Twitter apes Facebook and brings live video streaming to its mobile apps
Twitter is rolling out a new feature to iOS and Android users that enables users to broadcast live video from within the app. If this sounds rather familiar, it's because it's a feature copied from Facebook -- and something that is already offered by Twitter-owned Periscope.
But live video broadcasting on Twitter is not replacing Periscope, it is powered by Periscope. By moving live video direct into the app, Twitter acknowledges the importance that users place on the feature, something which has been proven by the popularity of Facebook Live videos.
Facebook launches Parents Portal to help keep kids safe online
Facebook is on something of a mission to clean up its act, or at least its image, at the moment. The social network is looking to tackle the problems of trolls, bullying and fake news, and its latest campaign is a bid to keep younger users safe.
The minimum age for using Facebook is 13, but this still means that there are some young, naïve and impressionable users out there. With its newly launched Parents Portal, Facebook is looking to arm parents with the information they need to educate their kids about staying safe.
Facebook reveals the biggest trending topics and Live videos of 2016
We're nearing the end of the year, so expect to be inundated with retrospectives for 2016 -- Facebook has just released its look back at the year that's (nearly) gone by.
The social network's review of 2016 comprises two top 10 lists: the most popular trending topics of the year, and the most popular Live videos of the year. It should come as no surprise that the trending topics list is dominated by major political events such as the US election and Brexit, as well as celebrity deaths.
Facebook granted European license for electronic payments in Messenger
Payments through Facebook Messenger have been available in the US for some time now, and they're about to make their way to Europe.
Facebook has just been granted a license for 'payment services' and 'e-money issuance' with the Central Bank of Ireland. As a member of the European Union, holding a license in Ireland means that Facebook will be able to offer its payment services in all of the EU member states.
Junk food ads targeting children to be banned online
Advertisements for junk food that are aimed at children are to be banned from non-broadcast media, including online. The Committee on Advertising Practice (CAP) announced the measures, which will affect advertisers in the UK, as the government tries to tackle childhood obesity.
The ban means that foods high in fat, salt and sugar cannot be advertised on social media, YouTube channels and gaming websites in ways that will specifically appeal to children.
Google, Facebook, Microsoft, and Twitter join forces to fight terrorism
Terrorism is a daily threat to our freedoms. It is unfortunate, as we used to be able to go throughout our days without the thought of violence. Now, it dominates the news. Heck, when I am in Penn Station in NYC, I see soldiers with machine guns. Sigh.
Unfortunately, terrorists thrive on the internet too. Using social media and video platforms like YouTube, these evil-doers look to recruit new members while sharing propaganda. Today, Google announces that it is partnering with some major players -- Facebook, Microsoft, and Twitter -- to fight online terrorism with a special database. The partners will look to protect user privacy in the process.
Facebook offers a $20 million sweetener to improve Silicon Valley communities
Mark Zuckerberg is well known for his philanthropic ventures -- he hardly keeps them quiet, after all. Now Facebook as a whole is getting in on the action, offering up a $20 million contribution to help improve the communities around Silicon Valley and the Bay Area.
It could be argued that the financial offering is not entirely selfless, but this will probably be of little concern to those who stand to benefit from a number of projects that will focus on building affordable housing, STEM training in the area, and legal support for those in need.
How to stop Facebook eating through your mobile data allowance
If you have an unlimited mobile data plan -- or a very generous one at least -- then you don’t have to worry about apps going crazy, and gobbling up data when you’re out and about.
If, however, you’re on a more limited plan, you probably want to save data where you can. Facebook is one of the worst apps for consuming data rather unnecessarily, but you can rein it in.
Facebook is monitoring Roku and Apple TV streams to deliver targeted advertising
Internet users are accustomed to the idea of targeted advertising. Both Google and Facebook take into account the things you look for online, the things you look at, the people you are connected to, and so on, and use this information to pelt you with ads they think you will respond to.
Having been forced to stop using data gathered from WhatsApp to deliver targeted ads to social network users, you might think that Facebook would consider toning down its ad personalization. But you would be wrong. For the last few weeks, Facebook has been testing the delivery of targeted ads to Roku and Apple TV based on what people are watching.
You can now play classic arcade games in Facebook Messenger -- Here's how
You’ve been able to play basic games in Facebook Messenger for a while -- things like chess, soccer and basketball -- but from now you’ll be able to play classic arcade games too.
So, if in a middle of a chat with a friend you’re suddenly overcome with the need to challenge them to a game of Pac-Man, Galaga, Space Invaders, Puzzle Bobble, or Track & Field, you can.
Right-wing Breitbart blocked by AppNexus ad exchange for hate speech
Right-wing website Breitbart -- the darling of the so-called alt-right movement -- has been blocked by a leading ad exchange. The site, home to Milo Yiannopoulos (also known as @Nero and banned from Twitter) will no longer be permitted to sell ad space via AppNexus.
The move comes after an audit by AppNexus found that Breitbart was in violation of its policies on hate speech and incitement to violence.
Facebook is ready to censor posts in China -- should users around the world be worried?
Facebook's relationship with China has a tense and turbulent history. The social network is currently banned in China, and this clearly takes a huge chunk out of Facebook's ad revenue. In a bid to keep Chinese authorities happy, Mark Zuckerberg has been involved in the creation of software that can be used to monitor and censor posts made by users.
In terms of playing by China's rules, this is clearly great news for Facebook, and it opens up the possibility of the social network operating in the country. While there is the slight silver lining that Facebook's censorship tool does not amount to a full blackout (as the Guardian puts it: "The posts themselves will not be suppressed, only their visibility"), the new program does raise a very important question: if Facebook is willing and able to create such a censorship tool for China, what’s to stop it doing the same for other markets, or even for its own benefit?
Black Mirror, Signal, Manoeuvre: Is social media the future of car insurance?
A multinational company with thousands of employees and a turnover of more than £2 billion in 2015 requests access to young customers’ private social media history to predict their likely future behavior.
While this might sound like the basis for an episode of Charlie Brooker’s dystopian TV series Black Mirror, it’s actually a real plan formulated by insurance provider Admiral to create more accurate quotes for young drivers. The initiative, aptly named firstcarquote, was intended to examine a user’s Facebook presence -- including the pages they like and the content they post -- to identify key personality traits. These traits, in turn, would be used to predict the prospective customer’s driving style.
How will Facebook fight the fake news phenomenon? Poorly... and stupid, lazy users don't help
Facebook has many problems, but the most recent and prominent of them has been the issue of fake news. So serious is the problem, that some have blamed fake news stories on Facebook as being the reason Donald Trump is now president elect.
Mark Zuckerberg has made it fairly clear he doesn't subscribe to this particular idea, but he is certainly aware that fake news is a problem. Under pressure to do something about it -- bearing in mind that for a worrying percentage of people, Facebook is their only source of news -- Zuckerberg wants to not only make it clear that "we take misinformation seriously", but also that there are plans to tackle the problem. But they're not very good.
Facebook fake news guru Paul Horner credits himself with getting Donald Trump elected
Fake news stories are on the rise, spreading across the internet via social media. They spread at a quickening rate thanks, in large part, to well-known people sharing them. Now some services are cracking down on these stories, but is it too late?
Just recently we learned that both Google and Facebook are clamping down on the spread of fake news stories, with Google withholding ads that appear on sites it deems to contain misleading content.
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