The much-anticipated Oculus Rift headset is hitting the market and its young inventor Palmer Luckey predicts that virtual reality will mark a more significant turning point in tech than Apple II, Netscape or Google. Luckey’s recent interview with NPR’s Kelly McEvers is available on the KCLU site. “Luckey muses about how VR may be better for the environment, why he recommends the novel Ready Player One despite its dystopian view of the VR future, how VR is facing similar pushback to the one faced by rock ‘n’ roll and swing dancing in their time and what ethical questions are raised by the use of VR for journalism.” Continue reading Palmer Luckey Talks Future of VR as Oculus Rift Hits Shelves

Twitter’s Periscope celebrated its one-year anniversary this weekend by announcing that 200 million broadcasts have been hosted via its app so far, with 100 million in the past three months. “In addition, 110 years worth of live video is watched per day across Periscope’s iOS and Android apps, which represents a 91 percent increase from last August,” reports VentureBeat. While primary competitor Meerkat is pivoting its live-streaming efforts, and new competition is expected from Facebook Live and YouTube Connect, “Twitter has placed a lot of weight on Periscope, especially as it focuses its vision around live events.” Continue reading Periscope Celebrates its First Year, Hits 200 Million Streams

Music streamer Vevo recently introduced more personalized music apps for Android, iOS and Apple TV that use recommendation algorithms. Now, the company is extending that personalization through new integration with Spotify, Twitter and YouTube that helps the platforms learn which artists users want to follow. Rather than reinventing the wheel, Vevo is importing data from Spotify, Twitter and YouTube to create a smarter and faster feed. “In addition, the company says that it has redesigned the overall onboarding experience to utilize machine learning techniques to help get users connected with the artists they like,” notes TechCrunch. Continue reading Vevo Gets Personal with Spotify, Twitter, YouTube Integration

The music industry has experienced an increase in streaming revenue and a resurgence in vinyl record interest. However, “a closer look shows that the big sales numbers that have sustained the recorded music business for years are way down,” reports The New York Times. According to the Recording Industry Association of America, sales revenue for music in the U.S. has remained around $7 billion since 2010. During that time, streaming via Pandora, Spotify, YouTube and others has been taking over CDs and downloads, as the “music industry finds itself fighting over pennies while waving goodbye to dollars.” Continue reading Music Business Faces New Challenges in Shift to Streaming

Following years of planning and testing, Nielsen is launching a digital tracking service for streaming audio called Nielsen Digital Audio Ratings. According to the release, the service will “measure over-the-air radio listening, across mobile apps and Web players, regardless of ad model and device.” The new service, part of Nielsen’s larger Total Audience initiative, will track data from 2,500 digital AM/FM and e-radio stations across 48 markets. A service to track data for on-demand audio services and podcasts is in development. “Nielsen Digital Audio Ratings allows broadcasters, advertisers and marketers to better understand the dynamics of a station’s over-the-air and online audiences,” said Brad Kelly, managing director for Nielsen Audio. Continue reading After Years of Planning, Nielsen Unveils Digital Audio Ratings

Apple announced yesterday that it has tapped entertainer Will.i.am and TV veterans Ben Silverman and Howard Owens for the company’s first original TV project. The unscripted series will focus on the app economy, although details “such as financing, title, timeline, storylines, episode length or how people will watch the show” have yet to be revealed, notes The New York Times. The project marks the company’s first foray outside of music, having “released programming such as Taylor Swift’s 1989 world tour, a docu-series with Vice about the local music scene and exclusive video interviews with artists like Adele.” Continue reading Apple’s First Original TV Series Will Shine a Spotlight on Apps

DVR manufacturer TiVo is reportedly in advanced merger discussions with Rovi, one of the biggest patent owners for digital entertainment devices. TiVo has a market value of $750 million, while Rovi’s value is roughly $1.7 billion. “Shareholders of TiVo would receive a combination of cash and stock,” reports The New York Times, “though the exact price was still being negotiated.” As a result of the deal, say insiders, TiVo shareholders would likely own 30 percent of the combined company. Apple, Google and Microsoft are among the tech giants believed to have previously expressed interest in TiVo. Continue reading Insiders Indicate TiVo and Rovi Currently Discussing a Merger

As Yahoo’s global online ad revenue is forecast to drop by 14 percent this year, and scrutiny of the embattled Internet company’s leadership continues, Starboard Value has initiated a shareholder revolt. Yesterday, in a letter to investors, the activist hedge fund introduced nine candidates to run for the Yahoo board (including Starboard chief exec Jeffrey Smith). Starboard, which holds a 1.7 percent stake in Yahoo, has called into question the leadership of Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer and is looking to oust the company’s current board. Starboard hopes that such pressure will encourage the sale of Yahoo’s core businesses. Continue reading Starboard Suggests Replacements for Yahoo Board Members

The 30th edition of the Game Developers Conference (GDC) set a record for event attendance, with more than 27,000 game industry professionals at last week’s conference in San Francisco’s Moscone Center. One of the major draws this year was the debut of the Virtual Reality Developers Conference (VRDC), an event dedicated to the creation of new video games, entertainment and technology around virtual and augmented reality (AR), which was held alongside GDC 2016. VRDC brought greater focus to the nascent field of virtual reality development. Continue reading GDC 2016 Tops Attendance Record, Celebrates Past & Future

In another step toward taking on measurement leader Nielsen, comScore (which merged earlier this year with Rentrak) is tapping new metrics from Adobe Systems to measure video consumption across multiple screens, including televisions and mobile devices. “By using Adobe services,” reports Variety, “comScore will be able to help marketers understand the number of video starts involved with a piece of content; average time spent watching; and rate of ad engagement. Content companies, meanwhile, will be able to use the insights to forecast how different kinds of video performs across platforms and particular audience segments.” Continue reading ComScore Working with Adobe to Measure Video Consumption

The FBI asked to postpone a hearing scheduled for today regarding the Apple encryption case. The Justice Department may no longer need the tech company’s help in opening an iPhone used by gunman Syed Rizwan Farook in the San Bernardino shootings. A third party has reportedly come forward with a technique to help unlock the phone, which is currently being tested. Judge Sheri Pym of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California granted the Justice Department’s motion to postpone. The government is required to provide an update to the court by April 5. Continue reading FBI Tests Method to Unlock iPhone, Cancels Today’s Hearing

According to a post on its Help & Customer Service page, Amazon is instructing its Kindle customers to update software “by March 22, 2016, in order to continue to download Kindle books from the Cloud, access the Kindle Store, and use other Kindle services on their device.” Those who miss the update will need to manually install the latest software update. The post provides a chart detailing the software versions needed for specific Kindle models and step-by-step instructions for the update process. The chart indicates that the following models do not require an update: Paperwhite 6th Generation (2013), Kindle 7th Generation (2014), Voyage 7th Generation (2014) and Paperwhite 7th Generation (2015). Continue reading Amazon Tells Kindle Customers to Update Software by Today

Apple is expected to unveil a new version of its iPhone 5s today during an event at the company’s Cupertino headquarters. According to The Wall Street Journal, the new phone “will include an upgraded processor, improved camera and capability to use Apple Pay.” The company is also expected to launch a new 9.7-inch iPad, which will likely follow the design and features of the 12.9-inch iPad Pro that debuted in November. “It’ll be the iPad Pro in every way except two: it won’t be quite so gargantuan, and it won’t be so expensive,” suggests Wired. To watch the keynote live online at 10:00 am PDT, visit the Apple event page. Continue reading Apple is Expected to Introduce its New iPhone and iPad Today

In recent months, many Twitter users have expressed concern regarding news that the social platform’s 140-character limit was going to be lifted. Jack Dorsey, co-founder and chief executive of Twitter, announced on Friday (Twitter’s 10th birthday) that the company now plans to keep tweets at their original 140 characters. Dorsey’s announcement “is likely to calm the hard-core base of Twitter supporters who have been vocally resistant to any major changes to the network, home to more than 320 million regular users,” reports The New York Times. Continue reading Twitter Chief Explains Tweet Cap Will Remain 140 Characters

At the Game Developers Conference, Sony announced that its anticipated PlayStation VR headset would cost $399 when it is released in October (a $499 launch bundle will be available for preorder beginning Tuesday). The headset connects with Sony’s PlayStation 4 console and features a 5.7-inch screen and multiple sensors that enable 360-degree head tracking. Sony hopes its PlayStation VR — which Tom’s Guide awarded Best of Show — will help bring virtual reality to the mainstream. While competitors such as Oculus Rift and HTC Vive will be available sooner, they require powerful PCs to run their software. Continue reading GDC 2016: Sony PlayStation VR to Launch in October for $399