Bitcoin spot ETF volume rose, Coinbase went to court, Solana Mobile announces new device and Google cuts crypto apps in India | TechCrunch

January 19, 2024January 18, 2024 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Welcome to TechCrunch Crypto, formerly known as Chain Reaction. Alongside our regularly scheduled news bits, I’ll be testing out some recurring segments and features — so if you do (or don’t) like what you see, let me know at jacquelyn@techcrunch.com.

A lot of news transpired in the wild world of web3: Solana Mobile’s new device brought in over 30,000 preorders, the highly anticipated Electric Capital developer report showed good — and bad — news for developers, Coinbase went to court and India faced more crypto woes. More details below.

Reddit plans to launch IPO in March, report says | TechCrunch

January 19, 2024January 18, 2024 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Reddit is preparing to launch its initial public offering (IPO) in March, according to a new report from Reuters. The report notes that the move comes more than three years after the San Francisco-based social media platform first began eyeing an IPO. Reddit is planning to make its public filing in late February and complete the IPO by the end of March.

The company is looking to sell around 10% of its shares in the IPO, and will decide on what IPO valuation to pursue closer to the time of the listing. However, Reuters sources cautioned that Reddit’s IPO plans could potentially be pushed back, which has happened in the past.

Panera Sued: Alleged Charged Lemonade-Related Heart Issues | Entrepreneur

January 18, 2024 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Panera is facing more controversy over its charged lemonade.

A 28-year-old woman filed a lawsuit in a Delaware court on Thursday alleging that the beverage gave her heart problems.

Lauren Skerritt of Rhode Island claims that she drank two and a half of the highly-caffeinated Charged Lemonade beverages in April 2023 and began getting heart palpitations.

The suit alleges that Skerritt went to the emergency room the next day and was diagnosed with atrial fibrillation and has since continued to experience “recurrent episodes of rapid heartbeat that occur suddenly and without pattern.”

Samsung Galaxy S24 to come with a new Google AI feature, report says | Mashable

January 16, 2024January 15, 2024 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

It’s no secret that Samsung’s upcoming S-series smartphone flagships will heavily lean on AI smarts. Samsung calls the S24 phones, likely to be unveiled on January 17 during Samsung’s Galaxy Unpacked event, the “AI phones.”

Now, however, thanks to a series of what appear to be leaked marketing materials from Samsung (Evan Blass via 9to5Google), we know a little bit more about the phones’ specs, and one particularly interesting feature.

The feature, called “Circle to Search,” appears to be powered by Google’s artificial intelligence smarts. The leaked description says “search any image, video, or text on your screen. Circle, highlight, scribble, or tap to pinpoint what you’re curious about, no screenshots necessary.” We’d have to try it out to see how it works, but it sounds like a cool upgrade to Google Lens, which is a Google app that allows you to search with your phone’s camera.

YouTube will be slower if you’re using an ad blocker | Mashable

January 16, 2024January 15, 2024 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

YouTube is furthering its crusade against ad blockers by slowing down load times, our friends at PCMag report.

This is a continuation of a crackdown that started last fall. In October, YouTube warned users of their ad blocker usage with a prompt, “Ad blockers are not allowed on YouTube,” and options to either allow ads or subscribe to YouTube Premium ($13.99/month).

This move upset users, who scrambled to find alternatives to YouTube’s rules. As Mashable’s Alex Perry stated at the time, however, “The problem with this is that YouTube will almost certainly weed out working alternatives over time, so some degree of adaptability may be required here on the user end.”

Germany, Europe’s biggest economy, shrank last year | CNN Business

January 15, 2024 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Germany’s economy shrank last year for the first time since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, official data showed Monday, increasing the risk of an economic contraction in the wider euro area.

Gross domestic product was 0.3% lower in 2023 than in the previous year, according to Germany’s Federal Statistical Office (Destatis).

“Overall economic development faltered in Germany in 2023 in an environment that continues to be marked by multiple crises,” Destatis president Ruth Brand said in a statement.

Although inflation has eased, prices remain high throughout the economy and have put a damper on economic growth, she added. “Rising interest rates and weaker domestic and foreign demand also took their toll.”

Uber is shutting down alcohol delivery app Drizly | CNN Business

January 15, 2024 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Uber is shutting down its alcohol delivery app, Drizly, just three years after acquiring it for $1.1 billion.

Buoyed by the pandemic-era at-home delivery boom, Drizly had grown to become the largest online marketplace for alcohol in North America, but it will officially shut down at the end of March 2024, according to Uber.

The alcohol delivery service operated as a standalone app, and its technology was integrated into Uber’s delivery app, Uber Eats.

In a statement, Pierre Dimitri Gore-Coty, Uber’s senior vice president of delivery, said Uber had decided to focus on its “core Uber Eats strategy of helping consumers get almost anything – from food to groceries to alcohol – all on a single app.”

Apple Expands Self-Service Repair with New Diagnostic Tool, Extends Reach in Europe | Small Biz Trend

January 10, 2024January 10, 2024 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Apple Inc. has expanded its Self Service Repair program and introduced a new diagnostic tool, aimed at giving users greater autonomy in troubleshooting issues with their Apple devices.

This expansion brings the Self Service Repair program to the iPhone 15 lineup and Mac models powered by the M2 chip, including the 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro, 15-inch MacBook Air, Mac mini, Mac Pro, and Mac Studio. More notably, Apple has extended this service to 24 additional European countries, such as Croatia, Denmark, Greece, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Switzerland. With this latest growth, the program now supports 35 Apple products across 33 countries, accessible in 24 languages.

A key development in this expansion is the introduction of Apple Diagnostics for Self Service Repair, which is currently available in the U.S. and expected to launch in Europe next year. This tool empowers users, particularly those with the expertise to repair Apple devices, by providing the same diagnostic capabilities as those available to Apple Authorized Service Providers and Independent Repair Providers. It allows for comprehensive testing of device parts for functionality and performance, thereby identifying necessary repairs.

3 underrated sci-fi movies on Amazon Freevee in January | Digital Trends

January 9, 2024January 7, 2024 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

The best part about Amazon Freevee is that, as the name implies, movies are free to access. You don’t need a paid Amazon Prime subscription to watch, but you will get periodic ads throughout the film. That’s not a huge deal: it’s just the right amount of time to refill your drink or popcorn or take a quick bathroom break.

The movie selection on Amazon Freevee is always changing, making it tough to keep up. If you’re looking for something in the sci-fi space, these are three underrated sci-fi movies on Amazon Freevee that you should watch in January before they’re gone. All of them are from the ’70s and ‘80s, but they still hold up today. Mad Max (1979)

Mad Max isn’t your typical fly-under-the-radar movie because it was popular enough to spawn several sequels in the ‘80s, followed by Mad Max: Fury Road in 2015 and Furiosa in 2024. However, the post-apocalyptic and dystopian action film had initially polarized critics who felt it lacked emotion due to its violent story. Boy, were they wrong. Over time, views clearly changed on the movie, which stars Mel Gibson as the titular character. He’s a police officer in the future who kills a biker gang as revenge for the murders of his wife and child. He then spends his days drifting alone through a wasteland, trying to help others (and himself) survive.

Carrefour to halt Pepsi sales over price rises | BBC

January 5, 2024January 4, 2024 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Grocery giant Carrefour will stop selling Pepsi products in France, citing “unacceptable price increases”.

The supermarket started putting up signs in stores on Thursday to inform customers of the decision, which will affect products such as Pepsi soda, Doritos and Quaker cereals.

Pepsi said it would continue to try to negotiate in “good faith”.

The spat comes as France continues to grapple with food prices that are rising uncomfortably quickly.

The most recent report from the government statistics agency estimated that food prices rose 7.1% in December from a year earlier.