This week, Instagram shared an update to its guidelines on the use of music in videos, including live broadcasts. The company is clarifying its restrictions to make it easier for users to understand what is acceptable and what puts their videos at risk. As well, the company has introduced a new alert that gives users a heads up when they're close to crossing the line.
Disney has released a new series on its Disney Plus streaming service, one that is filled with nothing but familiar scenes from the company's existing body of work. The only difference? The scenes, collectively called 'Zenimation,' replace the background music, dialogue, and other sounds, replacing them with realistic noises that you can use to relax or play as background noise.
In July 2019, it was revealed that Netflix declined to renew the then-new adult animated show Tuca & Bertie for a second season. The news was surprising as most Netflix shows usually get two or three seasons under their belt before being canceled. In a surprising turn of events, the show will live on, but its new home will be Adult Swim.
T-Mobile has announced that it is giving first responders in the United States free unlimited service on its network. This offering is intended to support first responders through their respective agencies, which can include police and sheriff's departments, fire departments, and EMT services. The service offers unlimited talk, text, and data, including access to the carrier's 5G network.
Epic has announced plans to stream another sneak peek at an upcoming movie in its Fortnite game. This time around, the company will be broadcasting one of the trailers for the action thriller movie Tenet, which is currently scheduled to premiere in theaters on July 17. This isn't the first time Epic has played a movie sample in Fortnite, but it won't be quite as stunning as the Star Wars preview.
Wearables company Fitbit has announced a new COVID-19 study it has launched to determine whether it can use its wearables and software to detect the infectious disease in users. The study is seeking participants in the US and Canada who will be given a series of questions within the Fitbit mobile app. The end game may be Fitbit's development of an algorithm to detect COVID-19 symptoms.
The CDC is singing a familiar song: stop snuggling, kissing, or otherwise being physically affectionate with chickens. The message has been preached many times in the past, each in reference to outbreaks of Salmonella, a bacterial disease most commonly acquired through contaminated water or food. Salmonella is common among chickens, as well, and that's a problem for backyard farmers.
New research out of Hong Kong brings humanity one step closer to the existence of cyborgs. The study, which was published in the prestigious journal Nature, details the creation of a biomimetic eye prototype that features a hemispherical retina made from a high-density nanowires array that is the machine equivalent of the photoreceptors found in the human eye. The prototype could pay the way for 'super vision' in robots and maybe, eventually, in humans, as well.
Netflix plans to start automatically canceling active account subscriptions, the company explained this week, though you likely don't have to worry about your own account. Netflix said that it will reach out to the account owner before it takes this action, giving them a chance to confirm that they want to keep their account active. If the account is canceled, the customer can restart it at any time.
NASA's ambitious OSIRIS-REx mission, which aims to collect a physical sample from the asteroid Bennu, finally has a date for the first touchdown attempt. Later this year, according to the space agency, its OSIRIS-REx spacecraft will touchdown at a previously determined location, collect some sample materials from the asteroid's surface, then return to space, eventually bringing that sample back to Earth.
Sphero, the company best known for its BB-8 toy robot, has announced the successful spin-off of its Company Six into a startup that will make robots for the government, military use, and more. Company Six will operate as an independent company, according to Sphero, which says that it will also work on artificial intelligence-based software designed for customers 'who work in dangerous situations.'
Epic released Fortnite version 12.60 in the early morning hours (for players in the Eastern Time Zone, at least), adding bug fixes and a number of other changes. One of the additions is a new Spy Game called 'Operation: Infiltration,' which requires players to team up and collect intel from the opposing team while protecting their own assets.