Internet & Websites News - Page 5

The latest and most important Internet & Websites news - Page 5.

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Apple search engine rumored, Siri could finally get 'smart'

Anthony Garreffa | May 30, 2022 6:41 AM CDT

Apple takes in a considerable amount of money per year for Google to be the default search engine on the iPhone, iPad, and Mac... but that could soon change, with Apple reportedly gearing up to unveil a new search engine competitor.

Apple search engine rumored, Siri could finally get 'smart'

In a fresh series of tweets, industry veteran (amongst a laundry list of achievements, companies and websites founded, and connections in the tech industry) Robert Scoble teased "oh, and a new search engine is coming too. Will Siri finally get "smart?" Hmmm". The series of tweets were all about Apple's new AR headset tease at its WWDC 2022 event.

Scoble was asked if the "New search engine is your guess or you've actually heard through the grapevine from sources" to which he replied: "Heard it from many places. Had dinner six years ago with head of Siri at Apple and he laid out why Siri would need to be rebuilt. We haven't seen that rebuild yet. It will come with the headset".

Continue reading: Apple search engine rumored, Siri could finally get 'smart' (full post)

TikTok is set to roll out a Twitch-like subscription service very soon

Jak Connor | May 24, 2022 3:34 AM CDT

TikTok's Live Creator page has published a new video that teases an upcoming feature that will allow creators to receive donations from viewers.

TikTok is set to roll out a Twitch-like subscription service very soon

The upcoming feature is called "Live Subscription" and will introduce TikTok live streamers and viewers to a new program that allows fans to initiate a monthly subscription to a creator to receive a range of perks that will differentiate them from "normal" viewers. These perks are similar to perks seen on streaming platforms such as Twitch, such as subscriber-only chat, custom emotes, badges, and more.

Within TikTok's video, the company states that creators will be able to have a "predictable monthly income", which, if executed properly, will be a massive leg-up for the company as making money directly from TikTok has been extremely difficult since the platform's creation. TechCrunch reports that TikTok's subscription packages will also be similar to Twitch's in terms of pricing, with the basic package being priced at $4.99 a month and multiple tiers that range up to $24.99 a month.

Continue reading: TikTok is set to roll out a Twitch-like subscription service very soon (full post)

Twitter followers have been audited and the results seem fake

Jak Connor | May 18, 2022 2:04 AM CDT

In the wake of Elon Musk's announcement that he wants to find out how many fake accounts are on Twitter's platform, an audit has been done on a very influential Twitter account.

Twitter followers have been audited and the results seem fake

In a new report from Newsweek, an audit conducted by software company SparkToro found that nearly half of President Joe Biden's Twitter followers, which is currently at 22.2 million, are fake accounts. Notably, the software company found that 49.3% of accounts following Biden's "@POTUS" Twitter account were "fake followers". SparkToro defines a "fake follower" as "accounts that are unreachable and will not see the account's tweets (either because they're spam, bots, propaganda, etc. or because they're no longer active on Twitter)."

Twitter has estimated in its last 11 quarterly reports that approximately 5% of users are spam/fake accounts, which Musk has now thrown into question following several recent tweets where Musk has proposed new ways to estimate the number of bot accounts, and asked the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) to get involved. Furthermore, SparkToro found that 70.2% of Musk's 93.3 million Twitter followers are fake accounts.

Continue reading: Twitter followers have been audited and the results seem fake (full post)

Elon Musk wants the SEC to figure out how many bots are on Twitter

Jak Connor | May 18, 2022 1:20 AM CDT

Elon Musk is attempting to figure out how many Twitter users are bots and how many are authentic users.

Elon Musk wants the SEC to figure out how many bots are on Twitter

The SpaceX and Tesla CEO recently stated that the deal to purchase Twitter was temporarily put on hold while an investigation was conducted into how many fake, spam, illegal, or duplicate accounts are on Twitter. According to Twitter's latest numbers, the social media platform estimates that below 5% of Twitter's total accounts are bots, and if that number is found to be inaccurate, it may impact the $44 billion price tag in a way that Musk gets a discount.

Musk recently took to his Twitter account to publicly say that Twitter claims >95% of daily active users are real, unique humans. The Tesla CEO then asked his followers if anyone has that experience. Musk followed up by replying to a journalist that stated the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) should investigate Twitter's numbers to see if the company lied on its official filing with the regulatory body. Musk jokingly prodded the SEC by writing the below tweet.

Continue reading: Elon Musk wants the SEC to figure out how many bots are on Twitter (full post)

Twitter deal paused: Elon Musk wants to evaluate spam, bots

Anthony Garreffa | May 13, 2022 7:41 AM CDT

Aaaaand the fun continues... SpaceX and Tesla boss Elon Musk has said that the Twitter acquisition deal is on hold, as he calls BS over Twitter's number of spam/fake accounts.

Twitter deal paused: Elon Musk wants to evaluate spam, bots

In a new tweet, Musk said: "Twitter deal temporarily on hold pending details supporting calculation that spam/fake accounts do indeed represent less than 5% of users". Acquiring a company for tens of billions of dollars requires extensive research, documentation, proof, and a million other things... to find out that 10-20-30% of accounts of the second-largest social network in the world are fake or bots? Oh boy.

Musk replied to himself, adding that he is "still committed to the acquisition", while Mega founder Kim Dotcom tweeted that "30% bots, fake and spam accounts. Minimum". 30% of them wouldn't surprise me, and I think that would be across ALL social networks, not just Twitter... something I think we're all going to see very soon.

Continue reading: Twitter deal paused: Elon Musk wants to evaluate spam, bots (full post)

Twitter founder reacts to Elon Musk's decision to unban Donald Trump

Jak Connor | May 12, 2022 3:02 AM CDT

Twitter co-founder and former CEO Jack Dorsey has come out and approved of Elon Musk's decision to bring back former President Donald Trump's Twitter account.

Twitter founder reacts to Elon Musk's decision to unban Donald Trump

The Twitter co-founder praised Elon Musk for his choice of reinstating Trump's Twitter account, which was banned under inciting violence following the January 6 capital hill riots. Dorsey took to Twitter on Tuesday to say that generally, permanent bans are a "failure of ours and don't work", while going on to list exceptions where permanent bans don't solve an issue such as child sexual exploitation, spam, scams, network manipulation, and more.

Notably, the Twitter co-founder directed attention to his Twitter thread, where he explained why the company decided to ban Donald Trump's Twitter account. According to Dorsey, the decision to ban the president "was the right decision" motivated by "the best information we had based on threats to physical safety both on and off Twitter." Despite Musk stating that he would reverse the permanent ban on Trump's account, the former president only stated at the end of last month that he won't be returning to Twitter and will be staying on his own social platform Truth Social.

Continue reading: Twitter founder reacts to Elon Musk's decision to unban Donald Trump (full post)

Elon Musk replies to William Shatner's request to be 'face of Twitter'

Jak Connor | May 3, 2022 1:31 AM CDT

Famed "Star Trek" actor William Shatner recently asked Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk if he could be the new face of Twitter.

Elon Musk replies to William Shatner's request to be 'face of Twitter'

Following Musk's official purchase of Twitter and entering into a year-long closing deal, the billionaire entrepreneur has received multiple requests from various public figures asking him to make certain changes to the social media platform. Additionally, Musk has received countless questions regarding which changes he will implement and why.

On a lighter note, Shatner seems to have coyly asked Musk if he could hire him "as the face of Twitter", adding that he should remove the Twitter bird logo with the hashtag "#dumpthebird". Musk replied to Captain Kirk's tweet, saying that "You will always be my Captain". Recently, Musk revealed a change that is likely to be implemented into Twitter's direct-messaging system. To find out what check out this link here.

Continue reading: Elon Musk replies to William Shatner's request to be 'face of Twitter' (full post)

Elon Musk drops hint on Twitter accounts becoming 'authentic'

Jak Connor | May 3, 2022 12:02 AM CDT

Now that Elon Musk has purchased Twitter, the Tesla and SpaceX CEO has begun revealing some of his stances on changes that may come to the platform.

Elon Musk drops hint on Twitter accounts becoming 'authentic'

Musk hasn't been shy about saying that Twitter needs changes, as it was one of his main reasons for purchasing the world's second-largest social media to take it private as he believes that under his guidance and changes, he will "unlock it". Since the purchasing has gone through, Musk has dropped hints on his beliefs for Twitter to "deserve public trust,"; what Twitter's direct-messaging services needs, and now account authentication.

In reply to a post by Mike Huckabee that directly asks Musk to change Twitter's account requirements to have people's real names attached to them so people cannot hide behind anonymity. Huckabee calls upon people to "be man enough or woman enough to stand by what you say!". In response to this Tweet, Musk says that "Authentication is important, but so is anonymity for many. A balance must be struck."

Continue reading: Elon Musk drops hint on Twitter accounts becoming 'authentic' (full post)

Elon Musk reveals a change that may come to Twitter DM's

Jak Connor | May 2, 2022 2:32 AM CDT

Despite having restrictions on his tweets, Elon Musk has taken center stage once again to reveal his stance on direct messaging (DMs) on Twitter.

Elon Musk reveals a change that may come to Twitter DM's

The SpaceX and Tesla CEO took to his personal Twitter account to reveal that he supports end-to-end encryption-style DMs and then referenced the messaging platform Signal. Musk went on to write that he believes Twitter should have this messaging service "so no one can spy on or hack your messages".

At the moment, administrators at Twitter with the appropriate level of system access can view a message sent between two individuals, and by proposing end-to-end encryption, Musk is saying that Twitter shouldn't be allowed to read the messages users are sending. Essentially, when a message is sent from the user's phone, it arrives on the Twitter server encrypted and is then transferred to the receiver's phone, where its deciphered.

Continue reading: Elon Musk reveals a change that may come to Twitter DM's (full post)

Here's how many billions of people use Facebook everyday

Derek Strickland | Apr 28, 2022 9:32 PM CDT

Meta's latest financials reveal how many people use Facebook every day, and the answer is surprising.

Here's how many billions of people use Facebook everyday

Facebook is absolutely huge and is easily the largest social media platform on the market. A quarter of the world's population, or 25% of people on planet Earth, log into and use Facebook every day.

The numbers show that more people are using Facebook than ever before. A record-breaking 1.96 billion people used Facebook on a daily basis through January and March 2022. That's a substantial yearly increase of 4.4% in users, or 82 million people

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