Netflix is tooting its own horn for 10 years of Open Connect, an initiative designed to provide customers with improved technical performance. Since launching the program in 2012, Netflix has worked with global ISPs to optimize servers in high-density customer areas so programming will stream at high quality and with minimal lag time. Open Connect identifies the most efficient delivery route based on ISPs’ preferences, and ensures that the show or film is available on local servers ahead of time, ensuring access even when demand is at its highest, according to Netflix. Read more

What some call “Apple’s unchecked dominance” in mobile phones may get a real challenge from Samsung’s upcoming Galaxy S23 Ultra, expected to hit the market in Q1. The new model will be powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chips, which benchmarks have shown to be fast approaching the performance of Apple’s A16 Bionic. There is also a rumor that Samsung may take a page from Google and Apple and begin designing bespoke phone chips. Samsung already has a chip foundry, but it is independent of the company’s mobile unit, a Switzerland for its diversity of phone customers. Read more

Facing backlash against his executive leadership, Twitter’s new owner and CEO, billionaire Elon Musk, conducted an informal 12-hour poll over the weekend asking users of the popular social media platform whether he should keep his new position. “Should I step down as head of Twitter?” the controversial executive asked. “I will abide by the results of this poll.” After more than 17.5 million responses, the results indicate that a majority of users believe Musk should step down from his post (57.5 percent voted in the affirmative). As of press time, it remains unclear what action Musk may take in light of the poll results. Read more

Spotify is estimated to have a one-third share of the global music-streaming market, and now the company is making a mark in B-to-B with Backstage, an open-source framework for building developer portals that is now in use by an estimated 200 companies, including American Airlines, Netflix, Roku, Epic Games, VMware and LinkedIn. Backstage centralizes management of engineering tools, resources and documentation — from CI/CD status and Kubernetes monitoring to API and library docs and more. While Spotify has made Backstage available free, it’s now introducing a package of five premium plugins via paid subscription. Read more

Amazon Games and Crystal Dynamics are teaming on a new multiplatform installment in the “Tomb Raider” franchise. Crystal Dynamics is producing the title, which Amazon Games will publish globally. The as-yet-untitled project will mark Amazon Games’ first single-player narrative, following multiplayer titles including “New World” and “Lost Ark.” Crystal Dynamics plans to use Unreal Engine 5 to take gameplay and storytelling to the next level, according to Amazon, whose games VP Christoph Hartmann called the franchise “one of the most beloved IPs in entertainment history,” following the adventures of British archaeologist Lara Croft. Read more