Items tagged with YouTube
Sony's PlayStation 5 made its big debut yesterday, and the results were definitely mixed with regards to its design. The console's design is definitely more "out there" than the now seemingly quaint Xbox Series X, and has drawn a lot of criticism in the process. The console has a central strip that is black, which is flanked by white "wings" that curve outward at the top. The design has been likened from everything to the original Nintendo Wii attempting to cosplay as Batman to a modern interpretation of the original Xbox 360 (the RRoD-prone one). Gathered below are some of our favorite social "burns" of the PlayStation 5 that have rolled through since the console was officially unveiled:...
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In what is a humorous turn of event, an 8-year-old has seemingly found a bug in Apple’s parental controls that allowed her to view YouTube videos despite the fact that Screen Time was enabled. Screen Time allows parents/guardians to block off access to certain apps, or all apps on an iPhone or iPad after a set amount of time has passed, or during a certain time block (i.e. between 10pm and 7am). The bug involves using the Messages app, which for some reason is allowing unauthorized access to flow through its pearly gates. Pulling off this trick is relatively simple if you follow these steps. Open the Messages app Start a new text message Using the iMessages mini app bar, slide over and...
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Google is channeling its inner Bart Simpson and has a message for TikTok, the insanely popular short-form video service: "Eat my Shorts!" That is not a direct quote, mind you, but is the first thing that came to mind when we found out Google is launching a rival short-form video feature of its own through its YouTube division, called Shorts. It is easy to see why Google would be interested in doing this. TikTok has taken the social media scene storm with 800 million active users worldwide. Collectively in Apple's App Store and Google's Play Store, the TikTok app has been downloaded over 1.5 billion times. And according to data from Influencer Marketing Hub, TikTok has the highest follower engagement...
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Many of us have lately found ourselves working more home and relying more on digital entertainment. However, this greater need for the Internet can also lead to network congestion. Several streaming services are currently looking for ways to ease this congestion. Amazon Prime Video, Netflix, and YouTube have all recently announced that they plan to reduce bit rates in Europe. European Union Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton recently posted a tweet that stated, “To secure Internet access for all, let’s #SwitchToStandard definition when HD is not necessary.” Netflix was the first to jump on board. The company has promised to decrease bitrates in Europe and believe that...
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YouTube Premium is the paid version of the ever-popular YouTube streaming service that offers ad-free and background playback of videos and music along with offline downloads. A new offer page has been seen by some YouTube Premium subscribers that offers paying viewers one free channel membership per month. Channel memberships are a way for fans to support the creators they like. The channel member subscriptions start at $4.99 per month, while some of the creators offer different levels that cost additional money. A paid subscriptions give access to things like member-only videos, streams, community posts, or live chats along with custom channel badges and emoji. The first signs of the new channel...
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Activision Blizzard and Google have announced a multi-year strategic relationship that will see Google Cloud services as the preferred provider for Activision Blizzard's game hosting infrastructure. YouTube will act as the exclusive streaming partner globally, excluding China, for live broadcasts of Activision Blizzard's popular eSports leagues and events. Activision Blizzard says that it sought a partner to help enhance its gaming infrastructure while delivering superior, low-latency player experiences. It says it turned to Google Cloud because of its highly reliable global footprint, advanced data analytics, and AI capabilities. Benefits for players under the new arrangement include low...
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YouTube has included long-standing restrictions for video that has violent gaming footage. YouTube has now announced that it will change its guidelines to allow it to be more permissive in allowing depictions of violence in video games. The caveat is that the violence can't be the sole focus of the video. The rule change started on December 2 with YouTube stating that on that date, scripted or simulated violent content found in video games will be treated the same as scripted content in TV or movies. YouTube announced the change in its policies on Twitter, noting that it had heard gamers "loud and clear" that its policies needed to change. Gaming Creators: We’ve heard loud and clear that...
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Amazon and Google have settled their spat that has been going on for over a year now. YouTube was pulled from Amazon Fire TV devices back in late 2017. Google pulled YouTube from Fire TV devices in part because of Amazon's business practices that involved not selling Google products like Chromecast and not offering Prime Video for Chromecast users. Things have turned around, and the spat is now over with Google announcing the availability of Prime Video on Chromecast and Android TV. Google says that YouTube is also back on Fire TV devices; the apps are on both platforms starting today. Google brags that Chromecast and Chromecast built-in users now have access to over 2,000 apps for...
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Summer is here, which means that many children around the country are out of school and waiting for September to roll around to get back into the daily grind. With this in mind, there are lots of students, teachers, and folks on vacation who want something to watch on those long, hot, lazy summer days. If you are a cord cutter finding something to watch can be a challenge, but YouTube TV subscribers have something to binge on. YouTube TV has announced that it is giving away months of free Showtime to subscribers. That will give you plenty of time to binge on Ray Donovan, Billions, and other shows and movies the premium cable network offers. It's not clear right now if all YouTube TV subscribers...
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There was plenty of applause and copious cheers at Apple's WWDC event earlier this week, where it unveiled several OS updates, a burly refresh of its Mac Pro, and a fancy 6K monitor. Apple also announced a $999 Pro Stand, but to a different reaction—boos and groans swept over previously excited developers in attendance. In the aftermath of the event, it seems Apple is seeking to silence YouTubers who focus on that particular part of the keynote. Some videos on YouTube that highlighted the boos and groans have been taken offline. It appears as though Apple has been sending takedown requests to YouTube, on the basis of copyright infringement. We can't recall Apple ever doing this before,...
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If you've ever questioned your financial worth or how much you're making at your current job, you might want to stop reading at this point. A new report is detailing just how much the world's top streamers can earn for a few hours of streaming, and it is a staggering amount. The report from the Wall Street Journal claims that some of the top game publishers like Electronic Arts, Activision Blizzard and Take-Two are paying streamers upwards of $50,000 to stream. And no, we're not talking about $50,000 for a week's or even day's worth or work. Instead, these companies are paying $50,000 per hour. Tyler 'Ninja' Blevins These publishers are counting on the huge followings...
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Google and Amazon have long feuded when it comes to their streaming offerings, which means that users beholden to each respective platform have needlessly suffered. As a result of the tech giant squabbling, Fire TV users have been without the YouTube app since late 2017, while the Prime Video app has been missing from the Google Chromecast. However, the two companies today officially announced a truce. Google's YouTube app will now be available on Fire TV streaming devices and Fire TV Edition Smart TVs. Likewise, Amazon's Prime Video app will be accessible on Android TV, Chromecast and devices that have integrated Chromecast capabilities. But it doesn't end there. It has also been revealed...
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When YouTube TV launched at a price of $35/month, it was seen as a breath of fresh air in the streaming TV market. The service offers live programming (including local network channels) that can be streamed from just about any device, and includes Cloud DVR functionality. However, the $35 monthly price rose to $40 in March 2018, and now Google is instituting another price increase for YouTube TV. Effective immediately for new customers, YouTube TV subscriptions will cost $50 per month. A $15/month increase in two years sounds like something that we’re used to from Big Cable, and not more lithe competitors in the streaming world, but here we are. And we’ve...
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Could YouTube partly be responsible for the increase in “flat earthers”? Researchers have discovered that many flat earthers were persuaded by YouTube videos. Many of these videos had been recommended or promoted by YouTube’s algorithm. A “flat earther” is a person who believes that the earth is a flat plane or disc instead of a sphere. Many ancient civilizations including the Greeks, Egyptians, and Mesopotamians held this belief and incorporated the theory into their cosmology. Although modern scientists have concluded that the earth is a sphere, the flat earth theory never truly disappeared. The theory has recently gained popularity thanks to social media. Dr....
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Following its initial launch in select markers back in 2017, Google has announced that its YouTube TV streaming service is now launching nationwide today. YouTube TV is up against a number of big players in the market including DirecTV Now, Sling TV, and Hulu + Live TV. This market expansion should make the service appealing to even more Americans at a $40/month price point. Google says that YouTube TV is now available in the top 95 markets, as of today, and that 98% of households in the U.S. are covered. The remainder of the people not covered today will get coverage "shortly thereafter" today's nationwide launch. The benefit of YouTube TV is that it allows users to watch feeds...
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When the average American likely thinks of a hardcore gamer, they likely picture some nerdy kid with a beard and a ponytail living in his mom's basement. However, the world of professional Ninja, aka Tyler Blevins, is a 27-year-old Fortnite beast that has not only helped to popularize the incredibly prolific game, but has amassed a huge following on his two social media platforms of choice: YouTube and Twitch. On YouTube, has nearly 21 million subscribers. On Twitch, he has 12.8 million followers. Ninja’s “street cred” skyrocketed back in March 2018 when he teamed up with rapper Drake for a Twitch live stream. That stream broke records at the time with over 660,000...
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Yesterday, a story critical of Google was making the rounds purported to be from a former intern that worked on the Microsoft Edge team. Joshua Bakita detailed one particular instance in which Google allegedly altered site code to make Google apps/website either not render properly or perform poorly on competing browsers. "For example, they recently added a hidden empty div over YouTube videos that causes our hardware acceleration fast-path to bail," wrote Bakita. "Prior to that, our fairly state-of-the-art video acceleration put us well ahead of Chrome on video playback time on battery, but almost the instant they broke things on YouTube, they started advertising Chrome's dominance...
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YouTube has been pushing its upscale YouTube Music and YouTube Premium services since it hacked YouTube Red into two parts last May. The streaming video giant is now reaching out to students by offering lower-cost subscription plans to YouTube Music Premium and YouTube Premium; both are ad-free streaming services. Under the new payment plans, Students can get YouTube Music Premium for $4.99 per month, a discount of $5 monthly. YouTube Premium will cost students $6.99 per month rather than the $11.99 monthly rate it charged before. Students that sign up before January 31, 2019, can get YouTube Premium for $5.99 per month pricing locked in for four years. For those unfamiliar with YouTube...
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If you are looking for something to watch on a lazy Sunday afternoon, YouTube is showing some top-tier Hollywood films in their entirety, but you do have to sit through some commercials to watch them for free. Among the free movies, you can watch are the sci-fi classic The Terminator, Rocky, and newer films like Legally Blonde. These free, feature-length movies are offered in the Movies section of YouTube and have been there since October. YouTube has sold movies in that section of its website for years. This marks the first time that YouTube has offered free streaming films in exchange for users watching ads. A quick search on YouTube shows that the full-length film The Terminator has ten commercial...
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As much as we like Nintendo's hybrid Switch console for gaming, there is not much in the way of non-gaming entertainment, and certainly not on the level of an Xbox One or PlayStation 4. If the latest rumor has any truth to it, however, Nintendo might be starting to change that with the introduction of a YouTube app, perhaps as early as this week. The streaming situation on the Switch is underwhelming at the moment. Nintendo launched the console with not just a limited catalog of games (which has since been rectified), but also a lack of any streaming video services. That changed a year ago this month when Nintendo introduced support for Hulu. However, both Netflix and YouTube remain noticeably...
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Over the years, Plex has grown to become a feature-packed multimedia hub for people looking to cut the cord. From its support for news programming, live over-the-air programming with DVR support, and the usual staples like local- and internet-based streaming of music, movies and TV shows; Plex seemingly does it all. Today, however, the company has announced yet another new extension to the platform, and it's called Plex Web Shows. Currently available in beta, this free service provides unlimited on-demand programming that you can view from anywhere. Plex is quick to point out that you don't need a paid subscription or a Plex server in order to take advantage of Plex Web Shows. You'll...
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We have all been down the rabbit hole that is the Internet. It starts with a simple search, perhaps a lookup of the weather for the weekend, and then hours later you find yourself streaming "Little Joe Sure Can Sing" by Joe Ritchie, who you found out is actually Joe Pesci from Goodfellas fame. And woe is you if you trip into a endless sea of YouTube videos. How do you possibly climb out if that happens? We're not sure, to be honest, though Google is now throwing users a lifeline of sorts by showing you how much time you spend watching videos. This is a new feature that is rolling out to user profiles, available in the account menu starting today. The profile lets you know how long you've watched...
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