there is evidence of community transmission, but the extent is still not clear,” Cody said in a press conference. Officials said that eight California counties are now able to test for coronavirus. Up to 1,200 people can be tested with the CDC kits, the California Department of Public Health announced today.
So far, more than 84,000 cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed around the world, and more than 2,800 people have died of the respiratory disease. Most of these cases are concentrated in China, where the virus was first identified, but the disease has since spread around the world, with South Korea, Italy, Japan, and Iran among the hardest-hit.
“I think there’s a strong possibility that there’s local transmission going in California.”
Despite the global spread, the US has lagged in testing people who showed symptoms of the disease. Until this week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had only tested people who had traveled to one of the most affected areas or had been in close contact with someone who had been diagnosed with the disease. In the case of the first patient who had COVID-19 of unknown origin, the hospital where she was being treated immediately requested a CDC test on February 19th, when the patient arrived. The CDC didn’t get around to testing the patient until February 23rd. The positive test results were announced on February 26th.
The CDC’s restrictive criteria coupled with a complicated test and convoluted rollout led to an intense public backlash. The agency expanded their testing requirements on Friday to include people who had traveled to a wider swath of geographic areas during the past 14 days. It also began allowing testing for people who had both severe symptoms and no diagnosis of other diseases like the flu.
The case announced in California today appears to be part of that last group. The woman apparently had no connection to any patients who were confirmed to have the disease, and had also not traveled to any area where the virus is known to be circulating. That means she may have gotten it from someone in the US who has not been diagnosed. Both cases were diagnosed in the San Francisco Bay Area, a geographical region that includes nine counties. The first case, in Solano County, was in the north part of the region; the second case, in Santa Clara, is about 90 miles away.
“I think there’s a strong possibility that there’s local transmission going in California,” said Jennifer Nuzzo, senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, in an interview with The Washington Post. “In other words, the virus is spreading within California, and I think there’s a possibility other states are in the same boat. They just haven’t recognized that yet.”
Soon after the second California case was announced, health officials in Washington state and Oregon also each announced the identification of cases of unknown origin in their state. In Oregon, an elementary school worker who hadn’t had contact with any confirmed case — and who hadn’t traveled to areas known to have the virus — was tested for the disease. Officials said in a statement that while they were still waiting for official results from the CDC they considered this a presumptive case. The elementary school where they worked will be closed until Wednesday for cleaning, the Associated Press reported.
Hours later in Washington, officials announced that they had also identified two presumptive new cases of COVID-19. One case involved a woman who had recently traveled to an area in South Korea where the virus was spreading. The other involved a high school student who became ill on February 24. The student did not attend classes while he had symptoms, but the school announced that it will be closed on Monday for cleaning. The student had not had any contact with people known to have the virus, and the source of their infection remains unknown.
Update 2/28/20 7:47PM ET: Adds details about the Santa Clara patient and test kits.


theverge--2020-02-28--Facebook’s 3D photos can now be made using single-camera phones

Facebook will now let you post 3D photos to your timeline from the Facebook app even if you have a phone with a single camera , the company announced today .
In theory , this should make it possible for a lot more phones to take 3D photos — and Facebook says it also means you can use your front-facing camera to take take 3D selfies .
The feature , which was first made available in October 2018 , was previously exclusive to phones that had two or more cameras that could take portrait mode shots .
Previously , 3D @ @ @ @ @ @ @ take an image that Facebook could use to create the “ depth ” in a 3D picture .
This new single-camera technique uses machine learning to infer the three-dimensional structure of an image to create the 3D effect , according to Facebook .
Here ’ s an animation the company provided of what that depth generation process looks like : And here ’ s an example from Facebook of how the tech could look in an image on your timeline : Facebook says anyone with an iPhone 7 or higher , or “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” should be able to use the 3D photo tool in the main Facebook app .
However , it doesn ’ t seem to have fully rolled out just yet — right now , I can only make 3D photos using images taken in portrait mode on my iPhone 11 Pro .

Facebook will now let you post 3D photos to your timeline from the Facebook app even if you have a phone with a single camera, the company announced today. In theory, this should make it possible for a lot more phones to take 3D photos — and Facebook says it also means you can use your front-facing camera to take take 3D selfies.
The feature, which was first made available in October 2018, was previously exclusive to phones that had two or more cameras that could take portrait mode shots. Previously, 3D photos relied on using each camera to take an image that Facebook could use to create the “depth” in a 3D picture.
This new single-camera technique uses machine learning to infer the three-dimensional structure of an image to create the 3D effect, according to Facebook. Here’s an animation the company provided of what that depth generation process looks like:
And here’s an example from Facebook of how the tech could look in an image on your timeline:


theverge--2020-02-28--Byte is about to pay $250,000 to creators for good videos

Byte plans to start paying creators in April , offering $ 250,000 in total payouts to the first group of creators in its partner program .
The program will be fairly limited at first .
Only up to 100 creators will be included , and they have to apply and be chosen by Byte .
Byte says it ’ s looking for people who regularly post , make full-screen portrait videos , and are positive members of the community .
Byte will pay partners every 30 days based on their viewership .
Creators will be put into “ Viewership Brackets @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bracket will be paid the same amount .
The company doesn ’ t give specifics on how much creators can expect to make .
Byte knows creators want to make money off their work It ’ s a small start , but it ’ s nonetheless an important move from the upstart social video app .
Byte , which comes from the co-founder of Vine , faces steep competition from TikTok , which has blown up over the past year and allows people to create videos in a very similar format — with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ But TikTok , critically , offers very little opportunity for creators to get paid through the platform itself .
That could encourage successful creators to look elsewhere as they try to turn their viral fame into profits .
The initial payment pool of $ 250,000 will be spread across four payouts .
After those four payouts , Byte intends to create a new payment pool , theoretically with more creators , and start again .
It intends to launch a new payment pool every 120 days .
Byte says that , for now @ @ @ @ @ @ @ % of ad revenue ” back into its Partner Program to pay creators .
Ads won ’ t run in front of individual bytes or in your feed ; an early ad for Nike , for instance , appeared as a sponsored section within the app .
“ Our long-term plan is to have a majority of the revenue going to creators , with a minority going to us to help with our operations and business , ” Byte wrote last month .

Byte plans to start paying creators in April, offering $250,000 in total payouts to the first group of creators in its partner program.
The program will be fairly limited at first. Only up to 100 creators will be included, and they have to apply and be chosen by Byte. Byte says it’s looking for people who regularly post, make full-screen portrait videos, and are positive members of the community.
Byte will pay partners every 30 days based on their viewership. Creators will be put into “Viewership Brackets,” and everyone in the same bracket will be paid the same amount. The company doesn’t give specifics on how much creators can expect to make.
Byte knows creators want to make money off their work
It’s a small start, but it’s nonetheless an important move from the upstart social video app. Byte, which comes from the co-founder of Vine, faces steep competition from TikTok, which has blown up over the past year and allows people to create videos in a very similar format — with the added feature of licensed music. But TikTok, critically, offers very little opportunity for creators to get paid through the platform itself. That could encourage successful creators to look elsewhere as they try to turn their viral fame into profits.
The initial payment pool of $250,000 will be spread across four payouts. After those four payouts, Byte intends to create a new payment pool, theoretically with more creators, and start again. It intends to launch a new payment pool every 120 days.
Byte says that, for now, it’s putting “100% of ad revenue” back into its Partner Program to pay creators. Ads won’t run in front of individual bytes or in your feed; an early ad for Nike, for instance, appeared as a sponsored section within the app.


theverge--2020-02-28--Audi announces three-motor performance versions of the E-Tron

Audi will make and sell sportier performance versions of its E-Tron and E-Tron Sportback electric cars powered by a three-motor system , the company announced on Friday .
The news comes as parent company Volkswagen says it has tapped Audi to “ take the lead for research and development ” for the entire Volkswagen Group .
The new performance models will be dubbed E-Tron S and E-Tron Sportback S , and Audi says they ’ ll be “ more agile , sharper and more dynamic ” than the non-S variants .
That ’ s all thanks to the addition of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the rear axle , one on the front ) that bumps the total power from 265kW to 320kW , or 370kW in an eight-second boost mode .
( That ’ s roughly 350 , 429 , and 496 horsepower , respectively . )
Both vehicles will be able to go from 0 to 60 miles per hour in about 4.3 seconds , which is a little more than a second quicker than the standard versions .
Those aren ’ t mind-blowing specs compared to some other electric vehicles on the road , Tesla @ @ @ @ @ @ @ plenty powerful for what is ostensibly still a luxury four-door vehicle .
More power and a more aggressive look Audi didn ’ t share when the S versions would be available or how much more they ’ ll cost .
The company says the S models will be “ the first electric cars worldwide with three motors in mass production , ” but it will have to hustle in order to stake that claim , as Tesla is working on a three-motor powertrain codenamed “ Plaid ” that will power the Model S @ @ @ @ @ @ @ probably even the Cybertruck .
( Tesla announced that the top-line version of the truck will use three motors . )
The big question is what all of the added performance will do to the E-Tron ’ s range .
Audi tells The Verge that the S versions will use the same 95kWh battery as the standard E-Tron and E-Tron Sportback .
The standard E-Tron ( which is the only one on the road right now ) squeezes just a bit more than 200 miles out of that battery pack .
Adding another @ @ @ @ @ @ @ allowing for higher performance could make it easier to drain the battery even quicker .
How Audi plans to deal with that balance will be something to watch .
What ’ s interesting about the three-motor setup is that Audi says they won ’ t all be engaged all the time .
In “ normal driving , ” the company says only the rear electric motors will work .
The front motor “ switches itself on – with the driver barely noticing – if the driver needs more power ” in situations when @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in slippery conditions or when taking fast corners .
The three-motor setup also allows the car to do some torque vectoring — in other words , deliver different amounts of power to different axles or wheels in real-time to give the car the maximum grip for any scenario .
Audi only released lightly camouflaged photos of the E-Tron S , and looks-wise , it ’ s largely similar to the standard E-Tron but with slightly more aggressive styling .
That ’ s thanks in part to bigger wheel arches , air ducts , @ @ @ @ @ @

Audi will make and sell sportier performance versions of its E-Tron and E-Tron Sportback electric cars powered by a three-motor system, the company announced on Friday. The news comes as parent company Volkswagen says it has tapped Audi to “take the lead for research and development” for the entire Volkswagen Group.
The new performance models will be dubbed E-Tron S and E-Tron Sportback S, and Audi says they’ll be “more agile, sharper and more dynamic” than the non-S variants. That’s all thanks to the addition of a third electric motor (two on the rear axle, one on the front) that bumps the total power from 265kW to 320kW, or 370kW in an eight-second boost mode. (That’s roughly 350, 429, and 496 horsepower, respectively.) Both vehicles will be able to go from 0 to 60 miles per hour in about 4.3 seconds, which is a little more than a second quicker than the standard versions.
Those aren’t mind-blowing specs compared to some other electric vehicles on the road, Tesla or otherwise, but it’s plenty powerful for what is ostensibly still a luxury four-door vehicle.
More power and a more aggressive look
Audi didn’t share when the S versions would be available or how much more they’ll cost. The company says the S models will be “the first electric cars worldwide with three motors in mass production,” but it will have to hustle in order to stake that claim, as Tesla is working on a three-motor powertrain codenamed “Plaid” that will power the Model S, X, second-generation Roadster, and probably even the Cybertruck. (Tesla announced that the top-line version of the truck will use three motors.)
The big question is what all of the added performance will do to the E-Tron’s range.
Audi tells The Verge that the S versions will use the same 95kWh battery as the standard E-Tron and E-Tron Sportback. The standard E-Tron (which is the only one on the road right now) squeezes just a bit more than 200 miles out of that battery pack. Adding another motor would mean more weight, and allowing for higher performance could make it easier to drain the battery even quicker. How Audi plans to deal with that balance will be something to watch.
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What’s interesting about the three-motor setup is that Audi says they won’t all be engaged all the time. In “normal driving,” the company says only the rear electric motors will work. The front motor “switches itself on – with the driver barely noticing – if the driver needs more power” in situations when the car needs more grip, like in slippery conditions or when taking fast corners. The three-motor setup also allows the car to do some torque vectoring — in other words, deliver different amounts of power to different axles or wheels in real-time to give the car the maximum grip for any scenario.


theverge--2020-02-28--The World Health Organization has joined TikTok to fight coronavirus misinformation

The World Health Organization launched a TikTok account on Friday as part of its efforts to cut through coronavirus misinformation online .
A specialized public health agency of the United Nations , WHO is one of the leading organizations working to contain the spread of the virus .
In WHO ’ s first video , Benedetta Allegranzi , technical lead of infection prevention and control , describes measures people can take to protect themselves from the novel coronavirus and directs them to the organization ’ s website for additional information .
“ We are joining [ TikTok ] to provide @ @ @ @ @ @ @ advice , ” WHO wrote in the description of its first video .
TikTok has been flooded with memes about the novel coronavirus over the past few weeks , with some users pretending to be infected .
In one case , a teenager made a video suggesting that their friend was the first Canadian confirmed to have caught the virus .
TikTok did not immediately respond to a request for comment .
The launch of the TikTok account is part of WHO ’ s work to get accurate information concerning the novel coronavirus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ MIT Technology Review , WHO and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have spent the last couple of weeks of the outbreak fighting misinformation regarding the virus on platforms like Facebook , Twitter , Tencent , and TikTok .
Information from WHO already tops Google results for search queries about the novel coronavirus .
Facebook users scrolling through their news feeds are also met with messages directing them to visit government websites for information on the virus .
Twitter users see a message that says “ Know the facts ” and directs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ website for “ the best information on the novel coronavirus ” when they search for content related to the virus .
TikTok also links users who search for virus-related content to the WHO website .
The coronavirus information partnerships are similar to how platforms reacted to criticism over anti-vaxx content on their platforms over the past few years .
WHO has also made strides to post accurate novel coronavirus information to its other social media accounts like Instagram .
The organization ’ s Instagram feed is filled with infographics outlining how people can @ @ @ @ @ @ @ did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Verge .

The World Health Organization launched a TikTok account on Friday as part of its efforts to cut through coronavirus misinformation online. A specialized public health agency of the United Nations, WHO is one of the leading organizations working to contain the spread of the virus.
In WHO’s first video, Benedetta Allegranzi, technical lead of infection prevention and control, describes measures people can take to protect themselves from the novel coronavirus and directs them to the organization’s website for additional information.
“We are joining [TikTok] to provide you with reliable and timely public health advice,” WHO wrote in the description of its first video.
TikTok has been flooded with memes about the novel coronavirus over the past few weeks, with some users pretending to be infected. In one case, a teenager made a video suggesting that their friend was the first Canadian confirmed to have caught the virus. TikTok did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The launch of the TikTok account is part of WHO’s work to get accurate information concerning the novel coronavirus to people online. According to the MIT Technology Review, WHO and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have spent the last couple of weeks of the outbreak fighting misinformation regarding the virus on platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Tencent, and TikTok.
Information from WHO already tops Google results for search queries about the novel coronavirus. Facebook users scrolling through their news feeds are also met with messages directing them to visit government websites for information on the virus. Twitter users see a message that says “Know the facts” and directs them to visit the CDC’s website for “the best information on the novel coronavirus” when they search for content related to the virus. TikTok also links users who search for virus-related content to the WHO website.
The coronavirus information partnerships are similar to how platforms reacted to criticism over anti-vaxx content on their platforms over the past few years.
WHO has also made strides to post accurate novel coronavirus information to its other social media accounts like Instagram. The organization’s Instagram feed is filled with infographics outlining how people can protect themselves from the virus.