Viacom launches studio dedicated to shows for YouTube and Facebook

Viacom has come a long, long way from the days when online video was seemingly its mortal enemy. The media giant has formally launched Digital Studios, a wing dedicated to (you guessed it) original internet shows. The initial programs in the works are all attached to familiar names like BET, Comedy Central, MTV and Nickelodeon, and will be available across services like Facebook Watch, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube — it won’t just involve the previously unveiled Snapchat plans.

It’s easy to find a few highlights. There’s a BET sketch comedy show on YouTube from Majah Hype (The Majah Hype Show), a Facebook Watch celebrity news riff from Nikki Glaser (You Up? With Nikki Glaser), an extension of Broad City on multiple services (Hack into Broad City), a YouTube companion show for MTV’s Cribs (Cooking in the Crib with Snooki) and a Nickelodeon YouTube series covering a Minecraft tournament (Super League Gaming Minecraft City Champs). All told, Viacom is clearly aiming at a young audience.

You can also expect Twitter-specific news bites from BET, Comedy Central and TV.

Viacom hasn’t outlined release schedules as we write this, and most of these shows aren’t likely to make you ditch conventional TV. Not that the company necessarily minds. This is more about catering to a “mobile-first” audience that rarely if ever sits down to watch on a big screen. Viacom knows it can’t ignore this audience if it wants to stay relevant, and that means offering more than just a handful of material.

Source: Viacom

Facebook data dispute reportedly prompts WhatsApp founder’s exit

WhatsApp’s CEO Jan Koum posted on Facebook that he’s leaving the company he helped found. But sources told The Washington Post that he’s splitting after clashing with the messaging service’s parent company, Facebook, over its desire to use WhatsApp’s user data and weaken its encryption.

Koum sold WhatsApp to Facebook for $19 billion in 2014 but remained committed to ensuring user privacy, and encrypted all conversations on the service in 2016. Last month, amid the furor following the Cambridge Analytica scandal, WhatsApp’s already-departed other cofounder Brian Acton tweeted #deletefacebook, a hashtag advocating leaving the social network for mishandling user data. But sources told The Washington Post that Koum decided to leave prior to the scandal breaking. He will also step down from Facebook’s board of directors, which is notable given that he’s the only founder of a company Facebook acquired to sit on its board.

Facebook declined to comment, but pointed to Koum’s brief post and Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s comment below it: “Jan: I will miss working so closely with you. I’m grateful for everything you’ve done to help connect the world, and for everything you’ve taught me, including about encryption and its ability to take power from centralized systems and put it back in people’s hands. Those values will always be at the heart of WhatsApp.”

It’s unclear when Koum will leave WhatsApp and Facebook’s board, but the news is auspicious for the social network, which begins its F8 conference tomorrow.

Source: Jan Koum (Facebook), The Washington Post

Chinese authorities claim they can read deleted WeChat messages

China is clearly fond of its far-reaching surveillance, but it’s making some particularly boastful claims. An anti-corruption watchdog in Hefei claimed that a division in a nearby city managed to obtain a “series of deleted WeChat conversations” from one of its suspects. Supposedly, the scrapped chats let investigators question other participants and discipline them. Officials deleted the post on April 29th, but it had already sparked a minor panic on social networks — did this mean the government could dig through your chat history at will?

Not necessarily. WeChat’s creator, Tencent, denied storing or studying any chat histories. Like some other messaging services (such as WhatsApp), messages are supposed to remain solely on your phone or PC. Australia’s military banned WeChat over security fears back in March, but that appears to have stemmed more from solidarity with US policy on Chinese companies instead of specific concerns.

We’d take the claim with a grain of salt. It’s entirely possible that the watchdog was exaggerating its abilities, or misinterpreted its evidence gathering. However, the very fact that people are entertaining the idea speaks volumes about China’s approach to surveillance. It hates the thought that any data might be outside its reach, and it’s willing to go to great lengths to ensure it can collect that data.

Via: The Verge

Source: South China Morning Post

‘Stardew Valley’ finally lets you farm with your friends

Stardew Valley fans, take note: You can finally put your friends to work in the farming sim, whether you have them hack away at your errant rocks, plant seeds or partner with you at the Flower Dance. The long-awaited multiplayer beta has finally arrived.

Multiplayer is rolling out first to Steam users, with GOG players gaining access later this week. Your friends can join your existing game — since this a beta, it’s worth backing up your save files, just in case something goes awry. Nixing mods that haven’t been updated to work with the 1.3 patch is recommended too.

Your farm can host up to three underlings (sorry, friendly farmhands). You’ll need to build a cabin for each, though cabins will only set you back 100 gold and 10 stone each.

Friends can join your farm via an in-game co-op menu, their Steam or GOG friends list, a local network or invite codes, the latter of which allow for Steam/GOG cross-play. You’ll also need to run the same version of Stardew.

The farm, money and world updates (such as the Community Center or Secret Woods access) are communal, though your inventories, skill levels and relationships with NPCs remain separate. Along with farming, your friends can help you fish, forage, mine and slay monsters. They can attend seasonal festivals with you as well. Your group can chat with each other using text and, according to Niche Gamer, 200 custom Stardew emoji.

Your buddies can move in on your territory in more ways than one: they can marry Pelican Town residents in the host game, or you can marry one of your buddies. If you get annoyed with your in-game spouse, you have the option to get divorced and demolish their cabin (harsh).

The 1.3 update also includes hats for horses, more cutscenes and a new three-day festival in winter.

It’s not clear when the final multiplayer patch will hit, or when console players can team up with their chums (though Chucklefish previously said Nintendo Switch will be the first console to get access). Multiplayer has been on the roadmap since before the game’s release in February 2016, and the developers have had to rewrite more than 15,000 lines of code to make it happen. Still, farming with your friends in Stardew Valley is here at last.

Via: Niche Gamer

Source: Stardew Valley

Blu settles with FTC over allegations of lax user data security

Unlocked mobile phone retailer Blu has settled with the FTC over allegations that it didn’t protect consumers from a Chinese company that farmed their data and misled users about the extent of it. The device maker won’t get slapped with a fine, but as part of the agreement, it can’t misrepresent how it protecting customer privacy and security. It will also need to adopt a program that addresses risks for protecting user information and be audited every two years for the next two decades to ensure compliance.

Blue had contracted ADUPS for third-party apps that would come preinstalled on phones. Back in 2016, the device maker admitted that the software ended up collecting far more consumer data than it was supposed to, including text messages, real-time location data, call and text message logs, contact lists and application rosters.

While Blu assured customers that a software update would protect them from such collection, the FTC claimed that the company continued to allow it on older devices. This was so obvious that Amazon removed Blu products from its platform last fall.

Source: FTC

WhatsApp Co-Founder Jan Koum to Leave Facebook Over Disagreements on Data Sharing and Encryption

WhatsApp co-founder Jan Koum today announced plans to leave the company, which is owned by parent company Facebook. Koum has worked with Facebook and served on the company’s board since Facebook acquired WhatsApp for over $19 billion in February of 2014.

WhatsApp is the largest messaging service in the world with more than 1.5 billion monthly users. It is highly popular in India, Malaysia, Singapore, Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, South Africa, and several countries in Europe.

In a Facebook post, Koum said that it’s “time for [him] to move on” and that he’ll be taking time off to pursue non-technology related interests.

It’s been almost a decade since Brian and I started WhatsApp, and it’s been an amazing journey with some of the best people. But it is time for me to move on. I’ve been blessed to work with such an incredibly small team and see how a crazy amount of focus can produce an app used by so many people all over the world.

I’m leaving at a time when people are using WhatsApp in more ways than I could have imagined. The team is stronger than ever and it’ll continue to do amazing things. I’m taking some time off to do things I enjoy outside of technology, such as collecting rare air-cooled Porsches, working on my cars and playing ultimate frisbee. And I’ll still be cheering WhatsApp on – just from the outside. Thanks to everyone who has made this journey possible.

Koum did not detail his reasons for leaving Facebook, but The Washington Post says he is departing because he has clashed with Facebook executives over the messaging service’s strategy and Facebook’s attempts to use WhatsApp personal data, monetize the service, and weaken its encryption.

In addition to leaving WhatsApp, Koum is also said to be planning to step down from Facebook’s board of directors.

Koum’s disagreement with Facebook is said to have heightened following the Cambridge Analytica scandal where Facebook allowed data from millions of Facebook users to be collected by a third-party app, with that data then used to influence the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

Koum did, however, plan to leave Facebook before the Cambridge Analytica scandal came to light, as there have reportedly been tensions between the two companies since Facebook first purchased WhatsApp.

Facebook originally promised not to share WhatsApp data with Facebook, but that changed less than two years after the acquisition, leading to ongoing disagreements over data sharing as Facebook has pushed for more and more crossover between the two companies.

According to The Washington Post, other WhatsApp employees are demoralized by the disagreements between Facebook and WhatsApp and are planning to leave in November when their stock options vest.

Tags: Facebook, WhatsApp
Discuss this article in our forums

What’s coming to Netflix in May: Michelle Wolf’s weekly talk show

While we still want a complete list of what’s leaving Netflix, at least the streaming service provides a heads-up for what’s in store. In May, we’ll get a slew of new shows and old favorites, including additional seasons of The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Dear White People and Guillermo del Toro’s hit kids series Trollhunters. Plus, the newly-infamous Michelle Wolf’s weekly talkshow starts May 27th.

David Letterman’s interview show, My Next Guest Needs No Introduction, is dropping one episode at the beginning of the month with Tina Fey and another at the end with Howard Stern. May 4th sees the debut of Danish original show The Rain, which is both an imported series (like Dark) and a sci-fi show, which Netflix is now focusing on.

On the new Netflix original films front, Anon is a sci-fi thriller from the director of Gattaca about a murderer deleting data to evade capture, starring Amanda Seyfried and Clive Owen. Viewers can also catch Cargo, an Australian zombie survival film starring the ineffable Martin Freeman, or the girls trip-style Ibiza starring Community’s Gillian Jacobs and 2 Dope Queens’ Phoebe Robinson. Plus, last year’s incredible Pixar film Coco is coming to the streaming platform at the end of the month.

If you’re a comedy person, Netflix is also adding several original specials, including those from John Mulaney, Hari Kondabolu, Ali Wong and Tig Notaro. Be sure to check out what’s leaving the platform next month lest you miss out.

TSA’s thirst for Instagram fame pays off with three Webby awards

Who do you think would win Webby awards for its social media marketing prowess? A cutting-edge brand that resonates with the young crowd? A superstar who can break the Internet with one picture? Actually, it’s… the TSA. Yes, the same agency that takes your water bottle at the airport (among other instances of security theater) just bagged three social content marketing Webby awards for its Instagram feed.

The wins are ironic when TSA agents are notorious for their lack of humor (jokes are more likely to get you a pat-down than a laugh). One look at its feed explains exactly why it won, though: its Instagram account is thirsty as hell. The feed is virtually dominated by adorable sniffer dogs, inventive drug smuggling and strange weapons. Even if you ignore the cheeky yet informative write-ups, the TSA’s photos virtually beg for reposts and can-you-believe-this Facebook shares.

It’s a cynical strategy, to be sure, but the thousands of likes per post suggests it’s effective. We’re just wondering why the TSA’s Facebook and Twitter presences are helpful, but as dry as a bone — you do want our attention, don’t you TSA?

“I would be most grateful for all of the bacons.” … Meet Marlon. He’s an explosives detection canine at the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA). He works vigilantly with his handler to help keep our transportation systems safe. Did I mention that he’s a good boy? … TSA trains, and deploys both TSA-led and state and local law enforcement-led canine teams to secure our Nation’s transportation systems through effective explosives detection, visible deterrence, and timely, mobile response to support rail stations, airports, passenger terminals, seaports, surface carriers, and other facilities. … #DogsOfInstagram #TSACanines #WorkingDogs

A post shared by TSA (@tsa) on Apr 18, 2018 at 2:03pm PDT

Source: TSA

Twitter nabs live ESPN shows in new Disney deal

It’s not just TV networks like Fox that are promising a host of live Twitter shows. Disney and Twitter have struck a deal that will bring a range of live shows to the social network. The pact will cover Disney’s “entire” portfolio of entertainment, news and sports, including ESPN. You probably won’t want to ditch ESPN+ for whatever’s coming (why would Disney give away the cash cow?), but it does bode well if you want a free sports fix.

ABC and Marvel are also part of the strategy. You should hear more about the ESPN shows both from Twitter (later on April 30th) and ESPN itself (May 2nd).

Twitter hasn’t been shy about its live video push, with offerings coming from a range of news sites, sports leagues and TV networks. The Disney deal is a major coup, though. Even if these aren’t as riveting as what you see on conventional TV, they suggest Disney sees Twitter as an important enough medium to merit a large range of programs — it’s not just producing one or two token shows to pretend it’s relevant.

Source: ESPN

Iran tells ISPs to block Telegram

Iranian officials have called for ISPs to block both the mobile and desktop versions of Telegram in the country. ISPs are also reportedly being instructed to block the messaging service in a way that can’t be bypassed by a VPN. Reuters reports that Iran’s judiciary website Mizan, quoting a court order, said, “All internet providers in Iran must take steps to block Telegram’s website and app as of April 30.” The site also said that Telegram had threatened the country’s security through “propaganda against the establishment, terrorist activities, spreading lies to incite public opinion, anti-government protests and pornography.”

Iran temporarily blocked Telegram in December, claiming it was to “maintain peace” in the midst of protests. But it’s certainly not the only country that has butted heads with the service. A Russian court issued a ban on Telegram earlier this month, following long-running disputes between the country and the messaging service.

Iranian media is reporting that the prosecutor of the second branch of Tehran’s Culture and Media Court ordered all internet providers to block access to the popular messaging application Telegram, effective immediately. HRW’s @sarahleah1 comments on the judiciary’s move: pic.twitter.com/AWlQTxr5Xv

— Tara Sepehri Far (@sepehrifar) April 30, 2018

Earlier this month, government officials in Iran were told to stop using Telegram and state-controlled media reported that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei had ceased using the service. Iranian authorities also said that foreign messaging services like Telegram would only be allowed to work in Iran if they first got permission from the government and agreed to store users’ data within the country — a regulation Iranian officials first announced back in 2016. However, while Iran has said the Telegram ban is in the name of national security, many believe it’s an attempt to control communication among its citizens.

Via: Bloomberg