ETCentric previously reported that a new GPS-based Facebook feature called “Find Friends Nearby” was coming out of development and would be available on smartphones running iOS and Android.
Also called “Friendshake,” the app was quietly made available on Monday. We have an update to this story.
Just hours after launching the new app, Facebook took it down, telling Wired magazine: “This wasn’t a formal release — this was just something that a few engineers were testing. With all tests, some get released as full products, others don’t.”
The app quickly received the nickname the “Stalker App,” because as The Hollywood Reporter notes, “When an app uses GPS to tell strangers that you’re nearby, it’s going to raise privacy concerns, the same ones that surfaced about other geographically social apps like Glancee, which was acquired by Facebook two months ago.”
Facebook is emphasizing that this app release was only a test, not a product launch.
Zynga is attempting to provide its 290 million players a better chance at syncing up with others to play games on various devices and platforms.
At the company’s second annual Zynga Unleashed event in San Francisco, it unveiled “a unified platform to bring players together across portals such as the Web, Android and iOS, Facebook and Google+,” reports AllThingsD.
The idea was created around the Zynga message center, which contains “a player’s friends list, an activity feed of friends’ gaming statuses, and a list of gaming suggestions based on what games you and your friends are already playing,” explains the article.
The more social the games can become, the better it is for engagement, which is precisely what Zynga and developers want.
“Players can also connect using the newly launched real-time multiplayer feature which, just like it sounds, allows multiple players across separate devices to play with — or against — one another simultaneously,” according to AllThingsD.
The platform is set to start rolling out in the “near future” on Zynga’s website, Facebook and mobile devices.
Apple has released a standalone app for podcasts ahead of its scheduled release of iOS 6.
The free app is called “Podcasts” and works on iOS devices running 5.1 or later, including both iPads and iPhones. It will sync with iTunes on a Mac or Windows PC, so long as they’re updated to iTunes 10.6.3.
“It expectedly offers a variety of ways to browse and discover podcasts among the thousands available (including a new Top Stations feature that groups select podcasts by category), as well as the ability to either stream episodes or download them for offline use,” details Engadget.
“The Podcasts application for iOS also includes the ability to share shows or specific episodes with other users via e-mail, Twitter or text message,” notes Apple Insider in a more detailed hands-on review. “Presumably with the launch of iOS 6 this fall, Facebook integration will also become part of the Podcasts application.”
Penguin Group USA is working with 3M and New York City public libraries to make Penguin e-books available in libraries by August. “If it is a success, the program could be expanded in public libraries across the country,” according to The New York Times.
This announcement comes as publishers and libraries continue struggling to determine how much access to e-books there should be for library users.
As an increasing number of book buyers are using Kindles, Nooks and iPads to read, they’re finding library access to e-books convenient and cost-efficient. “But major publishers, including Penguin, concerned that free downloads at the library were costing them e-book sales, have scaled back their books’ availability in recent months,” details NYT.
“We have always been committed to libraries and we are hopeful that this experiment will be successful,” said David Shanks, chief executive of Penguin Group. “Our partnership with 3M and the New York Public Library is a first step toward understanding the best means of supporting the growing digital missions of our great library institutions and their sincere desire to bring writers to new readers.”
Online ticket selling company Eventbrite continues to set itself apart as the “go-to platform” for e-ticket sales. “And it’s announcing a major milestone to prove it today: It’s sold more than $1 billion tickets in total,” reports TechCrunch.
Between January 2009 and December 2010, the site grew from $100 million in sales to $400 million. But it only took 18 months for Eventbrite to more than double its sales in order to hit that $1 billion mark.
“Part of its revenue growth comes from Eventbrite leveraging social networks like Twitter and Facebook. In its announcement, Eventbrite noted that on average, organizers receive an additional $2.52 in ticket sales whenever a user shares an event on Facebook,” according to TechCrunch.
Another part of its growth is the push toward mobile platforms, including the launch of an iPad app and credit card reader to allow for easy mobile payments.
Twitter will roll out its advertising products including promoted tweets, promoted trends and promoted accounts to 50 countries by the end of the year. The launch will begin in Latin America and Western Europe.
“The expansion marks the next stage for the six-year-old tech start-up’s development, with Twitter seeking to turn its 140 million users into revenue,” explains The Hollywood Reporter.
“Asked about the next stage of development for the company, founder Jack Dorsey left the door open for a flotation, or potentially a sale to a technology giant such as Google,” adds the article.
Twitter claims that, unlike Facebook, it is not struggling with the rise of mobile usage by its base, saying its mobile ads are performing well.
“We were born mobile,” said Adam Bain, director of revenue for Twitter. “Tweets are like water, they work whatever you put them through.”
At the Windows Phone 8 event in San Francisco on Wednesday, Espoo’s Kevin Shields announced “a slew of new and updated apps to currently available Lumia handsets starting next week,” reports Engadget.
New apps include PlayTo, which allows for wireless sharing of video, music and photos. Another called Nokia Counter will monitor and manage data usage.
Mobile imaging was clearly a focus. “Given that this is the company behind PureView, current Lumia devices running Windows Phone will receive an imaging facelift of sorts, augmenting the baked-in optics via Camera Extras,” notes Engadget.
These imaging updates will upgrade the mobile imaging and photo-taking experience on the phone, giving it a self-timer, panorama, action shots and more.
The post also lists a 3.0 update to Nokia Music and My Commute, “which utilizes Drive to compute travel time and arrange routing.”
Software start-up Magnifis has announced the release of Robin, a voice-activated mobile assistant for Android devices.
“Robin is like a mashup of Siri and Waze. It’s a voice-controlled mobile app designed for drivers to use in their cars. Like Waze, it’s motion-activated rather than button-activated, which is easier for complying with distracted driving laws and using on the road, and it can proactively warn you about upcoming traffic or speed traps,” details CNET.
However, the post suggests that Robin is not a Siri-killer just yet, as Siri has the ability to send “text messages and play music, making it a true voice-activated mobile assistant,” while Robin focuses mostly on driving-related tasks such as learning the driving schedules and habits of the user.
Robin is still in beta, and available for free at the Google Play store.
Sites like Vevo and YouTube have added revitalization to the music video business. Those sites pay fees to major music publishing companies for music videos, but according to CNET, the independent publishers have been left out.
On Tuesday, the National Music Publishers Association announced that it’s reached a “new model agreement” with Universal Music Group that aims to make sure indie publishers get their fair share.
“David Israelite, chief executive of the NMPA, told CNET this morning that the deal with Universal calls for the label to pay indie publishers directly and is the first of its kind with one of the top four record companies,” explains the post. “He said Vevo, the Web music video service that offers music from three of the four major labels, announced that it generated $150 million in revenue last year and has its sights on topping the $1 billion mark in coming years.”
Israelite also stated the deal is retroactive to 2008 and that negotiations with other major labels outside of Universal are in the works.
According to numbers released by Google, the company finds about 9,500 new malicious websites per day, “either innocent ones that have been compromised by hackers or sites built specifically to distribute malware or for phishing,” according to CNET.
“Google provides malware warnings for about 300,000 downloads per day through its download protection service for Chrome,” notes the post. “About 600 million users of Chrome, Firefox, and Safari see several million warnings per day about malware and phishing on sites the users are about to visit.”
Additional daily statistics include: a warning that sites are compromised result from 12-14 million Google Search queries, the company sends thousands of notices to ISPs and webmasters regarding malware, and phishing pages are generally removed within an hour of being detected.
“Our tangible impact in making the Web more secure, and our ability to directly protect users from harm, has been a great source of motivation for everyone on the Safe Browsing team,” Google wrote in a blog post. “We are also happy that our free data feed has become the de facto base of comparison for academic research in this space.”
Wooga and Electronic Arts announced they will both pull games from Google+, less than a year after the network first launched social games.
“The decision from two of the five largest social gaming companies comes as a result of the network’s struggles in engaging users, and the larger audience available on Facebook,” according to The Verge.
Wooga has already taken its “Monster World” game down and will remove both “Bubble Island” and “Diamond Dash” in early July. Additionally, the EA-owned PopCap plans to remove its “Bejeweled Blitz” game.
“After the game platform launched, Google+ received a lot of attention from game developers, in part because they were looking for somewhere else to go besides Facebook, but also because the company was sharing 95 percent of the revenue from virtual goods with developers, and was keeping only 5 percent for itself,” reports AllThingsD in a related post. “That was, and remains, much more generous than the 30 percent cut that Facebook takes.”
“Although the decision is a setback for Google+’s social gaming prospects, the network still has 40 games available including notables like ‘Angry Birds’ and several popular Zynga games; whether it’ll continue to attract new titles, though, is another question altogether,” comments The Verge.
Skype has introduced a new advertising model for its Windows version, called Conversation Ads, which will be displayed within the app during one-on-one audio calls.
These ads will only appear for users who do not have a paid Skype subscription.
According to the Skype blog: “While on a 1:1 audio call, users will see content that could spark additional topics of conversation that are relevant to Skype users and highlight unique and local brand experiences. So, you should think of Conversation Ads as a way for Skype to generate fun interactivity between your circle of friends and family and the brands you care about. Ultimately, we believe this will help make Skype a more engaging and useful place to have your conversations each and every day.”
“The company says that the ads will be ‘silent’ and ‘non-expanding’ and, unsurprisingly, Skype is attempting to spin the news as a positive for users, saying that the ads ‘could spark additional topics of conversation that are relevant to Skype users and highlight unique and local brand experiences,'” reports The Verge.
Second screen social network ConnecTV has officially launched nationwide with backing from leading U.S. broadcast companies.
“The platform synchronizes social engagement, complementary content and program promotions with television programming from any source, in any market across national cable networks, regional sports networks and local stations affiliated with ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, CW and MyNetworkTV,” explains the press release.
Among its features, ConnecTV puts high priority on social media, allowing users to easily connect with friends on Facebook and Twitter while watching television.
“ConnecTV says the app also syncs with content from Apple TV, Boxee, Hulu, Netflix and Roku from the past seven days,” reports Engadget.
The ConnecTV app is currently free for PC browsers and the iPad. According to the company, iPhone and Android smartphone and tablet versions will be available within 45 days.
“Local engagement is at the heart of all social media, from Twitter to Facebook to Groupon,” says ConnecTV co-founder Ian Aaron. “ConnecTV is the only social TV network with a true investment in the local viewing experience and an unparalleled strategic partnership with the leading media companies in America.”
On Wednesday, Twitter announced Expanded Tweets, which will allows users to “check out content directly from certain partners, without having to leave its website,” explains TechCrunch.
News partners such as the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, TIME and others will allow users to see more content directly within a tweet, rather than being redirected to a website.
“When you expand a news-based Tweet, for example, Twitter’s Expanded Tweets will provide a preview of the headline and introduction, as well as the Twitter accounts of the publisher and writer,” notes the post. “They can then click through to read the article, follow news accounts, reply or retweet within the Twitter page itself.”
Additionally, Expanded Tweets will enable viewing of images and video. The post cites WWE, BuzzFeed, and TMZ as partners that will feature images — and BET, Lifetime, and Dailymotion as video partners.
Netgear is “supercharging” its NeoTV 200 device that originally arrived late last year by adding Intel’s WiDi technology, “enabling you to wirelessly span your laptop’s display onto the biggest screen in your house,” reports Engadget.
According to the company’s press release, the NeoTV Pro is the world’s first streaming player to use Intel’s WiDi tech.
The player offers Netflix, Hulu Plus, Vudu, YouTube and Pandora, and is controllable with a remote or through a smartphone app. It enables users to instantly stream full 1080p and surround sound to their TVs.
“The hardware remains otherwise unchanged, packing the same 300Mbps Wi-Fi, Ethernet, optical out and HDMI,” explains the post.
The NeoTV Pro streaming player (NTV200S) is currently available for $69.99.
ETCentric previously reported that a new GPS-based Facebook feature called “Find Friends Nearby” was coming out of development and would be available on smartphones running iOS and Android.
