Why the Vision Pro app store may get more traction than the Apple Watch or TV app stores did, despite the headset's small user base for the first few years (Mark Gurman/Bloomberg)

Mark Gurman / Bloomberg:
Why the Vision Pro app store may get more traction than the Apple Watch or TV app stores did, despite the headset's small user base for the first few years  —  Third-party apps will be crucial to the success of the Vision Pro, but the pricey and niche nature of the device means that developers may not quickly flock to it.

Studio executives embraced Silicon Valley's magical thinking of hypergrowth and disruption for the past 10 years, only to slash worker pay as the boom times end (Brian Merchant/Los Angeles Times)

Brian Merchant / Los Angeles Times:
Studio executives embraced Silicon Valley's magical thinking of hypergrowth and disruption for the past 10 years, only to slash worker pay as the boom times end  —  In one respect, the actors and writers of Hollywood uniting on the picket lines in a historic, industry-shaking strike is a tale as old as time …

Byjus employees reportedly call of protest after 'emergency meeting'

Byju's employees have withdrawn plans to protest the company’s management after India head, Mrinal Mohit, called an emergency meeting and assured staff no further layoffs would take place. The strike had been planned for Tuesday 25 July and was expected to involve 9,000 staff members. Employees had not received variable pay since the last three quarters and incentives had not been paid for 12 months, according to sources. The town hall meeting was planned to mark the completion of one year of the business unit, according to a company spokesperson. https://ift.tt/oZxjzsr

Reddit and Bluesky are contrasting examples on how not to moderate, one centralizing in the worst way possible and the other decentralizing catastrophically (Katherine Alejandra Cross/Wired)

Katherine Alejandra Cross / Wired:
Reddit and Bluesky are contrasting examples on how not to moderate, one centralizing in the worst way possible and the other decentralizing catastrophically  —  Moderating a site isn't easy—just ask Elon.  But Bluesky and Reddit are contrasting examples of how not to do it.

Centre has important advisory for states on e-cigarettes

The Indian government has advised states to report the availability of e-cigarettes on online shopping sites and stores on the portal https://ift.tt/rzuZdNk. The Union government in India had banned the sale and use of e-cigarettes in 2019, and the portal aims to collect information on violations of the ban. The health ministry has directed producers, manufacturers, and retailers not to manufacture, sell, or distribute e-cigarettes in any form or capacity. Notices have been issued to 15 websites selling e-cigarettes, and the ministry is said to monitor advertisements and sales on social media. https://ift.tt/jS8oivy

A look at a proposed Massachusetts bill letting police use face recognition for image matching but not face surveillance, which could set the standard in the US (Tate Ryan-Mosley/MIT Technology Review)

Tate Ryan-Mosley / MIT Technology Review:
A look at a proposed Massachusetts bill letting police use face recognition for image matching but not face surveillance, which could set the standard in the US  —  A Massachusetts bill restricting police use could set the standard for how the technology is regulated in America.

Norwegian robotics company AutoStore agrees to pay £200M to UK supermarket giant Ocado to settle a global dispute over warehouse patent infringements (Alastair Reed/Bloomberg)

Alastair Reed / Bloomberg:
Norwegian robotics company AutoStore agrees to pay £200M to UK supermarket giant Ocado to settle a global dispute over warehouse patent infringements  —  As part of the agreement, the companies will withdraw their actions against each other, Autostore and Ocado said in separate statements on Saturday.

Coinbase will fully close its bitcoin-backed loan program Borrow for retail customers and says loan holders have to pay outstanding dues by November 20, 2023 (Yogita Khatri/The Block)

Yogita Khatri / The Block:
Coinbase will fully close its bitcoin-backed loan program Borrow for retail customers and says loan holders have to pay outstanding dues by November 20, 2023  —  - Coinbase will fully sunset its Borrow program for retail customers, effective November 20.  —  Coinbase will shut …

Nothing Phone (2) now available on Vijay Sales: Price, offers and more

Nothing's flagship smartphone, Nothing Phone (2), is now available at Vijay Sales' retail stores in India. The smartphone comes in two variants and is priced at ₹49,999 and ₹54,999 respectively. Customers can avail an instant discount of ₹3,000 on HDFC Bank credit and debit cards, and no-cost EMI for three, six and nine months. The Nothing Phone (2) is powered by an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset, runs on Android 13 operating system and features a 50MP dual rear camera, a 6.7-inch AMOLED display with LTPO and a 4,700 mAh battery with 45W fast charging support. https://ift.tt/LVdrUw7

Sensor Tower: Threads' DAUs declined to 13M, down 70% from the July 7 peak; Similarweb: average time spend on Threads' app declined to four mins, down from 19 (Lindsey Choo/Wall Street Journal)

Lindsey Choo / Wall Street Journal:
Sensor Tower: Threads' DAUs declined to 13M, down 70% from the July 7 peak; Similarweb: average time spend on Threads' app declined to four mins, down from 19  —  Data show user engagement has fallen 70% as executives focus on options such as a chronological feed

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 trailer gives a look at two Spider-Men, Venom, and other villains

Insomniac Games has released the story trailer for Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 at San Diego Comic-Con. The trailer showcased key characters such as Peter Parker, Miles Morales, MJ, Kraven, the Lizard and the Venom symbiote while hinting towards the villain’s identity. The two Spider-Men are balancing their responsibilities, and struggling to make personal decisions while Kraven and Venom, as well as Mister Negative, create obstacles for them to overcome. The game releases for PlayStation 5 on October 20. https://ift.tt/BN30sTF

Microsoft wins big in Call of Duty deal with Activision: Here's what it means

The agency withdrew the case before an in-house judge after its efforts to block Microsoft's $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard failed as a federal judge and an appeals court turned down a request for the deal to be paused. It must be noted that Microsoft and Activision Blizzard are yet to close the deal and the FTC could re-file the administrative challenge. https://ift.tt/AlX3OtF

How to get started using the Maybelline app in Teams

Microsoft has collaborated with Maybelline New York to offer AI-enabled makeup filters for Teams video calls. The Maybelline Beauty app will be available from July 20 and offers 12 different makeup looks. The app uses Modiface's AI technology to provide the seamless application of digital filters by identifying over 70 points on the user's face. It is currently only available in English, however, Microsoft plans to add support for other languages in the future. The Microsoft-Maybelline partnership is expected to open up new opportunities in next-gen video conferencing and chat system technologies. https://ift.tt/uamOzrQ

Reddit removes the moderators of r/malefashionadvice, one of the biggest subreddits to close protesting Reddit's API changes, and takes charge of the subreddit (Jay Peters/The Verge)

Jay Peters / The Verge:
Reddit removes the moderators of r/malefashionadvice, one of the biggest subreddits to close protesting Reddit's API changes, and takes charge of the subreddit  —  Reddit is now in charge of r/malefashionadvice, which for a time was the biggest subreddit still closed in protest of the platform's API pricing changes.

How to set up or update your Netflix Household

Earlier this year, Netflix initiated a crackdown on password-sharing in certain countries, namely Canada, New Zealand, Portugal, and Spain. This new feature requires users to designate a 'primary location' to ensure that only those within the same household can access the account. Additionally, an 'Access and Devices Management' page has been introduced, allowing the account owner to oversee the members who have access to the account. https://ift.tt/FHB4En8