Facebook has long expressed its goal to connect as many people as possible. The company already has a reported 1.4 billion users, but has plans to expand well beyond these numbers by launching drones that can provide high-speed connectivity to even the most remote areas of the world. The drones would resemble a Boeing 767 in width, weigh less than a small vehicle and help Facebook connect with the roughly 5 billion people that it does not already reach on a global scale.  Continue reading Facebook Hopes Drones Will Expand Global Internet Connectivity

Twitter wants to put an end to cyberbullying on its popular social platform. CEO Dick Costolo recently addressed the issue in an internal memo and mentioned plans to intervene against abusive Twitter users whenever possible. Among those plans is the “quality filter,” a feature designed to help verified users remove inappropriate, offensive and abusive Tweets from their notifications timeline. As of now, the new feature is only available to iOS users with verified Twitter accounts.  Continue reading Twitter Launches “Quality Filter” to Help Combat Cyberbullies

A new app called Whipclip is making it easier for people to find, extract and legally share their favorite video clips from TV shows and music videos. At any given time, users can open the app, choose from a list of shows playing in real time and create snippets using the last two minutes of footage previously played from that show. It is reportedly that simple for users to create clips to be easily shared with friends through the app or across various social media platforms. Continue reading New iPhone App Lets Users Share TV and Music Video Clips

Last year, Facebook acquired LiveRail, a video ad technology that essentially serves as a platform for the automated sales of video ads for publishers. In a move to better contend with Google, Facebook is now looking to use LiveRail as a way to help publishers manage their ad inventory more effectively and make smarter sales across various platforms, including websites and mobile apps. The company has reportedly already partnered with Dailymotion, Univision and A+E Networks. Continue reading Facebook Extending LiveRail to Display and Mobile Advertising

At this week’s F8 developer conference in San Francisco, Facebook announced that it is opening up its Messenger app with a platform for creating apps. This will allow developers to build apps that can integrate with the social network’s instant-messaging service, which presently touts 600 million users. Nearly 50 integrated apps have been created under the program, including those from Bad Robot, ESPN and The Weather Channel. The service also supports 360-degree video with Facebook’s Oculus VR format. Continue reading Facebook Wants Developers to Integrate Apps with Messenger

Following the positive response to the Meerkat app that enables users to temporarily broadcast live video via social media, and the restrictions placed on it by Twitter (which is likely readying its own similar service with the acquisition of Periscope), live-streaming startup Ustream announced that it is opening its internal API to anyone interested in building their own broadcasting app. This could potentially lead to alternatives for individuals and companies looking to broadcast video without the need for embedded media players. Continue reading Ustream Offers SDK for Those Interested in Live Broadcasting

Facebook is adding a new feature that allows its users to send each other money through Facebook messages. Users link their debit cards in order to send their friends money. Unlike PayPal or Venmo, users do not have to “cash out” the funds. The payments transfer directly between debit cards. The new service, which is free to Facebook Messenger users, will roll out in the U.S. in the next few months. It will show up in the Messenger app as a dollar sign, next to the icons for text, photos and thumbs up. Continue reading Facebook Unveils Peer-to-Peer Payments on Messenger App

Palo Alto-based BetterWorks, a company with funding and public support from venture capitalist John Doerr, has developed software that not only measures worker performance but also helps employees set individual goals to become more efficient in the workplace. The company’s software makes use of tactics and practices found in social media, fitness trackers and video games to encourage employees to set and accomplish goals in a process that is transparent to bosses and co-workers. Continue reading BetterWorks Designed to Track and Improve Work Efficiency

Disappointed with the direction of his video startup Yevvo, Ben Rubin replaced it with a simplified iOS app for sharing live video via Twitter. Launched in February, Meerkat grabbed 28,000 users in its first week. In less than two weeks, that number had surpassed 100,000. Now the app is being used for everything from office tours and church services to skateboard videos and live event coverage. Meerkat, which reportedly took Rubin a mere eight weeks to build, has become a social sensation and the latest in the push for ephemeral apps. Continue reading Meerkat App on Twitter: Disappearing Videos a New Sensation

With assistance from DataSift, a leader of brand analytics, Facebook recently launched Topic Data, a product that lets marketers tap into the social media’s hub of user data. For marketers and brands, information about what users are sharing on their Facebook accounts is especially valuable when trying to determine how to best reach key demographics. Facebook says that while marketers will have to this type of data, users’ personal information and identities will remain anonymous. Continue reading Facebook Looks to Compete with Twitter for Data Monetization

Disney/ABC Television Group and Yahoo have announced a partnership extension that will integrate each other’s content across various properties. Clips from popular ABC series (including “Scandal,” “Jimmy Kimmel Live” and “Dancing with the Stars”) will be accessible via Yahoo Screen and Yahoo TV, while different segments of “Good Morning America” will feature content from Yahoo’s digital magazines and properties such as Flickr and Tumblr. ABC News and Yahoo News plan to “deepen their collaboration on major news events.” Continue reading Disney/ABC Group Strikes Expanded Content Deal with Yahoo

Hollywood casting directors are admittedly more mindful today of an actor’s social media clout when determining whether or not to consider an individual for a leading role. Who actors portray on film or TV is equally important to who they are in their actual lives, especially on social media. Platforms such as Twitter and Facebook are means by which actors can directly interact with their fans, generate buzz about an upcoming movie or show, and get people to tune in or make their way to a movie theater. Continue reading Today’s Actors Need Social Media Presence as Much as Talent

Forty years ago, Pepsi famously conducted a series of blind taste tests where participants were given two sample cups of soda containing Pepsi in one and Coca-Cola in the other. That campaign, known as the “Pepsi Challenge,” is about to resurface, only this time Pepsi plans to take a very different approach. Pepsi has brought on celebrities such as Usher, Serena Williams and Usain Bolt to encourage consumers of today’s generation to partake in socially responsible and pop culture embedded challenges. Continue reading The Pepsi Challenge is Retooled for Today’s Social Generation

Facebook unveiled a new server yesterday — code-named Yosemite — that is based on its collaboration with Intel. While the server is designed to run the social network’s software, Facebook envisions the system also being used by other companies. The announcement was made during an Open Compute Project gathering, which also included news from Hewlett-Packard regarding its new stripped-down servers for cloud-based operations. HP execs said the company’s new Cloudline machines would be less expensive than its popular Proliant line. Continue reading Facebook, HP Introduce New Server Technology at OCP Event

In 2011, Google launched Google+, an ambitious social media endeavor to rival Facebook and other emerging social media sites and apps. Under Google+, the company premiered Google Photos and Google Hangouts, two products that despite the social network’s shortcomings, have been well received by the public. In an attempt to further develop these and other Google+ products, the company plans to launch these products into separate services with new management in place to oversee their development. Continue reading Google+ Compartmentalized to Push Growth of Popular Products