President Donald Trump announced that he has signed an executive order creating a new technology council to &quot;transform and modernise&quot; the US government&#39;s information technology systems.

A White House official confirmed on Monday that about 20 technology chief executives will attend meetings at the White House in early June to talk about improving government information technology.

&quot;Americans deserve better digital services from their Government. To effectuate this policy, the federal government must transform and modernize its information technology and how it uses and delivers digital services,&quot; Trump&#39;s executive order dated April 28 said.

Trump has held a number of meetings with top tech chief executives since becoming president, including Apple, Facebook, Alphabet, IBM, Microsoft, and Tesla.

In March, Trump signed a separate order to overhaul the federal government. Trump tapped Jared Kushner in March to lead a White House Office of American Innovation to leverage business ideas and potentially privatise some government functions as the White House pushes to shrink government, cut federal employees and eliminate regulations.

Officially called the American Technology Council, Chris Liddell will be its director. He is the White House director of strategic initiatives, and former Microsoft and General Motors chief financial officer.

A 2016 US Government Accountability Office report publicly estimated the US government spends more than $80 billion in IT annually, but said spending has fallen by $7.3 billion since 2010. In 2015, there were at least 7,000 separate IT investments by the US government, the report said.

The $80 billion figure does not include Defense Department classified IT systems; and 58 independent executive branch agencies, including the Central Intelligence Agency, the report said.

The GAO report said US government IT investments &quot;are becoming increasingly obsolete: many use outdated software languages and hardware parts that are unsupported.&quot;

The report found some agencies are using systems that have components that are at least 50 years old. &quot;The Department of Defense uses 8-inch floppy disks in a legacy system that coordinates the operational functions of the nation&rsquo;s nuclear forces,&quot; the report said.

The report said the Defense Department plans to update the system by the end of September.

The Treasury Department&#39;s business master file of tax data pertaining to individual business income taxpayers dates back to the 1950s and using an antiquated computer language &quot;and operates on an IBM mainframe.&quot;

The council is chaired by Trump and includes the defense secretary, homeland security secretary, budget director and director of national intelligence.

(Reuters)

About 20 technology chief executives will attend meetings at the White House in early June to talk about improving government information technology

President Donald Trump announced that he has signed an executive order creating a new technology council to "transform and modernise" the US government's information technology systems. A White House official confirmed on Monday that about 20 technology chief executives will attend meetings at the White House in early June to talk about improving government information technology. "Americans deserve better digital services from their Government. To effectuate this policy, the federal government must transform and modernize its information technology and how it uses and delivers digital services," Trump's executive order dated April 28 said. Trump has held a number of meetings with top tech chief executives since becoming president, including Apple, Facebook, Alphabet, IBM, Microsoft, and Tesla. In March, Trump signed a separate order to overhaul the federal government. Trump tapped Jared Kushner in March to lead a White House Office of American Innovation to leverage business ideas and potentially privatise some government functions as the White House pushes to shrink government, cut federal employees and eliminate regulations. Officially called the American Technology Council, Chris Liddell will be its director. He is the White House director of strategic initiatives, and former Microsoft and General Motors chief financial officer. A 2016 US Government Accountability Office report publicly estimated the US government spends more than $80 billion in IT annually, but said spending has fallen by $7.3 billion since 2010. In 2015, there were at least 7,000 separate IT investments by the US government, the report said. The $80 billion figure does not include Defense Department classified IT systems; and 58 independent executive branch agencies, including the Central Intelligence Agency, the report said. The GAO report said US government IT investments "are becoming increasingly obsolete: many use outdated software languages and hardware parts that are unsupported." The report found some agencies are using systems that have components that are at least 50 years old. "The Department of Defense uses 8-inch floppy disks in a legacy system that coordinates the operational functions of the nation’s nuclear forces," the report said. The report said the Defense Department plans to update the system by the end of September. The Treasury Department's business master file of tax data pertaining to individual business income taxpayers dates back to the 1950s and using an antiquated computer language "and operates on an IBM mainframe." The council is chaired by Trump and includes the defense secretary, homeland security secretary, budget director and director of national intelligence. (Reuters)

Trump creating new tech group to ?transform and modernise? US govt

Jammu and Kashmir government today banned 22 social networking sites and applications including Facebook, WhatsApp and Twitter in Kashmir on the ground that these were being misused by anti-national and anti-social elements to fan trouble.

The ban will be in place for a month or till further orders, whichever is earlier, said an order issued by Principal Secretary (Home) R K Goyal.

&quot;In the interest of maintenance of public order, the government hereby directs all internet service providers that any message or class of messages to or from a person or a class of persons relating to any subject or any pictorial content through the following social networking sites shall not be transmitted in Kashmir valley with immediate effect for a period of one month or till further orders, whichever is earlier,&quot; he said in the three-page order.

The sites and applications which will be inaccessible in the valley include Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp, Wechat, QQ, Qzone, Google Plus, Skype, Line, Pinterest, Snapchat, Youtube, Vine and Flickr.

An earlier report said the government had suspended internet services in Kashmir for a month but this was not correct.

To ban the social networking sites and Apps, Goyal invoked the powers conferred on Government under Indian Telegraph Act 1885 read with Indian Telegraph (Amendment) Rules 2007 to ban these sites and applications.

&quot;On careful examination of all relevant factors, it is observed that the use of social media platforms, which are being misused by anti-national and anti-social elements by transmitting inflammatory messages in various forms are immediately required to be regulated/curbed,&quot; the order reads.

It said, &quot;the anti-national and inimical elements largely succeed in transmitting unverified, objectionable and inflammatory material and content through the medium of these social networking sites.&quot;&nbsp;

It was being &quot;felt that continued misuse of social networking sites and instant messaging services is likely to be detrimental to the interests of peace and tranquility in the state,&quot; the order said.

&quot;It was also observed during law and order disturbances of 2016 in the Kashmir valley that anti-national and subversive elements extensively misused social media sites and instant messaging services for vitiating peace and instigating violence, which caused large scale damage to life and property,&quot; it added.

The move comes against the backdrop of repeated student protests in Kashmir, which the authorities believe are fanned through social media.

Some days back, a police official had said that 350 WhatsApp groups were being used to spread rumours in Kashmir and the government had cracked down, shutting 90 per cent of these groups.

The mobile internet services were suspended in Kashmir on April 17, following widespread student protests in the valley against alleged highhandedness of security forces.

(PTI)

The ban will be in place for a month or till further orders, whichever is earlier, said an order issued by Principal Secretary (Home) R K Goyal

Jammu and Kashmir government today banned 22 social networking sites and applications including Facebook, WhatsApp and Twitter in Kashmir on the ground that these were being misused by anti-national and anti-social elements to fan trouble. The ban will be in place for a month or till further orders, whichever is earlier, said an order issued by Principal Secretary (Home) R K Goyal. "In the interest of maintenance of public order, the government hereby directs all internet service providers that any message or class of messages to or from a person or a class of persons relating to any subject or any pictorial content through the following social networking sites shall not be transmitted in Kashmir valley with immediate effect for a period of one month or till further orders, whichever is earlier," he said in the three-page order. The sites and applications which will be inaccessible in the valley include Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp, Wechat, QQ, Qzone, Google Plus, Skype, Line, Pinterest, Snapchat, Youtube, Vine and Flickr. An earlier report said the government had suspended internet services in Kashmir for a month but this was not correct. To ban the social networking sites and Apps, Goyal invoked the powers conferred on Government under Indian Telegraph Act 1885 read with Indian Telegraph (Amendment) Rules 2007 to ban these sites and applications. "On careful examination of all relevant factors, it is observed that the use of social media platforms, which are being misused by anti-national and anti-social elements by transmitting inflammatory messages in various forms are immediately required to be regulated/curbed," the order reads. It said, "the anti-national and inimical elements largely succeed in transmitting unverified, objectionable and inflammatory material and content through the medium of these social networking sites." It was being "felt that continued misuse of social networking sites and instant messaging services is likely to be detrimental to the interests of peace and tranquility in the state," the order said. "It was also observed during law and order disturbances of 2016 in the Kashmir valley that anti-national and subversive elements extensively misused social media sites and instant messaging services for vitiating peace and instigating violence, which caused large scale damage to life and property," it added. The move comes against the backdrop of repeated student protests in Kashmir, which the authorities believe are fanned through social media. Some days back, a police official had said that 350 WhatsApp groups were being used to spread rumours in Kashmir and the government had cracked down, shutting 90 per cent of these groups. The mobile internet services were suspended in Kashmir on April 17, following widespread student protests in the valley against alleged highhandedness of security forces. (PTI)

Social media banned for 1 month in Kashmir

WhatsApp has introduced a new feature for iOS that lets users ask Siri to read out messages for them. Users can get their messages read by simply saying: &quot;Hey Siri, read new WhatsApp messages.&quot;

The new WhatsApp feature is expected to make life a little easier for people with visual impairments. Also, it is seen as a significant contribution towards vehicle safety by keeping eyes on the road and hands on the wheel.

&ldquo;Users can activate the feature in WhatsApp&rsquo;s settings menu, and request that Siri read the latest message with the usual &ldquo;Hey Siri&rdquo; command. Replying by voice is possible, too, since WhatsApp added the option last September,&rdquo; report The Verge.

It is available to users running iOS 10.3 on their devices.

This feature is seen as a result of Apple opening up Siri&rsquo;s software to third-party developers at its annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in 2016.

The updated version of WhatsApp for iOS has also added support for the Persian language.

(WION)

WhatsApp has introduced a new feature for iOS that lets users ask Siri to read out messages for them. Users can get their messages read by simply saying: "Hey Siri, read new WhatsApp messages." The new WhatsApp feature is expected to make life a little easier for people with visual impairments. Also, it is seen as a significant contribution towards vehicle safety by keeping eyes on the road and hands on the wheel. “Users can activate the feature in WhatsApp’s settings menu, and request that Siri read the latest message with the usual “Hey Siri” command. Replying by voice is possible, too, since WhatsApp added the option last September,” report The Verge. It is available to users running iOS 10.3 on their devices. This feature is seen as a result of Apple opening up Siri’s software to third-party developers at its annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in 2016. The updated version of WhatsApp for iOS has also added support for the Persian language. (WION)

iPhone users can now ask Siri to read out WhatsApp messages for them

Facebook on Wednesday pulled aside the curtain on a secretive unit headed by a former chief of the Pentagon&#39;s research arm, disclosing that the social media company is studying ways for people to communicate by thought and touch.

Facebook launched the research shop, called Building 8, last year to conduct long-term work that might lead to hardware products. In charge of the unit is Regina Dugan, who led a similar group at Alphabet&#39;s Google and was previously director of the US Defense Department&#39;s Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA.

Dugan told software developers at Facebook&#39;s annual F8 conference that the company was modelling Building 8 after DARPA, a government office founded in the 1950s that gave the world the internet and the miniaturised GPS receivers used in consumer devices.
<style type="text/css">.embed-container { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; overflow: hidden; max-width: 100%; } .embed-container iframe, .embed-container object, .embed-container embed { position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; }
</style>
<div class="embed-container"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed//SSaCsAfOaSI"></iframe></div>

 
Any hardware rollouts are years away, Dugan said in a speech. Potential products could, if successful, be a way for Facebook to diversify beyond its heavy reliance on advertising revenue.

One example of Building 8&#39;s work so far, Dugan said, was an attempt to improve technology that allows people to type words using their minds.

&quot;It sounds impossible, but it&#39;s closer than you may realise,&quot; Dugan said.

Using brain implants, people can already type eight words a minute, she said. Facebook&#39;s goal, working with researchers at several US universities, is to make the system non-invasive, as well as fast enough so that people can type 100 words a minute just by thinking.

Possible uses include helping disabled people and &quot;the ability to text your friend without taking out your phone,&quot; she said.

Another Building 8 project, she said, was trying to advance the ability to communicate through touch only, an idea with roots in Braille, a writing system for the blind and visually impaired.

A video played at the conference showed two Facebook employees talking to each other through touch. As one employee, Frances, wore an electronic device on her arm, the other, Freddy, used a computer programme to send pressure changes to her arm.

&quot;If you ask Frances what she feels,&quot; Dugan said, &quot;she&#39;ll tell you that she has learned to feel the acoustic shape of a word on her arm.&quot;

In December, Facebook signed a deal with 17 universities including Harvard and Princeton to allow swifter collaboration on projects with Dugan&#39;s team.

(Reuters)

Facebook at its annual developers conference revealed a secretive unit headed by a former chief of the Pentagon's research arm

Facebook on Wednesday pulled aside the curtain on a secretive unit headed by a former chief of the Pentagon's research arm, disclosing that the social media company is studying ways for people to communicate by thought and touch. Facebook launched the research shop, called Building 8, last year to conduct long-term work that might lead to hardware products. In charge of the unit is Regina Dugan, who led a similar group at Alphabet's Google and was previously director of the US Defense Department's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA. Dugan told software developers at Facebook's annual F8 conference that the company was modelling Building 8 after DARPA, a government office founded in the 1950s that gave the world the internet and the miniaturised GPS receivers used in consumer devices. Any hardware rollouts are years away, Dugan said in a speech. Potential products could, if successful, be a way for Facebook to diversify beyond its heavy reliance on advertising revenue. One example of Building 8's work so far, Dugan said, was an attempt to improve technology that allows people to type words using their minds. "It sounds impossible, but it's closer than you may realise," Dugan said. Using brain implants, people can already type eight words a minute, she said. Facebook's goal, working with researchers at several US universities, is to make the system non-invasive, as well as fast enough so that people can type 100 words a minute just by thinking. Possible uses include helping disabled people and "the ability to text your friend without taking out your phone," she said. Another Building 8 project, she said, was trying to advance the ability to communicate through touch only, an idea with roots in Braille, a writing system for the blind and visually impaired. A video played at the conference showed two Facebook employees talking to each other through touch. As one employee, Frances, wore an electronic device on her arm, the other, Freddy, used a computer programme to send pressure changes to her arm. "If you ask Frances what she feels," Dugan said, "she'll tell you that she has learned to feel the acoustic shape of a word on her arm." In December, Facebook signed a deal with 17 universities including Harvard and Princeton to allow swifter collaboration on projects with Dugan's team. (Reuters)

Facebook may soon let you type directly from your brain

Shares of Snapchat-owner Snap fell 1.2 per cent on Thursday after rival Instagram, owned by Facebook, said more than 200 million people a day use its Stories feature, which competes against Snapchat.

Snapchat had 161 million daily active users at the end of last year, ahead of Snap&#39;s March initial public offer, which was the largest by a technology firm in three years despite decelerating user growth.

Instagram Stories&#39; daily active users announced on Thursday amount to an increase of 33 per cent from the 150 million daily active users it had in January.

The Instagram feature, which launched last year, lets users and businesses post a string of photos and videos that disappear after 24 hours, similar to Snapchat.

Facebook last month introduced an update to allow users to tweak photos on their smartphones with visual details like a rainbow or a beard of glitter, also similar to Snapchat.

Snap surged in its public listing but has struggled since then.

The stock on Thursday fell 23 cents to trade at $19.99. It is down 26 per cent from a record high close on March 3, but remains up 17 per cent from its $17 per share IPO price.

The company on May 10 will announce its quarterly results for the first time as a publicly listed company and is expected on average to have lost $193 million, according to Thomson Reuters data. Snap has warned it may never become profitable.

(Reuters)

&nbsp;

Instagram says more than 200 million people a day use its Stories feature, which competes against Snapchat

Shares of Snapchat-owner Snap fell 1.2 per cent on Thursday after rival Instagram, owned by Facebook, said more than 200 million people a day use its Stories feature, which competes against Snapchat. Snapchat had 161 million daily active users at the end of last year, ahead of Snap's March initial public offer, which was the largest by a technology firm in three years despite decelerating user growth. Instagram Stories' daily active users announced on Thursday amount to an increase of 33 per cent from the 150 million daily active users it had in January. The Instagram feature, which launched last year, lets users and businesses post a string of photos and videos that disappear after 24 hours, similar to Snapchat. Facebook last month introduced an update to allow users to tweak photos on their smartphones with visual details like a rainbow or a beard of glitter, also similar to Snapchat. Snap surged in its public listing but has struggled since then. The stock on Thursday fell 23 cents to trade at $19.99. It is down 26 per cent from a record high close on March 3, but remains up 17 per cent from its $17 per share IPO price. The company on May 10 will announce its quarterly results for the first time as a publicly listed company and is expected on average to have lost $193 million, according to Thomson Reuters data. Snap has warned it may never become profitable. (Reuters)

Instagram?s Snapchat clone more popular than Snapchat itself

Facebook said it has started weeding out bogus accounts by watching for suspicious behaviour such as repetitive posts or torrents of messages.

The security improvement was described as being part of a broader effort to rid the leading social network of hoaxes, misinformation, and fake news by making sure people are who they claim to be.

&quot;We&#39;ve found that when people represent themselves on Facebook the same way they do in real life, they act responsibly,&quot; Shabnam Shaik of the Facebook protect and care team said in a blog post.

&quot;Fake accounts don&#39;t follow this pattern, and are closely related to the creation and spread of spam.&quot;

Accounts suspected of being bogus are suspended and holders asked to verify identifies, which scammers typically don&#39;t do, according to the California-based social network.

In France, the new tactic has already resulted in Facebook taking action against 30,000 accounts believed to be fakes, Shaik said.

&quot;We&#39;ve made improvements to recognise these inauthentic accounts more easily by identifying patterns of activity - without assessing the content itself,&quot; Shaik said.

&quot;With these changes, we expect we will also reduce the spread of material generated through inauthentic activity, including spam, misinformation, or other deceptive content that is often shared by creators of fake accounts.&quot;

Under pressure to stymie the spread of fake news, Facebook has taken a series of steps including making it easier to report such posts and harder to make money from them.

Facebook also modified its displays of trending topics to find stories faster, capture a broader range of news, and help ensure that trends reflect real world events being covered by multiple news outlets.

Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg has sought to deflect criticism that the huge social network may have been used to fuel the spread of misinformation that affected the 2016 US presidential race.

Facebook last week unleashed a new weapon in the war against &quot;revenge porn&quot; at the social network as well as the messaging services Messenger and Instagram.

When intimate images shared on Facebook without permission are reported, confirmed and removed, the company will use photo-matching technology to prevent copies from being shared again on its platform.

(AFP)

&nbsp;

The move is described as part of a broader effort to rid the leading social network of hoaxes, misinformation, and fake news

Facebook said it has started weeding out bogus accounts by watching for suspicious behaviour such as repetitive posts or torrents of messages. The security improvement was described as being part of a broader effort to rid the leading social network of hoaxes, misinformation, and fake news by making sure people are who they claim to be. "We've found that when people represent themselves on Facebook the same way they do in real life, they act responsibly," Shabnam Shaik of the Facebook protect and care team said in a blog post. "Fake accounts don't follow this pattern, and are closely related to the creation and spread of spam." Accounts suspected of being bogus are suspended and holders asked to verify identifies, which scammers typically don't do, according to the California-based social network. In France, the new tactic has already resulted in Facebook taking action against 30,000 accounts believed to be fakes, Shaik said. "We've made improvements to recognise these inauthentic accounts more easily by identifying patterns of activity - without assessing the content itself," Shaik said. "With these changes, we expect we will also reduce the spread of material generated through inauthentic activity, including spam, misinformation, or other deceptive content that is often shared by creators of fake accounts." Under pressure to stymie the spread of fake news, Facebook has taken a series of steps including making it easier to report such posts and harder to make money from them. Facebook also modified its displays of trending topics to find stories faster, capture a broader range of news, and help ensure that trends reflect real world events being covered by multiple news outlets. Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg has sought to deflect criticism that the huge social network may have been used to fuel the spread of misinformation that affected the 2016 US presidential race. Facebook last week unleashed a new weapon in the war against "revenge porn" at the social network as well as the messaging services Messenger and Instagram. When intimate images shared on Facebook without permission are reported, confirmed and removed, the company will use photo-matching technology to prevent copies from being shared again on its platform. (AFP)

Facebook looking at behaviour to weed out fake accounts

Facebook&#39;s virtual reality unit Oculus VR is facing a lawsuit alleging it incorporated without authorisation a smaller competitor&#39;s patented technology into its Rift headset.

Techno View IP, a Newport Beach, California-based technology licensing firm, sued Facebook and Oculus for infringing a 3D imaging patent owned by the VR headset maker ImmersiON-VRelia.

According to the complaint filed in federal court in Delaware, ImmersiON-VRelia, which has offices in Spain and California, agreed to let Techno View litigate the patent on its behalf.

The lawsuit comes as Facebook weighs its options following a $500 million verdict in an unrelated lawsuit brought over its VR technology by video game developer ZeniMax Media. A Dallas federal jury in February found Oculus used copyrighted computer code developed by video game designer John Carmack while employed at ZeniMax.

Lawyers for Oculus and Facebook have said they will seek to have the verdict set aside.

ImmersiON-VRelia makes VR headsets similar to the Oculus Rift, as well as a VR device for use with smartphones. Techno View said in its lawsuit ImmersiON-VRelia&#39;s chief executive, Manuel Gutierrez Novelo, attained several patents between 2003 and 2006 on various aspects of VR technology.

Techno View said Oculus and Facebook specifically infringed a patent held by ImmersiON-VRelia on a method of generating left and right perspectives in a 3D video game. Techno View said it may add claims relating to other patents owned ImmersiON-VRelia at a later date.

Facebook acquired Oculus for an estimated $3 billion in 2014. Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg has predicted that virtual reality &quot;will be part of people&#39;s daily lives,&quot; revolutionising industries like media, education and medicine.

Facebook and Oculus did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Techno View&#39;s lawsuit.

(Reuters)

Facebook acquired Oculus for an estimated $3 billion in 2014

Facebook's virtual reality unit Oculus VR is facing a lawsuit alleging it incorporated without authorisation a smaller competitor's patented technology into its Rift headset. Techno View IP, a Newport Beach, California-based technology licensing firm, sued Facebook and Oculus for infringing a 3D imaging patent owned by the VR headset maker ImmersiON-VRelia. According to the complaint filed in federal court in Delaware, ImmersiON-VRelia, which has offices in Spain and California, agreed to let Techno View litigate the patent on its behalf. The lawsuit comes as Facebook weighs its options following a $500 million verdict in an unrelated lawsuit brought over its VR technology by video game developer ZeniMax Media. A Dallas federal jury in February found Oculus used copyrighted computer code developed by video game designer John Carmack while employed at ZeniMax. Lawyers for Oculus and Facebook have said they will seek to have the verdict set aside. ImmersiON-VRelia makes VR headsets similar to the Oculus Rift, as well as a VR device for use with smartphones. Techno View said in its lawsuit ImmersiON-VRelia's chief executive, Manuel Gutierrez Novelo, attained several patents between 2003 and 2006 on various aspects of VR technology. Techno View said Oculus and Facebook specifically infringed a patent held by ImmersiON-VRelia on a method of generating left and right perspectives in a 3D video game. Techno View said it may add claims relating to other patents owned ImmersiON-VRelia at a later date. Facebook acquired Oculus for an estimated $3 billion in 2014. Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg has predicted that virtual reality "will be part of people's daily lives," revolutionising industries like media, education and medicine. Facebook and Oculus did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Techno View's lawsuit. (Reuters)

Facebook?s VR unit Oculus sued for infringing imaging patent

Facebook launched its digital assistant named &quot;M&quot; for US users of its Messenger application, ramping up the social network&#39;s efforts in artificial intelligence. For users of the messaging platform, M will pop up and suggest &quot;helpful actions&quot; in the chat window.

The move is seen as the first step in a broader launch of the digital assistant to compete against services from Google, Amazon, Microsoft, Apple and Samsung, which is launching its new assistant with its newest smartphone.

M uses artificial intelligence and &quot;suggests relevant actions to help manage conversations or help get things done,&quot; Facebook product managers Laurent Landowski and Kemal El Moujahid said in a blog post.

&quot;We are bringing the power of M&#39;s AI technology to support and enhance the Messenger experience and make it more useful, personal and seamless.&quot;

<center><iframe allowfullscreen="true" allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="315" scrolling="no" src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Ffacebook%2Fvideos%2F10155681693016729%2F&amp;show_text=0&amp;width=560" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" width="560"></iframe></center>

With M, Facebook Messenger users can simplify tasks such as sending money to friends, sharing location or obtaining a ride-share.

Facebook, which has its own artificial intelligence research lab, announced M in 2015 as an experiment, and the expansion to Messenger is another step in the social network&#39;s broader AI goals.

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has spoken about - and created for his own home - a personal digital assistant named Jarvis to help him manage his household tasks and play with his family.

Samsung is launching its assistant Bixby with its Galaxy S8 smartphones to help the South Korean giant break into a surging market for voice-activated virtual assistants, which includes Apple&#39;s Siri, Amazon&#39;s Alexa, Google&#39;s Assistant and Microsoft&#39;s Cortana.

(AFP)

With the virtual assistant M, Facebook ramps up its efforts in artificial intelligence

Facebook launched its digital assistant named "M" for US users of its Messenger application, ramping up the social network's efforts in artificial intelligence. For users of the messaging platform, M will pop up and suggest "helpful actions" in the chat window. The move is seen as the first step in a broader launch of the digital assistant to compete against services from Google, Amazon, Microsoft, Apple and Samsung, which is launching its new assistant with its newest smartphone. M uses artificial intelligence and "suggests relevant actions to help manage conversations or help get things done," Facebook product managers Laurent Landowski and Kemal El Moujahid said in a blog post. "We are bringing the power of M's AI technology to support and enhance the Messenger experience and make it more useful, personal and seamless." With M, Facebook Messenger users can simplify tasks such as sending money to friends, sharing location or obtaining a ride-share. Facebook, which has its own artificial intelligence research lab, announced M in 2015 as an experiment, and the expansion to Messenger is another step in the social network's broader AI goals. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has spoken about - and created for his own home - a personal digital assistant named Jarvis to help him manage his household tasks and play with his family. Samsung is launching its assistant Bixby with its Galaxy S8 smartphones to help the South Korean giant break into a surging market for voice-activated virtual assistants, which includes Apple's Siri, Amazon's Alexa, Google's Assistant and Microsoft's Cortana. (AFP)

Facebook launches digital assistant for Messenger users in US

Facebook on Thursday ramped up its fight against &quot;fake news&quot; by adding tips on how to tell when shared stories are bogus.

An initiative being launched in the US, France and a dozen other countries added an educational&nbsp;tool in an &quot;awareness display&quot; in news feeds at the leading online social network.

&quot;By clicking on the awareness display located at the top of their news feed, users will be able to access a dedicated area that includes tips for identifying and reporting false information,&quot; Facebook said in a blog post.

Tips included checking website addresses along with searching out other sources or articles on topics.

&quot;Promoting a critical reading of information is a&nbsp;priority,&quot; California-based Facebook said.

&quot;False information goes against our mission of connecting people with what is important to them.&quot;

Early this month a global alliance of tech industry and academic organizations unveiled plans to work together to combat the spread of fake news and improve public understanding of journalism.

The News Integrity Initiative debuted with $14 million from Facebook, the Ford Foundation, Mozilla and others, and is based at the City University of New York&#39;s journalism school, which will coordinate research, projects and events.

Fake news became a serious issue in the US election campaign, when clearly fraudulent stories circulated on social media, potentially swaying some voters.

Concerns have been raised since then about hoaxes and misinformation affecting elections in Europe, with investigations showing how &quot;click farms&quot; generate revenue from online advertising using made-up news stories.

Facebook and Google have already taken steps to cut off advertising revenues to news sites promoting misinformation.

Facebook has also launched a &quot;journalism project&quot; that aims to support the news ecosystem.

(AFP)

Tips include checking website addresses along with searching out other sources or articles on topics

Facebook on Thursday ramped up its fight against "fake news" by adding tips on how to tell when shared stories are bogus. An initiative being launched in the US, France and a dozen other countries added an educational tool in an "awareness display" in news feeds at the leading online social network. "By clicking on the awareness display located at the top of their news feed, users will be able to access a dedicated area that includes tips for identifying and reporting false information," Facebook said in a blog post. Tips included checking website addresses along with searching out other sources or articles on topics. "Promoting a critical reading of information is a priority," California-based Facebook said. "False information goes against our mission of connecting people with what is important to them." Early this month a global alliance of tech industry and academic organizations unveiled plans to work together to combat the spread of fake news and improve public understanding of journalism. The News Integrity Initiative debuted with $14 million from Facebook, the Ford Foundation, Mozilla and others, and is based at the City University of New York's journalism school, which will coordinate research, projects and events. Fake news became a serious issue in the US election campaign, when clearly fraudulent stories circulated on social media, potentially swaying some voters. Concerns have been raised since then about hoaxes and misinformation affecting elections in Europe, with investigations showing how "click farms" generate revenue from online advertising using made-up news stories. Facebook and Google have already taken steps to cut off advertising revenues to news sites promoting misinformation. Facebook has also launched a "journalism project" that aims to support the news ecosystem. (AFP)

Facebook adds tips for spotting fake news

Facebook is giving the camera a central place on its smartphone app for the first time, encouraging users to take more pictures and edit them with digital stickers that show the influence of rival Snapchat.

The new update will also Facebook users to get to the app&#39;s camera with one swipe of their finger and then add visual details like a rainbow or a beard of glitter.

&ldquo;You can tap on the camera icon on the top left corner of the Facebook app or swipe right from News Feed to try out the new in-app camera. The Facebook camera is packed with dozens of effects like masks, frames and interactive filters that you can apply to your photos and videos,&rdquo; explains Facebook.

Users will be able to share a picture privately with a friend, rather than to all of their friends, and add a picture to a gallery known as &quot;Facebook Stories,&quot; similar to a feature on the Snapchat app. Other people can view photos or videos shared as stories for 24 hours. The stories won&rsquo;t appear on Timeline or in News Feed unless they are posted them there, too. It works similar to Instagram&rsquo;s ephemeral slideshow on top of the app.

<center><iframe allowfullscreen="true" allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="315" scrolling="no" src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Ffacebook%2Fvideos%2F10155654381926729%2F&amp;show_text=0&amp;width=560" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" width="560"></iframe></center>

 
The company is rolling out the new update for both iOS and Android.

Snapchat popularised sharing of digitally decorated photographs on social media, especially among teenagers, and exposed a weakness of Facebook as the companies battle for eyeballs and leisure time.

Snap has recently emphasised its ambitions to build gadgets and has called itself a camera company rather than a social media network. Some analysts have warned that Snap is susceptible to competition from Facebook.

Facebook, which with 1.86 billion users is the industry leader, denies it took its camera ideas from Snapchat and says it got them from its own users. &quot;Our goal here is to give people more to do on Facebook, and that&#39;s really been the main inspiration,&quot; Connor Hayes, a Facebook product manager, said in a briefing with reporters.

In a glimpse of how the features could tie in with other businesses, one of the first camera effects will be the ability to morph someone in a photograph into a yellow, cartoon &quot;Minion.&quot; The latest Minion movie, &quot;Despicable Me 3,&quot; is due out in a few months from Comcast Corp&#39;s NBC Universal.

Facebook has deals to license content from six film studios, as well as from two artists, said design director Kristen Spilman.

Another visual effect allows someone in a picture to &quot;become a laser cat with super powers,&quot; Spilman said. The effects will vary by location. Spilman said that when Facebook tested the ability to add the phrase &quot;LOL,&quot; the acronym for &quot;laugh out loud,&quot; users in Ireland did not know what it meant.

(WION with inputs from Reuters)

Facebook rolls out a new camera with effects and two additional ways to share photos and videos

Facebook is giving the camera a central place on its smartphone app for the first time, encouraging users to take more pictures and edit them with digital stickers that show the influence of rival Snapchat. The new update will also Facebook users to get to the app's camera with one swipe of their finger and then add visual details like a rainbow or a beard of glitter. “You can tap on the camera icon on the top left corner of the Facebook app or swipe right from News Feed to try out the new in-app camera. The Facebook camera is packed with dozens of effects like masks, frames and interactive filters that you can apply to your photos and videos,” explains Facebook. Users will be able to share a picture privately with a friend, rather than to all of their friends, and add a picture to a gallery known as "Facebook Stories," similar to a feature on the Snapchat app. Other people can view photos or videos shared as stories for 24 hours. The stories won’t appear on Timeline or in News Feed unless they are posted them there, too. It works similar to Instagram’s ephemeral slideshow on top of the app. The company is rolling out the new update for both iOS and Android. Snapchat popularised sharing of digitally decorated photographs on social media, especially among teenagers, and exposed a weakness of Facebook as the companies battle for eyeballs and leisure time. Snap has recently emphasised its ambitions to build gadgets and has called itself a camera company rather than a social media network. Some analysts have warned that Snap is susceptible to competition from Facebook. Facebook, which with 1.86 billion users is the industry leader, denies it took its camera ideas from Snapchat and says it got them from its own users. "Our goal here is to give people more to do on Facebook, and that's really been the main inspiration," Connor Hayes, a Facebook product manager, said in a briefing with reporters. In a glimpse of how the features could tie in with other businesses, one of the first camera effects will be the ability to morph someone in a photograph into a yellow, cartoon "Minion." The latest Minion movie, "Despicable Me 3," is due out in a few months from Comcast Corp's NBC Universal. Facebook has deals to license content from six film studios, as well as from two artists, said design director Kristen Spilman. Another visual effect allows someone in a picture to "become a laser cat with super powers," Spilman said. The effects will vary by location. Spilman said that when Facebook tested the ability to add the phrase "LOL," the acronym for "laugh out loud," users in Ireland did not know what it meant. (WION with inputs from Reuters)

Facebook takes a page from Snapchat, yet again

Facebook has added a feature to its Messenger app that allows users to share their locations continuously for up to an hour, ramping up competition with tools offered by Apple and Alphabet&#39;s Google Maps.

The company has found that one of the most-used phrases on Messenger as people talk to friends and family is &quot;How far away are you?&quot; or some variation, Stan Chudnovsky, head of product for Messenger, said in an interview.

&quot;It happens to be what people are saying, what they&#39;re interested in the most,&quot; he said.

Sharing location information is optional, but it can also be live, so that once a user shares the information with a friend, the friend can watch the user&#39;s movement for up to 60 minutes.

<center>
<iframe allowfullscreen="true" allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="315" scrolling="no" src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Ffacebook%2Fvideos%2F10155650727166729%2F&amp;show_text=0&amp;width=560" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" width="560"></iframe>
</center>

Messenger was once part of the core Facebook smartphone app, but the company broke it out as a separate app in 2014 and has since invested in frequent changes to build a service distinct from the massive social network.

Google Maps said last week that it was adding a similar live feature, an attempt to boost engagement on a product of increasing strategic importance to that company.

The close proximity of the announcements tells Facebook &quot;that we&#39;re working on the right things,&quot; Chudnovsky said. The Messages app on Apple&#39;s iPhone has such a feature, too.

Facebook has been testing its change in Mexico, he said. It was ready as long ago as October, he added, but the company worked on it for five more months to minimize the impact on the battery life of phones.

Facebook sees the feature being used for convenience to coordinate with friends, for safety-related purposes or for other uses, Chudnovsky said. &quot;There are all sorts of products that you can imagine you could build on top of that,&quot; he said.

The update is being made available globally, the company said.

(Reuters)

Users will be able to see where you are on a map for the next 60 minutes

Facebook has added a feature to its Messenger app that allows users to share their locations continuously for up to an hour, ramping up competition with tools offered by Apple and Alphabet's Google Maps. The company has found that one of the most-used phrases on Messenger as people talk to friends and family is "How far away are you?" or some variation, Stan Chudnovsky, head of product for Messenger, said in an interview. "It happens to be what people are saying, what they're interested in the most," he said. Sharing location information is optional, but it can also be live, so that once a user shares the information with a friend, the friend can watch the user's movement for up to 60 minutes. Messenger was once part of the core Facebook smartphone app, but the company broke it out as a separate app in 2014 and has since invested in frequent changes to build a service distinct from the massive social network. Google Maps said last week that it was adding a similar live feature, an attempt to boost engagement on a product of increasing strategic importance to that company. The close proximity of the announcements tells Facebook "that we're working on the right things," Chudnovsky said. The Messages app on Apple's iPhone has such a feature, too. Facebook has been testing its change in Mexico, he said. It was ready as long ago as October, he added, but the company worked on it for five more months to minimize the impact on the battery life of phones. Facebook sees the feature being used for convenience to coordinate with friends, for safety-related purposes or for other uses, Chudnovsky said. "There are all sorts of products that you can imagine you could build on top of that," he said. The update is being made available globally, the company said. (Reuters)

Facebook adds real-time location sharing to Messenger

Pakistan will punish social media companies that fail to take action against online blasphemy, the interior minister said on Wednesday, adding that he had requested a meeting with Facebook.

Pakistan&#39;s government wants social media networks to remove material deemed insulting to Islam or the Prophet Mohammad, and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif last week warned those posting such content would be &quot;strictly punished&quot;.

&quot;(Blasphemy) is not only a problem for Pakistan. This is an issue about the honour of every Muslim,&quot; said Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, who is also seeking to meet ambassadors from other Muslim countries to tackle the problem.

&quot;If we do not get a response from social media, I do not care about anyone, there is nothing greater than our faith. If social media and especially international social media stays on this route then we will have to take strong action regarding social media.&quot;

He did not specify what action might be taken.

Those convicted of blasphemy can face the death penalty under Pakistani law. Right groups say the law is frequently abused in a country where Islam is a highly sensitive subject, and where even rumours of blasphemy have sparked deadly riots.

Facebook is the most popular social network in Pakistan. Khan said the company was &quot;ready to send a delegation to Pakistan&quot; and would do so once a date was agreed.

Facebook could not be immediately reached for comment. However, a report by the company on Pakistani government requests for data lists 25 pieces of content being restricted between January and June 2016.

&quot;Based on legal requests from the Pakistan Telecom Authority, we restricted access to content for allegedly violating local laws prohibiting blasphemy, desecration of the national flag, and condemnation of the country&#39;s independence,&quot; reads the Facebook page on Pakistan.

According to analytics data from Facebook&#39;s website, the social media app has about 25-30 million active users in Pakistan, where internet penetration remains poor. Facebook&#39;s Instagram unit and rival Twitter are also popular.

The ruling PML-N party&#39;s tough talk against blasphemy will appeal to its conservative voter base ahead of elections likely to take place next year.

At least 65 people, including lawyers, defendants and judges, have been murdered over blasphemy allegations since 1990, according to figures from a Center for Research and Security Studies report and local media.

(Reuters)

Pakistan's government wants social media networks to remove material deemed insulting to Islam or the Prophet Mohammad

Pakistan will punish social media companies that fail to take action against online blasphemy, the interior minister said on Wednesday, adding that he had requested a meeting with Facebook. Pakistan's government wants social media networks to remove material deemed insulting to Islam or the Prophet Mohammad, and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif last week warned those posting such content would be "strictly punished". "(Blasphemy) is not only a problem for Pakistan. This is an issue about the honour of every Muslim," said Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, who is also seeking to meet ambassadors from other Muslim countries to tackle the problem. "If we do not get a response from social media, I do not care about anyone, there is nothing greater than our faith. If social media and especially international social media stays on this route then we will have to take strong action regarding social media." He did not specify what action might be taken. Those convicted of blasphemy can face the death penalty under Pakistani law. Right groups say the law is frequently abused in a country where Islam is a highly sensitive subject, and where even rumours of blasphemy have sparked deadly riots. Facebook is the most popular social network in Pakistan. Khan said the company was "ready to send a delegation to Pakistan" and would do so once a date was agreed. Facebook could not be immediately reached for comment. However, a report by the company on Pakistani government requests for data lists 25 pieces of content being restricted between January and June 2016. "Based on legal requests from the Pakistan Telecom Authority, we restricted access to content for allegedly violating local laws prohibiting blasphemy, desecration of the national flag, and condemnation of the country's independence," reads the Facebook page on Pakistan. According to analytics data from Facebook's website, the social media app has about 25-30 million active users in Pakistan, where internet penetration remains poor. Facebook's Instagram unit and rival Twitter are also popular. The ruling PML-N party's tough talk against blasphemy will appeal to its conservative voter base ahead of elections likely to take place next year. At least 65 people, including lawyers, defendants and judges, have been murdered over blasphemy allegations since 1990, according to figures from a Center for Research and Security Studies report and local media. (Reuters)

Pakistan to punish social media companies for blasphemous content

Twitter has said that it has suspended around 377,000 accounts during the final six months of 2016 for &quot;violation&nbsp;related to promotion of terrorism&quot;. &nbsp;&nbsp;

The revelation came as part of its semi-annual &quot;transparency report&quot;.

The report also said that the maximum number of requests to takedown posts came from Turkey.

It said that it wanted to &quot;shine a bright light&quot; on the requests as a threat to press freedom.

The micro-blogging website said that during the last six-months of 2016, it received 88 court orders and legal requests from around the world asking it to remove content posted by verified journalits. The highest number of such requests came form Turkey.

Twitter said that it had also stepped up efforts to rid the social networking website of content advocating political and religious violence. It is taking help from a software&nbsp;to spot such tweets instead of relying on government requests.

The revelations assume importance in light of increased pressure on social media websites like Twitter, Facebook and Google to fight online radicalisation by Islamist groups like Islamic State.

(WION with inputs from Reuters)

The highest number of requests to takedown posts came from Turkey, Twitter said in a report

Twitter has said that it has suspended around 377,000 accounts during the final six months of 2016 for "violation related to promotion of terrorism". The revelation came as part of its semi-annual "transparency report". The report also said that the maximum number of requests to takedown posts came from Turkey. It said that it wanted to "shine a bright light" on the requests as a threat to press freedom. The micro-blogging website said that during the last six-months of 2016, it received 88 court orders and legal requests from around the world asking it to remove content posted by verified journalits. The highest number of such requests came form Turkey. Twitter said that it had also stepped up efforts to rid the social networking website of content advocating political and religious violence. It is taking help from a software to spot such tweets instead of relying on government requests. The revelations assume importance in light of increased pressure on social media websites like Twitter, Facebook and Google to fight online radicalisation by Islamist groups like Islamic State. (WION with inputs from Reuters)

Twitter suspended 377,000 accounts last year for trying to promote extremism

Germany&#39;s Justice Minister put forward a tough new draft law on Tuesday calling for social networks like Facebook to take faster action to remove slanderous or threatening online postings quickly or face stiff fines of up to 50 million euros.

&quot;This (draft law) sets out binding standards for the way operators of social networks deal with complaints and obliges them to delete criminal content,&quot; said Heiko Maas, a Social Democrat minister.

Failing to comply would breach the rules and could result in a fine of up to 50 million euros against an organisation, he said.

The country already has some of the world&#39;s toughest hate speech laws covering defamation, slander, public incitement to commit crimes and threats of violence and is seeking to update its rules in the fast-moving, often anonymous social media age.

(Reuters)

&nbsp;

The fine could be as high as 50 million euros

Germany's Justice Minister put forward a tough new draft law on Tuesday calling for social networks like Facebook to take faster action to remove slanderous or threatening online postings quickly or face stiff fines of up to 50 million euros. "This (draft law) sets out binding standards for the way operators of social networks deal with complaints and obliges them to delete criminal content," said Heiko Maas, a Social Democrat minister. Failing to comply would breach the rules and could result in a fine of up to 50 million euros against an organisation, he said. The country already has some of the world's toughest hate speech laws covering defamation, slander, public incitement to commit crimes and threats of violence and is seeking to update its rules in the fast-moving, often anonymous social media age. (Reuters)

Germany plans to fine social networks if they don't remove hate speech

Facebook Inc barred software developers on Monday from using the massive social network&#39;s data to create surveillance tools, closing off a process that had been exploited by US&nbsp;police departments to track protesters

Facebook, its Instagram unit and rival Twitter Inc came under fire last year from privacy advocates after the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) said in a report that police were using location data and other user information to spy on protesters in places such as Ferguson, Missouri.

In response to the ACLU report, the companies shut off the data access of Geofeedia, a Chicago-based data vendor that said it works with organisations to &quot;leverage social media&quot;, but Facebook policy had not explicitly barred such use of data in the future.

&quot;Our goal is to make our policy explicit,&quot; Rob Sherman, Facebook&#39;s deputy chief privacy officer, said in a post on the social network on Monday. He was not immediately available for an interview.

The change would help build &quot;a community where people can feel safe making their voices heard,&quot; Sherman said.

Racially charged protests broke out in the St. Louis suburb of Ferguson in the aftermath of the August 2014 shooting of black teenager Michael Brown by a white police officer.

In a 2015 email message, a Geofeedia employee touted its &quot;great success&quot; covering the protests, according to the ACLU report based on government records.

Representatives of Geofeedia could not immediately be reached for comment on Monday. The company has worked with more than 500 law enforcement agencies, the ACLU said.

Geofeedia Chief Executive Officer Phil Harris said in October that the company was committed to privacy and would work to build on civil rights protections.

Major social media platforms including Twitter and Alphabet Inc&#39;s YouTube have taken action or implemented policies similar to Facebook&#39;s, said Nicole Ozer, technology and civil liberties policy director at the ACLU of Northern California.

Ozer praised the companies&#39; action but said they should have stopped such use of data earlier. &quot;It shouldn&#39;t take a public records request from the ACLU for these companies to know what their developers are doing,&quot; she said.

It was also unclear how the companies would enforce their policies, said Malkia Cyril, executive director of the Center for Media Justice, a nonprofit that opposes government use of social media for surveillance.

Inside corporations, &quot;is the will there, without constant activist pressure, to enforce these rules?&quot; Cyril said.

(Reuters)

Facebook came under fire last year from privacy advocates for using location data and other user information to spy on protesters

Facebook Inc barred software developers on Monday from using the massive social network's data to create surveillance tools, closing off a process that had been exploited by US police departments to track protesters Facebook, its Instagram unit and rival Twitter Inc came under fire last year from privacy advocates after the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) said in a report that police were using location data and other user information to spy on protesters in places such as Ferguson, Missouri. In response to the ACLU report, the companies shut off the data access of Geofeedia, a Chicago-based data vendor that said it works with organisations to "leverage social media", but Facebook policy had not explicitly barred such use of data in the future. "Our goal is to make our policy explicit," Rob Sherman, Facebook's deputy chief privacy officer, said in a post on the social network on Monday. He was not immediately available for an interview. The change would help build "a community where people can feel safe making their voices heard," Sherman said. Racially charged protests broke out in the St. Louis suburb of Ferguson in the aftermath of the August 2014 shooting of black teenager Michael Brown by a white police officer. In a 2015 email message, a Geofeedia employee touted its "great success" covering the protests, according to the ACLU report based on government records. Representatives of Geofeedia could not immediately be reached for comment on Monday. The company has worked with more than 500 law enforcement agencies, the ACLU said. Geofeedia Chief Executive Officer Phil Harris said in October that the company was committed to privacy and would work to build on civil rights protections. Major social media platforms including Twitter and Alphabet Inc's YouTube have taken action or implemented policies similar to Facebook's, said Nicole Ozer, technology and civil liberties policy director at the ACLU of Northern California. Ozer praised the companies' action but said they should have stopped such use of data earlier. "It shouldn't take a public records request from the ACLU for these companies to know what their developers are doing," she said. It was also unclear how the companies would enforce their policies, said Malkia Cyril, executive director of the Center for Media Justice, a nonprofit that opposes government use of social media for surveillance. Inside corporations, "is the will there, without constant activist pressure, to enforce these rules?" Cyril said. (Reuters)

Facebook bars developers from using data for surveillance

Taking a leaf out of Snapchat, Facebook has introduced a new feature in the Messenger app that lets users share ephemeral photos and videos. Called Messenger Day, the new feature in Messenger works in a similar way as Snapchat Stories. Photos and videos that you add to your Messenger Day disappear after 24 hours.

&ldquo;You&rsquo;re always in control of who can see your Day - share it with everyone, or choose specific friends and family members on Messenger. Since everything you add disappears after 24 hours, feel free to add as often as you want,&rdquo; says Facebook in a post.
<style type="text/css">.embed-container { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; overflow: hidden; max-width: 100%; } .embed-container iframe, .embed-container object, .embed-container embed { position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; }
</style>
<div class="embed-container"><iframe allowfullscreen="true" allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="315" scrolling="no" src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fmessenger%2Fvideos%2F1227636360689375%2F&amp;show_text=0&amp;width=560" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" width="560"></iframe></div>

 
Facebook has started to roll out the new feature for both Android and iOS. But before you start to use the Messenger Day feature, here&rsquo;s a step-by-step guide to how it works:

1. Update your Messenger app so you have the latest version on your phone.

2. Open Messenger, and tap on the camera highlighted with a sun. Doing so drops you right into the full-screen camera. Or, tap the &quot;Add to your day&quot; button&nbsp;at the top of your inbox to get started. 
 
3. Now you can snap a quick selfie or take a photo or video of what&rsquo;s around you. 
 
4. To add art and effects, tap the smiley face icon in the top right and then tap to add to your photo or video. You can also add text over your images by tapping the &quot;Aa&quot; icon, and you can overlay a drawing by tapping the squiggly line in the top right corner. 
 
5. Once you have your photo or video the way you want it, tap the arrow in the bottom right corner. You can then add directly to your day, save it to your phone&rsquo;s camera roll, and/or you can choose to send it to a specific person or group of people. The photo or video that you add to your day will be viewable for 24 hours.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false"><img alt="" draggable="false" src="http://s.wionews.com/photos/2-fb-messenger-day-20170310073937.jpeg" />
<div class="media-description">
In Messenger Day, you can choose to send your photo or video to a specific person or group of people. (Others)
</div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="javascript:void(0)" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

(WION)

&nbsp;

Facebook's new Messenger Day feature is available for both Android and iOS

Taking a leaf out of Snapchat, Facebook has introduced a new feature in the Messenger app that lets users share ephemeral photos and videos. Called Messenger Day, the new feature in Messenger works in a similar way as Snapchat Stories. Photos and videos that you add to your Messenger Day disappear after 24 hours. “You’re always in control of who can see your Day - share it with everyone, or choose specific friends and family members on Messenger. Since everything you add disappears after 24 hours, feel free to add as often as you want,” says Facebook in a post. Facebook has started to roll out the new feature for both Android and iOS. But before you start to use the Messenger Day feature, here’s a step-by-step guide to how it works: 1. Update your Messenger app so you have the latest version on your phone. 2. Open Messenger, and tap on the camera highlighted with a sun. Doing so drops you right into the full-screen camera. Or, tap the "Add to your day" button at the top of your inbox to get started. 3. Now you can snap a quick selfie or take a photo or video of what’s around you. 4. To add art and effects, tap the smiley face icon in the top right and then tap to add to your photo or video. You can also add text over your images by tapping the "Aa" icon, and you can overlay a drawing by tapping the squiggly line in the top right corner. 5. Once you have your photo or video the way you want it, tap the arrow in the bottom right corner. You can then add directly to your day, save it to your phone’s camera roll, and/or you can choose to send it to a specific person or group of people. The photo or video that you add to your day will be viewable for 24 hours. In Messenger Day, you can choose to send your photo or video to a specific person or group of people. (Others) × (WION)

After Instagram and WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger gets Snapchat-like Stories feature

Money transfer company TransferWise has launched a new service that allows users to send money internationally through Facebook&#39;s chat application, as competition in the digital payments landscape intensifies.

The London-based startup said that it had developed a Facebook Messenger &quot;chatbot&quot;, or an automated program that can help users communicate with businesses and carry out tasks such as online purchases.

TransferWise&#39;s chatbot enables customers to send money to friends and family to and from the United States, Britain, Canada, Australia and Europe from Facebook Messenger. It can also be used to set up exchange rate alerts.

Facebook already allows its users to send money domestically in the United States via its Messenger app, but has not yet launched similar services internationally. TransferWise said its service will be the first to enable international money transfers entirely within Messenger.

Facebook opened up its Messenger app to developers to create chatbots in April in a bid to expand its reach in customer service and enterprise transactions.

Chatbots have become a hot topic in enterprise technology over the past year because recent advances in artificial intelligence have made them better at interacting. Businesses, including banks, are hoping that they can be used to improve and reduce the cost of their customer service operations.

One of Europe&#39;s most well-known fintech companies, TransferWise was launched in 2011 by Estonian friends Taavet Hinrikus and Kristo K&auml;&auml;rmann out of frustration with the high fees they were being charged by banks for international money transfers.

The company, which is valued at more than $1 billion, is backed by several high profile investors including Silicon Valley venture fund Andreessen Horowitz, Virgin Group founder Sir Richard Branson, and PayPal co-founders Max Levchin and Peter Thiel, through his fund Valar Ventures.

Customers in more than 50 countries send roughly $1 billion through its website every month.

While the TransferWise chatbot is now only available in Facebook Messenger it can be adapted to work with other popular chat services, Scott Miller, head of global partnerships for TransferWise said. He said the service would eventually be extended to work in other countries and money transfer routes that the company operates in.

The launch comes as competition in the mobile payments and international money transfer sectors intensifies. Earlier this month PayPal Holdings Inc announced its U.S. payments application Venmo would be available within popular chat service Slack.

While in January , Ant Financial Services, an affiliate of Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, said it would acquire US money-transfer company MoneyGram, in a deal that is expected to shake up the international payments landscape.

(Reuters)

The launch comes as competition in the mobile payments and international money transfer sectors intensifies.

Money transfer company TransferWise has launched a new service that allows users to send money internationally through Facebook's chat application, as competition in the digital payments landscape intensifies. The London-based startup said that it had developed a Facebook Messenger "chatbot", or an automated program that can help users communicate with businesses and carry out tasks such as online purchases. TransferWise's chatbot enables customers to send money to friends and family to and from the United States, Britain, Canada, Australia and Europe from Facebook Messenger. It can also be used to set up exchange rate alerts. Facebook already allows its users to send money domestically in the United States via its Messenger app, but has not yet launched similar services internationally. TransferWise said its service will be the first to enable international money transfers entirely within Messenger. Facebook opened up its Messenger app to developers to create chatbots in April in a bid to expand its reach in customer service and enterprise transactions. Chatbots have become a hot topic in enterprise technology over the past year because recent advances in artificial intelligence have made them better at interacting. Businesses, including banks, are hoping that they can be used to improve and reduce the cost of their customer service operations. One of Europe's most well-known fintech companies, TransferWise was launched in 2011 by Estonian friends Taavet Hinrikus and Kristo Käärmann out of frustration with the high fees they were being charged by banks for international money transfers. The company, which is valued at more than $1 billion, is backed by several high profile investors including Silicon Valley venture fund Andreessen Horowitz, Virgin Group founder Sir Richard Branson, and PayPal co-founders Max Levchin and Peter Thiel, through his fund Valar Ventures. Customers in more than 50 countries send roughly $1 billion through its website every month. While the TransferWise chatbot is now only available in Facebook Messenger it can be adapted to work with other popular chat services, Scott Miller, head of global partnerships for TransferWise said. He said the service would eventually be extended to work in other countries and money transfer routes that the company operates in. The launch comes as competition in the mobile payments and international money transfer sectors intensifies. Earlier this month PayPal Holdings Inc announced its U.S. payments application Venmo would be available within popular chat service Slack. While in January , Ant Financial Services, an affiliate of Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, said it would acquire US money-transfer company MoneyGram, in a deal that is expected to shake up the international payments landscape. (Reuters)

TransferWise launches international money transfers via Facebook

&nbsp;

Facebook is launching an app for smart TVs that will help the social network&#39;s users enjoy its videos on a bigger screen.

The app will be rolled out soon from app stores for Apple TV, Samsung Smart TV and Amazon Fire TV, the company said in a blogpost on Tuesday.

The blogpost also said users can scroll through their news feed and simultaneously watch videos on their timeline.

<iframe allowfullscreen="true" allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="430" scrolling="no" src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Ffacebook%2Fvideos%2F10155517557066729%2F&amp;show_text=0&amp;width=560" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" width="100%"></iframe>Sound also fades in and out as one scrolls through videos in news feed now. Videos in news feed have previously played silently - one needed to tap on a video to hear its sound.

The Wall Street Journal reported last month that Facebook was creating an app for TV set-top boxes that would bring the company closer to live video and video advertisements.

Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg during a post-earnings call said this month that the company expected a major ramp-up in hiring and other spending during 2017 as it invests in video and other priorities.

The company last year expanded its live video product, Facebook Live - a potential threat to broadcast television.

(Reuters)

Facebook has also announced a few updates that make the video-watching experience richer and more engaging

Facebook is launching an app for smart TVs that will help the social network's users enjoy its videos on a bigger screen. The app will be rolled out soon from app stores for Apple TV, Samsung Smart TV and Amazon Fire TV, the company said in a blogpost on Tuesday. The blogpost also said users can scroll through their news feed and simultaneously watch videos on their timeline. Sound also fades in and out as one scrolls through videos in news feed now. Videos in news feed have previously played silently - one needed to tap on a video to hear its sound. The Wall Street Journal reported last month that Facebook was creating an app for TV set-top boxes that would bring the company closer to live video and video advertisements. Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg during a post-earnings call said this month that the company expected a major ramp-up in hiring and other spending during 2017 as it invests in video and other priorities. The company last year expanded its live video product, Facebook Live - a potential threat to broadcast television. (Reuters)

Facebook launches new app for users to watch videos on TV

Facebook and Google joined forces with news organisations on Monday to launch new fact-checking tools designed to root out &quot;fake news&quot; stories in France ahead of the country&#39;s presidential election.

Social networks and news aggregators came under fire during the US&nbsp;presidential vote when it became clear they had inadvertently fanned false news reports.

Facebook&nbsp;said it would work with eight French news organisations, including news agency Agence France-Presse (AFP), news channel BFM TV, and newspapers L&#39;Express and Le Monde to minimise the risk that false news appeared on its platform.

Facebook, the world&#39;s biggest social network, has 24 million users in France, more than a third of the country&#39;s population. It will rely on users to flag fake news on its network so that the articles can then by fact-checked by its partner organisations.

Any news report deemed to be fake by two of its partners would then be tagged with an icon to show that the content is contested, Facebook said.

Facebook is also supporting a separate initiative launched by Google dubbed &quot;CrossCheck&quot; which calls on users to submit links to contested content to a dedicated website so that it can be investigated.

Seventeen French newsrooms have joined the project, including AFP and the French public national television broadcaster.

Facebook is also taking steps against fake news in Germany, where government officials have expressed concerns that false stories and hate speech online could influence a federal election in September in which chancellor Angela Merkel will seek a fourth term in office.

In the United States, Facebook has said users would in future find it easier to flag fake articles as a hoax&nbsp;and added that it will work with organisations such as fact-checking website Snopes, ABC News and the Associated Press to check the authenticity of stories.

(Reuters)

The move comes in after social networks and news agencies came under fire during US elections for unwittingly fanning false news reports

Facebook and Google joined forces with news organisations on Monday to launch new fact-checking tools designed to root out "fake news" stories in France ahead of the country's presidential election. Social networks and news aggregators came under fire during the US presidential vote when it became clear they had inadvertently fanned false news reports. Facebook said it would work with eight French news organisations, including news agency Agence France-Presse (AFP), news channel BFM TV, and newspapers L'Express and Le Monde to minimise the risk that false news appeared on its platform. Facebook, the world's biggest social network, has 24 million users in France, more than a third of the country's population. It will rely on users to flag fake news on its network so that the articles can then by fact-checked by its partner organisations. Any news report deemed to be fake by two of its partners would then be tagged with an icon to show that the content is contested, Facebook said. Facebook is also supporting a separate initiative launched by Google dubbed "CrossCheck" which calls on users to submit links to contested content to a dedicated website so that it can be investigated. Seventeen French newsrooms have joined the project, including AFP and the French public national television broadcaster. Facebook is also taking steps against fake news in Germany, where government officials have expressed concerns that false stories and hate speech online could influence a federal election in September in which chancellor Angela Merkel will seek a fourth term in office. In the United States, Facebook has said users would in future find it easier to flag fake articles as a hoax and added that it will work with organisations such as fact-checking website Snopes, ABC News and the Associated Press to check the authenticity of stories. (Reuters)

Facebook, Google join drive against fake news in France ahead of Presidential elections

Several technology giants, including Apple, Google and Microsoft have banded together to file a legal brief opposing President Donald Trump&#39;s temporary immigration ban, arguing that it &quot;inflicts significant harm on American business.&quot;

The brief, filed in the US Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, included other top tech firms including Facebook, Twitter and Intel, as well as non-tech companies such as Levi Strauss and Chobani. In all nearly 100 firms, including eBay, Netflix and Uber signed onto the brief.

Trump&#39;s temporary immigration ban, the most contentious policy move of his first two weeks in offices, faces crucial legal hurdles.

His administration has a deadline on Monday to justify the executive order temporarily barring immigrants from seven mostly Muslim countries and the entry of refugees, after a federal judge in Seattle blocked it with a temporary restraining order on Friday.

&quot;The Order represents a significant departure from the principles of fairness and predictability that have governed the immigration system of the United States for more than fifty years,&quot; the brief stated.

&quot;The Order inflicts significant harm on American business, innovation, and growth as a result,&quot; it added.

&quot;Immigrants or their children founded more than 200 of the companies on the Fortune 500 list.&quot;

US tech firms have been among the more vocal sectors speaking out against the policy, with many of its staff made up of foreign-born nationals.

The 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco over the weekend denied the Trump administration&#39;s request for an immediate stay of the federal judge&#39;s temporary restraining order that blocked nationwide the implementation of key parts of the travel ban.

But the court said it would reconsider the government&#39;s request after receiving more information.

 
(Reuters)

On January 27, Trump had issued an order imposing a 90-day ban affecting citizens from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria & Yemen

Several technology giants, including Apple, Google and Microsoft have banded together to file a legal brief opposing President Donald Trump's temporary immigration ban, arguing that it "inflicts significant harm on American business." The brief, filed in the US Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, included other top tech firms including Facebook, Twitter and Intel, as well as non-tech companies such as Levi Strauss and Chobani. In all nearly 100 firms, including eBay, Netflix and Uber signed onto the brief. Trump's temporary immigration ban, the most contentious policy move of his first two weeks in offices, faces crucial legal hurdles. His administration has a deadline on Monday to justify the executive order temporarily barring immigrants from seven mostly Muslim countries and the entry of refugees, after a federal judge in Seattle blocked it with a temporary restraining order on Friday. "The Order represents a significant departure from the principles of fairness and predictability that have governed the immigration system of the United States for more than fifty years," the brief stated. "The Order inflicts significant harm on American business, innovation, and growth as a result," it added. "Immigrants or their children founded more than 200 of the companies on the Fortune 500 list." US tech firms have been among the more vocal sectors speaking out against the policy, with many of its staff made up of foreign-born nationals. The 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco over the weekend denied the Trump administration's request for an immediate stay of the federal judge's temporary restraining order that blocked nationwide the implementation of key parts of the travel ban. But the court said it would reconsider the government's request after receiving more information. (Reuters)

Apple, Facebook and other tech giants to urge Trump to alter US travel ban

A US jury ordered Facebook and creators of its Oculus Rift to pay $500 million to gaming software firm ZeniMax in a lawsuit that claimed the virtual reality technology was stolen.

The Texas jury made the award in a trial in which Oculus was accused of basing its Rift headset on technology stolen from ZeniMax&#39;s virtual reality software, court documents showed.

The lawsuit claimed Oculus founder Palmer Luckey and his colleagues developed the virtual reality gear using source code illegally obtained from the gaming firm.

The jury dismissed the charge that Oculus stole or misappropriated trade secrets but found Oculus liable for copyright infringement and other violations.

Luckey was ordered to pay $50 million of the award and another former Oculus executive, Brendan Iribe $150 million. 
The two executives were accused of violating a non-disclosure agreement with ZeniMax and copying the source code and other documents on a USB storage device.

ZeniMax had sought $4 billion in damages in the case, in which Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg testified to defend his company.

ZeniMax pleased, Oculus appeals

Maryland-based ZeniMax said it was &quot;pleased&quot; about the award for &quot;unlawful infringement of our copyrights and trademarks, and for the violation of our non-disclosure agreement with Oculus pursuant to which we shared breakthrough VR technology that we had developed and that we exclusively own.&quot;

Robert Altman, ZeniMax&#39;s chairman and chief executive, said in the statement: &quot;Technology is the foundation of our business and we consider the theft of our intellectual property to be a serious matter.&quot;

In its statement, Oculus said: &quot;The heart of this case was about whether Oculus stole ZeniMax&#39;s trade secrets, and the jury found decisively in our favour.&quot;

Oculus said it plans to appeal the verdict and was &quot;undeterred&quot; in its efforts to bring virtual reality technology to consumers.

&quot;Our commitment to the long-term success of VR remains the same, and the entire team will continue the work they&#39;ve done since day one - developing VR technology that will transform the way people interact and communicate,&quot; the Oculus statement said.

&quot;We look forward to filing our appeal and eventually putting this litigation behind us.&quot;

Facebook acquired Oculus in 2014 for more than $2 billion and last year began selling the Rift headsets as part of the social network&#39;s push into virtual reality.

According to the ZeniMax allegations, the &nbsp;four founders of Oculus had no expertise or backgrounds in VR other than Palmer Luckey.

But ZeniMax said Luckey &quot;could not code the software that was the key to solving the issues of VR.&quot;

The ZeniMax statement added that &quot;we will consider what further steps we need to take to ensure there will be no ongoing use of our misappropriated technology, including by seeking an injunction to restrain Oculus and Facebook from their ongoing use of computer code that the jury found infringed Zenimax&#39;s copyrights.&quot;

The news came as Facebook was releasing its earnings for the fourth quarter.

Zuckerberg, in his opening statement to analysts, sad Facebook would &quot;keep making big investments in VR content, and I am excited about what is coming in 2017 from games to more immersive experiences.&quot;

(AFP)

Facebook's Oculus was accused of basing its Rift headset on technology stolen from ZeniMax's virtual reality software

A US jury ordered Facebook and creators of its Oculus Rift to pay $500 million to gaming software firm ZeniMax in a lawsuit that claimed the virtual reality technology was stolen. The Texas jury made the award in a trial in which Oculus was accused of basing its Rift headset on technology stolen from ZeniMax's virtual reality software, court documents showed. The lawsuit claimed Oculus founder Palmer Luckey and his colleagues developed the virtual reality gear using source code illegally obtained from the gaming firm. The jury dismissed the charge that Oculus stole or misappropriated trade secrets but found Oculus liable for copyright infringement and other violations. Luckey was ordered to pay $50 million of the award and another former Oculus executive, Brendan Iribe $150 million. The two executives were accused of violating a non-disclosure agreement with ZeniMax and copying the source code and other documents on a USB storage device. ZeniMax had sought $4 billion in damages in the case, in which Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg testified to defend his company. ZeniMax pleased, Oculus appeals Maryland-based ZeniMax said it was "pleased" about the award for "unlawful infringement of our copyrights and trademarks, and for the violation of our non-disclosure agreement with Oculus pursuant to which we shared breakthrough VR technology that we had developed and that we exclusively own." Robert Altman, ZeniMax's chairman and chief executive, said in the statement: "Technology is the foundation of our business and we consider the theft of our intellectual property to be a serious matter." In its statement, Oculus said: "The heart of this case was about whether Oculus stole ZeniMax's trade secrets, and the jury found decisively in our favour." Oculus said it plans to appeal the verdict and was "undeterred" in its efforts to bring virtual reality technology to consumers. "Our commitment to the long-term success of VR remains the same, and the entire team will continue the work they've done since day one - developing VR technology that will transform the way people interact and communicate," the Oculus statement said. "We look forward to filing our appeal and eventually putting this litigation behind us." Facebook acquired Oculus in 2014 for more than $2 billion and last year began selling the Rift headsets as part of the social network's push into virtual reality. According to the ZeniMax allegations, the four founders of Oculus had no expertise or backgrounds in VR other than Palmer Luckey. But ZeniMax said Luckey "could not code the software that was the key to solving the issues of VR." The ZeniMax statement added that "we will consider what further steps we need to take to ensure there will be no ongoing use of our misappropriated technology, including by seeking an injunction to restrain Oculus and Facebook from their ongoing use of computer code that the jury found infringed Zenimax's copyrights." The news came as Facebook was releasing its earnings for the fourth quarter. Zuckerberg, in his opening statement to analysts, sad Facebook would "keep making big investments in VR content, and I am excited about what is coming in 2017 from games to more immersive experiences." (AFP)

Facebook ordered to pay $500 million for stealing VR technology

Facebook is creating an app for television set-top boxes, including Apple&#39;s Apple TV, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

The world&#39;s biggest online social network is also in discussions with media companies to license long-form, TV-quality programming, the Journal reported on Tuesday.

Facebook, however, declined to comment.

An app for set-top boxes would bring Facebook closer to live video and video advertisements.

Getting advertisers to buy more video ads is key to Facebook&#39;s continued revenue growth as such ads fetch higher rates from advertisers than text or photo-based ads.

Live video is also becoming a highly competitive feature on social platforms, with companies competing to stream major sports events and exclusive video components from high-profile events such as the Oscar and Grammy awards shows.

In April, Facebook expanded its live video product, Facebook Live - a potential threat to broadcast television, giving it prominent placement on its app and rolling out features to make it easier for users to search and comment in real time.

(Reuters)

&nbsp;

An app for set-top boxes would bring Facebook closer to live video and video advertisements

Facebook is creating an app for television set-top boxes, including Apple's Apple TV, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter. The world's biggest online social network is also in discussions with media companies to license long-form, TV-quality programming, the Journal reported on Tuesday. Facebook, however, declined to comment. An app for set-top boxes would bring Facebook closer to live video and video advertisements. Getting advertisers to buy more video ads is key to Facebook's continued revenue growth as such ads fetch higher rates from advertisers than text or photo-based ads. Live video is also becoming a highly competitive feature on social platforms, with companies competing to stream major sports events and exclusive video components from high-profile events such as the Oscar and Grammy awards shows. In April, Facebook expanded its live video product, Facebook Live - a potential threat to broadcast television, giving it prominent placement on its app and rolling out features to make it easier for users to search and comment in real time. (Reuters)

Facebook to develop app for television set-top boxes: Report

Google&#39;s India-born CEO Sundar Pichai has criticised President Donald Trump&#39;s controversial immigration order against people from seven Muslim-majority countries, saying it will create &quot;barriers&quot; to bringing great talent to the US, as the Internet search giant ordered its travelling staff to return to America.

Pichai in an email to staff said the US ban on foreign nationals from seven Muslim-majority countries will hit at least 187 Google employees.

&quot;We&#39;re upset about the impact of this order and any proposals that could impose restrictions on Googlers and their families, or that could create barriers to bringing great talent to the US,&quot; the Wall Street Journal quoted Pichai as saying in the email.

&quot;It is painful to see the personal cost of this executive order on our colleagues,&quot; he said.

Google has recalled around 100 of its affected staff from overseas, the BBC reported.

President Trump ordered &quot;extreme vetting&quot; of people entering the US from seven Muslim-majority countries and banned the entry of Syrian refugees until further notice, as part of new measures to &quot;keep radical Islamic terrorists&quot; out of America.&nbsp;The countries impacted are Iran, Iraq, Syria, Sudan, Libya, Yemen and Somalia.

The controversial move, signed a week after he was sworn in as the president, fulfills the vow Trump made on the campaign trail to limit Muslim immigration to the US.

In his message to employees, 44-year-old Pichai, who grew up in India, suggested that at least 187 employees hailed from countries included in the ban.

&quot;Our first order of business is to help Googlers who are affected,&quot; he said. &quot;If you&#39;re abroad and need help please reach out to our global security team.&quot; &nbsp;&quot;We wouldn&#39;t wish this fear and uncertainty on anyone and especially not our fellow Googlers,&quot; Pichai wrote:&nbsp;&quot;In times of uncertainty, our values remain the best guide.&quot;

Immigrants make up much of the workforce in Silicon Valley, including many executive roles, and the tech industry has long advocated for more open immigration laws in the US, saying they need more skilled foreigners to fill technical jobs.&nbsp;The new restrictions will have a major impact on American technology companies that hire skilled staff from all over the world on special H1-B visas, mostly used by Indian IT firms.

&quot;There have already been reports of green card holders, who are allowed to work in the US, being prevented from getting on flights. However, green cards are not specifically mentioned in the executive order,&quot; the Wall Street Journal said.

Microsoft has also warned its shareholders that curbs on immigration could have a material impact on its business.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has also criticised Trump&#39;s decision to severely limit immigrants and refugees from certain Muslim-majority countries, saying America is a nation of immigrants and should be proud of it.

&quot;Like many of you, I&#39;m concerned about the impact of the recent executive orders signed by President Trump,&quot; Zuckerberg wrote on his Facebook page. &nbsp;&quot;Like many of you, I&#39;m concerned about the impact of the recent executive orders signed by President Trump,&quot; Zuckerberg wrote on his Facebook page. &quot;We need to keep this country safe, but we should do that by focusing on people who actually pose a threat ... We should also keep our doors open to refugees and those who need help. That&#39;s who we are. Had we turned away refugees a few decades ago, Priscilla&#39;s family wouldn&#39;t be here today,&quot; he wrote of his wife, Priscilla Chan, whose family were refugees from China and Vietnam.

&quot;These issues are personal for me even beyond my family. A few years ago, I taught a class at a local middle school where some of my best students were undocumented. They are our future too. We are a nation of immigrants, and we all benefit when the best and brightest from around the world can live, work and contribute here. I hope we find the courage and compassion to bring people together and make this world a better place for everyone,&quot; he said.

&quot;Expanding the focus of law enforcement beyond people who are real threats would make all Americans less safe by diverting resources, while millions of undocumented folks who don&#39;t pose a threat will live in fear of deportation,&quot; he said.

Zuckerberg also prodded Trump to stand by earlier statements regarding Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (Daca) and H1-B visas, which are of particular concern to tech companies that use the visas to hire talent from overseas. 
&nbsp;

(PTI)

Google has reportedly recalled 100 of its affected staff from overseas, according to the BBC

Google's India-born CEO Sundar Pichai has criticised President Donald Trump's controversial immigration order against people from seven Muslim-majority countries, saying it will create "barriers" to bringing great talent to the US, as the Internet search giant ordered its travelling staff to return to America. Pichai in an email to staff said the US ban on foreign nationals from seven Muslim-majority countries will hit at least 187 Google employees. "We're upset about the impact of this order and any proposals that could impose restrictions on Googlers and their families, or that could create barriers to bringing great talent to the US," the Wall Street Journal quoted Pichai as saying in the email. "It is painful to see the personal cost of this executive order on our colleagues," he said. Google has recalled around 100 of its affected staff from overseas, the BBC reported. President Trump ordered "extreme vetting" of people entering the US from seven Muslim-majority countries and banned the entry of Syrian refugees until further notice, as part of new measures to "keep radical Islamic terrorists" out of America. The countries impacted are Iran, Iraq, Syria, Sudan, Libya, Yemen and Somalia. The controversial move, signed a week after he was sworn in as the president, fulfills the vow Trump made on the campaign trail to limit Muslim immigration to the US. In his message to employees, 44-year-old Pichai, who grew up in India, suggested that at least 187 employees hailed from countries included in the ban. "Our first order of business is to help Googlers who are affected," he said. "If you're abroad and need help please reach out to our global security team." "We wouldn't wish this fear and uncertainty on anyone and especially not our fellow Googlers," Pichai wrote: "In times of uncertainty, our values remain the best guide." Immigrants make up much of the workforce in Silicon Valley, including many executive roles, and the tech industry has long advocated for more open immigration laws in the US, saying they need more skilled foreigners to fill technical jobs. The new restrictions will have a major impact on American technology companies that hire skilled staff from all over the world on special H1-B visas, mostly used by Indian IT firms. "There have already been reports of green card holders, who are allowed to work in the US, being prevented from getting on flights. However, green cards are not specifically mentioned in the executive order," the Wall Street Journal said. Microsoft has also warned its shareholders that curbs on immigration could have a material impact on its business. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has also criticised Trump's decision to severely limit immigrants and refugees from certain Muslim-majority countries, saying America is a nation of immigrants and should be proud of it. "Like many of you, I'm concerned about the impact of the recent executive orders signed by President Trump," Zuckerberg wrote on his Facebook page. "Like many of you, I'm concerned about the impact of the recent executive orders signed by President Trump," Zuckerberg wrote on his Facebook page. "We need to keep this country safe, but we should do that by focusing on people who actually pose a threat ... We should also keep our doors open to refugees and those who need help. That's who we are. Had we turned away refugees a few decades ago, Priscilla's family wouldn't be here today," he wrote of his wife, Priscilla Chan, whose family were refugees from China and Vietnam. "These issues are personal for me even beyond my family. A few years ago, I taught a class at a local middle school where some of my best students were undocumented. They are our future too. We are a nation of immigrants, and we all benefit when the best and brightest from around the world can live, work and contribute here. I hope we find the courage and compassion to bring people together and make this world a better place for everyone," he said. "Expanding the focus of law enforcement beyond people who are real threats would make all Americans less safe by diverting resources, while millions of undocumented folks who don't pose a threat will live in fear of deportation," he said. Zuckerberg also prodded Trump to stand by earlier statements regarding Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (Daca) and H1-B visas, which are of particular concern to tech companies that use the visas to hire talent from overseas. (PTI)

Google's Pichai, Facebook founder Zuckerberg criticise Trump's immigration order

Facebook has hired Hugo Barra, the most prominent global executive at Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi, to lead its virtual reality business including the Oculus unit, said Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg.

The 32-year-old Facebook founder has spoken about virtual reality as an important part of the company&#39;s future business, especially as the technology becomes less expensive and its uses clearer. Facebook acquired Oculus in 2014, believing it to be the next major computing platform.

&quot;Hugo shares my belief that virtual and augmented reality will be the next major computing platform. They&#39;ll enable us to experience completely new things,&quot; Zuckerberg said in a post on Facebook.

<iframe allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="460" scrolling="no" src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2F4DXKOREA%2Fposts%2F10103456684278791&amp;width=500" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" width="100%"></iframe>

Earlier this week, Barra said he was stepping down as Xiaomi&#39;s vice president after three-and-a-half-years, citing health concerns and a new job.

His exit comes at a time when Xiaomi is trying to adjust its strategy. The company pulled back from several overseas markets, including Singapore and Brazil, in 2016. It is increasing its offline retail presence and aims to develop artificial intelligence and internet finance as growth areas.

Barra, under whom Xiaomi was for a time China&#39;s best-selling brand, described his experience with the company as a &quot;spectacular&quot; journey, but said it was time to return home for a &quot;new adventure&quot;.

At Barra&#39;s instigation, Xiaomi made some overseas breakthroughs, notably in Southeast Asia, Russia, and especially India - where he achieved $1 billion in annual revenue.

Despite his efforts, Xiaomi still depends on the Chinese market for the overwhelming majority of its sales.

(WION with inputs from Agencies)

Facebook has hired Hugo Barra to lead its virtual reality business

Facebook has hired Hugo Barra, the most prominent global executive at Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi, to lead its virtual reality business including the Oculus unit, said Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg. The 32-year-old Facebook founder has spoken about virtual reality as an important part of the company's future business, especially as the technology becomes less expensive and its uses clearer. Facebook acquired Oculus in 2014, believing it to be the next major computing platform. "Hugo shares my belief that virtual and augmented reality will be the next major computing platform. They'll enable us to experience completely new things," Zuckerberg said in a post on Facebook. Earlier this week, Barra said he was stepping down as Xiaomi's vice president after three-and-a-half-years, citing health concerns and a new job. His exit comes at a time when Xiaomi is trying to adjust its strategy. The company pulled back from several overseas markets, including Singapore and Brazil, in 2016. It is increasing its offline retail presence and aims to develop artificial intelligence and internet finance as growth areas. Barra, under whom Xiaomi was for a time China's best-selling brand, described his experience with the company as a "spectacular" journey, but said it was time to return home for a "new adventure". At Barra's instigation, Xiaomi made some overseas breakthroughs, notably in Southeast Asia, Russia, and especially India - where he achieved $1 billion in annual revenue. Despite his efforts, Xiaomi still depends on the Chinese market for the overwhelming majority of its sales. (WION with inputs from Agencies)

Hugo Barra leaves Xiaomi to join Facebook

Three young men suspected of gang raping a woman in Sweden and livestreaming the attack on Facebook have been detained, police said, urging social media users on Monday to turn over the footage.

The suspects, aged 18, 20 and 24, were arrested early Sunday in an apartment in Uppsala, 70 kilometres (45 miles) north of Stockholm, in the presence of their 30-year-old victim after members of a Facebook group saw the attack streamed live and alerted police.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="row">
<div class="article-blockquote">
<div class="col-sm-10 col-sm-offset-1 blockquote-content quoteshare">
<blockquote>
<h5>The suspects, aged 18, 20 and 24, were arrested early Sunday in an apartment in Uppsala in the presence of their 30-year-old victim</h5>
</blockquote>
</div>

<div class="col-sm-1 blockquote-content">
<div class="share-blockquote"><a class="twitter popup" href="http://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=The suspects, aged 18, 20 and 24, were arrested early Sunday in an apartment in Uppsala in the presence of their 30-year-old victim" target="_blank">&nbsp;</a></div>
</div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqquoteclosemark">&times;</a></div>
</div>
</div>

The closed Facebook group has 60,000 members.

Josefine Lundgren, 21, was one of the first to call authorities.

She told daily Expressen that the 24-year-old suspect, a repeat offender considered by police to be the main attacker, &quot;tore the clothes off&quot; his victim before raping her.

The attacker also &quot;had apparently filmed everything and took pictures that he put on (messaging site) Snapchat,&quot; she said.

At a press conference on Monday, investigators appealed to social media users who had images of the attack to turn them over to police.

&quot;We have some picture and video material. But we don&#39;t have any images showing the attack itself,&quot; Uppsala deputy chief prosecutor Magnus Berggren said.

The film has been removed from Facebook but it has been circulated on the internet. Swedish media have published excerpts of the footage, showing at least one of the suspects holding a revolver.

According to Berggren, other charges could be pressed against the suspects in addition to one of aggravated rape, for having streamed the attack.

In an email to AFP, a press spokesman for Facebook in the Nordic countries denounced &quot;a hideous crime&quot;.

&quot;Our teams work around the clock to review content that is being reported by users&quot; and Facebook cooperates systematically with police in criminal investigations, he said.

(AFP)

The attack was streamed on a closed Facebook group with about 60,000 members

Three young men suspected of gang raping a woman in Sweden and livestreaming the attack on Facebook have been detained, police said, urging social media users on Monday to turn over the footage. The suspects, aged 18, 20 and 24, were arrested early Sunday in an apartment in Uppsala, 70 kilometres (45 miles) north of Stockholm, in the presence of their 30-year-old victim after members of a Facebook group saw the attack streamed live and alerted police. The suspects, aged 18, 20 and 24, were arrested early Sunday in an apartment in Uppsala in the presence of their 30-year-old victim × The closed Facebook group has 60,000 members. Josefine Lundgren, 21, was one of the first to call authorities. She told daily Expressen that the 24-year-old suspect, a repeat offender considered by police to be the main attacker, "tore the clothes off" his victim before raping her. The attacker also "had apparently filmed everything and took pictures that he put on (messaging site) Snapchat," she said. At a press conference on Monday, investigators appealed to social media users who had images of the attack to turn them over to police. "We have some picture and video material. But we don't have any images showing the attack itself," Uppsala deputy chief prosecutor Magnus Berggren said. The film has been removed from Facebook but it has been circulated on the internet. Swedish media have published excerpts of the footage, showing at least one of the suspects holding a revolver. According to Berggren, other charges could be pressed against the suspects in addition to one of aggravated rape, for having streamed the attack. In an email to AFP, a press spokesman for Facebook in the Nordic countries denounced "a hideous crime". "Our teams work around the clock to review content that is being reported by users" and Facebook cooperates systematically with police in criminal investigations, he said. (AFP)

Sweden: Gang rape streamed live on Facebook, 3 arrested

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg took the witness stand in Dallas federal court and denied an allegation by a rival company that the virtual-reality technology of Facebook&#39;s Oculus unit was stolen.

Zuckerberg, the founder of one of the world&#39;s largest companies, faced hours of tough, public questioning about where Oculus obtained its ideas and how much he knew about the startup when Facebook bought it for $2 billion.

A jury is hearing evidence in a civil lawsuit brought by videogame publisher ZeniMax Media against Oculus in 2014, in the middle of the Facebook-Oculus deal. ZeniMax said that Oculus unlawfully used its intellectual property to develop the virtual-reality system that includes the Rift headset.

During one heated exchange with ZeniMax lawyer Tony Sammi, Zuckerberg told a jury in the crowded courtroom that the technology was not even fully formed when Facebook bought it.

&quot;Improving on that technology doesn&#39;t make it yours,&quot; Sammi countered. &quot;If you steal my bike, paint it and put a bell on it, does that make it your bike?&quot;

Zuckerberg, wearing a dark suit and striped tie rather than his typical T-shirt and jeans, answered&nbsp;&quot;no&quot;, but then added: &quot;The idea that Oculus technology is based on someone else&#39;s is just wrong.&quot;

The 32-year-old Facebook founder has spoken about virtual reality as an important part of the company&#39;s future business, especially as the technology becomes less expensive and its uses clearer.

The Oculus acquisition was more expensive than the $2 billion price tag indicated, Zuckerberg said in court, describing $700 million spent to retain employees and $300 million in payouts for reaching milestones. Oculus originally wanted $4 billion, he said.

Sammi questioned whether Facebook knew what it was doing when it made the acquisition. Zuckerberg said the Oculus deal was done over a weekend in 2014, which Sammi said did not show sufficient due diligence. Zuckerberg said, though, in later testimony that Facebook researched Oculus for months.

At the time, Zuckerberg testified, he was not aware of any theft claims against Oculus.

&quot;It&#39;s pretty common when you announce a big deal that people just come out of the woodwork and claim they own some part of the deal,&quot; Zuckerberg said.

On the stand, he also gave details about Facebook&#39;s $22 billion purchase of messaging service WhatsApp in 2014. While the deal was in progress, another company he did not identify made a last-minute bid that was higher, Zuckerberg said, but WhatsApp declined because of its good relationship with Facebook.

The Oculus lawsuit, in the sixth day of a jury trial, relates in part to programmer John Carmack.

Well-known for helping to conceive games such as &quot;Quake&quot; and &quot;Doom&quot;, Carmack worked for id Software LLC before that company was acquired by ZeniMax. He is now the chief technology officer at Oculus.

Zuckerberg denied that Carmack has unfairly used computer code from his previous position. &quot;There is no shared code in what we do,&quot; he said.

Zuckerberg said he has been interested in virtual reality since he was a student, but thought it was decades away from happening before he encountered Oculus. He told jurors how he used virtual reality to capture his daughter&#39;s first steps, so her grandparents could experience it later.

&quot;We want to get closer to this kind of perfect representation, so you can capture a moment you had,&quot; he said.

(Reuters)

Zuckerberg testified that he was not aware of any theft claims against Oculus at the time of acquisition

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg took the witness stand in Dallas federal court and denied an allegation by a rival company that the virtual-reality technology of Facebook's Oculus unit was stolen. Zuckerberg, the founder of one of the world's largest companies, faced hours of tough, public questioning about where Oculus obtained its ideas and how much he knew about the startup when Facebook bought it for $2 billion. A jury is hearing evidence in a civil lawsuit brought by videogame publisher ZeniMax Media against Oculus in 2014, in the middle of the Facebook-Oculus deal. ZeniMax said that Oculus unlawfully used its intellectual property to develop the virtual-reality system that includes the Rift headset. During one heated exchange with ZeniMax lawyer Tony Sammi, Zuckerberg told a jury in the crowded courtroom that the technology was not even fully formed when Facebook bought it. "Improving on that technology doesn't make it yours," Sammi countered. "If you steal my bike, paint it and put a bell on it, does that make it your bike?" Zuckerberg, wearing a dark suit and striped tie rather than his typical T-shirt and jeans, answered "no", but then added: "The idea that Oculus technology is based on someone else's is just wrong." The 32-year-old Facebook founder has spoken about virtual reality as an important part of the company's future business, especially as the technology becomes less expensive and its uses clearer. The Oculus acquisition was more expensive than the $2 billion price tag indicated, Zuckerberg said in court, describing $700 million spent to retain employees and $300 million in payouts for reaching milestones. Oculus originally wanted $4 billion, he said. Sammi questioned whether Facebook knew what it was doing when it made the acquisition. Zuckerberg said the Oculus deal was done over a weekend in 2014, which Sammi said did not show sufficient due diligence. Zuckerberg said, though, in later testimony that Facebook researched Oculus for months. At the time, Zuckerberg testified, he was not aware of any theft claims against Oculus. "It's pretty common when you announce a big deal that people just come out of the woodwork and claim they own some part of the deal," Zuckerberg said. On the stand, he also gave details about Facebook's $22 billion purchase of messaging service WhatsApp in 2014. While the deal was in progress, another company he did not identify made a last-minute bid that was higher, Zuckerberg said, but WhatsApp declined because of its good relationship with Facebook. The Oculus lawsuit, in the sixth day of a jury trial, relates in part to programmer John Carmack. Well-known for helping to conceive games such as "Quake" and "Doom", Carmack worked for id Software LLC before that company was acquired by ZeniMax. He is now the chief technology officer at Oculus. Zuckerberg denied that Carmack has unfairly used computer code from his previous position. "There is no shared code in what we do," he said. Zuckerberg said he has been interested in virtual reality since he was a student, but thought it was decades away from happening before he encountered Oculus. He told jurors how he used virtual reality to capture his daughter's first steps, so her grandparents could experience it later. "We want to get closer to this kind of perfect representation, so you can capture a moment you had," he said. (Reuters)

Facebook's Zuckerberg questioned at trial over 'stolen' Oculus VR technology

Facebook has announced it will take up the cudgels against the scourge of fake news in Germany, as Europe&#39;s largest economy gears up for elections this year.

The social media giant is keen on not continuing their algorithm of &quot;engagement&quot; without any filters&nbsp;because it had an adverse impact in the run-up to the US election. The algorithm is a tool that helps prioritize stories that have a certain elements of interest among the public.

Stories like Pope endorsing Donald Trump, Bill Clinton having raped a minor girl etc. did the rounds on Facebook as there was no filter to separate fake news from real ones. Facebook came under severe criticism for many felt that most of the fake stories were against Hillary Clinton -- something that might have&nbsp;abetted Trump&#39;s stunning win on November 8.

&quot;It&#39;s important to us that the reports and news posted on Facebook are reliable,&quot; a blog post on the Silicon Valley firm&#39;s German website read.

The firm said it would offer a simpler reporting process for users to flag suspected fake news, display warnings next to statements identified as false by independent fact-checking organisations, and cut off advertising revenue to fake news sites presenting themselves as real news organisations.

Stories flagged with a fake news warning will not be eligible to be converted into an ad seen by other users or &quot;promoted&quot; into other users&#39; feeds for a fee.

&quot;We think that independent and transparent fact-checking can be a powerful instrument for journalism,&quot; Facebook said.

Nonprofit investigative journalism organisation Correctiv will be the first fact-checking partner in Germany, the firm added, saying that they are &quot;confident&quot; of adding other news organisations in future.

Facebook&#39;s latest measures come just days after it announced the creation of a &quot;Journalism Project&quot; aimed at boosting the credibility of the information it circulates.

(WION with inputs from AFP)

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Unlike during the US election, the social media giant will stop giving advertisement revenue to bogus news sites

Facebook has announced it will take up the cudgels against the scourge of fake news in Germany, as Europe's largest economy gears up for elections this year. The social media giant is keen on not continuing their algorithm of "engagement" without any filters because it had an adverse impact in the run-up to the US election. The algorithm is a tool that helps prioritize stories that have a certain elements of interest among the public. Stories like Pope endorsing Donald Trump, Bill Clinton having raped a minor girl etc. did the rounds on Facebook as there was no filter to separate fake news from real ones. Facebook came under severe criticism for many felt that most of the fake stories were against Hillary Clinton -- something that might have abetted Trump's stunning win on November 8. "It's important to us that the reports and news posted on Facebook are reliable," a blog post on the Silicon Valley firm's German website read. The firm said it would offer a simpler reporting process for users to flag suspected fake news, display warnings next to statements identified as false by independent fact-checking organisations, and cut off advertising revenue to fake news sites presenting themselves as real news organisations. Stories flagged with a fake news warning will not be eligible to be converted into an ad seen by other users or "promoted" into other users' feeds for a fee. "We think that independent and transparent fact-checking can be a powerful instrument for journalism," Facebook said. Nonprofit investigative journalism organisation Correctiv will be the first fact-checking partner in Germany, the firm added, saying that they are "confident" of adding other news organisations in future. Facebook's latest measures come just days after it announced the creation of a "Journalism Project" aimed at boosting the credibility of the information it circulates. (WION with inputs from AFP)

Facebook to crack down on fake news sites in Germany's election year

In times when GIFs are becoming increasingly popular in digital conversations and across social networks, WhatsApp can&rsquo;t afford to be far behind in the race. Making the chat experience richer, Facebook-owned WhatsApp is bringing the much-awaited GIF support to its messaging service.

The new GIF feature is currently limited to beta testers of the app and will soon be rolled out to users across the world. But if you can&rsquo;t wait to get it on your WhatsApp, you can sign up for the Android Beta Testing Program by going <a href="https://www.whatsapp.com/android/">here</a>.

Here&rsquo;s how you can send GIFs to WhatsApp users:

1. Once you have the latest build (currently, version 2.17.6) of WhatsApp on your phone, go to any chat window or for that matter, to the chat window of a person you want to send a GIF to.

2. Tap the emoji icon located in the message box (where you type messages) and an emoji tray will pop up. 
 
3. You can now find the &ldquo;GIF&rdquo; button located at the bottom of the tray. As you tap on it, you will be taken to the GIF tray with a search bar.

4. You can then search and choose a GIF, add a caption if you want, and send.

There is no word on when the new GIF feature will be officially rolled out for Android users. iOS users, however, got the GIF support within the app back in November 2016.

Besides the GIF support, WhatsApp for Android has also increased the media sharing limit from 10 to 30.

(WION)

We bring you a four-step guide to the GIF support on your Android phone

In times when GIFs are becoming increasingly popular in digital conversations and across social networks, WhatsApp can’t afford to be far behind in the race. Making the chat experience richer, Facebook-owned WhatsApp is bringing the much-awaited GIF support to its messaging service. The new GIF feature is currently limited to beta testers of the app and will soon be rolled out to users across the world. But if you can’t wait to get it on your WhatsApp, you can sign up for the Android Beta Testing Program by going here. Here’s how you can send GIFs to WhatsApp users: 1. Once you have the latest build (currently, version 2.17.6) of WhatsApp on your phone, go to any chat window or for that matter, to the chat window of a person you want to send a GIF to. 2. Tap the emoji icon located in the message box (where you type messages) and an emoji tray will pop up. 3. You can now find the “GIF” button located at the bottom of the tray. As you tap on it, you will be taken to the GIF tray with a search bar. 4. You can then search and choose a GIF, add a caption if you want, and send. There is no word on when the new GIF feature will be officially rolled out for Android users. iOS users, however, got the GIF support within the app back in November 2016. Besides the GIF support, WhatsApp for Android has also increased the media sharing limit from 10 to 30. (WION)

How Android users can send GIFs on WhatsApp from within the app

Facebook&rsquo;s Instagram is bringing more than 30 advertisers into one of its fastest-growing features, Instagram Stories, in a bid to boost advertising revenue, said the company.

The social media company will become a more important player in maintaining Facebook&rsquo;s growth in advertising revenue in 2017. During the last two earnings calls, Facebook executives said they may soon reach a limit on the amount of ads they can place before users, one of the factors that had driven ad revenue growth.

Instagram is expected to generate $3.64 billion in worldwide ad revenue this year, nearly double that of 2016, according to eMarketer. That would represent 12.3 per cent of Facebook&#39;s global ad business, up from 8.4 per cent in 2016. In the United States, eMarketer said it expects Instagram to account for more than 20 percent of Facebook&#39;s ad revenue.

eMarketer also found that 74 per cent of US companies plan to use Instagram this year, up from 53 per cent in 2016. This level of use would allow Instagram to surpass Twitter.

Media buyers are optimistic about Instagram&rsquo;s ability to maintain Facebook&rsquo;s place, second only to Alphabet&rsquo;s Google, in the digital ad marketplace. &ldquo;Instagram could end up being as strong a revenue component for Facebook as YouTube has been for Google,&rdquo; said Noah Mallin, head of social for ad agency MEC Wavemaker.

In Instagram Stories, users and businesses can post a string of photos and videos that disappear after 24 hours. It was launched in August and now has 150 million daily active users, according to Jim Squires, director of market operations for Instagram.

The new ad product will show full-screen ads intermittently as users swipe through photos and videos on Instagram Stories. The company is testing it with major advertisers including General Motors, Nike and Airbnb, which is using it to promote its product Trips on Airbnb.

Time Warner&#39;s Turner Sports will test ads for cable network TNT&#39;s airing of the National Basketball Association&#39;s All-Star Game in New Orleans next month.

Companies normally test new advertising products with a select group of advertisers before a wider roll out.

&ldquo;It&rsquo;s definitely gained importance,&rdquo; said Ian Schafer, founder and chairman of ad agency Deep Focus, who said he plans to spend more money with Instagram.

The past few months have seen Facebook admit to a variety of errors in how it has measured performance for brands that advertise on the platform. Buyers do not expect that to hurt Instagram&#39;s efforts.

&ldquo;They just have such a monopoly when it comes to attention that it&rsquo;s difficult not to have to go that route,&rdquo; said Victor Pineiro, senior vice president social media for digital agency Big Spaceship.

(Reuters)

Instagram is expected to generate $3.64 billion in worldwide ad revenue this year, nearly double that of 2016

Facebook’s Instagram is bringing more than 30 advertisers into one of its fastest-growing features, Instagram Stories, in a bid to boost advertising revenue, said the company. The social media company will become a more important player in maintaining Facebook’s growth in advertising revenue in 2017. During the last two earnings calls, Facebook executives said they may soon reach a limit on the amount of ads they can place before users, one of the factors that had driven ad revenue growth. Instagram is expected to generate $3.64 billion in worldwide ad revenue this year, nearly double that of 2016, according to eMarketer. That would represent 12.3 per cent of Facebook's global ad business, up from 8.4 per cent in 2016. In the United States, eMarketer said it expects Instagram to account for more than 20 percent of Facebook's ad revenue. eMarketer also found that 74 per cent of US companies plan to use Instagram this year, up from 53 per cent in 2016. This level of use would allow Instagram to surpass Twitter. Media buyers are optimistic about Instagram’s ability to maintain Facebook’s place, second only to Alphabet’s Google, in the digital ad marketplace. “Instagram could end up being as strong a revenue component for Facebook as YouTube has been for Google,” said Noah Mallin, head of social for ad agency MEC Wavemaker. In Instagram Stories, users and businesses can post a string of photos and videos that disappear after 24 hours. It was launched in August and now has 150 million daily active users, according to Jim Squires, director of market operations for Instagram. The new ad product will show full-screen ads intermittently as users swipe through photos and videos on Instagram Stories. The company is testing it with major advertisers including General Motors, Nike and Airbnb, which is using it to promote its product Trips on Airbnb. Time Warner's Turner Sports will test ads for cable network TNT's airing of the National Basketball Association's All-Star Game in New Orleans next month. Companies normally test new advertising products with a select group of advertisers before a wider roll out. “It’s definitely gained importance,” said Ian Schafer, founder and chairman of ad agency Deep Focus, who said he plans to spend more money with Instagram. The past few months have seen Facebook admit to a variety of errors in how it has measured performance for brands that advertise on the platform. Buyers do not expect that to hurt Instagram's efforts. “They just have such a monopoly when it comes to attention that it’s difficult not to have to go that route,” said Victor Pineiro, senior vice president social media for digital agency Big Spaceship. (Reuters)

Instagram will now show you advertisements in Stories

Facebook sparked fear -- and anger -- among Thailand&#39;s social media users after its Safety Check feature triggered a false bomb alert in Bangkok.

The check-in feature allows users to signal to friends that they are safe after an event in their area such as a terror attack or natural disaster.

But it appeared to misfire late Tuesday, creating an alert called &quot;The Explosion in Bangkok&quot; that said a blast in the capital had been confirmed by &quot;multiple sources&quot;.

The page gave no other details about the incident but linked to articles about a bombing in Bangkok in August 2015 which killed 20 people.&nbsp;

After numerous city residents marked themselves as safe, the alert was deactivated around an hour later at 10pm, leaving netizens relieved but also frustrated over the false alarm.&nbsp;

&quot;Facebook issued false news that has destroyed Thailand&#39;s image,&quot; wrote Thai user Prasit Silhanisong.&nbsp;

&quot;It&#39;s close to the New Year and now tourists might not come,&quot; he added, calling on the social media giant to apologise.&nbsp;

Facebook swiftly defended the algorithm, saying the alert was activated by reports of small explosives that a protester had thrown near Government House earlier on Tuesday.&nbsp;

The incident, which caused no injuries or damage, was covered in the local press.&nbsp;

&quot;Safety Check was activated yesterday in Thailand following an explosion,&quot; a Facebook spokesperson said in a statement to AFP, adding that a &quot;trusted third party&quot; had confirmed the incident.&nbsp;

It is not the first time the check-in feature has caused controversy.&nbsp;

In March the company apologised after a bug sent a Safety Check notification to users around the world following a deadly suicide bombing in Pakistan.

The social network also faced criticism in November 2015 for selectively activating the feature after attacks in Paris but not in Beirut.&nbsp;

(AFP)

It created an alert called 'The Explosion in Bangkok' that said a blast in the capital had been confirmed by 'multiple sources'

Facebook sparked fear -- and anger -- among Thailand's social media users after its Safety Check feature triggered a false bomb alert in Bangkok. The check-in feature allows users to signal to friends that they are safe after an event in their area such as a terror attack or natural disaster. But it appeared to misfire late Tuesday, creating an alert called "The Explosion in Bangkok" that said a blast in the capital had been confirmed by "multiple sources". The page gave no other details about the incident but linked to articles about a bombing in Bangkok in August 2015 which killed 20 people. After numerous city residents marked themselves as safe, the alert was deactivated around an hour later at 10pm, leaving netizens relieved but also frustrated over the false alarm. "Facebook issued false news that has destroyed Thailand's image," wrote Thai user Prasit Silhanisong. "It's close to the New Year and now tourists might not come," he added, calling on the social media giant to apologise. Facebook swiftly defended the algorithm, saying the alert was activated by reports of small explosives that a protester had thrown near Government House earlier on Tuesday. The incident, which caused no injuries or damage, was covered in the local press. "Safety Check was activated yesterday in Thailand following an explosion," a Facebook spokesperson said in a statement to AFP, adding that a "trusted third party" had confirmed the incident. It is not the first time the check-in feature has caused controversy. In March the company apologised after a bug sent a Safety Check notification to users around the world following a deadly suicide bombing in Pakistan. The social network also faced criticism in November 2015 for selectively activating the feature after attacks in Paris but not in Beirut. (AFP)

Facebook Safety Check triggers false Bangkok bomb scare

Mark Zuckerberg introduced the world to &quot;Jarvis&quot;, an artificial intelligence system the Facebook chief created in his spare time, which can choose and play music, turn on lights, and recognise visitors, deciding whether to open the front door.

Jarvis, named after the virtual assistant in the Iron Man movies, could be a step toward a new product, Zuckerberg wrote, although he cautioned that the system he had created in 100 hours over the last year was customised for his house.

Zuckerberg announced results of the project, a personal challenge he set for himself this year, as digital home assistants by Google and Amazon.com compete for holiday sales and are expected to outsell popular emerging gadgets such as virtual reality headsets and drones.

Creating Jarvis proved humanity is &quot;both closer and farther off&quot; from an AI breakthrough than we imagine, Zuckerberg <a href="https://www.facebook.com/notes/mark-zuckerberg/building-jarvis/10154361492931634">wrote</a>.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false"><img alt="" draggable="false" src="http://wion.azureedge.net/photos/15419743_10103347287954901_2744013366467623932_o-20161220071027.jpeg" />
<div class="media-description">
Diagram of the systems connected to build Jarvis. (Facebook)
</div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="javascript:void(0)" id="jqclosemark">&times;</a></div>

Computers are getting very good at pick out patterns, such as face recognition, but it is difficult to teach them new things, he <a href="https://www.facebook.com/notes/mark-zuckerberg/building-jarvis/10154361492931634">wrote</a>.

&quot;Everything I did this year - natural language, face recognition, speech recognition and so on - are all variants of the same fundamental pattern recognition techniques,&quot; he wrote. &quot;But even if I spent 1,000 more hours, I probably wouldn&#39;t be able to build a system that could learn completely new skills on its own.&quot;

By the end of the year, Jarvis was able to respond to text and voice commands and it could run music, air conditioning, doors, and other systems. It could recognise visitors, start a toaster and even shoot t-shirts from a cannon in his closet. 
With more effort to broaden Jarvis&#39; use beyond Zuckerberg&#39;s own house, the experiment &quot;could be a great foundation to build a new product,&quot; he wrote.

A dearth of internet-connected devices, lack of common standards for connected devices to communicate and challenges related to speech recognition and machine learning were all obstacles, he said.

At the same time, he said challenges lead to eureka moments.

Adjustments made to help Jarvis recognise context in commands ultimately helped the system respond to less specific requests in a better fashion, such as asking the system to &quot;play me some music&quot;.

&quot;I&#39;ve found we use these more open-ended requests more frequently than more specific asks. No commercial products I know of do this today, and this seems like a big opportunity,&quot; he wrote.

(Reuters)

It's a result of a personal challenge he set for himself in the beginning of 2016

Mark Zuckerberg introduced the world to "Jarvis", an artificial intelligence system the Facebook chief created in his spare time, which can choose and play music, turn on lights, and recognise visitors, deciding whether to open the front door. Jarvis, named after the virtual assistant in the Iron Man movies, could be a step toward a new product, Zuckerberg wrote, although he cautioned that the system he had created in 100 hours over the last year was customised for his house. Zuckerberg announced results of the project, a personal challenge he set for himself this year, as digital home assistants by Google and Amazon.com compete for holiday sales and are expected to outsell popular emerging gadgets such as virtual reality headsets and drones. Creating Jarvis proved humanity is "both closer and farther off" from an AI breakthrough than we imagine, Zuckerberg wrote. Diagram of the systems connected to build Jarvis. (Facebook) × Computers are getting very good at pick out patterns, such as face recognition, but it is difficult to teach them new things, he wrote. "Everything I did this year - natural language, face recognition, speech recognition and so on - are all variants of the same fundamental pattern recognition techniques," he wrote. "But even if I spent 1,000 more hours, I probably wouldn't be able to build a system that could learn completely new skills on its own." By the end of the year, Jarvis was able to respond to text and voice commands and it could run music, air conditioning, doors, and other systems. It could recognise visitors, start a toaster and even shoot t-shirts from a cannon in his closet. With more effort to broaden Jarvis' use beyond Zuckerberg's own house, the experiment "could be a great foundation to build a new product," he wrote. A dearth of internet-connected devices, lack of common standards for connected devices to communicate and challenges related to speech recognition and machine learning were all obstacles, he said. At the same time, he said challenges lead to eureka moments. Adjustments made to help Jarvis recognise context in commands ultimately helped the system respond to less specific requests in a better fashion, such as asking the system to "play me some music". "I've found we use these more open-ended requests more frequently than more specific asks. No commercial products I know of do this today, and this seems like a big opportunity," he wrote. (Reuters)

This is what Mark Zuckerberg created in his spare time this year

facebook

Facebook, News on Facebook, stories on Facebook, articles on Facebook, Facebook stories at Wion, Facebook news, Facebook latest news