Author Archives: Mariella Moon

Paramount and Skydance will merge to create new tech-media giant

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David Ellison, the new chief executive of Paramount, has big plans for the media giant and wants to turn it into a "media and technology" company, according to the Financial Times. Ellison is taking over as Paramount's boss after his production studio, Skydance Media, agreed to acquire the company behind massive films and franchises like The Godfather, Top Gun, Mission: Impossible and Star Trek. Skydance served as its financial partner in several projects that include Top Gun: Maverick. According to Reuters, Skydance is paying $2.4 billion to buy National Amusements, the firm that holds a controlling stake in Paramount.

As the Times notes, Paramount struggled financially after investing billions of dollars in its streaming service. Paramount+, however, has yet to turn a profit despite the company's efforts and even though it launched a plan with ads in order to get more people to sign up. Earlier this year, the media giant laid off 800 employees, including Paramount+ workers. But Ellison, son of Oracle founder Larry Ellison, intends to continue investing and working on the streaming service.

He's planning to rebuild Paramount+'s technology and use modern infrastructure to improve its recommendation algorithm that helps users find new shows. In addition, he's planning to work with his father's company to reduce costs and improve efficiency. Jeff Shell, who's going to become the combined company's president, told the Times that Paramount+ is going to team up with other streaming services and enter bundling agreements. The goal is to cut costs and to get customers to keep paying for access. Shell said they've already had calls from "different potential partners" and they're going to consider agreements that will get the service "more scale" and will get them to break even more quickly.

The merger is expected to be finalized next year, after which the new Paramount will be valued at $28 billion. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/paramount-and-skydance-will-merge-to-create-new-tech-media-giant-140052942.html?src=rss

Spotify is launching a comment section for podcasts

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Spotify is bridging the gap between podcasters and their listeners by launching a comment section for podcasts, which will start showing up on episodes today. Listeners can find the service's new comment section by scrolling past the play controls or navigating to the episode page once they're done listening. At launch, all posts will be private by default, and creators will have full control over what comments will show up on their page. They have the power to publish and unpublish any response they want. If they have no time to do that, they can enable comments for specific episodes only or opt out of the feature altogether. 

The service is making it possible for all creators to oversee comments by giving them access to the updated Spotify for Podcasters app, whether or not they're hosted by the company. Creators that aren't hosted on the Spotify for Podcasters platform just have to claim their show through the app first. In addition to being able to control what responses get published on their page, creators will also receive notifications for new comments and for reaching show milestones. They'll get access to analytics and insights on their audience, as well. 

Spotify says listeners who engage with its interactive features, such as its Q&As and polls, are (on average) four times more likely to return to a show within 30 days. Those users also spend twice as many hours per month listening to podcasts than those who don't engage with Spotify's interactive features. The company intends to make its platform even more interactive and has more plans for fall this year. It also vows to continue improving its comments experience based on the feedback it gets from both podcasters and listeners. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/spotify-is-launching-a-comment-section-for-podcasts-130034091.html?src=rss

YouTube upgrades its ‘erase song’ tool to remove copyrighted music only

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YouTube is trying to make it easy for its creators to remove songs from their videos and resolve copyright claims. In a new Creator Insider video, the website has announced that it has released an upgraded "erase song" tool that has the capability to remove music from video segments without deleting other audio, such as conversations, as well. 

When creators get a copyright claim for music, YouTube gives them the option to trim out the affected segment or to replace the song with an approved one in its audio library. Creators can't monetize that particular video until they resolve the claim. The website has been testing its "erase song" tool for a while, but in the video, the company says it hasn't been as accurate as it would like. To solve that problem, it redesigned the tool so that it now uses an AI-powered algorithm to accurately detect and remove copyrighted music from videos. 

Still, YouTube admits that the tool might not always work. If a song is particularly hard to remove, presumably due to audio quality or the presence of other sounds while it's playing, creators may have to resort to other options. In addition to being able to trim out the offending segment or to replace its song, creators will also be able to mute that part of their video through the new erase tool. 

The website's upgraded erase song tool will be available in YouTube Studio in the coming weeks. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/youtube-upgrades-its-erase-song-tool-to-remove-copyrighted-music-only-140032261.html?src=rss

YouTube upgrades its ‘erase song’ tool to remove copyrighted music only

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YouTube is trying to make it easy for its creators to remove songs from their videos and resolve copyright claims. In a new Creator Insider video, the website has announced that it has released an upgraded "erase song" tool that has the capability to remove music from video segments without deleting other audio, such as conversations, as well. 

When creators get a copyright claim for music, YouTube gives them the option to trim out the affected segment or to replace the song with an approved one in its audio library. Creators can't monetize that particular video until they resolve the claim. The website has been testing its "erase song" tool for a while, but in the video, the company says it hasn't been as accurate as it would like. To solve that problem, it redesigned the tool so that it now uses an AI-powered algorithm to accurately detect and remove copyrighted music from videos. 

Still, YouTube admits that the tool might not always work. If a song is particularly hard to remove, presumably due to audio quality or the presence of other sounds while it's playing, creators may have to resort to other options. In addition to being able to trim out the offending segment or to replace its song, creators will also be able to mute that part of their video through the new erase tool. 

The website's upgraded erase song tool will be available in YouTube Studio in the coming weeks. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/youtube-upgrades-its-erase-song-tool-to-remove-copyrighted-music-only-140032261.html?src=rss

YouTube film essay pioneers ‘Every Frame a Painting’ are back

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Between 2014 and 2016, a YouTube channel called Every Frame a Painting posted 28 video essays critiquing movies and dissecting different aspects of filmmaking before it went silent. Taylor Ramos and Tony Zhou, the people behind the channel, talked about how Robin Williams was a master at blocking and using movement to portray his characters, as well as how Steven Spielberg does one long takes all the time that tend to go unnoticed by the public, among many other topics. Now, the duo is back, promising another series of video essays followed by the debut of a short film at Fantasia International Film Festival on July 20.

Ramos and Zhou wrote and directed their upcoming film called The Second starring Paul Sun-Hyung Lee and Ethan Hwan. They didn't share a lot of details about the movie, but the film festival's website says it's about "an alternate version of today’s world where dueling is still acceptable" in which Philip "must perform the role of 'Second' on the day of his only son's duel."

Every Frame a Painting has over 2 million subscribers on YouTube and was one of the creators that helped legitimize video essays on the website. Ramos and Zhou also created the Netflix series Voir, produced by David Fincher, which featured video essays about film, as well. Seeing as they promised new posts on YouTube before their film premieres, we'll likely see them upload a fresh batch of videos in the coming days.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/youtube-film-essay-pioneers-every-frame-a-painting-is-back-130014490.html?src=rss

YouTube film essay pioneers ‘Every Frame a Painting’ are back

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Between 2014 and 2016, a YouTube channel called Every Frame a Painting posted 28 video essays critiquing movies and dissecting different aspects of filmmaking before it went silent. Taylor Ramos and Tony Zhou, the people behind the channel, talked about how Robin Williams was a master at blocking and using movement to portray his characters, as well as how Steven Spielberg does one long takes all the time that tend to go unnoticed by the public, among many other topics. Now, the duo is back, promising another series of video essays followed by the debut of a short film at Fantasia International Film Festival on July 20.

Ramos and Zhou wrote and directed their upcoming film called The Second starring Paul Sun-Hyung Lee and Ethan Hwan. They didn't share a lot of details about the movie, but the film festival's website says it's about "an alternate version of today’s world where dueling is still acceptable" in which Philip "must perform the role of 'Second' on the day of his only son's duel."

Every Frame a Painting has over 2 million subscribers on YouTube and was one of the creators that helped legitimize video essays on the website. Ramos and Zhou also created the Netflix series Voir, produced by David Fincher, which featured video essays about film, as well. Seeing as they promised new posts on YouTube before their film premieres, we'll likely see them upload a fresh batch of videos in the coming days.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/youtube-film-essay-pioneers-every-frame-a-painting-is-back-130014490.html?src=rss

Texas court blocks the FTC’s ban on noncompete agreements

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The Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) ban on noncompete agreements was supposed to take effect on September 4, but a Texan court has postponed its implementation by siding with the plaintiffs in a lawsuit that seeks to block the rule. Back in April, the FTC banned noncompetes, which have been widely used in the tech industry for years, to drive innovation and protect workers' rights and wages. A lot of companies are unsurprisingly unhappy with the agency's rule — as NPR notes, Dallas tax services firm Ryan LLC sued the FTC hours after its announcement. The US Chamber of Commerce and other groups of American businesses eventually joined the lawsuit. 

"Noncompete clauses keep wages low, suppress new ideas, and rob the American economy of dynamism," FTC Chair Lina M. Khan said when the rule was announced. They prevent employees from moving to another company or from building businesses of their own in the same industry, so they may be stuck working in a job with lower pay or in an environment they don't like. But the Chamber of Commerce’s chief counsel Daryl Joseffer called the ban an attempt by the government to micromanage business decisions in a statement sent to Bloomberg. 

"The FTC’s blanket ban on noncompetes is an unlawful power grab that defies the agency’s constitutional and statutory authority and sets a dangerous precedent where the government knows better than the markets," Joseffer said. The FTC disagrees and told NPR that its "authority is supported by both statute and precedent."

US District Judge Ada Brown, an appointee of former President Donald Trump, wrote in her decision that "the text, structure, and history of the FTC Act reveal that the FTC lacks substantive rulemaking authority with respect to unfair methods of competition." Brown also said that the plaintiffs are "likely to succeed" in getting the rule struck down and that it's in the public's best interest to grant the plaintiff's motion for preliminary injunction. The judge added that the court will make a decision "on the ultimate merits of this action on or before August 30."

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/texas-court-blocks-the-ftcs-ban-on-noncompete-agreements-150020601.html?src=rss

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 and Z Fold 6 product pages have been leaked

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The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 will come with a 50-megapixel rear camera for the first time, a bigger battery than any of its predecessors and a bunch of AI features, according to the product pages leaked by Evan Blass on Substack. Also known as @evleaks on X/Twitter and other avenues, Blass is known to have a good track record for leaking accurate information about unreleased devices. This time, evleaks has obtained and released copies of product pages for the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Galaxy Z Flip 6 ahead of an Unpacked event happening on July 10, though the details aren't absolutely certain until Samsung itself announces them. 

Previous Galaxy Z Flip models only had 12-megapixel rear cameras, so the Flip 6's 50-megapixel wide camera (paired with a 12-megapixel ultrawide) is a huge upgrade. Unlike the previous versions that were equipped with 3,700 mAh batteries, the upcoming model will apparently have a 4,000 mAh battery that can power up to 20 hours of internet browsing on WiFi, up to 23 hours of video playback and up to 68 hours of music playback. Meanwhile, the model's display dimensions, for both its main and external displays, are similar to the Z Flip 5. 

One of the phone's most interesting AI tools, perhaps, is its personal interpreter function that can display translations on both of its screens. That way, if you're relying on the feature to talk to somebody, they can read what you're saying in their language on the external display. It could be an invaluable tool for traveling, if it's at least reasonably accurate. When the phone is folded, the Chat Assist feature will give you a way to text from the front display by giving you a selection of suggested replies. Google's Circle to Search will also be available on the device.  

Samsung didn't give the Galaxy Z Fold 6 major upgrades and changes, but the new model will come with a slightly larger front display, based on the leaked product pages. Its main display is just slightly smaller and the phone itself is a bit thinner, which make it lighter than previous models, even though its battery capacity remains the same. Like the Flip 6, the upcoming Fold will come with AI-powered features, such as Note Assist that can automatically transcribe recordings and summarize notes for you. It can also display translations from its personal interpreter on both sides of the main screen, and it has Google's Circle to Search function that you can use with the S Pen. 

The company is expected to announce both devices, as well as new accessories like the Galaxy Ring, Galaxy Watch 7, Galaxy Watch Ultra, Galaxy Buds 3 and Galaxy Buds 3 Pro at its Unpacked event in a few days. 

A phone displaying illustrations of food.
Evan Blass / @evleaks on X

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/samsung-galaxy-z-flip-6-and-z-fold-6-product-pages-have-been-leaked-015420863.html?src=rss

Proton launches its own version of Google Docs

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Proton now has its own version of Google Docs in its Drive cloud storage service, and like the company's other products, it comes with end-to-end encryption. The company says its flavor of Docs "offers a unique solution in a market where most popular products neglect privacy" and recommends it for use in the healthcare, media, finance and legal industries. Proton Docs has advanced formatting and image embed options like Google Docs has and can create, open and edit documents in multiple formats, including Microsoft .docx.

It has collaboration tools similar to Google Docs', as well. Users can invite anyone to view and edit their documents, though those without a Proton account will be prompted to create one first. The free tier of Proton Drive includes essential document features so people don't have to pay for the service if they don't want to. Participants will be able to add comments to the document, reply to them and resolve them. And users will see other participants' presence and their cursor placements in real time, so that they know who's working on which part of the document and so that their edits don't clash. 

Proton didn't say whether the launch of Docs means it's going to roll out analogues of Google's other Workspace apps in the future, but the company did expand its offerings with several different products over the last few years. In addition to Drive cloud storage — and, of course, its email service — the company has a VPN, an encrypted calendar and even a password manager. Docs will make its way to Proton users over the coming days. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/proton-launches-its-own-version-of-google-docs-100044471.html?src=rss

Proton launches its own version of Google Docs

Posted on by

Proton now has its own version of Google Docs in its Drive cloud storage service, and like the company's other products, it comes with end-to-end encryption. The company says its flavor of Docs "offers a unique solution in a market where most popular products neglect privacy" and recommends it for use in the healthcare, media, finance and legal industries. Proton Docs has advanced formatting and image embed options like Google Docs has and can create, open and edit documents in multiple formats, including Microsoft .docx.

It has collaboration tools similar to Google Docs', as well. Users can invite anyone to view and edit their documents, though those without a Proton account will be prompted to create one first. The free tier of Proton Drive includes essential document features so people don't have to pay for the service if they don't want to. Participants will be able to add comments to the document, reply to them and resolve them. And users will see other participants' presence and their cursor placements in real time, so that they know who's working on which part of the document and so that their edits don't clash. 

Proton didn't say whether the launch of Docs means it's going to roll out analogues of Google's other Workspace apps in the future, but the company did expand its offerings with several different products over the last few years. In addition to Drive cloud storage — and, of course, its email service — the company has a VPN, an encrypted calendar and even a password manager. Docs will make its way to Proton users over the coming days. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/proton-launches-its-own-version-of-google-docs-100044471.html?src=rss