5.25.2016
Good to Know: Anything is possible on the Internet! Stay-at-home mom Candace Payne just wanted to have a little fun and prove that she was the proud owner of an electronic Chewbacca mask. She posted a Facebook Live video wearing the mask, and the rest is history. In no time, her video racked up over 141 million views making it the most watched video via the feature. She’s landed guest spots on late night talk shows and paid a visit to the Zuck at FB HQ.
THE SKINNY
When Something Is No Longer A Thing …
Car ownership may likely become a thing of the past. Thanks to tech companies, it’s becoming easier and cheaper to get from Point A to Point B without owning a car. Automakers can’t beat tech companies so they’re joining them.
When You Need to Get On Board …
Toyota and Volkswagen are the latest automakers to say “we want in” when it comes to how tech is disrupting the auto industry. While Toyota is teaming up with U.S. ride hailing service Uber, Volkswagen is partnering with European app Gett. Both automakers have invested heavily in each service and are trying to figure out how they’ll continue to grow in this new world of ride-hailing and self-driving cars.
When You Have A Bit More Time …
The future of auto is all about “mobility services” aka car-sharing and ride-sharing. Industry analysts say we’re not quite there yet. But in the meantime, Toyota wants to be all in on mobility (e.g., Toyota’s planning to create in-cars for Uber drivers). Volkswagen is trailing behind Toyota as it deals with its emission-cheating scandal, but the German automaker plans to release what it’s calling “Strategy 2025,” a plan for its mobility efforts, this summer.
QUICK POLL – BY THE NUMBERS
WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?
Keeping It As Local as possible…
Ever tried to access content online only to get hit with the “this video is not available in your country” message? The formal term for that message is called “geo-blocking.” And, the European Union (EU) has had enough of it and other barriers to online shopping across its 28 Member States. So, it’s come up with a new proposal for the Netflix, Amazon, and iTunes of the world: Get more European content up on your services. At least 20 percent of each catalog to be exact. This is all according to a proposal put out by the EU this week. Only problem is Netflix and a European tech industry group DigitalEurope say that setting a quota for European content production won’t help protect local content. But instead, could hurt biz models. Meanwhile, European screenwriters and authors want even higher quotas. In a nutshell, no one is happy with the idea.
ICYMI: Peer-To-Peer (Money) Petty
Is peer-to peer money transfer app making its users petty? Check out our post on this from earlier this week, and share your Venmo petty story in the comments!
THE STREETS ARE TALKIN’
Is investor Peter Thiel for free press or not? Word on the street is that Thiel (on the low) bankrolled Hulk Hogan’s lawsuit against media company Gawker. Hogan beat Gawker and was awarded US $140 million in damages. Thiel has history with Gawker. The company publicly outed Thiel in a piece called “Peter Thiel is Totally Gay, People.” We’ll let you draw your own conclusions.
Twitter is planning to ditch its 140-character word limit. Also, tagging people in replies, adding pics, GIFS, or video won’t count towards the tweet limit. Times are ah-changing …
French investigators paid a visit to Google’s Paris office over tax payments. France is claiming the Google machine owes it 1.6 billion euros (US $1.79 billion) in back taxes.
The level of FitBit’s accuracy depends on who you ask. Studies have shown mixed results in whether the wearable devices are accurate in tracking users’ activity.