The Tech Landscape #129 🍿
The Yellowstone Zone of Death is a 129km² section of Yellowstone National Park, Idaho, in which, due to a loophole in the United States Constitution, it’s theoretically possible for someone to get away with murder (or any other crime).
Far too much criticism of technology comes from a foundation of historical ignorance (he said, gnomically).
Assistants & Voice
Google launched Assistant’s Duplex on the Web service, announced at IO back in May. It uses Chrome to semi-automatically book cinema seats from selected chains in the US and from ODEON in the UK.
blog.google/products/assistant/save-time-buying-movie-tickets-google-assistant-chrome/
Google announced Your News Update, an algorithmic selection of audio headlines for Assistant, based on your interests. It’s launching in the US with selected partners initially.
blog.google/products/news/your-news-update/
Amazon announced the Alexa Web API for Games, which lets developers build web applications to run on Alexa devices with screens (Echo Show, Fire TV, etc). It provides a lot more flexibility than the existing Alexa Presentation Language. Available by invite only, for now.
developer.amazon.com/blogs/alexa/post/1485655a-84d8-45ea-b396-9140bcd5d735/apply-for-the-alexa-web-api-for-games-developer-preview
London voice app startup Opearlo has been acquired by US-based Matchbox.io. This seems to be an intellectual property acquisition and a consolidation of the voice market, rather than an expansion.
voicebot.ai/2019/11/19/matchbox-io-has-acquired-all-of-opearlos-alexa-skills-including-the-top-rated-productivity-skill-find-my-phone/
Sonos has acquired on-device voice assistant startup, Snips. It plans to provide default voice controls for music on its device, rather than take on Alexa and Assistant as generalised assistant.
variety.com/2019/digital/news/sonos-snips-acquisition-q4-2019-earnings-1203410771/
Messaging
Google’s dynamic emails format is rolling out to Gmail on Android and iOS. Dynamic emails, based on AMP technology, allow rich content and interactive actions, and have been available on the web for a few months.
gsuiteupdates.googleblog.com/2019/11/dynamic-mail-android-ios.html
Yahoo! Japan will merge with messaging (and more) app Line with the aim of creating a Japanese super-app to take on competitors in the Asian market such as WeChat.
techcrunch.com/2019/11/17/yahoo-japan-and-line-corp-confirm-merger-agreement/
Games
Google launched its Stadia cloud gaming service. Critical consensus seems to be that the technology works well, but it lacks a ‘killer app’ to make you choose it over other games platforms.
blog.google/products/stadia/stadia-launches-today/
Popular board game Settlers of Catan will be the next to get the Pokémon Go treatment. Details are sparse, but the game will be built using Niantic’s Real World platform which also powers Harry Potter: Wizards Unite.
techcrunch.com/2019/11/19/is-this-niantics-next-game/
Audio
Spotify released Your Daily Podcast, an algorithmically-curated feed of podcasts based on your interests.
newsroom.spotify.com/2019-11-19/your-daily-podcasts-playlist-makes-finding-your-next-favorite-show-easier-than-ever/
TikTok owner ByteDance is looking to get into the streaming music business with a new app to launch in emerging markets, according to a report in the Financial Times.
abacusnews.com/tech/tiktok-creator-said-be-launching-music-streaming-soon/article/3038158
Apps
Facebook’s New Product Experimentation (NPE) lab released Whale, an app for making memes to share on social media. NPE has previously made a 1:1 text messaging tool and a social radio app, as it chases the younger users deserting the main platform.
theverge.com/2019/11/19/20972076/facebook-whale-meme-photo-making-app-npe-new-product-experimentation-ios
Russia has passed a law which means new smart devices will have to offer Russian alternatives to the core apps. If you buy a Samsung phone it could come preinstalled with apps from Google, Samsung, and Russian alternatives.
bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-50507849
Everything Else
Google is rolling out Lens in Chrome mobile, so tapping on an image will reveal the option to ‘Search with Google Lens’ to find similar objects or pictures.
androidpolice.com/2019/11/19/google-lens-is-now-integrated-in-chromes-image-search/
Users of Google Earth can now create their own shareable stories of places and trips.
blog.google/products/earth/new-google-earth-creation-tools/
PayPal acquired Honey, a price comparison and voucher browser extension, for $4bn, which seems nuts.
techcrunch.com/2019/11/20/paypal-to-acquire-shopping-and-rewards-platform-honey-for-4-billion/
Users of Facebook Dating can now include their Facebook and Instagram Stories in their profile. The feature, previewed back in September, more tightly integrates Facebook products around interests.
theverge.com/2019/11/21/20973027/facebook-dating-stories-instagram-reshare
Interactive book publisher Wonderbly has launched Wonderbly Studios to let other companies use its technology. Studios will initially work with partners, but plan to open an API product in the future.
techcrunch.com/2019/11/21/wonderbly-studio/