Microsoft just launched an iOS news app for some reason
News apps aren’t anything new these days, but that’s not stopping Microsoft from taking a shot. News Pro for iPhone and the web comes fresh out of the oven from Microsoft Garage, the company’s experimental project group. Its goal? To make it easy for you to follow work-related news using suggestions from Bing. That, at least, gives News Pro a different spin than more general news apps like Flipboard and Feedly. But from some brief testing, it still feels pretty familiar.
After snagging News Pro from the App Store, you’re prompted to authenticate with LinkedIn or Facebook. I went the LinkedIn route, which holds most of my professional connections, and logged in without any trouble. The app is made up of three main sections: A Home tab that lists popular stories; an Explore tab for choosing new topics to follow; and a simple profile tab.
On the surface, News Pro doesn’t look too different than most other news apps. I was also unimpressed with its initial roundup of top stories, which included some commentary on Facebook’s upcoming earnings and news about Indiegogo’s CEO stepping down. Beyond that were several articles that weren’t of much interest. Nothing about Sony’s surprising decision to create a PlayStation-only company was listed, even though it’s one of today’s most intriguing stories. It’s unclear how, exactly News Pro is choosing which stories to display, but I’d imagine it’s partially based on the stories your friends are sharing.
When you click into a story from the Home tab, you’re sent right to a normal web page. You can also choose to load a stripped-down “Speedy” version of the page, similar to what you’d get from a bookmarking tool like Pocket or Instapaper. At the bottom of every article are buttons to comment and “Like” an article, as well as your typical sharing options.
While most news app try to simplify the process of choosing which news to follow, News Pro gives you extensive options. In its Explore tab, you can choose from a large list of industries, companies, skills and products to follow. There’s also a “Pilot” mode that lists some recommended topics to follow. I was both impressed and overwhelmed with News Pro’s customization capabilities. I’m sure some users would love tweaking how, exactly, their news appears. Personally, the list of options made my eyes glaze over.
I suppose it was inevitable that Microsoft would jump into the news app fray, but I wish it tried a bit harder to make something different. Apple News, on the other hand, launched with a strong sense of design, plenty of media partners, and a decent selection of features. Sure, it also did pretty much the same thing as other news apps, but you could see why iOS users could actually do with it. At this point, I’m not sure why anyone would use News Pro.
Via: Microsoft-News
Source: iOS App Store, News Pro
Amazon and Netflix go on movie shopping spree at Sundance
As the streaming war rages on over original content, the most active buyers at the Sundance Film Festival aren’t traditional studios and distributors. Instead, Amazon and Netflix, both of which tout portfolios of original series and movies, are behind a lot of the action. The 11-day festival started late last week, and so far, Amazon had purchased four films while Netflix secured three. While the latter company is said to have its sights on more, The New York Times reports that traditional distributors have been much less active.
Amazon paid $10 million for Manchester by the Sea, a Kenneth Lonergan drama that stars Casey Affleck as a handyman dealing with family woes. Don’t expect it to arrive on Prime Video anytime soon, though, as the company has loftier ambitions. “For every movie that we do, we want as robust a theatrical run as the film will support,” said Ray Price, the head of Amazon Studios. Amazon also secured the documentary Author: The JT LeRoy Story, Complete Unknown starring Rachel Weisz and Love & Friendship, a period piece based on a Jane Austen work.
For Netflix, The Fundamentals of Caring has been the big purchase so far at $7 million. That sum gave the company global streaming rights to the film that stars Paul Rudd, Craig Roberts and Selena Gomez. It also nabbed Tallulah, starring Ellen Page and Allison Janney, for $5 million and a horror movie that’s set in Iran called Under the Shadow. If you’ll recall, Netflix debuted Beasts of No Nation last year, making it available for streaming and distributing it to theaters.
For now, theaters are still important, if for nothing other than attribute value to the films that are shown there. “The theatrical model continues to have a lot of value, especially because it means something to viewers when films play in theaters,” said Howard Cohen of Roadside Attractions, a company that’s working with Amazon to distribute Love & Friendship. Some viewers may think that when a film releases on a streaming service and at the theater at the same time, it may not be very good. You know, like the movies that head straight to DVD.
No matter how the streaming duo plans to make its new library of films available to the masses, it’ll be interesting to see how the two further impact the film industry. As both Amazon and Netflix look to pad the lineups of original offerings to lure new subscribers, we could see more and more films debut on the festival circuit before making their way to streaming services.
[Image credit: Jason Merritt/Getty Images]
‘Destiny’ player matching focuses more on good connections
Destiny‘s Crucible multiplayer mode can be a blast… up until you’re lumped into a match so laggy that you may lose simply because your rivals keep jumping around. That might not be a problem after this week, though. Bungie is trying out a matchmaking update that puts more of an emphasis on connection quality. The move should not only give you a better chance at pulling off that kill streak, but speed up the matchmaking process itself — you’ll spend less time twiddling your thumbs while Destiny finds a final player for that Control game. Skill will still matter in match-ups, but it won’t be quite the be-all, end-all factor that it was before.
The game studio is taking a cautious approach to pushing the update. It’ll debut the new matchmaking on January 27th at 1PM Eastern in the no-holds-barred Iron Banner Rift mode, which kicks off a day earlier. Bungie is hoping that the gap will give it some comparison points and help it tweak the matchmaking system before it reaches other, more forgiving modes. This isn’t going to address the bigger gripes you might have with Destiny (more fresh content, anyone?), but it should help you avoid those barely-playable Crucible rounds that hurt your record.
Via: Polygon
Source: Bungie
Apple has 1 billion active devices
Apple’s device sales weren’t stellar as 2015 wound to a close, but it did cross an important milestone: it now has 1 billion active devices. The figure includes all iOS, Mac, Apple TV and Apple Watch units that have used Cupertino’s services in the past 90 days. While that’s not as huge a figure as you’ll see on the Android side (which crossed the 1 billion mark back in 2014), it’s no mean feat for a company that focuses almost exclusively on higher-priced hardware.
Not that Apple is depending solely on an ever-growing unit count to make money. As the company explained during its fiscal results call, there’s a lot of recurring revenue here. Customer satisfaction rates are very high, so existing owners are more likely to come back for upgrades and additional products (say, an Apple Watch to go with that iPhone). Also, there are services that are consistent money makers — Apple Music, anyone? We’re sure that Apple still wants to sell lots of devices (it remains “bullish” on places like China and India), but it’s adamant that this isn’t the only criteria that matters.
[Image credit: Sefa Karacan/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images]
Source: Apple (PDF)
Prior to FOX News debate, Google injects candidates’ content into search results
This Thursday, Google will have a major role in the Republican Party’s debate in Iowa. The company agreed to partner with FOX News, who will broadcast the debate, to provide real-time analytics as the presidential hopefuls are watched by millions of people around the world. Google Trends will be providing insight from the public on each candidate’s performance both during and after the debate. And select questions used by moderators Chris Wallace, Megyn Kelly, and Bret Baier will come from YouTube. But Google isn’t going to just co-host this debate and forget about the race for the White House. Google wants search results to offer as much information on candidates as possible in an effort to educate voters
Today, Google announced Search will contain real-time content from candidates during debates.
Click here to view the embedded video.
Candidates will be able to publish text, photos, and videos during Thursday’s debate to cover anything their camps feel went overlooked or missing.
This experimental feature helps voters make more informed choices, and levels the playing field for candidates to share ideas and positions on issues they may not have had a chance to address during the debate. By publishing long-form text, photos and videos throughout the debate, campaigns can now give extended responses, answer questions they didn’t get a chance to on stage, and rebut their opponents.
All you’ll need to do during the debate is search the phrase “fox news debate” and Google handles the rest. Search results pack everything the candidates want you to see and hear.
Regarding Google Trends, Google will compose a monitor (seen above) to show which candidates are receiving the most attention. Also, a digital polling station will be set up to give FOX News an idea of what questions Americans want answered.
The debate starts at 7:00PM ET on January 28 with the laggards before the real contenders take the stage later in the night. Nabela Noor, Mark Watson, and Dulce Candy of YouTube fame will be the ones assisting the moderators in asking the candidates questions.
Source: Google
Come comment on this article: Prior to FOX News debate, Google injects candidates’ content into search results
Robinhood for Android Wear has just been announced
Robinhood, the zero-commission stock trading app, has taken to its blog today to announce the rollout of an Android Wear compatible version of its app!
With this first version of its Android Wear app, Robinhood is bringing many of the powerful features that make the mobile app such a great tool, to the convenience of your wrist. Included in these features is the ability to view your portfolio performance, scroll vertically to view your entire watchlist, and tap on any stock to view your holdings. To track global markets in real time, the app will notify you with account and trading notifications ensuring you never miss a step. In addition to all this, the app will feature Robinhood’s signature day and night mode which reflect market hours and moves.
If zero-commisson stock trading seems like something you’d like to try out hit the link below to download the app. For those of you who already have the app and are awaiting the Android Wear update though, the update is rolling out now so expect to see it soon!
Download Robinhood from the Play Store
Come comment on this article: Robinhood for Android Wear has just been announced
Apple Reports Record Results: $18.4B Profit on $75.9B in Revenue for Q1 2016 on 74.8M iPhones
Apple today announced financial results for the first fiscal quarter of 2016, which corresponds to the fourth calendar quarter of 2015. For the quarter, Apple posted revenue of $75.9 billion and net quarterly profit of $18.4 billion, or $3.28 per diluted share, compared to revenue of $74.6 billion and net quarterly profit of $18 billion, or $3.06 per diluted share, in the year-ago quarter. Both revenue and earnings were company records.
Gross margin for the quarter was 40.1 percent compared to 39.9 percent in the year-ago quarter, with international sales accounting for 66 percent of revenue. Apple also declared an upcoming dividend payment of $0.52 per share, payable on February 11 to shareholders of record as of February 8. The company currently holds $215.7 billion in cash and marketable securities, partially offset by $53.2 billion in long-term debt.
Apple sold a record 74.8 million iPhones during the quarter, up slightly from 74.5 million a year earlier, while Mac sales were down slightly to 5.3 million units sold from 5.5 million units in the year-ago quarter. iPad sales were also down once again, falling to 16.1 million from 21.4 million despite the introduction of the iPad Pro during the quarter.
“Our team delivered Apple’s biggest quarter ever, thanks to the world’s most innovative products and all-time record sales of iPhone, Apple Watch and Apple TV,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “The growth of our Services business accelerated during the quarter to produce record results, and our installed base recently crossed a major milestone of one billion active devices.”
Apple’s guidance for the second quarter of fiscal 2016 includes expected revenue of $50–53 billion and gross margin between 39 and 39.5 percent. Revenue guidance is slightly below analyst expectations.
In supplemental materials, Apple explains that currency headwinds have cost the company 15 percent in earnings over the past 18 months. Using “constant currency” measures, Apple’s revenue for the holiday quarter would have been $80.8 billion for an 8 percent increase year-over-year.
Apple will provide live streaming of its fiscal Q1 2016 financial results conference call at 2:00 PM Pacific, and MacRumors will update this story with coverage of the conference call highlights.
Conference call starts at 2:00 PM Pacific – No need to refresh 
http://static.reportinglive.com/v8/rl.js
Discuss this article in our forums
Apple Now Has Over 1 Billion Active Devices Worldwide
Apple has announced that its active installed base of devices has reached 1 billion, based on the number of iPhone, iPad, Mac, iPod touch, Apple TV and Apple Watch devices that have been engaged with the company’s services within the past 90 days.
Apple sold a record 74.8 million iPhones, 5.3 million Macs and 16.1 million iPads during the first quarter of the 2016 fiscal year. Apple also earned slightly over $6 billion in revenue from services, including App Store and iTunes sales, AppleCare, Apple Music subscriptions, Apple Pay, licensing and more.
Earlier this month, Apple said the 2015 holiday season was the “biggest ever” for the App Store, with customers spending a record-breaking $1.1 billion on apps and in-app purchases over a two-week period ending January 3. New Year’s Day set a single-day record with $144 million in sales, just one week after record sales on Christmas Day.
Discuss this article in our forums
AIVAnet 