Posts Tagged: around

Until Dawn and The Quarry developer Supermassive is reportedly laying off around 90 workers

Yet another notable game studio is laying off a significant chunk of its workforce. Supermassive Games, the developer behind interactive horror titles Until Dawn and The Quarry, is cutting around 90 jobs, according to Bloomberg. That’s nearly a third of the studio’s more than 300 employees.

Supermassive confirmed in a statement that the studio will reorganize. “As a result, we are entering into a period of consultation, which we anticipate will result in the loss of some of our colleagues,” it said. “This is not a decision that’s been taken lightly, with many efforts made to avoid this outcome.”

Supermassive notes that it’s not safe from the “significant challenges” facing the games industry. More than 6,000 workers in the industry have lost their jobs since the beginning of the year and we’re not even into March yet.

Meanwhile, indie studio Die Gute Fabrik has paused production amid funding difficulties. The developer of Saltsea Chronicles and Sportsfriends will use its remaining funds to give staff a month of paid time “to catch their breaths” while they look for new jobs. The studio is still seeking backers to help it resume production and hopes to bring back current team members in the future. However, it notes that “the publishing and investment scene is so tough for companies and projects of our scale right now it’s made it extremely difficult to secure funding for our next project without a gap in income.”

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/until-dawn-and-the-quarry-developer-supermassive-is-reportedly-laying-off-around-90-workers-165747517.html?src=rss
Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics

Apple is reportedly redesigning watchOS around widgets

Apple is reportedly working on its most significant software overhaul to watchOS in recent memory. According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, the company is redesigning the Apple Watch’s user interface to make widgets a “central part” of how you will interact with the wearable. In describing the new UI, Gurman says it brings back elements of the Glances system that was part of the original watchOS while borrowing the “style” of widgets Apple introduced alongside iOS 14 last year

He adds the new interface will be “reminiscent” of the Siri watch face that the company introduced with watchOS 4 in 2017 but will function as an overlay for whatever watch face you wish to use. “It’s also similar to widget stacks,” Gurman adds, referencing the iOS feature that allows you to scroll through widgets you've placed on top of one another.

Simultaneously, Apple is reportedly testing a tweak to the Apple Watch’s physical buttons. With the interface redesign, pressing down on the digital crown could launch the operating system’s new widgets view instead of taking you to the home screen like the dial currently does with watchOS 9.

With the likelihood that the redesign will be jarring for some, Gurman speculates Apple plans to make the new interface optional at first. Additionally, he suggests the overhaul is an admission that an iPhone-like app experience “doesn’t always make sense on a watch – a place where you want as much information as possible with the least amount of poking around.” With WWDC 2023 a little more than a month away, it won’t be long before Apple shares more information about what Watch users can expect from its wearable’s next big software update.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apple-is-reportedly-redesigning-watchos-around-widgets-162720331.html?src=rss
Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics

Peloton’s huge loss highlights how hard it’ll be to turn things around

Peloton has posted a heavy quarterly loss for the first quarter, indicating that it has a lot of work to do in order to correct course. The company made a net loss of $ 757.1 million in the first three months of the year (Q3 of Peloton's 2022 fiscal year). Not only was that a worse result than expected, it's a massive decrease from the $ 8.6 million loss it posted for the same period in 2021.

Revenue dropped from $ 1.262 billion a year ago to $ 964 million. Operating expenses, meanwhile, grew by 101 percent year-over year to $ 920 million. Peloton says those represented 95.4 percent of total revenue for the quarter, compared with 36.3 percent a year earlier.

One of the company's biggest challenges has been handling its stockpile of connected fitness equipment in the wake of a sales decline as more people return to office life. "We have too much [inventory] for the current run rate of the business, and that inventory has consumed an enormous amount of cash, more than we expected, which has caused us to rethink our capital structure," CEO Barry McCarthy, who took on the job in February, wrote in a letter to shareholders. "We believe the inventory will sell eventually, so this is primarily a cash flow timing issue, not a structural issue."

Around the time McCarthy was appointed, Peloton announced it would cut 2,800 jobs, or around 20 percent of the corporate workforce. Rumors swirled in February that the company was an acquisition target for several suitors, with the likes of Amazon and Nike said to be interested.

Although it won't be easy for the company to get back on track, Peloton at least has a plan to turn things around. It aims to return to positive free cash flow in its 2023 fiscal year.

Last month, it announced an upcoming increase to subscriptions along with price cuts for many of its connected fitness machines. There are several reasons why Peloton is banking more heavily on subscriptions. For one, subscription revenues rose by 55 percent year-over-year to $ 369.9 million. The company now has 7 million members, and McCarthy has a long-term goal of reaching 100 million. "Our users are highly engaged, and our subscriber churn rate is less than 1 percent, which is the best I’ve seen," McCarthy, a former Netflix and Spotify executive, said.

McCarthy said the pricing changes could help the company deliver "roughly $ 40 million of incremental revenue monthly." The increased cost of the All-Access plan doesn't kick in until June 1st, but McCarthy says there's only been a small increase in user attrition and the move will generate an extra $ 14 million in revenue each month if that level of churn holds.

Cutting prices on some hardware models has led to a 69 percent increase in daily unit sales too. So far, that move has increased revenue by $ 25 million per month. The company also plans to keep testing a program that will combine an All-Access subscription plan with rentals of its equipment.

McCarthy noted that Peloton is revamping its workforce as it shifts from a hardware- to a software-focused company. The recent job cuts factor into the company's plan to increase annual run-rate savings to at least $ 800 million by its 2024 fiscal year. It also signed a binding commitment letter to borrow $ 750 million in five-year term debt from JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs.

Meanwhile, Peloton says more than half a million users have tried Lanebreak, its first gamified workout, on Bike and Bike+. The company expects to lean "more into gaming content in response to the success of Lanebreak."

Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics

24 hours hands-on with the iPhone 13, Pro, Max, and Mini: Refinements all around

I spent 24 hours with the iPhone 13, Pro, Max, and Mini. Here are my first impressions and key takeaways.
Mobile | Digital Trends

Google has introduced Meet for Chromecast, which is already being deployed to devices around the world

Google has introduced Meet for Chromecast, and it’s already started being rolled out to Chromecast devices. The new feature should be deployed to all Chromecast devices around the world by the end of the week. The Google Chromecast team announced the introduction of the new feature via Google’s support pages, explaining the news follows the […]

Come comment on this article: Google has introduced Meet for Chromecast, which is already being deployed to devices around the world

Visit TalkAndroid


TalkAndroid

AT&T will stop advertising its 5G Evolution product but the 5GE icon is sticking around

When is 5G not 5G? When its AT&T’s 5G ‘Evolution’ that is actually just plain old LTE and was simply a mechanism to keep its subscribers from jumping ship to other carriers with an actual, if tiny, 5G network. AT&T’s 5G Evolution was displayed as the ever-so-slightly misleading 5GE icon, which eventually led to the […]

Come comment on this article: AT&T will stop advertising its 5G Evolution product but the 5GE icon is sticking around

Visit TalkAndroid


TalkAndroid

This insane Xiaomi patent shows a phone twisting to move cameras around

The front-facing camera has been an issue for phone manufacturers for several years now. Everyone wants a full display that goes edge-to-edge, but you have to figure out where to put camera hardware. With bigger bezels, this is no problem, but when bezels starting shrinking manufacturers tried different things. We’ve had display notches, which are […]

Come comment on this article: This insane Xiaomi patent shows a phone twisting to move cameras around

Visit TalkAndroid


TalkAndroid

Scientists confirm that plasma ‘sloshes’ around in galaxy clusters

For the first time, scientists have observed signs of plasma "flowing, splashing and sloshing" in a galaxy cluster. This kind of motion has been predicted, but it was only theoretical. Now, with data on how the plasma moves, researchers hope to disco…
Engadget RSS Feed

[Review] Anker’s EufyCam WiFi cameras are great, but rough around the edges

Wifi cameras are one of the easiest upgrades you can make to your smart home, and they go a long way to securing your house. It’ll give you quick access to surveillance in your house, plus some intelligent motion detection and alerts if something out of the ordinary is happening. There are tons of options, […]

Come comment on this article: [Review] Anker’s EufyCam WiFi cameras are great, but rough around the edges

Visit TalkAndroid


TalkAndroid

Is the Dell XPS 13 the best Windows laptop around?

Very little sums up Devindra Hardawar's feelings about the Dell XPS 13 better than the first sentence of his review: It's "pretty much the best Windows ultraportable around, and you should buy it." That's a bold statement. However, the combination of…
Engadget RSS Feed

YouTube brings the sights and sounds of Lollapalooza 2019 to millions of music fans around the world with official live stream

YouTube will exclusively bring the biggest performances from Grant Park, Chicago to millions of music fans all over the world with the official live stream of Lollapalooza 2019, August 1 to 4. Iconic music moments from artists including twenty one pilots, The Revivalists, Janelle Monae, Rüfüs Du Sol and more will also be available via the live stream within the YouTube Music app.

In addition to curated performances throughout the four-day festival, YouTube Originals is partnering with Lollapalooza to produce original creative content, including backstage moments and exclusive artist moments just before they take the stage to be featured in and around the live stream. YouTube Music will amplify the Lollapalooza experience by presenting Lollapalooza themed playlists, The Lineup and Emerging Artists, to give fans another way to find all the music they love in one place.

YouTube’s live streams bring the festival experience into the hands and homes of millions of fans around the world. There is no other platform of its kind that allows artists to connect with a global audience and share their creativity in both visual and audio formats with billions of viewers around the globe, making the world smaller and music more expansive. The 2019 Lollapalooza live stream is presented by COVERGIRL, Warner Bros. Pictures (for the film “Blinded by the Light”), and T-Mobile.

Subscribe to Lollapalooza’s YouTube Channel for up-to-date information on when your favorite artists are streaming live, and follow @youtubemusic on Instagram and Twitter for behind-the-scenes moments all weekend long. There, you can watch the latest videos and relive past moments.


YouTube Blog

Huawei might have found a way around the display notch

The notch is easily one of the hottest topics of 2018, with tons of people on both sides of the argument. Samsung is pretty much the only manufacturer that hasn’t tried their hand at it, with almost everyone else offering some kind of phone with a notch somewhere in their lineups. Huawei is guilty of […]

Come comment on this article: Huawei might have found a way around the display notch

Visit TalkAndroid


TalkAndroid

Google Maps will soon be your guide to food and entertainment around town

In the months ahead, Google Maps will be more than just turn-by-turn directions. It’ll be your one-stop virtual guide to the best places to eat and explore, anywhere in the world. Whether you’re meeting up with friends, hosting out-of-towners in your city or simply exploring someplace new, Google Maps will help you make quick decisions […]

Come comment on this article: Google Maps will soon be your guide to food and entertainment around town

Visit TalkAndroid


TalkAndroid

Google Play expands 4K and HDR movies to more countries around the world

Google brought 4K movie rentals and purchases to Google Play Movies late last year, but like most of Google’s brand new features, it was limited in rollout to just a few countries. In this case, only the US and Canada had access to Google’s full selection of digital 4K content. That’s apparently changing as of […]

Come comment on this article: Google Play expands 4K and HDR movies to more countries around the world

Visit TalkAndroid


TalkAndroid

Greater transparency for users around news broadcasters

A big goal for us in 2018 is to provide greater transparency across the board to our community of creators, advertisers, and viewers. In one small step towards that commitment, today we will start rolling out notices below videos uploaded by news broadcasters that receive some level of government or public funding. Our goal is to equip users with additional information to help them better understand the sources of news content that they choose to watch on YouTube.

We’re rolling out this feature to viewers in the U.S. for now, and we don’t expect it to be perfect. Users and publishers can give us feedback through the “send feedback” form. We plan to improve and expand the feature over time.

The notice will appear below the video, but above the video’s title, and include a link to Wikipedia so viewers can learn more about the news broadcaster.

News is an important and growing vertical for us and we want to be sure to get it right, helping to grow news and support news publishers on YouTube in a responsible way. This work follows a series of changes we made throughout 2017 to better surface authoritative news content. In 2017, we launched a “Breaking News” shelf on the home page to prominently surface news after a major event and a “Top News” shelf in YouTube search results to highlight news from authoritative sources for news-related queries.

This notice on publishers receiving public or government funding, though still in its early stages, not only carries forward our work in this area through 2017, but represents one of many more steps we will take throughout 2018 to improve how we deliver news content on YouTube.

Geoff Samek, Senior Product Manager YouTube News, recently watched “The Oxford comma’s unlikely origin.”


YouTube Blog

Elton John announces final tour on YouTube in VR180 bringing together fans around the world

Elton John has entertained us, moved us, and had an unparalleled career that has redefined the cultural landscape. His unforgettable hits — “Rocket Man,” “Bennie and the Jets,” “Tiny Dancer” — changed what it meant to be a singer-songwriter, catapulted him to global mega stardom, soundtracked our childhoods, and changed lives along the way. Now after more than half a century on the road, Elton announced details of his final tour, “Farewell Yellow Brick Road” via an exclusive VR180 livestream on YouTube.

Kicking off in the U.S. on September 8, 2018, the tour will consist of more than 300 shows across five continents before reaching its conclusion in 2021. Elton’s new stage production will take his fans on a musical and highly visual journey spanning a 50-year career of hits like no one has ever seen before.

The tour announcement was made at a marquee event at Gotham Hall in New York City, simultaneously transmitted to Troubadour in L.A. and YouTube Space London. And thanks to YouTube’s exclusive VR180 livestream, fans all around the world were part of the action and revisited some of the defining moments that set Elton on his unstoppable path to global superstardom.

Elton John is always up for doing things differently, using the latest technology to help him defy space and time, connecting his past and future. Last year, Elton’s YouTube-supported “The Cut” gave undiscovered talent the chance to create the first-ever official music videos for three of his iconic hits, and now his final farewell tour announcement takes experimentation to the next level – livestreaming in VR.

Check out VR360 video from the event at youtube.com/eltonjohn and additional event footage including two live performances, a Q&A with Anderson Cooper, and “Behind The Scenes” videos in VR180 tracking Elton’s journey, supported by YouTube, will be available in the coming days.

For more info on the tour, go to EltonJohn.com.

Vivien Lewit, Global Head of Artist Services at YouTube


YouTube Blog

Snapchat drops white frames around Snaps from Camera Roll

Snapchat has (finally!) completely killed off the white frame around snaps not captured with its own camera. The app's latest version drops the border when you add Snaps from the Camera Roll to your Story — an extension of its update last year, whic…
Engadget RSS Feed

‘MechWarrior 5’ will revolve around co-op and user mods

Piranha Games is starting to open up on what MechWarrior 5: Mercernaries will entail after a year of teasing, and it's good news if you don't always want to play alone. The robot battler should launch in December 2018 with co-op play as a central fe…
Engadget RSS Feed

Android O set for release around August 21st

Android O was originally announced at Google I/O this year, and it was immediately followed by several developer previews so Google could speed things up for developers and hammer out last minute issues. It’s been a few months, and now it’s time for the latest Android OS to release to the general public. According to […]

Come comment on this article: Android O set for release around August 21st

Visit TalkAndroid


TalkAndroid

From the Brandcast stage: New star-studded shows for audiences around the globe

Kevin Hart. Rhett and Link. Ellen DeGeneres. Katy Perry. The Slow Mo Guys. Demi Lovato. Ludacris.

These amazing stars all have something in common: They’re starring in new shows premiering exclusively on YouTube. And since these shows are ad-supported, you—and every single one of our billion-plus viewers—can watch for free.

Bringing even more can’t-miss content to audiences globally

For years, we’ve been proud to work with creators like Casey Neistat, Jackie Aina and countless others who have turned their channels into daily destinations. And with these channels packaged within Google Preferred—our offering that allows brands to advertise on some of the most-loved and most-watched content on YouTube—brands have been able to support the videos you love, so you can enjoy for free.

These channels continue to be hugely successful. That’s why, starting in 2016, we made the decision to take YouTube to the next level. We began making premium original content for our subscription service, YouTube Red, releasing 30 series and movies in just over a year. And we kept hearing from brands they wanted to be more involved in these premium series.

Launching new ad-supported shows, exclusively on YouTube

When excited fans, brands, and creators tell us something, we listen. We’re thrilled to announce that beginning later this year, some of the biggest YouTube creators and Hollywood names will be featured in seven new series on YouTube—bringing more can’t-get-enough-of and can’t-find-anywhere-else shows to everyone, everywhere. With these new shows, brands can be a part of content that’s generating buzz around the world.

Check out the must-see lineup:

  • Ellen’s Show Me More Show: Like nothing Ellen has done before, Ellen’s Show Me More Show is a twice-a-week series built just for YouTube, giving fans behind the scenes access to some of the biggest stars and her favorite moments.
  • Good Mythical Morning: Worldwide YouTube superstars—and hosts of YouTube’s most popular daily show—Rhett & Link will go to new heights in a long-form expansion of Good Mythical Morning, giving fans even more of what they crave: larger-than-life stunts, zanier challenges, and over-the-top laughs.
  • Kevin Hart: What the Fit?: Kevin will team up with celebrity friends and YouTube stars each week as they attempt to master a different trending, grueling and sometimes ridiculous workout routine.
  • I Am: Demi Lovato: Global music sensation and social advocate, Demi Lovato reveals a yearlong personal journey of music reinvention and deep discovery as she dives into the writing and recording of her new album in her new series, I Am: Demi Lovato.
  • Best.Cover.Ever.: From Ryan Seacrest Productions and Endemol Shine North America, Best.Cover.Ever. is a cutting-edge talent competition series hosted by Ludacris where emerging talent from across the globe submit covers to YouTube to vie for the ultimate prize: an opportunity to perform a duet with a superstar artist. Submit your cover now at thebestcoverever.com.
  • The Super Slow Show: YouTube stars The Slow Mo Guys will test the latest in technology to reinvent the way we look at celebrities, music, pranks, comedy sketches and more, giving a one-of-a-kind glimpse into what the world looks like in slow motion.
  • Katy Perry Live Special: It’s real. It’s raw. It’s Katy Perry. Live on YouTube, The Katy Perry Live Special will take you inside of her world, revealing the experiences and emotions she poured into her all-new soul-baring music on the eve of her highly anticipated album launch. With unique access, global reach and surprise fun packed along the way, Katy will break it all down in this album listen-along, and if you stick around long enough, there might just be fireworks.

We’re excited to partner with top creators and world-class production companies to offer these new shows to audiences globally—on the platform where the world chooses to watch over a billion hours of video every day.1 People turn to YouTube to express themselves, engage with creators, and connect with the thriving communities they’re proud to be a part of.

This vibrant fan and creator community is also why brands turn to YouTube. And we’re excited that Johnson & Johnson Consumer Brands will be our first advertising partner of this new content. In addition to a major investment in our creators through Google Preferred, they’ve signed on as the exclusive sponsor of Best.Cover.Ever., helping to make the talent competition accessible to YouTube viewers.

Check out #Brandcast to see highlights from the night and look here to see what new YouTube trends were announced.

Robert Kyncl, Chief Business Officer, YouTube, recently watched “Justin Bieber – Despacito Ft. Luis Fonsi & Daddy Yankee.”

1Source: YouTube Internal Data, Global, 2016


YouTube Blog

Yes, that’s a selfie drone flying around in your local Apple Store

Apple Stores are going to be a lot noisier from this week after the company inked a deal to be the sole seller of the new Hover Camera Passport “selfie drone” from ZeroZero Robotics.

The post Yes, that’s a selfie drone flying around in your local Apple Store appeared first on Digital Trends.

Cool Tech–Digital Trends

Celebrating inspirational women around the world: #HerVoiceisMyVoice

At YouTube, we believe that voices matter. We’re committed to fostering a community where everyone’s voice can be heard. These voices inspire millions, and for so many, these stories are more than just words. From Lilly Singh on the power of girls and women supporting each other, to Kumamiki on confidence and perseverance, to Dina Tokio on embracing her identity, the more we listen to and share each other’s stories, the more we can help empower women’s voices everywhere.

That’s why, this International Women’s Day, we’re turning up the volume on female voices and honoring the impact they have on all of us. #HerVoiceIsMyVoice is a moment to celebrate and share the voices of inspirational women from around the world.


Every day around the world, women are sharing their stories, wisdom and inspiration. These everyday and extraordinary moments are at the heart of YouTube, and you can find more of them here.

Today, we invite you to share a video of a woman whose voice speaks to you. Let’s use our favorite brave, bold, or downright beautiful stories to remind our communities and ourselves just what we’re capable of. Happy International Women’s Day!

Danielle Tiedt, Chief Marketing Officer at YouTube, recently watched these amazing women.


YouTube Blog

Ditch the cart and surf your way around the green with the GolfBoard

When spending a day golfing, the enjoyment comes from each and every swing, not from the traveling between strokes. The GolfBoard makes traveling around the green much more entertaining.

The post Ditch the cart and surf your way around the green with the GolfBoard appeared first on Digital Trends.

Cool Tech–Digital Trends

Google is using artificial intelligence to guide you around the Play Store

In a blog post published last week, Google announced that it has begun employing artificial intelligence to put Android apps into categories that, hopefully, make intuitive sense.

The post Google is using artificial intelligence to guide you around the Play Store appeared first on Digital Trends.

Android Army–Digital Trends

How should we move around in VR? Nobody has figured it out yet

If you asked five people how they like to move around in virtual reality, you’ll probably receive five different answers, so we set out to see if there was a definitive future of VR locomotion we could paint: it turns out that it’s harder than it looks.

The post How should we move around in VR? Nobody has figured it out yet appeared first on Digital Trends.

Mobile–Digital Trends

Samsung’s Galaxy S7, LG’s G5, and more are all around the corner at MWC 2016

Mobile World Congress is the biggest mobile tech show of the year, and it kicks off on February 21. Here’s everything you can expect to see at the show from Samsung, LG, HTC, Huawei, and other big industry players.

The post Samsung’s Galaxy S7, LG’s G5, and more are all around the corner at MWC 2016 appeared first on Digital Trends.

Wearables–Digital Trends

Turn off the dark with this mirror that scatters sunlight around the room

If parts of your home are dark even during the brightest part of the day, Lucy, a smart mirror, will redirect the light. It tilts its mirror to follow the sun and shuts itself off at night.

The post Turn off the dark with this mirror that scatters sunlight around the room appeared first on Digital Trends.

Cool Tech»Digital Trends