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Twitch offers streamers a way to safely use licensed music

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Twitch streamers are no strangers to DMCA music claims. Over the summer, the platform acknowledged a flood of takedown requests for older videos, which could’ve potentially put streamers in jeopardy of consequences under Twitch’s content policy. The company has offered a library of free-to-use tunes for years, but using a song from one of today’s popular artists could land you in hot water. Rapper (and streamer) Logic recently explained that several of his “gaming homies” have wanted to use his music on streams, but his label Universal Music Group (UMG) wouldn’t allow it. The song rights issue for Twitch changes a bit today as the company debuts Soundtrack by Twitch: a tool made specifically for the platform’s creators that should ease some anxiety about music choices.

Soundtrack by Twitch is in beta right now, but it offers over a million licensed tracks for use in streams. The library of available audio content includes songs from over 30 independent labels including Alpha Pup, Anjunabeats, Chillhop, DistroKid, EMPIRE, Future Classic, Monstercat, Nuclear Blast, SoundCloud and United Masters. While it’s unclear exactly which artists from these labels will be available on Twitch, their artists rosters include the likes of XXXtentacion, Young Dolph and Flume. Nuclear Blast is a big heavy metal label, with bands like Biohazard, Agnostic Front, Hatebreed, Lamb of God, Meshuggah and more. SoundCloud has already been working with Twitch to help musicians earn money from livestreams during the COVID-19 pandemic, so its inclusion on the list isn’t much of a surprise. Of course, Twitch is also angling Soundtrack as a way for new artists to get discovered when they’re featured on a stream. DistroKid, for example, is a self-distribution service that helps artists get their music on streaming platforms, so there’s plenty of aspiring acts there.

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More inclusive emoji will come to iPhones in iOS 14.2

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The latest iOS betas nearly always reveal a glimpse into what to expect when the rest of us update our iPhones. If you’re into emoji, then iOS 14.2 might be a treat. The new additions, detailed by Emojipedia, should be only a few weeks away, include transgender flags and the trans symbol, bubble tea and a ninja — finally.

Sound familiar? Apple previewed some of its emoji updates back in July, but now we get to see all of them — and decide which will be our new favorites. The update includes gender variations for both the tuxedo and veil emojis, now reclassified as gender-neutral emoji. There’s also bottle feeding emoji across genders, which will exist alongside the breastfeeding icon from 2017. While there are new emoji for flies and cockroaches, I believe this to be the most 2020 emoji.

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Marshall’s latest headphones last over 80 hours on a charge

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In addition the recognizable Marshall script, textured black surfaces and gold accents guitar nerds are familiar with, the Major IV has a similar collapsable design as the previous model. The multi-directional control knob that lets you handle play/pause, skipping tracks, volume and calls returns as well. In terms of upgrades, the company says it added softer ear cushions for increased comfort. Those pads also have a different shape, which should help with the fit. Inside, 40mm dynamic drivers send “roaring bass, smooth mids and brilliant treble” into your ears. Marketing quotes aside, previous Marshall headphones sounded pretty good when we tested them, so there’s a solid track record for the company to base its claims.

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Dirac’s spatial audio tech will soon be built into wireless headphones

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This new “spatial audio solution” does two key things. First, as the name suggests, it upscales stereo content to immersive audio. Dirac compares the end result to what you might hear from a home theater setup, only this technology doesn’t require content to be specifically mixed for spatial audio. Second, the tech includes speaker optimization. Dirac has experience with room correction and calibration, and now it’s putting those systems to use in wireless headphones. The company says the result is “maximized sound quality” without a hardware upgrade. What’s more, it can be added to existing headphones via a firmware update. That goes for the spatial audio feature as well.

This will be especially useful for companies that make true wireless earbuds. Over the last two years, the buds themselves have gotten increasingly smaller as headphone makers improve comfort and fit. Of course, that means less room for components like speakers — and less room for them to operate effectively. Companies may need to rely on sound enhancement tech like what Dirac has built in order to avoid sacrifices in audio performance. Plus, Dirac will offer the speaker optimization on its own without spatial audio, so headphone makers can “focus solely on maximizing headphone sound quality.”

Dirac says Klipsch and RHA are already planning to integrate the spatial audio tech in upcoming headphones. And you can bet the integration will be part of the pitch when those models are announced, whether the companies mention Dirac by name or not.

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Facebook brings Messenger into Instagram DMs

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During a briefing with reporters, Facebook representatives repeatedly emphasized that the update is not merging your Facebook and Instagram account, or combining your inboxes. If you use both apps, you’ll still be able to send and receive messages separately. Facebook is also allowing you to control whether or not you want non-Instagram users to be able to message you on Instagram and whether non-Facebook users can chat with you on Messenger.

Facebook will allow you to choose who you want to send you messages.

Facebook

Loredena Crisan, VP of Product Design for Messenger compared the change to making Facebook’s messaging more like email. “Just like today you could talk to a Gmail account if you have a Yahoo account, these accounts will be able to talk to each other through the shared protocol that is Messenger,” Crisan said.

The change also comes with some other upgrades to Instagram’s in-app messaging, which has long lagged behind Messenger. Instagram users will be able to forward messages, add reactions or set chats to automatically disappear with a new ”vanish mode.” The update will also improve Instagram’s tools for reporting harassment and other rule-breaking behavior as Messenger has more sophisticated reporting tools.

Instagram is adding a "vanish mode" for disappearing chats.

Facebook

Still, the change could be controversial. Unlike Facebook, which requires people to use their real names, Instagram has no such policy. And some may not necessarily want their real identity to be linked to their Instagram account. 

Crisan said that Facebook took this into account when creating the feature, and that “we do not want to even risk leaking the identities across the across the apps,” which is why the social network is allowing users to disable cross-app messaging if they choose.

At the same time, Facebook has previously admitted to linking users’ accounts across its apps  — even if they had never chosen to do so — so the concern isn’t totally unwarranted.

The good news is that all of this is still optional — at least for now. Though Facebook is making the feature available to Instagram and Messenger users, it’s not forcing them to switch over to the “new experience.”

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Seattle law forces Uber to pay drivers a minimum hourly wage

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Seattle based its pay standard on a similar law passed in New York in 2018. California has taken measures further, requiring Uber and Lyft to classify drivers as employees, ensuring they’ll get benefits and make a living wage. All the measures are aimed at companies that have created armies of contract workers without the rights of regular employees.

Ride-sharing firms have vigorously opposed such laws, claiming they put drivers out of work and increase rates for customers. “The city’s plan is deeply flawed and will actually destroy jobs for thousands of people — as many as 4,000 drivers on Lyft alone — and drive ride-share companies out of Seattle,” a Lyft spokesperson told the NYT.

On top of the increased rates, the Seattle law requires Uber and Lyft to hand all tips over to drivers and to not count tips toward the minimum wage. They must also reimburse drivers for the costs of masks and other protective equipment.

The city may extend the minimum wage rules to other gig workers, as well. “I hope in the future we can work on similar legislation for other drivers … such as delivery drivers of packages as well as delivery drivers of meals and food,” said council member Lisa Herbold.

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Twitter is expanding voice tweets on iOS and introducing trans

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When Twitter introduced voice tweets earlier this summer as a way to send more personalized messages, it caught a lot of flack for not including accessibility features. Now, the company said it will add transcriptions for voice tweets as part of an initiative to promote accessibility within its products. It’s also expanding the voice tweet feature, which is still only available on iOS, effective immediately.

After voice tweets arrived in a testing phase, critics pointed out that it should have had captions from the get-go as required by Federal law. Twitter then surprisingly admitted that it didn’t have a dedicated accessibility team, but instead relied on employees to donate additional time to work on those features. Since then, the company has launched two separate teams dedicated to accessibility, including one for its products.



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The FCC’s new anti-robocall rules prevent surprise charges for consumers

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Back in March, the FCC ordered all carriers and phone companies to adopt the STIR/SHAKEN protocol by June 30th, 2021 as an effort to combat robocalls. Now, the commission has announced new rules to clarify carriers’ obligations regarding the technology’s implementation. One of those new rules, for instance, protects consumers from surprise charges. To be precise, it prohibits voice service providers from adding line-item charges to their bills for caller ID authentication.

The FCC is also requiring providers to upgrade their networks if they currently can’t implement STIR/SHAKEN, which is an Internet Protocol standard for IP-based networks. Otherwise, they’ll have to develop a non-IP caller ID verification solution. That said, the FCC will give small voice providers that can’t adopt the technology yet “limited extensions,” so long as they implement robocall mitigation programs.

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Google Meet’s 60-minute limit on free calls won’t kick in until 2021

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Google expanded Meet’s availability earlier this year to give more people access to the video chat service in the midst of coronavirus-related lockdowns. The tech giant didn’t just make it available to everyone with a Gmail account, though, it also made its premium features accessible at no cost until September 30th. One of those premium features is the ability to make unlimited calls, without which users would have to deal with a 60-minute limit per call. The good news is that free Gmail users won’t have to worry about call limits tomorrow or anytime soon: the tech giant has extended their access to unlimited Meet calls until March 31st, 2021.

In a post announcing the extension, Meet Group Product Manager Samir Pradhan said Google wants to “continue helping those who rely on Meet to stay in touch” over the holiday season, especially since not everyone can travel to be with their families and friends. The post also talks about Meet’s recent feature additions, including the ability to cast Meet calls on TV, to join calls hands-free on the Nest Hub Max and to blur backgrounds. More recently, Google has also rolled out noise cancellation for Meet on Android and iOS to filter out background sounds for those who prefer taking video calls on their mobile devices.

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