Daily Crunch: Sources say Times Internet plans to sell Indian streaming platform MX Player to Amazon | TechCrunch

February 13, 2023February 12, 2023 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

The TechCrunch Top 3

Game on: Amazon is in talks to acquire Indian video streaming giant MX Player from Times Internet, Manish reports. He writes that the video app is “popular for supporting a wide range of video formats and reliability on low-cost Android smartphones, has expanded to original content in recent years and has amassed more than 300 million users globally.”
Gone phishing: Reddit confirmed that hackers accessed its internal data in what it is calling “a sophisticated phishing attack” that targeted its employees, Carly writes. The company said the attack gave hackers access to documents and source code.
And, just as quickly as it came, it left: Five days ago, India banned over 90 apps, some associated with China, related to lending. Today, Manish writes that this ban on apps, like PayU’s LazyPay, Kissht, KreditBee and Indiabulls’ Home Loans, was lifted.

Here’s why Twitter users are all posting Twitter Spaces links in their tweets | Mashable

February 10, 2023February 8, 2023 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

If you’ve been on Twitter over the past week or so, you’ve likely seen extremely viral tweets that include random links to Twitter Spaces, the platform’s audio chat room feature. If you’ve clicked on any of those Twitter Spaces links, you’ll likely find a nonsensical Twitter Spaces chat scheduled for some time in the future that’s completely unrelated to the tweet. The user also has no apparent intention of going live in their Twitter Spaces chat.

So, why are Twitter users doing this?

As with nearly every weird, quirky trend among Twitter users since Elon Musk acquired the company, the answer is simple: It’s because of the algorithm.

Disney has bigger problems than Ron DeSantis | CNN Business

February 9, 2023February 7, 2023 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Disney has found itself in the middle of a culture war battle that could end up transferring Disney World’s governance to a board appointed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. And that may be the least of Disney’s problems.

The company faces a media industry in turmoil, plunging cable subscriptions, a still-recovering box office, massive streaming losses, activist shareholders, possible reorganization and layoffs and growing labor disputes with employees. That’s a lot for CEO Bob Iger to handle.

Iger, who retired as CEO in 2020 only to be brought back in November, has been mostly quiet about his plans for the company since his return. That ends at 4:30 pm ET Wednesday when he is set to begin an earnings call with Wall Street investors.

Here’s what to look for on what is certain to be a closely-watched call.

Western US wildfires have destroyed 246% more homes and buildings this | Fast Company

February 7, 2023February 5, 2023 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

It can be tempting to think that the recent wildfire disasters in communities across the West were unlucky, one-off events, but evidence is accumulating that points to a trend.

In a new study, we found a 246% increase in the number of homes and structures destroyed by wildfires in the contiguous Western U.S. between the past two decades, 1999-2009 and 2010-2020.

This trend is strongly influenced by major fires in 2017, 2018, and 2020, including destructive fires in Paradise and Santa Rosa, California, and in Colorado, Oregon, and Washington State. In fact, in nearly every Western state, more homes and buildings were destroyed by wildfire over the past decade than the decade before, revealing increasing vulnerability to wildfire disasters.

What’s Stripe’s deal? | TechCrunch

January 31, 2023January 29, 2023 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Stripe eyes exit, reportedly tried raising at a lower valuation The big news in fintech this week revolved around payments giant Stripe.

On January 26, my Equity Podcast co-host and overall amazingly talented reporter Natasha Mascarenhas and I teamed up to write about how Stripe had set a 12-month deadline for itself to go public, either through a direct listing or by pursuing a transaction on the private market, such as a fundraising event and a tender offer, according to sources familiar with the matter. The news, as first reported by the Wall Street Journal, came as a surprise considering the rather dry public market activity in the tech world. Later that day, it also came to light that Stripe had reportedly approached investors about raising more capital — at least $2 billion — at a valuation of $55 billion to $60 billion.

Southwest Develops Software Fix to Prevent Travel Meltdowns | Entrepreneur

January 30, 2023January 29, 2023 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Following its disastrous Christmas travel season, which saw the cancellation of 16,700 flights, Southwest Airlines is testing new software fixes — and facing an inquiry from the Dept. of Transportation (DOT) for “unrealistic scheduling of flights.”

CNN reports that the airline’s existing software system will remain in place. However, changes stemming from Southwest’s review include a new command center team, telephone system improvements, and overall improved preparedness for inclement weather.

Panic Disorder: Causes and Treatment for Panic Attacks | Live Science

January 25, 2023January 23, 2023 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Panic disorder is a mental health condition that causes sudden and repeated bouts of extreme fear that can last for several minutes or even longer. These episodes are referred to as panic attacks. The attacks are characterized by heightened feelings of disaster or of losing control, even when there is no immediate threat.

At first, the fear can be limited to a specific circumstance, such as getting in an elevator or driving over a bridge. That can lead to situational avoidance, according to the American Psychological Association(opens in new tab) (APA). As the disorder progresses, the person begins to fear not just the situation, but also the possibility of having an attack, and retreats from many daily activities.

The California storms were great for wine | BBC News

January 19, 2023January 19, 2023 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

For several days, Jason Haas and his employees at the Tablas Creek Vineyard couldn’t reach their vines.

The January storms that pummelled California washed out the roads and burst river banks, making even the simplest commute treacherous. Their tasting room closed for four days.

But even so, he was thrilled.

The atmospheric rivers that swept through California for two weeks caused an estimated $30bn (£24bn) in damage. Up and down the state, the torrents collapsed hillsides, uprooted trees, and washed out highways. At least 20 people died, and millions were under flood warnings.

Alec Baldwin to be charged with involuntary manslaughter over Rust shooting | BBC News

January 19, 2023January 19, 2023 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Actor Alec Baldwin will be charged with involuntary manslaughter over the shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, who was killed on a film set when he fired a prop gun.

Mr Baldwin had been rehearsing a scene for the Western film Rust when the shooting happened at a ranch near Sante Fe, New Mexico in October 2021.

Hannah Gutierrez Reed, the film’s armourer, will also be charged.

Lawyers for both said they intended to fight the charges in court.

Santa Fe’s District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies announced the charges on Thursday, adding that they would be filed by the end of the month.

Coinbase to lay off 20% of staff as crypto winter continues | CNN Business

January 11, 2023January 10, 2023 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

The crypto winter is apparently not over yet. Coinbase announced Tuesday that it was laying off 950 people, about 20% of its staff. The job cuts come only a few months after another major round of layoffs. The crypto brokerage firm let 1,100 people go in June, about 18% of its headcount at the time.

Coinbase, like many other publicly traded and privately held crypto companies, has been hit hard by the massive plunge in the price of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. The price of bitcoin is hovering around $17,000 after peaking near $65,000 in late 2021.

Some crypto fans have been encouraged by the solid start for bitcoin so far in 2023. Bitcoin is up more than 4% since the start of the year, suggesting that crypto prices may have finally bottomed out.