Year: 2017

FaceBook hires former NBC News Anchor Campbell Brown to improve relations with news outlets

Dan Uff January 11, 2017 0

(recode): FaceBook has hired Campbell Brown, a former anchor for both CNN and NBC, to a newly created Head of News Partnerships position in the hope that Brown can serve as a liaison between the social giant and the myriad of publishers that use it for distribution.

The role means Brown will work with publishers on best practices and partnership opportunities with Facebook, and will also collect feedback on particular publisher-related products Facebook might be building.

Facebook insists this position is not an editorial role, though, which means Brown won't be making decisions around what you see and what you don't see in your News Feed. It's a key distinction, given the company's recent efforts to prevent the distribution of fake news on its platform, which some believe to have impacted last fall's U.S. presidential election.

The New York Times first reported Brown's new position, and she also posted about it on Facebook Friday.

ESPN, WatchESPN, iOS apps updated for single sign-in on Apple TV 4

Dan Uff January 10, 2017 1

Sports TV network ESPN has made it easier for end users to sign-in with their apps by adding the ability for single sign-in, as well as added compatibility for Google ChromeCast and other services.

Single-sign on streamlines the authentication process for U.S. cable TV subscribers, allowing them to use a single set of credentials to access content across multiple pay TV video streaming apps. The changes to the ESPN and apps means users already verified with their TV provider and subscribed to a relevant package can easily log into the app and access paid video content.

The Disney-owned ESPN adds support for single sign-on just over a month after the Watch Disney and Watch ABC apps. Apple made the single sign-on feature available for use from Dec. 6 last year, and is currently only available in the U.S., but is expected to roll out to other countries in the future.

Owners of the Google Chromecast also benefit from the latest update, with support for the streaming dongle introduced at the same time. The option lets users watch video streamed on their TV via the device, by selecting an option on their iPhone or iPad.

Another addition is Video Docking, which moves the video into a smaller window similar to picture-in-picture, giving access to the rest of the app while the video continues playing.

Fans of golf will be able to use new enhanced golf leaderboards, redesigned and offering enhanced player and course statistics for tournaments. Lastly, there is now an option to view the Australian edition of the broadcaster's news service.

Verizon

Verizon plans to purge 200GB+ bandwidth hogging data users

Dan Uff January 10, 2017 0

(AppleInsider.com): Verizon Wireless will force unlimited data subscribers who use over 200 gigabytes of bandwidth per month to change their plan to one with a data cap, or face having their wireless service disconnected.

Employees were recently advised of the policy change, which targets customers managing to average more than 200 gigabytes of usage on a single line "over several months." Affected customers are being sent notices of their excessive usage, with a deadline of Feb. 16 to change their plan.

If a line is disconnected under the new policy, customers will have a 50-day window to resubscribe, though only to plans without unlimited data. The highest-capacity plan Verizon lists on its website offers $100 gigabytes of data per month for $450, with line access fees of between $5 and $20 per connected device.

This is not the first time Verizon has performed a purge of its heaviest users. In July of last year, the carrier encouraged high-bandwidth users to make a similar price plan change, at the time targeting customers using "well in excess" of 100 gigabytes on a single device.

Carriers have spent a number of years slowly migrating its customers away from unlimited data plans in favor of capped services, partly due to the high resource consumption affecting other lower-usage customers. Users with grandfathered unlimited data plans sometimes abuse the service by using it as their sole Internet connection, tethering computers and streaming set-top boxes in their home instead of using broadband.

Apple seeks to expand “Made in the USA” manufacturing

Dan Uff January 10, 2017 0

“Amid pressure to build products at home, Apple is seeking to conduct ‘high-tech manufacturing’ at one of its American plants, according to a federal government filing,” Anita Balakrishnan reports for CNBC.

“Apple has requested to make finished products in its facility in Mesa, Arizona, according to the document,” Balakrishnan reports. “Right now, it has permissions to make consumer electronics components there, the filing said.”

“Apple has reportedly been looking to expand its cloud services to compete with rivals like Amazon and Google, The Informationreported last year,” Balakrishnan reports. “Meanwhile, president-elect Donald Trump has said as president he would ‘create the incentives‘ to get Apple to ‘build a big plant in the United States.'”

Read more in the full article here.