Following the phasing out of legacy pricing for YouTube Premium subscribers that began in January in the U.S., the Google-owned streaming service is now doing the same in Europe and elsewhere. Long-time subscribers with pricing plans dating back to discontinued services Google Play Music and YouTube Red will begin paying the equivalent of the current $13.99 per month price starting in January 2025. The price increase encompasses both YouTube Premium, which is ad-free and includes YouTube Music, as well as YouTube’s standalone plans. Concurrently, the streaming giant is also rolling out a controls redesign for iOS and Android. Continue reading YouTube Raises Its Premium Subscription Rates Internationally

Streaming media giant Netflix continues to post strong revenue growth, with a 15 percent increase to $9.83 billion in Q3, year-over-year. Net income hit $2.36 billion, a 41 percent increase over the same period last year, though the company is forecasting a Q4 dip, to $1.85 billion. Operating margin was up 30 percent (versus 22 percent during the same period last year). Ad-tier memberships increased by 35 percent for the quarter. Overall, global streaming paid subscriptions are up 14.4 percent in the third quarter, for a total of 282.72 million. Continue reading Netflix Q3 Is ‘Most Profitable’ Quarter Ever, Up by 41 Percent

YouTube is adding a Family Center hub along with a feature that allows parents to link their accounts to those of their teen children for insight on child use patterns. Linked parents will receive alerts with aggregated information about things like the number of new uploads, subscriptions and comments, or when a teen starts a live stream. What they won’t get are details about the content itself. YouTube calls it “a collaborative approach to teen supervision on YouTube.” The move comes as federal and state legislators get more aggressive about regulating online safety for minors. Continue reading YouTube Adds Family Center, Parent Insights on Teen Viewing

The battle between Epic Games and Apple has arrived at a truce that finds the game maker’s massively popular “Fortnite” title back on iOS in the European Union, where Apple was pushed into the move by the competition-fostering Digital Markets Act. “Fortnite” is now available for iPhones there via the new Epic Games Store as well as the third-party outlet AltStore PAL. The launch comes after years of litigation between Epic and Apple in Europe and the U.S., where the Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal, resulting in a decision Epic found less satisfactory than the EU outcome. Continue reading Epic Launches App Store for iOS in the EU, Android Globally

Leading AI firms spanning Europe, Asia, North America and the Middle East have signed a new voluntary commitment to AI safety. The 16 signatory companies — including Amazon, Google DeepMind, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, OpenAI, xAI and China’s Zhipu AI — will publish outlines indicating how they will measure the risks posed by their frontier models. “In the extreme, leading AI tech companies including from China and the UAE have committed to not develop or deploy AI models if the risks cannot be sufficiently mitigated,” according to UK Technology Secretary Michelle Donelan. Continue reading Global Technology Companies Sign Pledge to Foster AI Safety

Motorola has three new flagship Edge phones that sport AI features to improve photographic performance and overall usability. The top-of-the-line Edge 50 Ultra, mid-level Edge 50 Pro, and economy Edge 50 Fusion are being released in Europe with the line “expanding” to North America later this year. Thanks to “moto ai,” these phones will “elevate every interaction by empowering users to intuitively create content, personalize their device, obtain the information they seek, and accomplish more,” the Lenovo subsidiary said, promising the world’s first “Pantone-validated” smartphone camera and display, with Motorola’s “most advanced solutions for capturing motion.” Continue reading Motorola Begins Launch of AI-Packed Edge Series in Europe

In response to a new law that would require online platforms to pay publishers for news summaries, Google announced it is undertaking a “short-term test” to block links to California-based news sources for some users in the state. The California Journalism Preservation Act, which was introduced in March 2023 and passed by the State Assembly last year, has yet to advance to a hearing by the State Senate Judiciary Committee. The still pending legislation would require digital services, including Google and Meta Platforms, to pay a “journalism usage fee” to certain outlets when their content is used alongside digital ads. Continue reading Payment Law Prompts Google to Block California News Links

Google has unveiled a new policy, the AI Cyber Defense Initiative, designed to harness the power of artificial intelligence to improve global cybersecurity defenses. The proposed policy aims to counteract rapidly evolving threats by using AI to improve threat detection, automate vulnerability management and enhance incident response effectiveness. The Alphabet company introduced its new plan at the Munich Security Conference, where it also announced it has a pool of $2 million to award businesses and academic institutions for research initiatives involving large language models, code verification and other AI uses for cyber offense and defense. Continue reading Google Targets Global Security with AI Cyber Defense Initiative

Milano-based Voiseed demonstrated its web-based Revoiceit platform at CES, pitched as the best way to manage synthetic voice actors, particularly ensuring that synthetic voices present realistic emotions. The company describes it as a cloud-based solution that uses “generative AI to infuse virtual voices with human emotions and prosody, creating highly expressive, lifelike audio experiences.” While Revoiceit’s most obvious feature is its Studio (imagine Adobe Audition devoted to second-by-second management of voices), it may well be the product’s forthcoming API that provides real value to developers of entertaining technology products. Continue reading CES: Voiseed Upgrades Its Platform for Expressive AI Voices

In the wake of increasing pressure from European regulators, Adobe and Figma announced they are terminating their proposed merger agreement. California-based Adobe had planned to purchase Figma’s cloud-based product design platform for $20 billion, a proposal that was 15 months into the regulatory review process. However, the two companies eventually agreed there was no possibility of obtaining regulatory approval from the European Commission and the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). According to a regulatory filing, the decision to cancel the deal will require Adobe to pay Figma a reverse termination fee of $1 billion in cash. Continue reading Adobe and Figma Call Off Their Proposed $20 Billion Merger

Meta Platforms’ workaround to European privacy laws regarding ad-targeting has run afoul of watchdog agencies, resulting in two complaints filed with the EU’s network of consumer protection authorities against the U.S. tech giant. Meta contends its so-called “pay-or-consent model” — requiring users of its social platforms to choose between agreeing to be tracked for ad-targeting purposes or pay a monthly subscription fee for ad-free service — falls within permissible parameters set by EU authorities. The more than 20 groups that have jointly filed suit say the strategy is illegal under EU law, describing it as “unfair, deceptive and aggressive.” Continue reading Meta’s EU Social Media Subscription Plan Draws Complaints

Right on schedule and after a rocky start, Microsoft has closed the $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard that regulators in the U.S. and UK had challenged. Big Tech is celebrating the move as a signal that their cash reserves can still be used to target expansion. The deal is consumer tech’s largest since AOL purchased Time Warner in a 2000 deal valued at more than twice that. Until now, Microsoft’s games unit, built around Xbox, has been a modest part of the company’s immense portfolio — representing just over 7 percent of total sales, or revenue of about $15 billion. Continue reading Microsoft Closes $69 Billion Acquisition of Activision Blizzard

Europe is moving forward in the supercomputer space, with two new exascale machines set to come online. Jupiter will be installed at the Jülich Supercomputing Centre in Munich, with assembly set to start as early as Q1 2024. Scotland will be home to the UK’s first exascale supercomputer, to be hosted at the University of Edinburgh, with installation commencing in 2025. An exascale supercomputer can run calculations at speeds of one exaflop (1,000 petaflops) or greater. On completion, these two new supercomputers will land in the top percent of the world’s high-performers. Continue reading Germany, UK to Host Europe’s First Exascale Supercomputers

Ireland’s Data Protection Commission (DPC) announced a TikTok fine of about $368 million today based on how the popular social platform processes data of younger users. DPC announced in 2021 that it was investigating TikTok’s compliance with the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) privacy and security laws. The investigation identified specific problems with TikTok’s default account settings, the Family Pairing settings, and its age verification process (although the age verification model did not violate GDPR, the probe found that TikTok did not sufficiently protect the privacy of children under 13 who were able to create an account). Continue reading Ireland Fines TikTok $368 Million for Mishandling of User Data

TiVo has indicated it will enter the North American smart television set market, announcing a “multi-year, multi-million-unit agreement” with Sharp that will see sets start to ship in 2024 beginning in Europe. The move to populate the TV ecosystem with hardware running Xperi’s TiVo OS pits the company against an entrenched group of smart TV competitors that includes Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, Google TV, Roku, Samsung Tizen and LG Electronics’ webOS. Added to those is the Comcast and Charter Communications Xumo brand, and also Telly, which offers free TVs supported by ads. Continue reading Xperi Advances Its Plan for TiVo OS Smart TVs in Sharp Deal