Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (NYSE:BABA) To Provide Credit Services In Brazil

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd (NYSE:BABA) has announced that they are planning to include credit services in Brazil.

Credit services in Brazil

Jack Ma the executive chairman of the company announced the news during Wednesday’s edition of the O Estado de S. Paulo. The e-commerce giant introduced a credit line in China to take care of finances on its website. Ma said, “We want to invest in e-commerce, logistics and inclusive financing.”

the executive however did not give more information about the type of credit operation the company is planning to introduce in Brazil.

The operation in Brazil commenced in 2014 but they experienced challenges on the logistics as well as the monitoring of product authenticity on their website. The executive acknowledged the errors and they reported they are working on improving the situation. According to Ma, the company has a business-to-customer and a business-business type of operations in Brazil. Representatives from the company were not available to confirm Ma’s remarks which he stated on Tuesday at the United nations in Geneva.

Introduction of credit services by the company

The finance arm in Alibaba launched the credit system in China amid efforts by the government to increase financing to small businesses and the consumers. They project labeled ‘Sesame Credit Management’ marked the most recent development in the financial services by the company.

The policy makers were hoping to enhance the flow of credit to privately owned firms which are the major contributors to economic growth in China as well as job opportunities.

Sesame Credit is mainly focused on those with little credit history and may have never obtained any bank loans or even applied for a credit card. However, these people should be active internet users and often shop online, e-pay in time their utility bills, have been using their phone numbers for a long time and have a reliable residential status.

Other players in the market

Alibaba is among 10 other companies which have obtained approval to have privately owned banks aimed at the smaller borrowers. Other companies include rivals such as Tencent and even Fosum International.

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Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Develops Project Owl To Settle Fake News And Problematic Content

Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) acknowledges they have a problem in search quality.

Project Owl

This is a concern that has faced the company since November last year about fake news, offensive search suggestions and disturbing answers appearing first in the list of its suggestions. The company has therefore launched ‘Project Owl’ as bid to counter these issues.

It is equipped with three main actions including, a new feedback form meant for ‘Featured Snippets’ responses, a new feedback form specifically for search suggestions and formal policies outlining why the suggestions may be removed and a new emphasis on the authoritative content meant to enhance the search quality.

The problematic searches

Project Owl is the company’s internal name as it seeks to fight back on the search quality problem. Google said that they settled on the word owl for no particular reason. They added, “However, the idea of an owl as a symbol for wisdom is appropriate.” The company’s efforts hopes to direct wisdom in areas where it is sorely required.

Problematic searches is a term give to situations where the Google is dealing with consequences of post truth world. User are consistently producing content which is a reaffirmation of a specific world opinions or views regardless of the actual facts. People are increasingly searching in large volumes for urban myths, rumors derogatory topics or slurs which are impacting the search suggestions offered by Google in dangerous and offensive ways.

The problematic searches are considered as such as they cannot be classified in the clear-cut areas where the firm has taken action. Google has long settle the search spam where users attempt to manipulate the results beyond the acceptable practices to earn monetary gains.

Solving the search quality issues

Google has implemented the Autocomplete in a bid to speed up the searching process. The suggestions are usually from the popular things people search and are related to the first few characters typed.

These can sometimes reflect unsavory beliefs that users are may have or the problematic topics they are searching for. This is because they are based on what most users are looking for. Hence theyneed for Google to intervene. People came out to help with the process of solving the search quality issues which gave the company great morale as reported by Pandu Nayak, a Google fellow.

Alphabet’s stock closed at $888.84 on Tuesday after a rise $9.91 or 1.13%.

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AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) Introduces New Faster 5G Networks

AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) has declared a 5G Evolution plans in order to make way for the next generation of faster speed for wireless customers.

The new 5G Evolution networks

The operations involves the latest devices in more than 20 prominent metro areas by the end of the year 2017. The developers are still in the process of establishing the foundation for the evolution to 5G as the 5G standards are in the final stage.

In selected parts of Austin, AT&T clients owning a Samsung Galaxy S8 or Galaxy S8 Plus will be able to access the new 5G Evolution faster internet speed. This is twice the speed offered on its 4G LTE network.

5G Evolution Plan is expected to be launched in Indianapolis in this summer. Areas include Boston, Atlanta, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Nashville and more. AT&T customers should be able to experience faster data speed as the company continues to invest in the wireless network through adding small cells and carrying out upgrades including 4×4 MIMO, carrier aggregation, 256 QAM and others.

Is it a scam?

However reports in the market indicate that the much hype 5G is actually a rebranded 4G offering in attempt by the company to seem innovative. The network works only in selective areas of Austin and Texas and only with the new Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus. The company however promises to offer the new networks in more places in metro by the end of the year.

The company promises of twice as faster speed as the 4G LTE but it goes further to include a warning below the statement stating that the press release has forward looking statements which are subject to uncertainties and risks hence the actual results are likely to vary materially.

AT&T announced the new development a few hours before news reached the public that it had been outdone by Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) in a significant chunk of 5G spectrum. Speculations indicate that the company was probably trying to dupe its customers into thinking it is actually launching a new innovation when in real sense it is not.

Michael Nunez from Gizmodo stated, “5G networks depend on an entirely different type of technology than 4G or 4G LTE.” this explains why companies are having it rough in developing the 5G networks.

The stock of AT&T closed at $39.94 0n Tuesday after a fall $0.08 or 0.20%.

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Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) Delays The Debut Of Carpool Karaoke: The series Yet Again

Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) has announced it is going to delay the debut of Carpool Karaoke: The series during the Code Media conference.

More about the show

This is the first original television set by Apple. The series was expected to be released in April but it is going to take much longer now. It will premiere on the Apple Music. Initially the company had plans to hold the premiere party for the ‘Carpool Karaoke’ in March before it was postponed to April but now it is expected to take much longer before the official debut.

The company did not disclose the reason behind the delayment but only stated that the market should expect the debut to happen later this year at a date yet to be confirmed. It is probably be contemplating the perfect date for the launch.

Carpool Karaoke: The Series is inspired by the Carpool Karaoke segment aired on ‘The Late Late Show with James Corden’. The company acquired the rights to the show in mid 2016 and aired the first trailer in February this year.

CBS Television Studios are the proud producers of the series issued a statement stating, “We are excited about our ‘Carpool Karaoke’ for Apple Music, and look forward to everyone seeing it later this year.”

What will be included in the show

the show will take a different format for the initial segment in that instead of people just singing tunes in a car with James Corden taking charge of the wheel, it will have celebrity being paired up and spending a day together and singing along to tunes in their playlists.

The show is comprised of 16, 30 minutes episodes. It will feature include celebrity pairs riding along together in a car as they sing tunes from their playlists. The show is also expected to surprise viewer by featuring big stars.

The show will have a different host in each episode. The stars to be featured include, Blake Shelton, Ariana Grande, Will Smith, James Corden, Billy Eichner, Sophie Turner, Metallica, John Legend, Alicia Keys, MacFarlane, Michael Strahan, John Cena, Maisie Williams, Shaquille O’Neal among others.

Apple’s stock closed at $143.64 on Monday after a rise $1.37 or 0.96%.

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Telefonica S.A. (ADR) (NYSE:TEF) Signs Partnership Deal With Mexico’s Televisa

Mexican Televisa announced that they have entered into an agreement with Spanish Telefonica S.A. (ADR) (NYSE:TEF).

Benefits to the consumers

The agreement involves providing customers with cheaper access to the contents carried on the digital site, Blim. Under the agreement, Grupo Televisa SA is able to compete with America Movil SAB de CV, a Carlos Slim’s telecom company which also has a Telcel mobile unit that gives its subscribers access to offerings on entertainment by the Slim’s Claro digital video service. The terms of the agreement allows subscribers to the Telefonica’s local unit, Movistar to have access to contents on the Televisa’s Blim site at considerably preferential rates.

Total acquisition investments

Telefonica has invested a whooping $13.5 billion in the Latin America’s second biggest market in the last 12 years. This has translated to increased revenues by about 9.5% as reported in the third quarter. The company has not yet decided what to do amid the intensifying competition from new rivals in the market. The Mexican president of Telefonica, Gil Diaz commented that the current situation is upside.

Telefonica has reported negotiating a $10.25 billion in its U.K. branch with Hutchison Whampoa of Hong Kong. The company has also been busy in Brazil where it’s Vivo branch is just settling after acquiring GVT a broadband enterprise from Vivendi for $7.5 billion. It is also reported that the company is eying TIM from Italy.

Diaz stated, “It is not that they are not aware of what is happening but things are, moving so fast and so unexpectedly.” He adds that he doesn’t think that the company has settled on the final decision.

Market share in Mexico

Telefonica has only about 20% market share. It has for a long period played second fiddle in the Mexican market after Carlos Slim’s Telcel. Iusacell has the third position with 8% and was recently snapped up by AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T).

The situation is changing in Mexico with the introduction of a bill that is designed to open more doors for competition. This has been embraced very fast with changes taking effect rapidly. Mr Diaz state that Televisa need to make up their mind if to join forces with the Spanish telecoms giant.

The stock of Telefonica closed $10.90 on April, 21 after a fall $0.09 or 0.77%.

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Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (KRX:005930) Partners With Garmin Ltd (NASDAQ:GRMN) To Offer Smart Home Controls

Garmin Ltd (NASDAQ:GRMN) is integrating with Samsung Ltd (KRX:005930) to permit its Connect IQ- compatible devices to be used on the Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (KRX:005930) appliances in the homes. The updates will enable the clients to control their kitchen appliances, lighting, TV, and other devices that can be connected to the SmartThings focal point.

People will have the power to control their homes’ routines by just pressing the buttons on their wrists using the SmartThings Smart App which is powered by the Garmin Ltd. It will only require the users to configure their favorite house routines such as turning on and off the light, warming the house, putting on the coffee pot and other services that you need utmost with the Garmin smartwatch.

The announcement about the partnership between the two companies came out during the first Garmin’s Connect IQ Developer Summit that took place at Kansas recently. The SmartThings app has been released on the market and more that 5 million users are already using the newly updated app on their most smart devices in their homes. Garmin announced that this is just one of the new features that are expected to come on the way to Connect IQ as many are in the process and will be released on the market soon.

The new updated features will resolve the issues that the previous devices such as the Fenix 5 series and Forerunner 935 did not have. In addition, the Action Intelligence of the company will now allow the developers to use a wide range of data collected by the smart devices’ sensors. Garmin future plans are to empower users to have control and measure almost everything surrounding their lives including the tennis swings, punch power for boxers and much more.

These updates will also allow companies to do many interesting things that were never imagined before. The move only describes how the advanced technologies are changing the way thing are usually done. These changes bring up more opportunities for new companies to emerge and more products and services developed.

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Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) In Plans To Develop A Native Ad Blocker For Chrome

Reports indicate that Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) is in plans to launch a feature that will block ads on both the desktop and mobile versions of its Chrome browser. The feature would allow for the filtering out of certain ads which negatively impact a user’s online experience. Sources say that the default setting of the feature, which could be announced in the near future, could be on.

The ads that Google might deem unacceptable would be those that don’t reach a certain consumer acceptability threshold as was recently determined by an industry group known as Coalition for Better Ads. This could include video ads that autoplay, pop-up ads and ads that have countdown timers.

Consumer acceptability threshold

According to sources, Google may decide to block all the adverts that appear on a website that contains offending ads rather than just the ads that have been found to have fallen below the consumer acceptability threshold. This would mean that owners of websites will have to ensure that all the adverts on their sites meet the threshold or else all the ads will be blocked.

While the move by Google might seem counter-intuitive since most of Google’s revenues come from online advertising, it may actually be a defensive strategy. This is because web ad blocking tools have increasingly become popular and it is estimated that approximately 26% of users in the United States use such software on their computers.

Largest revenue source

The proliferation of ad-blocking tools is thus a threat to Google’s revenues as well as its partners who rely on online ad revenues. In 2016 for instance, Google generated $60 billion from online advertising.

Thus by developing its own ad-filtering tool, Google’s plan is to counter third-party ad blocking tools. This should not be hard for Google since Chrome is dominantly used to browse the web. In the United States, Chrome’s market share in the browser market is approximately 47.5% across all platforms. This is according to StatCounter, an online analytics provider.

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Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Celebrates Its 10th Anniversary In Grand Fashion

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is reportedly working on three iPhone models. According to reliable sources, the release of the new devices will serve as a commemoration of the company’s 10th anniversary. The three, however, will not be at the same level in terms of design. One of them is said to sport an updated design alongside an advanced camera while the other two will just sport minor upgrades.

Rumor the two will use the same 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch IPS screens. However, it is not clear whether or not they will have much difference from the existing iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus models. It is also worth noting that the company’s 2016 offering was an upgrade of 2015 iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus.

The higher-end model with a dramatically different approach

The heavily rumored model christened iPhone 8, iPhone X, or iPhone Edition will have a different approach altogether.  Apparently, the three are likely to be revealed at the same time but according to a report by Bloomberg, the redesigned model would not be shipped immediately. The company is not diverging into details of the new report despite the fact that it just five months to its September-ish reveals.

However, suggestions going round indicate that the redesigned device could feature TouchID sensor, which would be integrated into the display glass, a camera bump. It is also expected to use curved glass on the front and back. Nonetheless, there is no certainty into all these chitchats because the technology giant has remained tight-lipped on the apparent change.

But Apple might experience trouble with the supply of the new handsets

The release of three devices by Apple is a shift of its two-phone strategy, which it has applied since the release of iPhone 6 and 6 Plus in 2014. Nonetheless, the “three iPhone” strategy has been regarded as unreliable and an odd way for Apple.

However, the iPhone maker may have trouble in meeting the demand for the new handsets. Bloomberg cites that it may only be able to offer a limited number of units. Nevertheless, there is no response to this from the Cupertino-based giant. In the meantime, Apple’s stock closed at $141.20 a fall of $0.63 or 0.44%.

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Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) Alexa Debuts A Technology To Help People With Autism To perform More On Their Own

Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) has introduced Echo enabled speaker and Alexa, its voice controlled brains that allow users to order pizza and Uber.

How it works?

This technology is capable of doing more important tasks including assisting people with special things accomplish more tasks on their own.

Reports from Amazon indicate how a senior architect in Amazon Web Services, Troy Larson, used 2 software tools for a third party developer in programming a virtual assistant that is able to cue his autistic son reminders concerning requirement to use the restroom or even eat.

Lex, one of the tools, enables programmers to build speech recognition into their software. Polly, the second tool, converts the text into speech. Developers can then use them to come up with their own voice commands as well as interactions into software.

The developers provide the text or the audio so it can be used in the commands or the spoken words which the virtual assistant is able to deliver to computers. This is later adapted into many purposes including delivering customized messages to his son, who has a tendency to forget certain basics until prompted.

Alexa functions

Alexa portrays a great potential to assist autistic people. A parent described how Alexa’s timer functions were used to time cooking and other activities, to remind his son when a certain task should start and end.

In the Amazon’s blog post, it states, “He’s learned how to turn lights on and off, and start and stop music that he likes by talking with Alexa.” It adds that he has also learned how to change the volume.

Pollexy is described as a Raspberry Pi as well as a mobile-based virtual assistant for special needs that enables caretakers to schedule audio task prompts as well as messages on demand and on a recurring schedule. The caretakers can also request Amazon Echo and a mobile device to make requests for specific messages to be played immediately.

Lisa Yang, co-founder of MIT’s new Hock E. Tan and The K.Lisa Yang Center for Autism Research said that Alexa and like technologies including Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Google Assistant and Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) Cortana could assist many autistic people who are compliant as they need to interact with therapists most of their lives.

Amazon stock closed in at $901.99 on Tuesday with a rise $17.32 or 1.96%.

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Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) In National Hockey League In Deal To Equip Stanley Cup Teams

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and the NHL (National Hockey League) have inked a partnership that will see the Cupertino, California-based tech giant offer coaches iPad Pros for their use when they are behind the bench in the course of the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2017. All the sixteen National Hockey League teams that were able to qualify for the playoffs will each be offered up to 3 iPad Pros that will be used in reviewing plays.

Using real-time video footage, players will be able to adjustments in the course of the games. The coaches can, on the other hand, make a decision on whether to challenge goaltender interference or offside calls.

Macs and more

Additionally, the stadiums belonging to the 16 National Hockey League teams which are in the playoffs have also had Macs installed. Plans to equip coaches and stadiums with Apple products such as iPad Pros and Macs were initially disclosed last December by TSN, a sports network based in Canada.

The tablets and the Macs will be especially important during the playoffs since this is the one time when scarcity of goals is most prevalent meaning that goaltender interference challenges sometimes do determine who wins a game or the series.

The name of the game

On the sidelines of several major sports, tablet computers have become a staple. With regards to football, for example, teams often make use of the Surface tablets from Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) in analyzing and reviewing plays. Another sports body that is increasingly taking up technology is Major League Baseball which has begun using tablets to enhance officiating of matches and coaching.

Compared to other sports bodies, NHL’s pace in adopting technology has been slower. However, the partnership with Apple will enable the professional sport to catch up. The Stanley Cup teams are expected to offer the league feedback on what is working and what is not. Changes to the software will be made on the tablets based on the feedback that will be provided. And beginning next season, the league will provide tablets to all the teams.

In the pre-market hours on Tuesday shares of Apple Inc stood at $141.05.

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T-Mobile US Inc (NASDAQ:TMUS)’s Shipping Of Galaxy S8 And Galaxy S8 Plus Units Begins on April 19

T-Mobile US Inc (NASDAQ:TMUS) has a record of having its new flagship delivered way before their launch date. This was the case with LG G6 and Galaxy S7, with the former hitting doorsteps two weeks before its launch date while the latter was delivered more than a week to its launch. However, things could be different with Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus units.

The third largest wireless carrier in the country says that it will start shipping pre-ordered units on April 19. The communication to customers who have placed advanced orders for any of the two flagships was done through text messages. Nonetheless, those who opted for overnight shipping could be lucky in having their devices just a day to the actual launch.

The official release of the Smartphones is on April 21

Given that the shipping begins on April 19, it is clear that a majority of the pre-ordered units will get to the owner on the actual launch date; April 21. Earlier speculations indicated that pre-orders for Samsung’s flagship duo could arrive earlier but the Bellevue-based company has remained tight-lipped on this. Perhaps it is protecting its loyalists from last minute disappointment.

Here is a sample of the text message that the carrier sent to its customers, which read ‘’Get ready! The Samsung Galaxy S8 releases April 21st. We are packing your T-Mobile Order…….see applicable charges on your card. We will start shipping on April 19.”

Both handsets are expected to be huge commercial hits

Apparently, even with the text messages by the carrier about its intended shipment, some early adopters will still have to wait for the next arrival. This could be as a result of many factors and speculations including limitation of device quantities for T-Mobile. It could also be as a result of having people placing orders at the same time.

Nonetheless, the two models are incredible and they are likely to help Samsung get back on its toes after the Galaxy Note 7 fiasco last fall.

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Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) Has Finally Let Go Windows Vista

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) is reported ending the Windows Vista era.

The end of Vista reign

The company is said to bidding farewell to Windows Vista after more than 10 years since its launch. Support in relation to Windows Vista marks its end today. Users will therefore be forced to upgrade to a recently upgraded version of Windows in order to be on the safe side. This marks the end of an era for an operating system which arrived late in the market and welcomed with widespread criticisms.

Codenamed Longhorn, Windows Vista originally was meant to revolutionize Windows with a new user interface and file system.

The failed innovation

Microsoft introduction of Longhorn went out of control. This forced the company reschedule its plans and focus on the shipping of a stable version of Windows while in the middle of the development phase. The company had ambitious goals for its Windows Vista during the period prior to its launching, among them a new Windows Future Storage (WinFS) filing system.

WinFS was short lived as it was eventually canceled. Microsoft, however, made an effort to convert the Windows File System into a huge database which could be accessed quickly using linked data task sets as well as related relationships between files designed by the system.

Features of Windows Vista

This was a huge task that ultimately did not work for Vista. Hence, Microsoft was forced to integrate the components of WinFS into the SQL Server product.

Windows Vista also came with a new user interface which was labeled Windows Aero or the Aero Glass. Aero Glass gave Windows Vista a totally new feel and look. This was through converting windows into glass panels that had blurred borders.

It came with a sidebar which allowed quick access to the widgets. The Start menu was designed to focus on a new way to carry out searches within the Windows Vista. The company also developed a flip 3D special feature which would render the live features of the windows in a 3D view.

Some of the issues that resulted in widespread criticisms include DRM Blu-ray discs protection as well as the quantity of User Account Control (UAC) prompts on a regular Vista usage. The company responded to the claims by introducing a marketing push to try and convince customers it was not as bad as they had heard.

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Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) and Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) Spend Heavily Towards Online Video Streaming

Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) and Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) are expected to lead in beefing the process of coming up with a service that can truly replace cables.

Heavy spending to actualize online video services

According to a chart provided by Statista, Netflix and Amazon emerge as the greatest spenders in parties seeking an alternative for cable in provision of online video services. Late last year, Netflix had stated they are planning to spend a total of $6 billion only on content in the year 2017. ESPN is the only one expected to spend more with $7 billion around that time.

Analyst JP Morgan, last week, stated that Amazon is planned to spend about $4.5 billion only on video itself. Amazon has boasted success with original shows such as ‘The man in the High Castle’ as well as ‘The Grand Tour’. The company’s is know for its aggressive spending which gives a clear indication of its great ambition and desire as much of a destination choice for high quality shows as HBO (FRA:HBO) and Netflix.

A plus for Amazon

Amazon’s activities always tie it back to its main e-commerce business platform. This may result to the company’s video investments leading customers to buy goods from its platform.

The $4.5 billion spending on video content during this year, narrows down the spending gap itself and Netflix.

Netflix have been mailing DVDs until a decade ago. It still remains the market giant as far as spending on live streaming is concerned. Amazon, however, is in its hot pursuit and might dethrone it soon enough. Amazon has been reported to almost doubling the spending on videos each passing year as noted in the past three years.

HBO is also a notable rival. This is even though there is not much information available on HBO’s 2017 projected budget. It cannot be ignored. The CEO of Time Warner, Jeff Bewkes classified the budget as a “couple of billion dollars”.

The figures are a good indication that Amazon is very ambitious with the video streaming project. It is one of the company’s perks of $99 annually Prime subscriptions. Last week, the company reportedly inked a $50 million deal as the NFL partner to stream 10 Thursday Night Football.

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Executive Changes At Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX) As Rating System Also Gets Tweaked

The chief product officer of Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX), Neil Hunt, will be stepping down from his position in July this year. His position will be taken over by Greg Peters. During his tenure, Hunt has seen the online-streaming giant transition from being a DVD-renting service to an on-demand online video streaming service. The online streaming service was started in 2007.

Hunt, who possesses a computer science doctorate degree has been working at Netflix for the last 18 years having joined in 1999. Apart from leading in the development efforts and the launch of the online streaming service, Hunt has been overseeing all aspects of the user experience at Netflix.

“I’m delighted to be leaving the Netflix product organization in such great shape and in such good hands,” said Hunt in a statement.

Various roles

Hunt’s successor has been working at Netflix for the last nine years. This has included leading development efforts while based at Netflix’s Tokyo office since 2015. Additionally he also had other responsibilities at Netflix Japan such as heading content licensing, content creation and marketing. Other roles that Peters has held include overseeing business development and product engineering for the wider Netflix group.

Before he joined Netflix, Peters had been Macrovision Solutions’ consumer electronics products senior vice president. Peters who is an alum of Yale University having obtained a physics and astronomy degree from the Ivy League institution has also worked at Wine.com, Red Hat Network and Mediabolic.

Other executive changes at Netflix include the departure of Tawni Cranz who is leaving the online streaming giant for an unknown destination. Netflix did not immediately reveal her replacement.

Rating system

The executive changes come in the wake of rating changes at the video streaming company. Instead of a 5-star rating system, Netflix is adopting a system which simply uses a thumbs up or a thumbs down approach. The company said the reason for the change was to make the rating system more intuitive. This would result in a simplified recommendation system which would cut down on the time users spent browsing titles.

On Tuesday shares of Netflix Inc fell by 0.44% to close the day at $143.11.

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Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) Will Refund Millions Of Unauthorized In-App Purchases Kids Made On Mobile Devices

A lawsuit that was accusing Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) of having billed customers for unofficial in-app purchases made by their children has been settled. The acting director of the Federal Trade Commission FTC, the US regulator, Thomas B. Pahl says that Amazon will be making refunds to all the affected consumers.

The settlement in which the online retailer will part with a pool of around $70 million has come forth after three years of legal battle. The said inappropriate purchases were made between November 2011 and May 2016. An earlier request by Amazon to repay the purchases in the form of gift cards or online credits was rejected and instead, the company was asked to take responsibility for its actions.

The issue had to do with the designing of Amazon’s Appstore in-app purchasing system

The origin of the problem has everything to do with Amazon’s Appstore in-app purchasing system. Every Amazon mobile devices come with a preloaded Amazon Appstore. The use of these devices the likes of Kindle Fire tablets especially by kids grows the curiosity in them to a point of buying unauthorized things. This can, however, be prevented through the use of passwords but apparently, Amazon’s Appstore did not have such for in-app purchases.

Amazon has been upgrading the system from time to time with the introduction of password-protected in-app purchases in March 2012. However, it had been overtaken by the events of the unauthorized purchases.

 Pahl says, “This case demonstrates what should be a bedrock principle for all companies — you must get customers’ consent before you charge them.”

But Amazon is not the only victim of such predicaments

Amazon and the FTC have now agreed to end their litigation as the refund process begins. However, such cases are not new because other tech firms; Apple Inc.(NASDAQ:AAPL) and Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Google have been victims of circumstance. In 2014, Apple was put on the spot to over its App Store and was forced to refund more than $32 million to users. Around the same time, the search giant was making a refund of $19 million to affected Play Store customers.

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The Expected Release Of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s iPhone 8 May Get Delayed

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s new iPhone 8 will not be on the shelves not until later in the year. The company’s loyalists have been in expectation of the release of the next-generation iPhone but rumor has it that they may have to bear a disappointment. A new report out of China, the source of the iconic Smartphone highlights a problem with the iPhone’s display as the reason for the delayed release.

Alongside iPhone 8, Apple will also be releasing another two iPhone models

Apple has been on record as being extremely secretive with its operations of any new launch. The release of iPhone 8, which is likely to change its name to “iPhone Edition,” was to mark the company’s tenth anniversary. However, it was to be accompanied by the release of new iPhone 7s and iPhone 7s Plus models which will adopt LCD displays.

Sources familiar with the latest speculations have revealed that the three handsets are likely to sport wireless charging and True Tone. This comes with the ability to adjust color temperatures depending on the immediate room temperature.

 This year’s iPhone is widely rumored to be a complete redesign

From one end to another the rumor mill on how the new iPhone 8 will look like continues. After all, the Cupertino-based tech giant is known for throwing in surprises every now and then. However, it is obvious that the device will be more revamped than those launched in the previous years.

There is mention of 3D-sensors being featured on the premium iPhone 8, which will allow facial recognition. Apple insiders the likes of KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo says that the glass face of the device will be covered with the new OLED display that Apple is adopting.

This could be the sole reason why Apple has placed an order of 70 million OLED panels with Samsung. Other chitchats suggest that the iPhone 8 will have stainless steel sides and that the back is made of glass, which will make the addition of wireless charging easier.

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Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) Débuts A New iOS Application Called Sprinkles

As the world revolves around technology, every tech firm seems to be enhancing its strategies of staying relevant to the market. This is the simple reason that has triggered the launch of a new mobile app by Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) . The new Sprinkles app, which is aimed at the teen audience, is currently available only for iPhone users and it is not clear when it will be rolled out to other Android or Windows-powered Smartphones.

Though with it still has notable differences, the app is more or less a replica of Snapchat given that it allows its users to take pictures of themselves. It also features the traditional photo decorating tools the likes of stickers, emoji, and captions, which are incorporated into a new photo-editing experience.

The notable differences between Sprinklers and Snapchat

Apparently, this will not be the first time that the general public will be interacting with an experimental camera app from Microsoft. Last year, the tech firm had the Pix, a smart app, which uses machine learning to get photos right. However, it is worth highlighting the difference between Sprinklers and Snapchat. The use of artificial intelligence is remarkable because it will spice up the photos.

It takes control of any facial recognition techniques in order to put the likes of hats or mustaches in their rightful places through the use of object recognition. The ability of being able to suggest captions and stickers for a photo is an additional difference.

But what exactly is Microsoft up to with the new app?

The market has mixed speculations regarding Sprinkles, which can easily be downloaded from app store. In as much as it purely looks like it is aimed at the younger generation, it can also be tagged to Microsoft’s attempt to obtain more user data. It is also possible that it could be an entry strategy for competing with Snapchat.

Remember Microsoft is now into chatbots, which are already on various social networks the likes of Twitter.  Meanwhile, Microsoft’s stock closed at $65.73 witnessing an increase of $0.18 or 0.27%.

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Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Google’s Android OS Beats Windows And Becomes The World’s Popular OS

Android’s OS is most popular in terms of Internet usage across according to a web analytics firm StarCounter. The operating system from Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Google has overtaken Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT)’s Windows given that it is now available in a number of devices the likes of desktop, laptop, tablet, and mobile combined. It obtained 37.93% of Android’s worldwide market share in March, which was above the 37.91% for Windows.

Commenting on Google’s achievement, StatCounter CEO Aodhan Cullen said, “It marks the end of Microsoft’s leadership worldwide of the OS market which it has held since the 1980s.”

Google’s milestone represents a major advancement for Android

The difference between Android and Windows is indeed a very close deal breaker. However, it is so significant for Android given that it is the first time it is overtaking Microsoft on the OS front. Five years ago, Android held just 2.4% of global internet usage share, thus, this is a noteworthy achievement.

Apparently, Android has got a strong foothold in Asian market thanks to its 52.2% market share against Microsoft’s 29.2%. On the other hand, Windows to have won big in the European market with 51.7% share against 26.6% for Android.

What next for Microsoft?

Surprisingly, at the time when Microsoft Windows’s market share began experiencing a decline, Android saw a rise in its market share. According to Cullen, the tech giant is likely to experience difficulties in pulling through the mobile inroads. However, it may have an opportunity in the next paradigm shift, which is expected to be the Artificial Intelligence Voice or Continuum.

Nonetheless, it seems like the tables are completely turned opposite even for Apple. The iPhone maker slid to fifth place of the market share in the competition against Huawei, Xiaomi, Oppo, and Vivo. The homegrown Android-based Smartphone manufacturers have made it to the top in their different segments.

In all their devices, it is easy to spot decent and top-notch specifications. For a while now they continued to hold onto market dominance. In the meantime, Alphabet’s stock was trading at $856.75 witnessing an increase of $8.95 or 1.06%.

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Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ)’s Push For Disengagement Of Traditional Cable TV To Streaming Services

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ) has been trying to keep up with the competition battle from its rival distributors like DIRECTV (NASDAQ:DTV) and DISH Network Corp (NASDAQ:DISH). However, the telecommunication giant has now attained another level of success, which comes with the impending launch of a nationwide streaming TV service. Reliable sources indicate that the new service, which is expected to have an inclusive of dozens of channels will be streaming this summer.

The news first reported by Bloomberg reveal that the wireless carrier has been in tow of buying streaming rights from television network owners.

But will the live online platform from any of Verizon’s existing distribution platforms?

Verizon, which is the US number one wireless carrier currently, operates Fios bundle and the go90 streaming service. However, the company says that its new platform will not take any similarities to what it already offers. Instead, it is looking at offering something competitive to Dish Network’s Sling.

Nonetheless, its prices will likely be close to those of DirecTV Now, which costs $35 to $70 per month. Sling TV, which has cheaper rates of $20 to $40 per month.

It is clear that Verizon streaming service would be a full-on competitor to its rivals

Verizon is yet to comment on its latest move but there are all indications that it is ready to face its rivals. The fact that its new service will be available even to people who don’t subscribe to its services widens the company’s scope of success.

The field of internet-based, streamlined services is becoming crowded by the day. It is worth nothing that YouTube and Hulu will also be having their entries later in the year as well as Sony’s PlayStation Vue. Word has it that Comcast could also be coming up with an internet TV service to add to its existing footprint.

All these new moves come at a time when most customers are said to be disengaging themselves from the use the cord. Nonetheless, there is still the threat by OTT services the likes of Netflix, Inc.(NASDAQ:NFLX). Of concern is that the cable business has been charging too much for too little. Meanwhile, Verizon’s stock closed at $48.75 a decline of $0.31 or 0.63%.

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