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  • Amazon May Purchase MGM to Boost Its Media Content

    Amazon May Purchase MGM to Boost Its Media Content

    Amazon is considering purchasing MGM in an effort to boost its already impressive TV offerings.

    Amazon Prime is one of the leading TV streaming platforms, with some 200 million subscribers. The platform has an impressive list of original content, including Bosch, The Man in the High Castle, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and more.

    According to The Information, via AppleInsider, Amazon is considering acquiring MGM in a bid to further its media library. MGM owns Epix and has a large library of film and TV franchises, such as James Bond, The Handmaid’s Tale, Fargo, Shark Tank and others.

    It is unclear how far along the discussions are, so it’s possible nothing will happen. Should a deal be reached, however, it could give Amazon a significant advantage in an increasingly competitive streaming TV market.

  • Apple Music Adding Lossless Audio and Spatial Audio With Dolby Atmos

    Apple Music Adding Lossless Audio and Spatial Audio With Dolby Atmos

    Apple Music subscribers will soon enjoy Lossless Audio across the entire catalog, as the company also rolls out Spatial Audio with Dolby Atmos.

    Apple Music is one of the most popular streaming music services, and Apple is bringing some major upgrades to it. Lossless Audio ensures subscribers will hear music the way it was recorded in the studio, while Spatial Audio creates multidimensional audio experiences.

    “Apple Music is making its biggest advancement ever in sound quality,” said Oliver Schusser, Apple’s vice president of Apple Music and Beats. “Listening to a song in Dolby Atmos is like magic. The music comes from all around you and sounds incredible. Now we are bringing this truly innovative and immersive experience to our listeners with music from their favorite artists like J Balvin, Gustavo Dudamel, Ariana Grande, Maroon 5, Kacey Musgraves, The Weeknd, and so many more. Subscribers will also be able to listen to their music in the highest audio quality with Lossless Audio. Apple Music as we know it is about to change forever.”

    Subscribers will need to turn on Lossless Audio in Settings > Music > Audio Quality. 

    “The soul and life of the mix is sitting in the extra bits of data that are stored in the lossless file,” said Mastering Engineer Piper Payne. “As a mastering engineer, having the ability to convey the music to the listener at its highest quality is the end goal of what I work for every day.”

    Apple says Dolby Atmos tracks will automatically play on all AirPods and Beats headphones that contain an H1 or W1 chip. The latest version of the iPhone, iPad and Mac will also support the feature automatically.

    “Today marks the introduction of Dolby Atmos on Apple Music — a new music experience that is transforming how music is created by artists and enjoyed by their fans,” said Kevin Yeaman, Dolby Laboratories’ president and CEO. “We are working with Apple Music to make Dolby Atmos widely available to all musicians and anyone who loves music.”

    The new features will be available June 2021 at no extra cost.

  • AT&T and Discovery Create Joint TV Streaming Company

    AT&T and Discovery Create Joint TV Streaming Company

    AT&T and Discovery are joining forces and creating a new company that will combine their media assets to better compete.

    The streaming market has become a fiercely competitive one, with YouTube TV, Hulu, fuboTV, Sling, Netflix, Amazon, Disney and Apple spending big bucks to gain subscribers and release original content. For smaller players, like Discovery+ and AT&T’s HBO Max, it can be difficult to compete.

    According to The Associated Press, the two companies believe their best option is to combine their media offerings, creating a single company that will open the door to better bundling options. Given the two companies control CNN, Food Network, HGTV, HBO, TBS and TNT, it’s a safe bet subscribers would pay to have a bundle including those channels.

    The new company may even be able to offer complimentary plans that fill in holes in other streaming packages offered by other companies. For example, fuboTV doesn’t carry CNN, TBS or TNT, making an affordable add-on package an attractive option for fuboTV users.

    If the deal is approved, AT&T shareholders would own 71% of the company, as opposed to Discovery’s 29%. It’s believed the combined company would save some $3 billion annually, freeing up more money for original content.

    Provided Discovery shareholders sign off on the deal, it is expected to close the middle of next year.

  • System76 Launches Open Source Configurable Keyboard

    System76 Launches Open Source Configurable Keyboard

    System76 has unveiled the Launch Configurable Keyboard, an open source, customizable keyboard with cross-platform support.

    Computer keyboards are often a very personal choice, with some preferring mechanical keyboards, futuristic options or highly ergonomic designs. Some prefer non-QUERTY layouts that offer some efficiency and typing speed benefits.

    System76 has an innovative solution, with its Launch Configurable Keyboard. The keyboard allows the user to swap out keys, rearranging them to suit their style of typing. Meanwhile, the included software makes it possible to remap the keys so they send the proper signal. The keyboard supports macOS, Linux and Windows.

    Place control back into your hands. Remap keys, swap keycaps, and configure multiple layers to your liking. Launch uses only three keycap sizes to vastly expand your configuration options.

    The Launch keyboard is sure to be a hit among those that want more control over their typing experience.

  • Vizio’s Ad Business Nearly Rivals Its Hardware Sales

    Vizio’s Ad Business Nearly Rivals Its Hardware Sales

    Vizio, known for its TVs, is now making nearly as much money off of the data it collects and ads it sells — at the consumer’s expense.

    Vizio has a troubled history of collecting data from its smart TV viewers, with the FCC fining it in 2017 for collecting and selling viewer data without consent. Although the company is now more transparent about its practices, profiting off of viewer data has become a major part of its business.

    According to the company’s quarterly results, it had a gross profit of $38.4 million for its Platform+ business, the part of its business that collects data and sells advertising. In contrast, the company had a gross profit of $48.2 million from Devices.

    Even more telling, Devices gross profit grew 48%, considerably less than the 152% increase in Platform+ gross profits. The disparity demonstrates how the collection of data, and profiting from it, will continue to be a major focus for the company.

    While some customers may be ok with their viewing habits data being collected and sold to advertisers, privacy-conscious consumers would do well to choose a different brand, or take measures to disable data collection.

  • Coinbase Will Support Dogecoin Trading

    Coinbase Will Support Dogecoin Trading

    Coinbase has reversed course, announcing it will finally start supporting Dogecoin trading.

    What started as a meme has taken the crypto world by storm, with Dogecoin catapulting into the fourth largest cryptocurrency by market value. Despite Dogecoin’s growth, one of the leading crypto trading platforms has been noticeably absent from the action.

    Coinbase is changing its tune, with CEO Brian Armstrong telling investors the platform will support Dogecoin within six to eight weeks, according to Gizmodo. Armstrong also highlighted his vision of where he sees things going.

    I think it’s going to be something, kind of, like apps in the App Store or on the iPhone where there’s eventually millions of these assets created over time and so we’re putting a lot of work and thought into how do we accelerate our pace of asset addition, and one of those is Doge, as you mentioned, which has been getting a lot of attention recently.

    Coinbase’s change of plans is likely to boost Dogecoin even more, making it easier than ever for people to trade the crypto.

    *Author holds a very small amount of Dogecoin that in no way influenced this article.

  • Bitcoin’s Tesla Misfortune May Be Dogecoin’s Gain

    Bitcoin’s Tesla Misfortune May Be Dogecoin’s Gain

    On the heels of Tesla no longer accepting Bitcoin as payment, Elon Musk has said he is working with Dogecoin’s developers.

    Elon Musk surprised the crypto market Wednesday when he announced Tesla would no longer accept Bitcoin as payment, just weeks after the company had announced it would. Musk cited Bitcoin mining’s carbon footprint as the reason, something the cryptocurrency is increasingly being criticized for.

    Despite Musk’s announcement, he clarified he is still a strong supporter of cryptocurrencies in general.

    In addition, Musk says he is working with Dogecoin’s developers to help it be more efficient, possibly avoiding the environmental impact Bitcoin has become known for.

    Needless to say, Dogecoin rebounded on Musk’s tweet, and continues its transition from meme to legitimate crypto.

    *Author holds a very small amount of Dogecoin that in no way influenced this article.

  • MoneyGram and Coinme Partner to Improve Bitcoin Access

    MoneyGram and Coinme Partner to Improve Bitcoin Access

    MoneyGram, one of the leading money transfer services, is partnering with Coinme to improve people’s access to Bitcoin.

    While cryptocurrencies are rising in popularity, being able to access holdings and make use of them continues to pose a challenge for some. MoneyGram hopes to change that, in partnership with Coinme, making it easier for people to access their Bitcoin.

    “This innovative partnership opens our business to an entirely new customer segment as we are the first to pioneer a crypto-to-cash model by building a bridge with Coinme to connect bitcoin to local fiat currency,” said Alex Holmes, MoneyGram Chairman and CEO. “Our unique, global network is an incredibly valuable asset, and we’re excited to open our platform to Coinme as we increasingly look to capture new growth by monetizing our network to new use-cases.”

    The companies especially see an opportunity to help people who are just dipping their feet in the crypto market, making it easy to buy Bitcoin with cash and get cash for their Bitcoin holdings.

    “MoneyGram has spent more than 80 years building one of the world’s largest P2P payment networks,” said Neil Bergquist, Coinme CEO. “By integrating its global infrastructure with our licensed crypto exchange technology, we can enable the purchase and sale of cryptocurrencies across its system using cash. This is a major milestone for the bitcoin and cryptocurrency communities, and for the millions of people who will benefit from a trusted, easy and affordable onramp to digital currency.”

  • Tesla’s Bitcoin Reversal Wiped $365 Billion From Crypto Market

    Tesla’s Bitcoin Reversal Wiped $365 Billion From Crypto Market

    Tesla’s decision to stop accepting Bitcoin for payment led to some $365 billion of value being wiped from the crypto market.

    Tesla made the decision in March to accept Bitcoin as payment for vehicle purchases. The move was not surprising, given CEO Elon Musk’s love of crypto. Yesterday, however, the company reversed its plans, with Musk citing the environmental impact of Bitcoin mining.

    The decision already appears to have had a major impact on the crypto market, according to CNBC, with some $365.85 billion wiped from the market after Tesla’s announcement.

    In particular, Bitcoin, ether and XRP were all significantly lower than their pre-announcement levels.

  • Facebook’s Diem Abandons Swiss Plans, Will Move to US

    Facebook’s Diem Abandons Swiss Plans, Will Move to US

    Diem, the Facebook-backed cryptocurrency formerly known as Libra, is abandoning its efforts to get licensed in Switzerland and will move to the US.

    Diem is a widely anticipated crypto that has gained and lost support from major corporations during its planning and development stage. Some of the biggest names in tech and finance originally backed it before reversing course as a result of regulatory scrutiny.

    Many jurisdictions were concerned about the prospect of Facebook — a company with a troubled reputation in the realm of data and privacy — being the primary backer of a cryptocurrency. To help address the issues, Facebook pivoted to making Diem a stable crypto, backed by a national currency.

    The Diem Association had originally been trying to gain licensing approval with Switzerland’s FINMA watchdog. According to CNBC, however, the association has changed direction and will move to the US. The association has partnered with Silvergate, a California bank, to back Diem with the US dollar.

    “While our plans take the project fully within the US regulatory perimeter and no longer require a license from FINMA, the project has benefited greatly from the intensive licensing process in Switzerland and the constructive feedback from FINMA and more than two dozen other regulatory authorities from around the world convened by FINMA to consider the project,” Stuart Levy, Diem’s CEO, said in a statement.