Original Content podcast: Netflix’s ‘Always Be My Maybe’ is a surprisingly sweet romantic comedy

Posted on June 9, 2019 by Anthony Ha

“Always Be My Maybe” — a new film starring and co-written by Ali Wong and Randall Park — continues Netflix’s streak of solid romantic comedies. That said, anyone expecting it to match Wong’s delightfully dirty stand-up (showcased in the Netflix specials “Baby Cobra” and “Hard Knock Wife”) might be disappointed. Instead, “Always Be My Maybe” Read more about Original Content podcast: Netflix’s ‘Always Be My Maybe’ is a surprisingly sweet romantic comedy[…]

2048 Ventures raises $27M fund to back first-time founders and the ‘first-time founder mindset’

Posted on May 8, 2019 by Anthony Ha

2048 Ventures, a new early-stage firm founded and led by Alex Iskold and Paul Sethi, is announcing that it has raised a first fund of $27 million. Iskold spent five years as the managing director of Techstars NYC, and he previously founded Info Lab and GetBlue. Sethi, meanwhile, recently served as CEO of Redbooks whiel Read more about 2048 Ventures raises $27M fund to back first-time founders and the ‘first-time founder mindset’[…]

Original Content podcast: The battle of opinions over ‘Game of Thrones’ and the Battle of Winterfell

Posted on May 5, 2019 by Anthony Ha

This post and podcast contain spoilers for “Game of Thrones” and “Avengers: Endgame.” “The Long Night,” the much-anticipated “Game of Thrones” episode where the living and the dead meet in a desperate, epic battle, wasn’t entirely embraced by the show’s fans. Instead, many have complained about the episode’s (literal) darkness, while others were disappointed by the apparent Read more about Original Content podcast: The battle of opinions over ‘Game of Thrones’ and the Battle of Winterfell[…]

YouTube confirms plans to make Originals available for free

Posted on May 3, 2019 by Anthony Ha

YouTube Chief Business Officer Robert Kyncl reaffirmed the company’s plans to take its Originals out from behind the paywall, making them free and ad-supported. Kyncl was speaking at YouTube’s annual Brandcast event, where the Google-owned company lays out its plans for advertisers (with lots of razzle dazzle provided by musicians and YouTube stars). Since last Read more about YouTube confirms plans to make Originals available for free[…]

Slack files to go public, reports $138.9M in losses on revenue of $400.6M

Posted on April 26, 2019 by Anthony Ha

Slack has filed to go public via a direct listing. Similar to what Spotify did last year, this means that the company won’t have a traditional IPO, and will instead allow existing shareholders to sell their stock to investors. The company’s S-1 filing says it plans to make $100 million worth of shares available, but Read more about Slack files to go public, reports $138.9M in losses on revenue of $400.6M[…]

TED raises $280M to help nonprofits battle climate change, online sex abuse and more

Posted on April 17, 2019 by Anthony Ha

TED is unveiling the eight participants in the second year of The Audacious Project, a program aimed at helping nonprofits pursue their most ambitious goals. TED’s Chris Anderson told reporters yesterday that this is “an attempt to solve one of the most annoying things about the nonprofit world” — the fact that organizations have to Read more about TED raises $280M to help nonprofits battle climate change, online sex abuse and more[…]

Journalist Carole Cadwalladr says ‘the gods of Silicon Valley’ have broken democracy

Posted on April 16, 2019 by Anthony Ha

On the same day that she became a Pulitzer Prize finalist for her work bringing the Cambridge Analytica scandal to light, journalist Carole Cadwalladr took the stage at TED to “address you directly, the gods of Silicon Valley.” Cadwalladr began her talk by recounting a trip she took after the Brexit referendum, back to her Read more about Journalist Carole Cadwalladr says ‘the gods of Silicon Valley’ have broken democracy[…]

Disney+ streaming service launches on November 12, with a price of $6.99 per month

Posted on April 12, 2019 by Anthony Ha

Disney’s direct-to-consumer streaming strategy took center stage today at the company’s investor day. That strategy includes Hulu (where the recently-closed Fox acquisition has given Disney a contyrolling stake), ESPN+ and the Indian streaming service Hotstar, but executives spent most of their time hyping the upcoming launch of Disney+. The company said the service will launch Read more about Disney+ streaming service launches on November 12, with a price of $6.99 per month[…]

VSCO sues PicsArt over photo filters that were allegedly reverse engineered

Posted on April 6, 2019 by Anthony Ha

Photo-editing app-maker VSCO has filed a lawsuit against competitor PicsArt. The suit focuses on 19 PicsArt filters that were supposedly “reverse engineered from VSCO’s filters,” with VSCO alleging it has become a legal issue involving false advertising and violations of the app’s terms of service. “VSCO has invested significant time and resources in developing its presets Read more about VSCO sues PicsArt over photo filters that were allegedly reverse engineered[…]

Hulu announces a new ad unit that appears when you pause

Posted on January 31, 2019 by Anthony Ha

Just to get this out of the way: Yes, Hulu is introducing an ad unit that will show up when you pause a video. But no, the ad won’t be a video. Hulu says it has 25 million subscribers, the majority of them on an ad-supported plan — so they’re used to seeing TV-style commercial Read more about Hulu announces a new ad unit that appears when you pause[…]