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

Tony Christopher, president and CEO of Landmark Entertainment Group, is currently developing a Virtual Worlds Fair. The project started with a discussion with Steven Spielberg 20 years ago, and is currently moving forward with funding from Chinese backers. The fair will feature four key areas: Dataland, an entertainment and education VR experience for children; Intencity, for branded VR experiences; Passportal, to virtually experience the wonders of different countries; and the Tower of Humanity, to celebrate the planet through virtual experiences. Continue reading GDC 2016: Creating Virtual Worlds for Companies and Brands

During an investor day in New York on Tuesday, CBS chairman and CEO Les Moonves unveiled the network’s five-year business plan, which intends to ramp up business online and overseas, and cash in on retransmission fees in order to increase overall revenue by $3.75 billion. To help achieve its goal, the company plans to reach 8 million subscribers for its OTT services — CBS All Access and Showtime streaming — and add another 4 million subs for its skinny bundle packages. Sources also indicate that CBS has expressed interest in adding Starz to its cable portfolio. Continue reading CBS Five-Year Plan Looks to Expand OTT and Skinny Bundles

During the “Storytellers of eSports” panel at this week’s Game Developers Conference in San Francisco, creative execs and journalists for Twitch, Yahoo Sports, Team Liquid and 1UP Studios discussed how they cover eSports, and how their approaches differ from coverage of traditional sports. The challenge for writers is to bring life to a sport in which the players barely move, but their hand and body twitches translate into incredible feats within the game. The stories are more about eSports personalities, and less about the actual gameplay, than traditional sports. Continue reading GDC 2016: Reporters Face Unique Challenges Covering eSports

Cognitive scientist, programmer, game developer, and senior technical designer for Riot Games and Radial Games Dr. Kimberly Voll took a packed house at the Game Developers Conference into the brain on VR, hailing the tremendous opportunities and flashing potential hazards this new medium presents. As someone who “engineers awesome experiences through understanding humans better, frequently in VR,” Voll’s latest project is “Fantastic Contraption,” a VR update to the popular 2008 building game, that will be shipping with the HTC Vive in April. Continue reading GDC 2016: Your Brain on VR, The Psychology of Doing VR Right

Varun Nair of Two Big Ears Ltd. and Jean-Pascal (JP) Beaudoin of Headspace Studio gave an excellent primer on “Audio for Cinematic VR” at this week’s GDC VR Developers Conference at the Moscone Center in San Francisco. Beaudoin started by making two overarching points: the sense of presence in VR is proportional to the amount of immersion, and it is important to understand the Field of Audition (FoA – the sound space). The session also addressed three key types of sound space designs: diegetic audio, acousmatic audio and non-diegetic audio. Continue reading Cinematic VR Audio Discussed at Game Developers Conference

The SXSW Festival kicked off in Austin on Friday and runs until March 20. VentureBeat has identified five trends at the fest expected to have a significant impact on how brands and consumers interact in the near future. Virtual reality is at the forefront with panels “on tap to discuss everything from Cinematic VR, virtual football, and VR storytelling to city planning using social VR.” SXSW will also focus on the shift from social media to social messaging, the growth of artificial intelligence and emotive robotics, connected wearables and IoT-based devices, and the sharing activity known as “dark social,” which addresses “the culmination of referrals and sharing of content that originates from instant messages, emails containing links,” and the rise of “platforms such as Snapchat, WeChat, and WhatsApp.” Continue reading VR, Messaging, AI, IoT and Dark Social Lead Charge at SXSW

Startups are hoping their mobile apps will make a major splash at this year’s SXSW Festival. Anchor, for example, is an audio app that serves as an audio message board that allows users to publish recorded “waves” to interact with the masses. Other hopefuls include Nom, a livestreaming food app and MeWe, which enables users to send disappearing, encrypted messages to friends. However, not all buzz-generating apps continue their trajectory post SXSW. “Last year was Meerkat’s moment, but the live video app fell out of vogue soon after the party in Austin ended, partially as a result of Twitter’s acquisition of its competitor Periscope,” reports Bloomberg. Continue reading Mobile App Startups Compete for Attention at SXSW Festival

LA-based virtual reality startup Immersv launched its ad platform yesterday, which offers VR some of the same advertising techniques common to mobile apps. According to Variety, “Immersv ad units respond to the gaze: Look at them long enough, and you’ll be taken to a virtual movie theater where you got to see video ads for other VR games and experiences.” Users can also visit the VR platform’s app store without taking off their headset. Co-founder and CEO Mihir Shah claims Immersv has seen completion rates of 80 percent, about double the effectiveness of traditional mobile ads. Continue reading Immersv Launches Mobile Ad Platform for Virtual Reality Apps

Yahoo is partnering with the National Hockey League to stream live broadcasts online starting today. Yahoo Sports plans to live-stream a free NHL “Game of the Day” and game highlights up to four days per week. “The new partnership is in addition to the NHL games promoted on Wednesdays and Sundays in partnership with NBC Sports Group,” reports The Wall Street Journal. “Viewing the games on Yahoo Sports won’t require a cable subscription or authentication.” Yahoo already has deals for live and on-demand content with Major League Baseball and the PGA Tour. Continue reading Yahoo Teams with NHL to Stream Free Online Hockey Games

AT&T’s DirecTV plans to produce its first live 4K broadcast when golf’s Masters Tournament returns to Augusta, Georgia April 7-10. The broadcast will mark the first time a U.S. audience will have the option of tuning in to a live UHD broadcast. The amount of on-demand content for 4K TVs is growing, but live broadcasts are just beginning (a January NBA game was broadcast live in Canada and the UK). “To see golf’s big event in 4K, you’ll need DirecTV’s latest Genie HD DVR box and a subscription to either the Ultimate or Premier channel package,” reports The Verge. Continue reading DirecTV to Debut Live 4K Broadcasts with Masters Tournament

In the wake of Facebook revealing it would bring its 360 dynamic streaming to Gear VR, Oculus announced that the Oculus Video app on Gear VR would feature a Facebook video tab for connecting Facebook and Oculus accounts. Users will be able to view and browse VR content and share videos while in the Gear VR headset. “By integrating personal info from Facebook, this is a massive first step for parent company and child that will be sure to give individual VR users a more custom experience across virtual reality verticals that will undoubtedly grow beyond social video,” suggests TechCrunch. Continue reading Facebook Aims to Expand Social Interaction in Virtual Reality

Led by Google and Facebook, U.S. digital ad spending is projected to reach $77.4 billion next year, surpassing TV ad spending for the first time, according to eMarketer. Digital ad spending is expected to represent 38.4 percent of total ad spending, while TV ad spending will comprise 36 percent of total media ad spending. The growth of mobile is expected to drive digital to continue its lead over television. “By 2020, TV ad spending share is expected to reach $77.2 billion — dropping its share to one-third of total media ad spending,” reports Variety. “Digital ad revenue will exceed $105 billion, representing 45 percent share.” Continue reading Digital Ad Spending Poised to Exceed TV for First Time in U.S.