Wednesday, November 30, 2016

Netflix gets offline viewing. It's The Daily Crunch.

THE DAILY CRUNCH
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 30 2016 By Darrell Etherington

The Daily Crunch 11/30/16

Netflix has an offline mode. Netflix has an offline mode. Netflix has an offline mode. Also other things in The Daily Crunch for November 30, 2016. And if you're a Prisma fan, shed a tear for Facebook Live integration.

1. Netflix finally gets an offline mode

Today is a historic day: Netflix now lets you store content offline for viewing when you're not connected to the Internet. Amazon Prime has offered this previously, but this is Netflix we're talking about.

Let's declare a national holiday. If you're looking for pointers, here's how it works.

2. GoPro to cut 15% of global workforce

GoPro tried to bury the lede in a press release about Black Friday sales today, but the real metric to watch is that its cutting 15 percent of its workforce, or around 200 jobs. Also its president, Tony Bates, is stepping down at the end of the year. GoPro is on a streak of bad luck, including its drone recall, so it really needs to chug the Mountain Dew and get amped on a turnaround quick.

3. Eric Schmidt-backed data science startup gets more funding

Civis sounds like a game I'd like to play about city-building, but it's actually a data science startup founded by Barack Obama's 2012 campaign analytics guru. Civis has customers including the 2020 US Census, so it must be doing something right.

4. Facebook shuts the gate

Facebook why? Prisma just launched the ability to add its art filters to FB Live streams earlier this month but the social networking giant says "no more" now that it's doing its own. Facebook says it's because the API isn't being used as intended, but really it just wants to greedily own all your attention on mobile.

5. Lucid is going to make EVs in Arizona in 2017

More electric carmakers is better for everyone, and Lucid Motors looks ready to enter the fray with a manufacturing facility set to open in 2017 in Arizona. Lucid's first car is a four-door sedan, with a max 400-mile range. Hopefully this one makes it past the hype phase.

6. xHamster login dump

Logins and passwords are sensitive things – perhaps more sensitive when they're for membership to a porn website. About 380,000 xHamster users might have cause for embarrassment after a dump of credentials was posted to LeakBase. There's a cache you can't clear.

7. Spark gets a desktop client

Email! Still no good way to deal with it. But Spark comes close, and now the mobile-first client is available on macOS. Email still sucks though.

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Tuesday, November 29, 2016

Uber encounters a data double-bind. It's The Daily Crunch

THE DAILY CRUNCH
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 29 2016 By Darrell Etherington

The Daily Crunch 11/29/16

Uber wants more location data, Amazon wants to mess up a good thing with screens, and Intel has new friends in the autonomous car race. All that and more in The Daily Crunch for November 29, 2016. And if you've always wanted cable but not the box and subscription, this could be your moment.

1. Uber's looking for more data

Uber's app now asks for access to a user's data at all times in the background, not just while a person is using the app. The company says that it needs the added data to improve its pick-ups and drop-off points, which is probably part of its larger effort to own its own map stack.

This is actually probably an issue with the way Apple does location permission – it's a total binary, you either get data while the app is in use or continuously in the background, but nothing in between. Uber probably only needs data for a few minutes after a user leaves the app, to help them correctly pinpoint location post-trip, but it's all or nothing.

2. Amazon's next Echo could sport a screen

I maintain that the reason Echo and Alexa work so well is because Amazon didn't put a screen on its smart speakers, but that assumption will be tested if these reports of a forthcoming Echo speaker with a 7-inch screen designed for kitchen use prove true. Definitely better for recipes, though.

3. Uber adds web-based bookings for India

Apps aren't the standard way of working on mobile everywhere. Uber now has bookings via web for its India users, which is a great option for lower-cost devices that either don't have the storage or aren't up-to-date enough to support installation of apps.

4. Intel joins team Mobileye/Delphi

Mobileye and Delphi want to make it easy for automakers to purchase self-driving car systems like any other component, and now chipmaker Intel is on board with those plans, too. It's a strong team, but this space is far from settled.

5. Zenefits will have to pay $7M for its licensing shortcuts

The time has come for Zenefits to pay the piper for its insurance broker license shortcuts in California, and the cost is set at $7 million in penalties. This looks like the largest fine to date in its settlements with various states, but the good news is that the company only has to pay half the amount provided it keeps up good behavior in terms of licensing and regulatory requirements.

6. Theranos is getting sued by more investors

If Theranos continues to exist beyond next year, it'll probably be via pure force of will on founder Elizabeth Holmes' part. This latest suit is also looking to become a class action.

7. AT&T finally goes live and over-the-top with DirecTV Now

A $35 monthly streaming service for cord-cutters from a major traditional TV service provider? It happened. The end of the world i nigh.

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