Sunday, 30 June 2019
India vs England, ICC Cricket World Cup 2019: MS Dhoni’s lack of intent sticks out in spiritless chase
Dhoni was defeated before the defeat defeated him. On a night when Rishabh Pant and Hardik Pandya - playing their maiden World Cup - showed fight, the spirit fizzed out of Dhoni without a trace.
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Pokemon Sword and Shield's producer attempts to calm outraged fans - CNET
The new Pokemon games won't include every Pokemon ever. This has some fans upset.from CNET https://ift.tt/2ZSO46C
India vs England, ICC Cricket World Cup 2019: Virat Kohli says result would have been different if batsmen were more clinical
Kohli, who himself hit 66 off 76 deliveries, sought to play down the defeat, saying that his side were playing good cricket. India still have a good chance to qualify for the semifinals with 11 points from seven matches.
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Rajinikanth’s Darbar to face tough competition from three Telugu biggies on Sakranthi 2020 weekend
The makers of Rajinikanth-starrer Darbar may want to reschedule its release date since his last film Petta bombed at the Telugu box office.
The post Rajinikanth’s Darbar to face tough competition from three Telugu biggies on Sakranthi 2020 weekend appeared first on Firstpost.
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Google getting a new AirDrop-like feature called as Fast Share for file transfer
The Fast Share page has been spotted but it would appear that the feature is not usable as of now.
The post Google getting a new AirDrop-like feature called as Fast Share for file transfer appeared first on Firstpost.
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Sri Lanka vs West Indies, ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 Match Preview: Desperate Sri Lanka look to keep hopes alive in must-win game against battered West Indies
Mathematically still alive in the race for the semi-finals, Sri Lanka will aim to give their best shot against West Indies, who have just pride to play for in their World Cup encounter at Chester-le-Street
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‘Ok, let’s do it.’ says Donald Trump and makes history to become first sitting American leader to step into North Korean soil
'Ok, let's do it.' With those words, President Donald Trump became the first sitting American leader to step into North Korea on Sunday as the two made history at the heavily fortified Demilitarized Zone (DMZ)
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Xiaomi Mi 9 SE in for review
A lot like the Xiaomi Mi 9, but lighter and smaller. Also comes without the 3.5 mm audio jack and with more modest chipset and price - that's the Xiaomi Mi 9 SE's short story. Now that the phone is with us we will try and tell you the long one once we take it through our full testing procedure. You even might think SE stands for Small Edition, because it doesn't look that special. But when we tinkered around a little more, we realized it is a very snappy phone, with its Snapdragon 712 chipset and the 6 GB RAM. The weight of 155 grams and the small footprint will...
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Mumbai rains LIVE updates: It will rain for three more hours, says Skymet, predicts flooding for 3-5 July
Mumbai rains LIVE updates: Heavy rains lashed parts of Mumbai early on Monday causing havoc for office-goers. The rains showed little signs of abetting with the private weather forecaster Skymet recording 63 mm of rains within a span of six hours between 11.30 pm (Sunday) and 5.30 am (Monday).
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Sri Lanka vs West Indies, ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 Match Live Streaming: When and where to watch today’s match score online
Here's all you need to know about when and where you can watch the Sri Lanka vs West Indies ICC Cricket World Cup match.
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Daily Bulletin: Amarnath Yatra begins; Amit Shah to introduce J&K Reservation (Amendment) Act in Rajya Sabha today; day’s top stories
Amarnath Yatra begins today in Jammu and Kashmir; Tamil Nadu DMK to raise questions on water crisis during state assembly session; day's top stories.
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Asus 6Z’s 128 GB, 256 GB variants to go on sale today for the first time at 12 pm
The 6 GB RAM and 64 GB storage variant of the Asus 6Z already went on sale last month on Flipkart.
The post Asus 6Z’s 128 GB, 256 GB variants to go on sale today for the first time at 12 pm appeared first on Firstpost.
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IL&FS fraud case: Board to set up sub-committee to oversee process of disinvestment
The decision to form a sub-panel was taken in IL&FS's board meeting held on 28 June
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PUBG addiction: 15-year-old stabs brother for repeatedly interrupting his game
The boy allegedly banged his brother’s head against the wall and stabbed him repeatedly with scissors.
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Google gets the go ahead to provide Huawei with Android license after restrictions lift
Previous restrictions placed Huawei under the intense pressure of creating its own OS to counter Android.
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DHFL lenders to meet today to seek solution for Rs 90,000 cr debt; may consider conversion of debt into equity
The DHFL debt has been downgraded by multiple rating agencies as the stress kept building up, while the company has also deferred announcement of quarterly results last week.
The post DHFL lenders to meet today to seek solution for Rs 90,000 cr debt; may consider conversion of debt into equity appeared first on Firstpost.
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Govt to introduce new GST return filing system, further reforms today to mark two years of rollout
The government said GST has integrated India into a single common market by breaking barriers to inter-state trade and commerce
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How to watch NASA's critical safety test of the Orion crew capsule - CNET
The Orion module is set to take astronauts to the moon in 2024 but first needs to pass a test of its emergency abort system.from CNET https://ift.tt/320TvCa
Neil Gaiman's Sandman series may have a home at Netflix - CNET
The tale of Destiny, Death, Destruction, Despair, Desire and Delirium could be streaming soon.from CNET https://ift.tt/2XcLQNF
Ducati racer Carlin Dunne dead following Pikes Peak Hill Climb crash - Roadshow
The 36-year-old rider died less than a quarter mile from the finish line at the mountain's summit.from CNET https://ift.tt/2XlfVj5
Women's World Cup 2019: A game-changing tournament for female footballers - CNET
Commentary: The 2019 Women's World Cup is already living up to expectations. But life as a "pro" is far from smooth sailing.from CNET https://ift.tt/2JjNXKN
Saturday, 29 June 2019
ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 semi-final scenarios: As league phase enters business end, here’s a look at what teams need to do to qualify for last four
South Africa, Afghanistan and West Indies are out of reckoning while Australia made it to this year’s ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 semi-finals. With 11 matches remaining in the league stage, six teams are fighting to make it to the last four stage.
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The best of Music Inc 2019: Discussions on the dominance of film music, streaming services in India
Despite the snafus – occasionally clueless hosts and sloppy stage management – Music Inc was worth the while where it mattered the most: the presentations and the panel discussions.
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Akshay Kumar becomes brand ambassador, strategic advisor to fitness technology startup GOQii
Akshay Kumar will be conducting a quiz titled India Health Quiz, on GOQii Play, which is an exclusive Health and fitness OTT platform
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India and the Indian: Inequitable majority-minority relations no longer a fringe phenomenon
The minority is now officially reconfigured as an obstacle to development, a drain on resources, an alien and socially divisive element that weakens cultural cohesion; a primitive, non-modern and unassimilable remnant of the past.
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India vs England, ICC Cricket World Cup 2019: Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul’s leg-spin weakness should encourage hosts lay Adil Rashid trap early
India have made two 300-plus scores batting first this World Cup and in both those matches, Rohit made fifty or more. When he failed — against Afghanistan and West Indies — India made 224 and 268.
The post India vs England, ICC Cricket World Cup 2019: Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul’s leg-spin weakness should encourage hosts lay Adil Rashid trap early appeared first on Firstpost.
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Yogi Adityanath orders formation of district level teams to curb criminal activities in state, instructs UP Police to form anti-Romeo squad
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath instructed the officials to form teams at the district level to curtail the activity of criminals in the state. He advised the officials in Saharanpur, Muzaffarnagar and Shamli districts to take measures which will boost the confidence of civilians and instill the fear of police uniform in the state. He also added that officials who were not interested in working whole-heartedly for the betterment of the society needed to be sent home.
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Budgam encounter: Militants engage in firing as security forces launch search operation in central Kashmir’s Chadoora
Exchange of fire underway in Budgam district of Jammu and Kashmir after an encounter broke out between terrorists and security forces.
The post Budgam encounter: Militants engage in firing as security forces launch search operation in central Kashmir’s Chadoora appeared first on Firstpost.
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India vs England, Weather Update in Birmingham today: Sunny day with cool breeze expected during mega clash
There's no rain expected in Birmingham on Saturday as England get ready to take on India in a must-win World Cup 2019 encounter.
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Narendra Modi resumes monthly radio broadcast ‘Mann Ki Baat’; will address citizens first time after returning to power
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's radio programme 'Mann Ki Baat' will resume today almost a month after the prime minister returned to power. This will be the first 'Mann ki Baat' programme in Modi'd second consecutive term as the prime minister.
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Amarnath Yatra 2019: First batch of devotees start pilgrimage from Jammu base camp; authorities assure of adequate security
Advisor to the Governor in Jammu and Kashmir, KK Sharma flagged off the first batch of devotees for the Amarnath Yatra after conducting a puja at the Jammu base camp on Sunday.
The post Amarnath Yatra 2019: First batch of devotees start pilgrimage from Jammu base camp; authorities assure of adequate security appeared first on Firstpost.
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6 tips to keep your Facebook account safe
If one is careful, Facebook has robust tools and settings that can ensure your account is safe from prying eyes as well as invaders and stalkers.from Gadgets Now https://ift.tt/2FImYYb
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India vs England, ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 Match Preview: Virat Kohli’s men eye semis spot; elimination threat looms over hosts
England, despite coming into the World Cup as the top-ranked side in One-Day Internationals, have lost three pool matches, including their last two, against Sri Lanka and reigning champions Australia.
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36 countries where iPhone XS is cheaper than in India
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LG’s new phones, Bill Gates’ ‘biggest mistake’, Samsung’s fitness products and more in top tech news of the week
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How to use voice typing feature in Google Docs
Google Docs also come with built-in support for Google Voice typing feature that allows users to type without using their keyboard. The feature is available in several languages such as English, Afreekans, Nepali, Marathi, Hindi etc. Now, if you are curious about using this feature in your day-to-day life, here’s how to activate and use it.from Gadgets Now https://ift.tt/2KKzACd
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How to share WhatsApp Status to Facebook and other apps
For this feature to work on Facebook, you should have at least one of the following installed on your phone: Facebook or Facebook Lite app on Android or Facebook (iOS). In case of multiple updates, you can choose which updates you want to share.from Gadgets Now https://ift.tt/2RNxLoL
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Buying an iPhone online? How to check it's a brand new phone
There have been a few occurrences when customers have paid for new iPhones but have received old ones. If such a thing has happened with you then fret not as there is a clear way – with one catch – to find out if the iPhone you’ve bought is a new one or not.from Gadgets Now https://ift.tt/32aXYCC
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Daily Bulletin: Narendra Modi’s ‘Mann ki Baat’ resumes today; India to take on England in ICC World Cup; day’s top stories
Daily Bulletin: Narendra Modi returns with his 'Mann Ki Baat' address, thirty-six Uttar Pradesh office-bearers quit Congress following poll debacle, India take on England in ICC Cricket World Cup 2019; and more top stories of the day
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Pakistan vs Afghanistan, ICC Cricket World Cup 2019: Afghan skipper Gulbadin Naib requests supporters to keep calm after fan clashes
Afghanistan skipper Gulbadin Naib issued a plea to supporters after his team’s three-wicket defeat to Pakistan at the World Cup on Saturday was marred by clashes in the stands and outside the stadium.
The post Pakistan vs Afghanistan, ICC Cricket World Cup 2019: Afghan skipper Gulbadin Naib requests supporters to keep calm after fan clashes appeared first on Firstpost.
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India vs England, ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 Match Live Streaming: When and where to watch today’s match score online
With an unbeaten record in six encounters so far, India are all but through to the semi-finals with 11 points. Here's all you need to know about when and where to watch the upcoming match between England and India
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India vs England, ICC Cricket World Cup 2019: Virat Kohli vs Ben Stokes, Jasprit Bumrah vs Jos Buttler and other key battles
As India face England, we look at some key battles between players of the two teams which can spice up the contest to be played on Sunday
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Fuchsia OS is moving forward - developer portal goes live
Remember Fuchsia OS? It seems like every time we stumble upon an exciting new development regarding the mysterious open-source OS we have to dust it off from obscurity. That's just the nature of early development stage software, plus things are actually looking up on the exposure and availability side of things. After sharing a few tasty details about its side-project at the last I/O event, Google has now quietly launched a developer portal for Fuchsia OS. And to re-iterate the answer to everybody's pressing question before the comment section gets flooded again - NO, it is not...
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Plugmatter: 24/7 WordPress support at an amazing price
The AAPicks team writes about things we think you’ll like, and we may see a share of revenue from any purchases made through affiliate links.
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Friday, 28 June 2019
G20 Summit in Osaka: Donald Trump lavishes praise on Saudi Crown Prince, ignores questions about Khashoggi murder
United States President Donald Trump met Mohammed bin Salman on the last day of the ongoing G20 summit and said that the Saudi Crown Prince has done a 'spectacular job'.
The post G20 Summit in Osaka: Donald Trump lavishes praise on Saudi Crown Prince, ignores questions about Khashoggi murder appeared first on Firstpost.
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New Zealand vs Australia, ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 Match Preview: Kiwis eye last-four spot as they face defending champions
Peaking at the right time, Australia will resume their Trans-Tasman rivalry at the World Cup stage when they take on a New Zealand side low on confidence after its first defeat of the tournament on Saturday
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Pakistan vs Afghanistan, ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 Match Preview: Sarfaraz Ahmed and Co must keep resurgent run going for semi-finals spot
Staring at a possible league stage elimination after three defeats and a washout, Pakistan staged a remarkable comeback with wins over South Africa and New Zealand to keep their hopes alive.
The post Pakistan vs Afghanistan, ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 Match Preview: Sarfaraz Ahmed and Co must keep resurgent run going for semi-finals spot appeared first on Firstpost.
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New Zealand vs Australia match, Weather Update in London today: Clear skies expected as Kiwis look to seal semi-final spot
New Zealand will look to join Australia in the ICC Cricket World Cup semi-finals when they lock horns with the defending champions at Lord’s in Saturday’s second game in a re-match of last edition’s final.
The post New Zealand vs Australia match, Weather Update in London today: Clear skies expected as Kiwis look to seal semi-final spot appeared first on Firstpost.
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A rare glimpse into the sweeping — and potentially troubling — cloud kitchens trend
Independent restaurant owners are doomed, and perhaps grocery stores, too.
Such is the conclusion of a growing chorus of observers who’ve been closely watching a new and powerful trend gain strength: that of cloud kitchens, or fully equipped shared spaces for restaurant owners, most of them quick-serve operations.
While viewed peripherally as an interesting and, for some companies, lucrative development, the movement may well transform our lives in ways that enrich a small set of companies while zapping jobs and otherwise taking a toll on our neighborhoods. Renowned VC Michael Moritz of Sequoia Capital seemed to warn about this very thing in a Financial Times column that appeared last month, titled “The cloud kitchen brews a storm for local restaurants.”
Moritz begins by pointing to the runaway success of Deliveroo, the London-based delivery service that relies on low-paid, self-employed delivery riders who delivery local restaurant food to customers — including from shared kitchens that Deliveroo itself operates, including in London and Paris. He believes that Amazon’s recent investment in the company “might just foreshadow the day when the company, once just known as the world’s largest bookseller, also becomes the world’s largest restaurant company.”
That’s bad news for people who run restaurants, he adds, writing, “For now the investment looks like a simple endorsement of Deliveroo. But proprietors of small, independent restaurants should tighten their apron strings. Amazon is now one step away from becoming a multi-brand restaurant company — and that could mean doomsday for many dining haunts.”
The good news . . . and the bad
He’s not exaggerating. While shared kitchens have received accolades so far as a potential pathway for food entrepreneurs to launch and grow their businesses — particularly as more people turn to take out — there are many downsides to them that may well outweigh the good. Last year, for example, UBS wrote a note to its clients titled “Is the kitchen dead?” wherein it suggested that though few outside the food industry were paying much attention, the rise of food delivery apps like Deliveroo and Uber Eats could well prove ruinous for home cooks and as well as fresh food providers, including restaurants and supermarkets.
The economics are just too alluring, suggested the bank. Food is already inexpensive to have delivered because of cheap labor, and that will disappear entirely if delivery drones every take off. Meanwhile, food is becoming cheaper to make because of central kitchens, the kind that Deliveroo is opening and Uber is reportedly beginning move into, as well. (In March, Bloomberg reported that Uber is testing out a program in Paris where it’s renting out fully equipped, commercial-grade kitchens to serve businesses that selling food on delivery apps like Uber Eats.)
Yes, the businesses using the spaces are paying less than they would for traditional restaurant real estate, but the reality is also that most of the businesses moving into them right now aren’t small restaurateurs but quick service brands that aren’t particular known for emphasis on food quality but instead for churning out affordable food, fast.
As Eric Greenspan, an L.A.-based chef who has appeared on many Food Network shows and has opened and closed numerous restaurants over the course of his career, explains in a new, independent documentary about cloud kitchens: “Delivery is the fastest growing market in restaurants. What started out as 10 percent of your sales is now 30 percent of your sales, and [the industry predicts] it will be 50 to 60 percent of a quick-serve restaurant’s sales within the next three to five years. So you take that, plus the fact that quick-serve brands are kind of the key to getting a fat payout at the end of the day . . .”
During an age when fewer people frequent them traditional restaurants — with their overhead and turnover and razor-thin margins — running one simply makes less and less sense, Greenspan continues.
“[Opening] up a brick-and-mortar restaurant these days is just like giving yourself a job. Now [with centralized kitchens], as long as the product is coming out strong, I don’t need to be there as a presence. I can quality control remotely now. I can go online and [sign out of a marketplace like Postmates or UberEats or Deliveroo] and not piss off any customers, because if I just decided to close the restaurant one day, and you drove over and it was closed, you’d be pissed. But if you’re looking for [one of my restaurants] in Uber Eats and you can’t find it because I turned it off, well, you’re not pissed. You just order something else.”
Big players only need apply . . .
The model works for now for Greenspan, who is running numerous restaurant “concepts” from one cloud kitchen in L.A. Perhaps unsurprisingly, that facility belongs in part to Uber cofounder Travis Kalanick, who was early to grok the opportunity that shared kitchens present. In fact, it was early last year that he announced he was investing $150 million in a startup called City Storage Systems that focused on repurposing distressed real estate assets and turning them into spaces for new industries, like food delivery.
That company owns CloudKitchens, which invites chains, as well as independent restaurant and food truck owners, to lease space in one of their facilities for a monthly fee, along with additional fees for data analytics meant to help the entrepreneurs boost their sales.
The pitch to restaurateurs is that CloudKitchens can reduce their overhead, but of course, the company is also amassing all kinds of data about its tenants in the process that one could seeing using over time. Little wonder that Amazon wants in or that these outfits have at least one serious competitor in China — Panda Selected — that is doing exactly the same thing and which raised $50 million led by Tiger Global Management earlier this year.
No one can fault these savvy entrepreneurs for seizing on what looks like a gigantic business opportunity. Still, the kitchens, which make all the sense in the world from an investment standpoint, should not be embraced so readily as a panacea, either.
Most obviously, they rely on the same people who drive Ubers and handle food deliveries — people who aren’t afforded health benefits and whose financial picture is forever precarious as a result. As with Uber drivers, Deliveroo employees tried to gain status as “workers” last year with better pay and paid but they were denied these rights because they have the option of asking other riders to take their deliveries. The EU Parliament more recently passed new rules to protect so-called gig economy workers, though the measures don’t go far.
Meanwhile, in the U.S, Uber and Lyft continue to fight legislation, including in California, that would turn their drivers and other gig workers into employees. In fact, though a bill passed the California assembly late last month that would give employee status to contract workers, Uber and Lyft are worried enough about its possible passage now in the state’s senate that the fierce rivals have teamed up to battle it.)
Ripple effects . . .
As Moritz suggests, shared kitchens stand to benefit some far more than others. While big chains, and renowned chefs like Greenberg, can take advantage of them given their brand recognition, smaller restaurants are more likely to be adversely impacted by them, and if they disappear, there are other ripple effects, including on housing markets.
Even Matt Newberg, a founder and foodie from New York, could see the writing on the wall when he recently toured CloudKitchen’s two L.A. facilities, along with the shared kitchens of two other companies: Kitchen United which last fall raised $10 million from GV, and and Fulton Kitchens, which offers commercial kitchens for rent on an annual basis.
Newberg is responsible for the aforementioned documentary (which you can also watch below), and he suggests that he most taken aback by the conditions of the first facility that CloudKitchens opened and operates, on West Washington Boulevard in South L.A. Though most restaurant kitchens are chaotic scenes, Newberg said that as “someone who loves food and sustainability” the easy-to-miss warehouse didn’t feel “very humane” to him. It’s windowless for one thing (it’s a warehouse). Newberg says that he also counted 27 kitchens packed into what are “maybe 250-square-feet to 300 square-foot spaces,” and a lot of people who appeared to be in panic mode. “Imagine lots of screaming, lots of sirens triggered when an order gets backed up, tablets everywhere.”
Adds Newberg, “When i walked in, I was like, holy shit, no one even knows this exists in L.A. It felt like Ground Zero. It felt like a military base. I mean, it seemed genius, but also crazy.”
Notably, Newberg says CloudKitchen’s second, newer location is far nicer, as are the facilities of Kitchen United and Fulton Kitchens. “That [second CloudKitchen warehouse] felt like a WeWork for kitchens. Super sleek. It was as quiet as a server farm. There were still no windows, but the kitchens are nicer and bigger.”
Growing pains . . .
Every startup has growing pains, naturally, and presumably, shared kitchen companies are not immune to these. Still, Moritz, the venture capitalist, recalls a telling story in that FT column. He says that in the early 2000s, his firm, Sequoia, invested in a chain of kebab restaurants called Faasos that planned to delivery meals to customers’ homes but was getting crushed by high rents and turnover among other things, so opened a centralized kitchen to sell kebobs. Now, he says, Fassos produces a wide variety of foods, including other Indian specialities but also Chinese and Italian dishes under separate brand names.
It’s the same playbook that Eric Greenspan is using, telling Food & WIne magazine last year that his goal was ultimately to have six delivery-only concepts running simultaneously, with two menus each for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Greenberg, who is obviously media savvy, can probably pull it off, too, as has Fassos. But for restaurants that are not known franchises or have the star appeal of celebrity chef, the future might not look so bright.
Writes Moritz: “In some markets there is still an opportunity for hardened restaurant and kitchen operators — particularly if they are gifted in the use of social media to build a following and refashion themselves. But they need to move quickly before it becomes too expensive to compete with the larger, faster-moving companies. The mere prospect of Amazon using cloud kitchens to provide cuisine catering to every taste — and delivering these meals through services such as Deliveroo — should be enough to give any restaurateur heartburn.”
It should also worry people who care about their neighborhoods. Cloud kitchens may make it easier and cheaper than ever to order take-out, but there will be consequences, some of which most of us have yet to imagine.
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Pakistan vs Afghanistan, Weather Update in Leeds today: Full game expected with very little chance of rain
Pakistan need to beat Afghanistan to keep their hopes alive for the semi-finals spot at World Cup 2019 and seems like weather will grant them the full opportunity.
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New Zealand vs Australia, ICC cricket world cup 2019 Match Live Streaming: When and where to watch today’s match score online
Kane Williamson's New Zealand will look to bounce back from recent defeat against Pakistan with victory over Aaron Finch's Australia. Here's all you need to know about the upcoming match.
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Daily Bulletin: All eyes at day two of G20 Summit as US-China trade showdown looms, rains to continue in Mumbai; day’s top stories
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be engaged in back-to-back bilateral talks at G20 Summit - significantly with the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Hsien Loong.
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Pakistan vs Afghanistan, ICC cricket world cup 2019 Match Live Streaming: When and where to watch today’s match score online
Pakistan will look to bolster their chances of qualifying to the semi-finals by beating down and out Afghanistan at the Headingley Stadium in Leeds. Here's all you need to know about the match.
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‘Tetris Royale’ turns the classic puzzle game into a 100-player mobile battle royale
Because every game has to be Fortnite in 2019, The Tetris Company and game company N3TWORK announced on Friday that they have teamed up to make Tetris Royale for iOS and Android. This will be the debut title of a multiyear agreement between the two companies that will see the development of multiple games.
According to the press release, Tetris Royale tasks players with rotating and stacking Tetrominos and clearing lines by completing horizontal lines. You know, classic Tetris stuff. The twist is that you will be playing against 99 other players where you try to battle your way to the top of the leaderboard over the course of every season.
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‘Tetris Royale’ turns the classic puzzle game into a 100-player mobile battle royale originally appeared on BGR.com on Fri, 28 Jun 2019 at 22:35:47 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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OAS meeting ends in disagreement over Venezuela opposition delegation
By Luis Jaime Acosta MEDELLIN, Colombia (Reuters) - Members of the Organization of American States (OAS) ended two days of meetings on Friday without a clear plan for increasing pressure on embattled Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, despite a majority vote to recognise a representative from the country's opposition. The oil-rich country's economic and political crisis has dominated recent OAS meetings, with some member states denouncing Maduro as a dictator and others continuing to back him. OAS Secretary General Luis Almagro had said the group would seek to ramp up pressure on Maduro during this week's session in Medellin, Colombia and even debate eventual sanctions.
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Lady Gaga fires up LGBTQ rally for Stonewall anniversary
By Matthew Lavietes and Jonathan Allen NEW YORK (Reuters) - Lady Gaga electrified thousands of revelers who gathered in New York on Friday to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the LGBTQ rights movement, exhorting the crowd to honor the past by using its "power" to extend and defend a half-century of progress. Her warm-up speech and a subsequent rally, part of a series of World Pride events in New York this week, commemorated the so-called Stonewall uprising of June 28, 1969. Early that morning, patrons of a Greenwich Village gay bar called the Stonewall Inn rose up in defiance of police harassment, triggering days of rioting.
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Trump administration targets Maduro’s son ‘Nicolasito’ with sanctions
By Roberta Rampton (Reuters) - The Trump administration turned up the pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Friday by targeting his son Nicolas "Nicolasito" Maduro with sanctions, the U.S. Treasury Department said. The new sanctions are the latest push in six months of efforts to oust Maduro, whose 2018 re-election has been deemed illegitimate by the United States and most Western nations
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G20 heads to stop short of denouncing protectionism in communique – Nikkei
By Leika Kihara OSAKA (Reuters) - Group of 20 leaders will agree to accelerate World Trade Organization (WTO) reforms but stop short of calling for the need to resist protectionism in a communique to be issued on Saturday, the Nikkei newspaper said. The gathering of the heads of the world's biggest economies has been overshadowed by a high-stakes meeting scheduled on Saturday between U.S.
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Google finance head joins Postmates board ahead of anticipated IPO
Google’s vice president of finance, has joined Postmates’ board of directors, the latest sign that the on-demand food delivery startup is prepping to take the company public.
Postmates announced Friday that Kristin Reinke, vice president of Finance at Google, will join the San Francisco startup as an independent director.
Reinke has been with Google since 2005. Prior to Google, Reinke was at Oracle for eight years. Reinke also serves on the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco’s Economic Advisory Council.
Her skill set will come in handy as Postmates creeps towards an IPO.
Earlier this year, the company lined up a $100 million pre-IPO financing that valued the business at $1.85 billion. Postmates is backed by Tiger Global, BlackRock, Spark Capital, Uncork Capital, Founders Fund, Slow Ventures and others. Spark Capital’s Nabeel Hyatt tweeted the news earlier Friday.
Happy to welcome Kristin to the board of @Postmates.
Great times ahead. https://t.co/nEqu3A2YkE
— Nabeel Hyatt (@nabeel) June 28, 2019
“Postmates has established itself as the market leader with a focus on innovation and route efficiency in the fast‐growing on‐demand delivery sector. Given their strong execution, accelerating growth, and financial discipline, they are well positioned for continued market growth across the U.S.,” said Reinke. “I’m thrilled to join the board.”
The startup has been beefing up its executive quiver, most recently hiring Apple veteran and author Ken Kocienda as a principal software engineer at Postmates X, the team building the food delivery company’s semi-autonomous sidewalk rover, Serve.
Kocienda, author of “Creative Selection: Inside Apple’s Design Process During the Golden Age of Steve Jobs,” spent 15 years at Apple focused on human interface design, collaborating with engineers to develop the first iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch.
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This smartphone-connected blood pressure monitor is on sale for $22
iHealth is known for making awesome modern health products. We've recommended the iHealth Thermometer numerous times because it's by far the best home thermometer money can buy (and it's on sale right now at a discount!). Now, we've got another iHealth product for you to check out, and it just so happens to be on sale at its lowest price ever. It's called the iHealth Bluetooth Blood Pressure Cuff Monitor, and it's fantastic!
Bluetooth Blood Pressure Cuff Monitor for Left Wrist by iHealth, Smart Wrist Blood Pressure Mon…: $22.49
Here's what you need to know from the product page:
- Easy to use at home and ON-THE-GO - Easilly monitor your blood pressure when you are at work or traveling. Carry case included for easy to carry!
- Fast measurement - Testing during inflation method and it's the latest technology make this digital automatic blood pressure monitor lighting fast, pain-free and highly accurate.
- Bluetooth Connection - Connects to your smartphone via free App. Works with iPhone, iPad & Samsung Galaxy & More. Support Apple Health.
- Smart Design - Smart position sensor built-in to improve the accuracy, only allows to test when the correct position detected.One-piece wide-range wrist cuff fits standard to large adult wrist 5.3-8.7 inches in circumference.
- Secure Data Management: Store, monitor, track your progress in your app, on demand sharing with your family or doctor.
Bluetooth Blood Pressure Cuff Monitor for Left Wrist by iHealth, Smart Wrist Blood Pressure Mon…: $22.49
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This smartphone-connected blood pressure monitor is on sale for $22 originally appeared on BGR.com on Fri, 28 Jun 2019 at 21:03:10 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Trump says he ‘appreciates’ Saudi purchase of U.S. military equipment
OSAKA (Reuters) - President Donald Trump said on Saturday he appreciated Saudi Arabia's purchase of U.S. military equipment, calling Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman a "friend of mine" who had worked to open up the country with economic and social reforms. "It's an honour to be with the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, a friend of mine - a man who has really done things in the last five years in terms of opening up Saudi Arabia," Trump said ahead of a bilateral meeting with the crown prince, known as MbS, in Osaka, Japan
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G20 won’t include in communique need to resist protectionism – Nikkei
OSAKA (Reuters) - Group of 20 leaders will forgo including in its communique a phrase calling for the need to resist protectionism when they conclude their two-day meeting in Osaka, western Japan, on Saturday, the Nikkei newspaper reported. Instead, the G20 heads are seeking to reach an agreement to mention in the communique the importance of promoting a free, fair and non-discriminatory trade system, the economic daily reported on Saturday
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Trump administration declares emergency in violence-plagued rural Alaska
By Yereth Rosen ANCHORAGE (Reuters) - U.S. Attorney General William Barr on Friday declared a public-safety emergency in rural Alaska and pledged $10.5 million in federal funds to combat some of the nation's worst rates of sexual assault, child abuse and other violent crimes. Barr's announcement followed a visit to Alaska last month, where the country's top law enforcement official was told about extraordinary high rates of rape and domestic violence and a lack of police officers
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Trump, Xi set for high-stakes trade war talks in Japan
By Roberta Rampton and Koh Gui Qing OSAKA/NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are set for a high-stakes meeting in Japan on Saturday that could salvage trade talks or plunge the world's two largest economies into a deeper trade war. The dispute has already cost companies in both countries billions of dollars, disrupted global manufacturing and supply lines, and roiled global markets
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SpaceX aims to provide commercial Starship launches by 2021
SpaceX is only getting started launching Falcon Heavy commercial missions, but it already has its eyes on the next prize – launching Starship. Now, we know that it’s hoping to start commercial service for this next-generation, fully reusable rocket by 2021, according to SpaceX Vice President of Commercial Sales Jonathan Hofeller.
Hofeller was speaking at a conference in Indonesia (via SpaceNews), and noted that the private space launch company is currently talking to three different telecom companies about selecting which will be the first mission aboard the new spacecraft. Starship, formerly knowns as ‘BFR’ or ‘Big Falcon Rocket’) is currently in development at two separate SpaceX facilities, one in Texas and one in Florida, in what amounts to an internal company ‘bake-off’ to see which team can delivery the better solution faster. An engineering show-down of this kind is not uncommon among tech companies, and often produces results from both efforts that complement or enhance whatever the final product ends up being, rather than being a ‘winner take all’ scenario.
Starship, once complete, will include a launch system propelled to orbit by a ‘Super Heavy’ booster, with even more lift capacity than the existing Falcon Heavy rocket. It’ll be able to delivery as many as 20 metric tons to geostationary transfer orbit, or over 100 tons to low-Earth orbit. It’s also intended to be the spacecraft that enables SpaceX to achieve its goal of running crewed missions to Mars.
Previously stated target dates for Starship milestones include achieving orbital launches by 2020, though based on this new info those will be test or demonstration missions rather than for paying customers. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk also previously said that the company is looking at 2023 as the earliest target date for providing a Moon circuit space trip to his first paying tourist customer, Japanese entrepreneur Yusaku Maezawa.
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Facebook fails to block D.C. attorney general's lawsuit again - CNET
The lawsuit against the social network will proceed to discovery.from CNET https://ift.tt/2IXrNyR
Don’t worry, you’re not going to start seeing ads on Netflix anytime soon
Stock analysts and advertising industry professionals love flogging a particular bit of misguided wisdom about Netflix -- namely, that its embrace of the advertising it's avoided for so long is an inevitability. An assumption that's landed back in the news, thanks to analysts at Nomura calculating that a Netflix subscription tier which includes advertising could bring in more than $1 billion in new revenue for the streaming giant.
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Don’t worry, you’re not going to start seeing ads on Netflix anytime soon originally appeared on BGR.com on Fri, 28 Jun 2019 at 20:08:19 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Thursday, 27 June 2019
Jony Ive's 15 most iconic Apple products and designs - CNET
A look at the most memorable products Jony Ive designed during his time at Apple.from CNET https://ift.tt/2JfmB8B
Overwatch Lego gets new Junkrat, Roadhog and Wrecking Ball sets - CNET
The adorable Hammond the hamster is included too.from CNET https://ift.tt/2ZTNd5G
Denver and Providence are the next two cities to get Verizon 5G Wideband
Today, Verizon announces that Denver and Providence are the next two cities to get Verizon's 5G Wideband network. Starting today, Denver's 5G service goes live with Providence, RI getting service starting on July 1. Verizon's 5G Ultra Wideband is designed for supplying 5G connectivity using spectrum higher than 24GHz. This infrastructure requires numerous small cell sites or "nodes" in order to cover dense populations - namely metropolitan areas. Denver will have 5G connectivity in concentrated areas of Highlands below 37th Street as well as areas of LoDo and near Coors Dielf....
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Philips Hue's new Bluetooth light bulbs mean you don't need a hub - CNET
The smart light bulbs to connect directly with your phone and are with compatible Google Nest and Alexa devices. But, they're still the same price.from CNET https://ift.tt/2IUkckB
Some ancient crocodiles preferred salad over steak
Modern crocodiles have a reputation as ravenous beasts that crave flesh. While it's certainly true that crocodiles today are more than happy to feast on fresh meat, it seems that some ancient crocs not only enjoyed leafy greens on a regular basis, but may have actually preferred a vegetarian diet.
The research, which was published in Current Biology, is based on fossils that survived long after many of the ancient crocodile species became extinct. The study reveals that forks in the crocodile family tree resulted in species that favored plants at least three times in history.
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Some ancient crocodiles preferred salad over steak originally appeared on BGR.com on Thu, 27 Jun 2019 at 21:03:10 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Faces for cookware: data collection industry flourishes as China pursues AI ambitions
By Cate Cadell PINGDINGSHAN, China (Reuters) - In a village in central China's Henan province, amid barking dogs and wandering chickens, villagers gather along a dirt road to trade images of their faces for kettles, pots and tea cups. At the front of the line, a woman stands in front of a camera zip-tied to a tripod. She holds a photograph of her head with the eyes and the nose cut out in front of her face and slowly rotates side to side
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U.S. Senate backs massive defence bill, targets China, sets Iran vote
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S.
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Britain needs more nuclear power, electric chargers for climate goal – CBI
LONDON (Reuters) - Britain needs more nuclear power plants, electric vehicle charging sites and carbon capture and storage projects to meet its new climate target, the Confederation of British Industry said on Friday. The comments from Britain's major business lobby come a day after the country became the first G7 member to enshrine in law a target of net zero carbon emissions by 2050. "Firms want to see a whole host of stable, long-term policies enacted – from building new nuclear power stations to scaling-up carbon capture and storage...
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G20 leaders urged to denounce Japan’s ‘cruel assault’ on whales
TOKYO (Reuters) - Environmentalists from around the world urged global leaders at the G20 summit on Friday not to "turn a blind eye" to what they called a "cruel assault on whales" planned by host Japan when it restarts commercial whaling next week. Japan is withdrawing from the International Whaling Commission (IWC) on Sunday and resuming commercial whaling a day later after roughly three decades, during which its widely reviled "scientific research" whaling programme was decried by opponents as commercial whaling in disguise. "This week, while one part of the Japanese government is proudly facilitating international cooperation by hosting the G20 meeting, another is quietly extricating itself from the obligation for global collaboration on the protection and management of the world's whales," said Kitty Block, president of Humane Society International, in a statement
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U.S. President Trump says will talk trade with Japan PM Abe
OSAKA, Japan (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday he would discuss trade issues with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at their talks on the sidelines of a Group of 20 (G20) summit in Osaka, western Japan. "We’re going to be talking about many things and we’re also going to be talking about a lot of trade
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Trump fumes as U.S. Supreme Court blocks census citizenship question
By Lawrence Hurley and Andrew Chung WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday handed President Donald Trump a stinging defeat, blocking his contentious citizenship question planned for the 2020 census because officials gave a "contrived" rationale and prompting Trump to suggest an extraordinary delay in the constitutionally mandated population count
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In victory for Trump, U.S. House Democrats back down on border aid bill demands
By Susan Cornwell WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democratic leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives backed down to President Donald Trump and passed a $4.6 billion aid package to address a migrant surge at the U.S.-Mexico border without the additional protections for migrant children that liberals had sought. Trump, the Republican-controlled Senate and moderate Democrats insisted on finishing the emergency aid bill as soon as possible, without further haggling over demands for greater migrant safeguards and reduced immigration enforcement spending.
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Australia says no progress in finding student feared detained in North Korea
By Colin Packham SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Friday Canberra has yet to establish the whereabouts of an Australian man missing in North Korea for several days.The family of Alek Sigley said on Thursday they had not heard from the 29-year-old university student in Pyongyang, the North Korean capital, since Tuesday. Australia's foreign affairs department said on Thursday it was seeking urgent clarification about reports that an Australian had been detained in North Korea
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Lawyers for ex-Trump adviser Stone deny he violated judge’s gag order
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Lawyers for Roger Stone, a former political adviser to U.S. President Donald Trump, on Thursday denied accusations by prosecutors that he violated a court-imposed media gag order by posting comments on social media about former Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation
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Democrat de Blasio apologizes for Che Guevara phrase in Miami
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democratic presidential candidate Bill de Blasio apologised on Thursday for unwittingly quoting Ernesto "Che" Guevara, a Marxist revolutionary reviled by many Cuban-Americans for helping Fidel Castro come to power in Cuba. The New York City mayor, fresh off a solid showing in Wednesday night's Democratic debate, used the Spanish phrase "hasta la victoria siempre" ("to victory, always") in Miami as he addressed striking airport workers, who cheered him heartily.
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Spotify needs to crack down on labels snatching user data
Spotify seems to have learned little from the Facebook developer platform’s scandals despite getting a huge boost from the social network in its early days. Spotify has been caught allowing record labels to grab tons of unnecessary user data and permissions to even control their accounts just so people can “pre-save” upcoming song releases.
An investigation by Billboard’s Micah Singleton found major label Sony’s app for pre-saving demanded access to users’ email address, what you’ve listened to and saved to your library, playlists you’ve made or subscribed to, artists you follow, and what you’re playing right now. It also asks to be able to take actions on your behalf including change who you follow, add or remove songs from your library, create/edit/follow playlists, and even control Spotify on your devices.
An example of Universal Music Group’s pre-save app that asks for unnecessary user data and access permissions
This means that by agreeing to use a pre-save feature, a record label could index you music tastes and determine your current mood for marketing purposes, subscribe you to all of their artists and playlists, force you to create playlists that include their artists or add them to your existing playlists, and delete or unfollow any music or artists represented by their competitors.
Since users often speed through platform app permission screens assuming they’re just asking for what’s required, many likely gave up valuable data about themselves and the ability to manipulate their accounts without fully understanding what was happening. Other major labels like Warner and Universal’s pre-save apps like this one similarly ask for 10 types of permission — most extraneous.
In reality, the only permission a pre-save app should need is to be able to add the song you wanted to pre-save to your library. Anything else is theoretically prohibited by Spotify’s developer policy section 5.2: “You will only request the data you need to operate your Spotify Developer Application.” If you’ve used these apps, you can go into your Spotify account settings here to remove their access.
In a post-Cambridge Analytica world, platforms like Spotify should know better than to let developers run amok without proper oversight. That’s why I was so disappointed when Spotify refused to provide a statement, explanation, or even talk with me about the issue.
Offering a flexible developer platform has plenty of advantages for users. Apps for DJing with streaming music, discovering new bands, or synchronizing playback with friends could be built with rightful and transparent use of Spotify’s APIs. But for something as simple and common as volunteering to have a new song from your favorite band show up in your library on the day it’s released shouldn’t become a lure for an exploitative data grab.
That’s why Spotify should build its own in-house pre-save app that labels could all use to pre-promote their releases. Approved labels and their artists should be able to punch in their upcoming single’s Spotify URL and get a shareable link back that they can distribute through social media or wherever that only grants permission to pre-save that specific song, and that expires once that action is completed.
Spotify is widening its subscriber lead over Apple Music
Otherwise, Spotify risks losing all the goodwill its built up with listeners by being a music-first company compared to competitors like Apple and Google where music is a rounding error. Apple Music provides app developers with less data about users.
Just today Apple Music announced it has 60 million subscribers, lagging increasingly further behind Spotify which now has 100 million subscribers and 217 million total monthly users. Spotify already dominates cultural mind share for streaming, having used the playlists it controls to become a hit-maker and gain leverage over the labels for royalty negotiations. But turning a blind eye to shady developers just because they own the music it streams could make listeners question their loyalty and stray to Apple, which is notoriously serious about privacy.
If Spotify is unwilling to push back on data abuse by its record label partners, then it’s undeserving of users’ ears and subscription dollars.
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8 Jony Ive parodies to help you process his Apple exit
Jony Ive is just too easy to parody.
Apple announced the longtime chief design officer's departure from the company on Thursday. In a statement, the company said Ive will launch his own design firm with Apple as his main client.
In the last decade, Ive has been particularly memorable for putting minimalism on a pedestal, explaining designs from the austere confines of a white background, and narrating product releases with his impossibly buttery voice.
Jony Ive can finally come out of that white room he's been held in for three decades pic.twitter.com/Rw2hbv8ee2
— Alissa Walker (@awalkerinLA) June 27, 2019 Read more...
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