Should cash-strapped Snapchat sell out? To Netflix?

Snapchat needs a sugar daddy. Its cash reserves dwindling from giant quarterly losses. Poor morale from a battered share price and cost-cutting measures sap momentum. And intense competition from Facebook is preventing rapid growth. With just $1.4 billion in assets remaining at the end of a brutal Q3 2018 and analysts estimating it will lose $1.5 billion in 2019 alone, Snapchat could run out of money well before it’s projected to break even in 2020 or 2021.

So what are Snap’s options?

A long and lonely road

Snap’s big hope is to show a business turnaround story like Twitter, which saw its stock jump 14 percent this week despite losing monthly active users by deepening daily user engagement and producing profits. But without some change that massively increases daily time spent while reducing costs, it could take years for Snap to reach profitability. The company has already laid off 120 employees in March, or 7 percent of its workforce. And 40 percent of the remaining 3,000 employees plan to leave — up 11 percentage points from Q1 2018 according to internal survey data attained by Cheddar’s Alex Heath.

Snapchat is relying on the Project Mushroom engineering overhaul of its Android app to speed up performance, and thereby accelerate user growth and retention. Snap neglected the developing world’s Android market for years as it focused on iPhone-toting US teens. Given Snapchat is all about quick videos, slow load times made it nearly unusable, especially in markets with slower network connections and older phones.

Looking at the competitive landscape, WhatsApp’s Snapchat Stories clone Status has grown to 450 million daily users while Instagram Stories has reached 400 million dailies — much of that coming in the developing world, thereby blocking Snap’s growth abroad as I predicted when Insta Stories launched. Snap actually lost 3 million daily users in Q2 2018. Snap Map hasn’t become ubiquitous, Snap’s Original Shows still aren’t premium enough to drag in tons of new users, Discover is a clickbait-overloaded mess, and Instagram has already copied the best parts of its ephemeral messaging.

As BTIG’s Rich Greenfield points out, CEO Evan Spiegel claims Snapchat is the fastest way to communicate, but it’s not for text messaging, and the default that chats disappear makes it unreliable of utilitarian chat. And if WhatsApp were to add an ephemeral messaging feature of its own, growth for Snapchat could get even tougher. Snap will have to hope it can hold on to its existing users and squeeze more cash out of them to keep reducing losses.

SAN FRANCISCO, CA – SEPTEMBER 09: Evan Spiegel of Snapchat attends TechCruch Disrupt SF 2013 at San Francisco Design Center on September 9, 2013 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Steve Jennings/Getty Images for TechCrunch)

All those product missteps and and market neglect have metastasized into a serious growth problem for Snapchat. It lost another 2 million users this quarter, and expects to sink further in Q4. Even with the Android rebuild, Spiegel’s assurances for renewed user growth in 2019 seem spurious. That means it’s highly unlikely that Snapchat will achieve Speigel’s goal of hitting profitability in 2019. It needs either an investor or acquirer to come to its aid.

A bailout check

Snap could sell more equity to raise money. $500 million to $1 billion would probably give it the runway necessary to get into the black. But from where? With all the scrutiny on Saudi Arabia, Snap might avoid taking money from the kingdom. Saudi’s Prince Al-Waleed Talal already invested $250 million to buy 2.5 percent of Snap on the open market.

Snap’s best bet might be to take more money from Chinese internet giant Tencent. The massive corporation already spent around $2 billion to buy a 12 percent stake in Snap from the open market. The WeChat owner has plenty of synergies with Snapchat, especially since it runs a massive gaming business and Snap is planning to launch a third-party developer gaming platform.

Tencent could still be a potential acquirer for Snap, but given President Trump’s trade war with China, he might push regulators to block a sale. The state of American social networks like Twitter and Facebook that are under siege by foreign election interference, trolls, and hackers might make the US government understandably concerned about a Chinese giant owning one of the top teen apps.

Regardless of who would invest, they’d likely demand real voting rights — something Snap has denied investors through a governance structure. Spiegel and his co-founder Bobby Murphy both get 10 votes per share. That’s estimated to amount to 89 percent of the voting rights. Shares issued in the IPO came with zero voting rights.

Evan Spiegel and Bobby Murphy, developers of Snapchat (Photo by J. Emilio Flores/Corbis via Getty Images)

But that surely wouldn’t sit well with any investor willing to pour hundreds of millions of dollars into the beleaguered company. Spiegel has taken responsibility for pushing the disastrous redesign early this year that coincided with a significant drop in its download rank. It also inspired a tweet from mega-celebrity Kylie Jenner bashing the app that shaved $1.3 billion off the company’s market cap.

Between the redesign flop, stagnant product innovation, and Spiegel laughing off Facebook’s competition only to be crushed by it, the CEO no longer has the sterling reputation that allowed him to secure total voting control for the co-founders. That means investors will want assurance that if they inject a ton of cash, they’ll have some recourse if Spiegel mismanages it. He may need to swallow his pride, issue voting shares, and commit to milestones he’s required to hit to retain his role as chief executive.

A Soft Landing Somewhere Else

Snap could alternatively surrender as an independent company and be acquired by a deep-pocketed tech giant. Without having to worry about finances or short-term goals, Snap could invest in improving its features and app performance for the long-term. Social networks are tough to kill entirely, so despite competition, Snap could become lucrative if aided through this rough spot.

Combine that with the $637 million bonus Spiegel got for taking Snap public, and he has little financial incentive or shareholder pressure compelling him to sell. Even if the company was bleeding out much worse than it is already, Spiegel could ride it into the ground.

Again, the biggest barrier to this path is Spiegel. Combine totalitarian voting control with the $637 million bonus Spiegel got for taking Snap public, and he has little financial incentive or shareholder pressure compelling him to sell. Even if the company was bleeding out much worse than it is already, Spiegel could ride it into the ground. The only way to get a deal done might be to make Spiegel perceive it as a win.

Selling to Disney could be spun as a such. It hasn’t really figured out mobile amidst distraction from super heroes and Star Wars. Its core tween audience are addicted to YouTube and Snap even if they shouldn’t be on them. They’re both LA companies. And Disney already ponied up $350 million to buy kids desktop social networking game Club Penguin. Becoming head of mobile or something like that for the most iconic entertainment company ever could a vaulted-enough position to entice Spiegel. I could see him being a Disney CEO candidate one day.

What about walking in the footsteps of Steve Jobs? Apple isn’t social. It failed so badly with efforts like its Ping music listeners network that it’s basically abdicated the whole market. iMessage and its cutesy Animoji are its only stakes. Meanwhile, it’s getting tougher and tougher to differentiate with mobile hardware. Each new iPhone seems closer to the last. Apple has resorted to questionable decisions like ditching the oft-missed headphone jack and reliable TouchID to keep the industrial design in flux.

Increasingly, Apple must rely on its iOS software to compete for customers with Android headsets. But you know who’s great at making interesting software? Snapchat. You know who has a great relationship with the next generation of phone owners? Snapchat. And do you know whose CEO could probably smile earnestly beside Tim Cook announcing a brighter future for social media unlocked by two privacy-focused companies joining forces? Snapchat. Plus, think of all the fun Snapple jokes?

There’s a chance to take revenge on Facebook if Snapchat wanted to team up with Mark Zuckerberg’s old arch nemesis Google. After Zuck declared “Carthage must be destroyed”, Google+ flopped and its messaging apps became a fragmented mess. Alphabet has since leaned away from social networking. Of course it still has the juggernaut that is YouTube — a perennial teen favorite alongside Snapchat and Instagram. And it’s got the perfect complement to Snap’s ephemerality in the form of Google Photos, the best-in-class permanent photo archiving tool. With the consume side of Google+ shutting down after accidentally exposing user data, Google still lacks a traditional social network where being a friend comes before being a fan.

What Google does have is a reputation for delivering the future. From Waymo’s self-driving cars to Calico’s plan to make you live forever, Google is an inventive place where big ideas come to fruition. Spiegel could frame Google as aligned with its philosophy of creating new ways to organize and consume information that adapt to human behavior. He surely wouldn’t mind being lumped in with Internet visionaries like Larry Page and Sergei Brin. Google’s Android expertise could reinvigorate Snap in emerging markets. And together they could take a stronger swing at Facebook.

But there are problems with all of these options. Buying Snap would be a massive bet for Disney, and Snap’s lingering bad rap as a sexting app might dissuade Mickey Mouse’s overlords. Apple rarely buys such late-stage public companies. CEO Tim Cook has been able to take the moral high ground because Apple makes its money from hardware rather than off of  personal info through ad targeting. If Apple owned Snap, it’d be in the data exploitation business just like everyone else.

And Google’s existing dominance in software might draw the attention of regulators. The prevailing sentiment is that it was a massive mistake to let Facebook acquire Instagram and WhatsApp, as it centralized power and created a social empire. With Google already owning YouTube, the government might see problems with it buying one of the other most popular teen apps.

That’s why I think Netflix could be a great acquirer for Snap. They’re both video entertainment companies at the vanguard of cultural relevance, yet have no overlap in products. Netflix already showed its appreciation for Snapchat’s innovation by adopting a Stories-like vertical video clip format for discovering and previewing what you could watch. The two could partner to promote Netflix Originals and subscriptions inside of Snapchat. Netflix could teach Snap how to win at exclusive content while gaining a place to distribute video that’s under 20 minutes long.

With a $130 billion market cap, Netflix could certainly afford it. Though since Netflix already has $6 billion in debt from financing Originals, it would have to either sell more debt or issue Netflix shares to Snapchat’s owners. But given Netflix’s high-flying performance, massive market share, and cultural primacy, the big question is whether Snap would drag it down.

So how much would it potentially cost? Snap’s market cap is hovering around $8.8 billion with a $6.28 share price. That’s around its all-time low and just over a quarter of its IPO pop share price high. Acquiring Snap would surely require paying a premium above the market cap. Remember, Google already reportedly offered to acquire Snap for $30 billion prior to its final funding round and IPO. But that was before Snap’s growth rate sunk and it started losing the Stories War to Facebook. A much smaller offer could look a lot prettier now.

Social networks are hard to kill. If Snap can cut costs, fix its product, improve revenue per users, and score some outside investment, it could survive and slowly climb. If Twitter is any indication, aging social networks can reflower into lucrative businesses given enough time and product care. But if Snapchat wants to play in the big leagues and continue having a major influence on the mobile future, it may have to snap out of the idea that it can win on its own.

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Waymo is testing what it should charge for its robotaxi service

Self-driving startup Waymo, a Google spin-off owned by parent company Alphabet, has started to test pricing models for rides in its autonomous vehicles in Phoenix, the latest indication that the company is preparing to launch a commercial robotaxi service.

Waymo has not launched a wide-scale commercial robotaxi service in Phoenix — or anywhere — just yet. But it is getting closer.

Waymo’s early rider program, designed to give a vetted group of real people the ability to use an app to hail a self-driving vehicle, has been expanded, Alphabet CFO Ruth Porat explained Thursday during the company’s quarterly earnings call. Waymo started testing pricing models within its app during the third quarter, Porat said.

The early rider program had 400 participants the last time Waymo shared figures on the program. A Waymo spokesperson declined to elaborate on how much it had grown.

“As part of our early rider program, we have recently begun testing pricing models within our app,” a Waymo spokesperson said in an emailed statement. “Pricing is currently experimental and intended solely to solicit feedback from early riders and does not reflect the various pricing models under consideration for a public service.”

Waymo has been inching toward a commercial service in Phoenix since it began testing in the suburbs like Chandler in 2016. It started in earnest when Waymo launched the early rider program in April 2017. Later that year, Waymo removed employees and passengers from its test fleet, sending empty self-driving minivans onto the streets of greater Phoenix.

By May of this year, Waymo began allowing some early riders to hail a self-driving minivan without a human test driver behind the wheel. More recently, the company launched a public transit program in Phoenix focused on delivering people to bus stops and train and light-rail stations.

Testing continues in other cities as well, including Mountain View, California and Austin. The company announced earlier this month that its autonomous vehicles have driven 10 million miles on public roads in the United States.

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Twitter suspends accounts linked to mail bomb suspect

At least two Twitter accounts linked to the man suspected of sending explosive devices to more than a dozen prominent Democrats were suspended on Friday afternoon.

Facebook moved fairly quickly to suspend Sayoc’s account on the platform, though two Twitter accounts that appeared to belong to Sayoc remained online and accessible until around 2:30 p.m. Pacific. Both accounts featured numerous tweets, many of which contained far right political conspiracy theories, graphic images and specific threats.

TechCrunch was able to review the accounts extensively before they were removed. Both known accounts, @hardrockintlet and @hardrock2016, contained many tweets that appeared to threaten violence against perceived political enemies, including Keith Ellison and Joe Biden, an intended recipient of an explosive device.

In one case, those threats had been previously reported to Twitter. Democratic commentator Rochelle Ritchie tweeted that she reported a tweet from @hardrock2016 following her appearance on Fox News. According to a screenshot, Twitter received the report and on October 11 responded that it found “no violation of the Twitter rules against abusive behavior.”

Hey @Twitter remember when I reported the guy who was making threats towards me after my appearance on @FoxNews and you guys sent back a bs response about how you didn’t find it that serious. Well guess what it’s the guy who has been sending #bombs to high profile politicians!!!! pic.twitter.com/xBY8FMbqnq

— R O C H E L L E (@RochelleRitchie) October 26, 2018

The tweet stated “We will see u 4 sure. Hug your loved ones real close every time you leave home” accompanied by a photo of Ritchie, a screenshot of a news story about a body found in the everglades and the tarot card representing death.

Between the two accounts linked to Sayoc, many of the threats were depicted with graphic images in sequence. In one tweet on September 18 to former Vice President Joe Biden, the account tweeted images of an air boat, a symbol depicting an hourglass with a scythe and graphic images of a decapitated goat.

Threatening messages that emerge out of a sequence of images would likely be more difficult for machine learning moderation tools to parse, though any human content moderator would have no trouble extracting their meaning. In most cases the threatening images were paired with a verbal threat. At least one archive of a Twitter account linked to Sayoc remains online.

In a statement to TechCrunch, Twitter stated only that “This is an ongoing law enforcement investigation. We do not have a comment.” The company indicated that the accounts were suspended for violating Twitter’s rules though did not specify which.

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You Can Now Send Stickers Using WhatsApp

WhatsApp is finally adding support for stickers. While other social media platforms and messaging apps have supported stickers for a long time, WhatsApp has resisted the urge. But with competition amongst messaging apps fierce, WhatsApp has joined the party.

Gone are the days when you would just message people using words. Now, you’re expected to add emojis, GIFs, and stickers in order to jazz up your boring conversations. I personally find stickers rather annoying, but it looks like they’re here to stay.

How to Use Stickers on WhatsApp

In a post on the WhatsApp Blog, WhatsApp explains how it wants to help people “express themselves with stickers”. This is because, according to WhatsApp, “stickers help you share your feelings in a way that you can’t always express with words”.

To use stickers in WhatsApp:

1. Open an existing chat.
2. Tap the stickers icon.
3. Tap the plus icon to add sticker packs.
4. Tap the download icon next to the sticker pack you want.
5. Find and tap the sticker you want to send.

If you tap the clock icon you can see your recently used stickers. And if you tap the star icon you can see your favorite stickers. WhatsApp is starting out with sticker packs created in-house, but third-party sticker packs should start appearing soon.

Stickers are available on WhatsApp for Android and iOS. WhatsApp has stated that stickers will be rolling out “over the coming weeks”. So, if you can’t already see the stickers icon, try manually updating WhatsApp regularly until the icon appears.

Not Everyone Appreciates Stickers

WhatsApp is right to add the option for people to send stickers to their friends. However, just as with emojis and GIFs, it’s important to consider whether the person you’re messaging will appreciate them or not. Or you may get muted or blocked.

WhatsApp is constantly adding new features, so it was only a matter of time before they added stickers. If you want to keep on top of the best new features WhatsApp has added over the years, you should bookmark that article and check it regularly for updates.

Read the full article: You Can Now Send Stickers Using WhatsApp

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How to Write a Simple Batch (BAT) File

Batch files are the computer handyman’s way of getting things done. They can automate everyday tasks, shorten the required time to do something, and translate a complex process into something anyone could operate.

In this article, you’ll learn how to write a simple batch file. You’ll learn the basics of what batch files can do and how to write them yourself. I’ll also provide you with further resources for learning to write batch (BAT) files.

How to Write a Batch File in Windows

Before going into the details, here is a quick summary

1. Open a text file, such as a Notepad or WordPad document.
2. Add your commands, starting with @echo [off], followed by—each in a new line—title [title of your batch script], echo [first line], and pause.
3. Save your file with the file extension .bat, for example, test.bat.
4. To run your batch file, double click the BAT file you just created.
5. To edit your batch file, right-click the BAT file and select Edit.

Your raw file will look something like this:

And here’s the corresponding command window for the example above:

If this was too quick or if you want to learn more about commands and how to use them, read on!

Step 1: Create a BAT File

Let’s say that you frequently have network issues; you constantly find yourself on the command prompt, typing in ipconfig and pinging Google to troubleshoot network problems. After a while, you realize that it would be a bit more efficient if you just wrote a simple BAT file, stuck it on your USB stick, and used it on the machines you troubleshoot.

Create a New Text Document

A batch file simplifies repeatable computer tasks using the Windows command prompt. Below is an example of a batch file responsible for displaying some text in your command prompt. Create a new BAT file by right-clicking an empty space within a directory and selecting New, then Text Document.

Add Code

Double-click this New Text Document to open your default text editor. Copy and paste the following code into your text entry.

@echo off

title This is your first batch script!
echo Welcome to batch scripting!
pause

Save As BAT File

The above script echoes back the text “Welcome to batch scripting!”. Save your file by heading to File, Save As, and then name your file what you’d like. End your file name with the added .bat extension — welcome.bat for example — and click OK. This will finalize the batch process. Now, double-click on your newly created batch file to activate it.

Don’t assume that’s all batch scripting can do. Batch scripts parameters are tweaked versions of command prompt codes, so you are only limited to what your command prompt can do. For those unfamiliar with the program, command prompt is capable of quite a lot.

Step 2: Learn the Basics of Batch Scripting

Batch files use the same language as the command prompt. All you’re doing is telling the command prompt what you want to input through a file, rather than typing it out in the command prompt. This saves you time and effort. It also allows you to put in some logic (like simple loops, conditional statements, etc. that procedural programming is capable of conceptually).

@echo: This parameter will allow you to view your working script in the command prompt. This parameter is useful for viewing your working code. If any issues arise from the batch file, you will be able to view the issues associated with your script using the echo function. Adding a following off to this parameter will allow you to quickly close your script after it has finished.

title: Providing much of the same function as a <title> tag in HTML, this will provide a title for your batch script in your Command Prompt window.

cls: Clears your command prompt, best used when extraneous code can make what you’re accessing had to find.

rem: Shorthand for remark provides the same functionality as <!– tag in HTML. Rem statements are not entered into your code. Instead, they are used to explain and give information regarding the code.

%%a: Each file in the folder.

(“.\”): The root folder. When using the command prompt, one must direct the prompt to a particular directory before changing a files name, deleting a file, and so on. With batch files, you only need to paste your .bat file into the directory of your choosing.

pause: Allows a break in the logical chain of your .bat file. This allows for users to read over command lines before proceeding with the code. The phrase “Press any key to continue…” will denote a pause.

start “” [website]: Will head to a website of your choice using your default web browser.

ipconfig: This is a classic command prompt parameter that releases information concerning network information. This information includes MAC addresses, IP addresses, and sub-net masks.

ping: Pings an IP address, sending data packets through server routes to gauge their location and latency (response time).

The library for batch variables is huge, to say the least. Luckily there is a Wikibook entry which holds the extensive library of batch script parameters and variables at your disposal.

Step 3: Write and Run Your BAT File

We’ll create two examples of batch scripts which can simplify your daily online and offline activities.

News Script

Let’s create an immediately useful batch script. What if you wanted to open all your favorite news websites the moment you wake up? Since batch scripts use command prompt parameters, we can create a script that opens every news media outlet in a single browser window.

To re-iterate the batch-making process: first, create an empty text file. Right-click an empty space in a folder of your choosing, and select New, then Text Document. With the text file open, enter the following script. Our example will provide the main American news media outlets available online.

@echo off

start "" http://www.cnn.com
start "" http://www.abc.com
start "" http://www.msnbc.com
start "" http://www.bbc.com
start "" http://www.huffingtonpost.com
start "" http://www.aljazeera.com
start "" https://news.google.com/

The above script stacks one start “” parameter on top of the other to open multiple tabs. You can replace the links provided with ones of your choosing. After you’ve entered the script, head to File, then Save As. In the Save As window, save your file with the .bat extension and change the Save as type parameter to All Files (*.*).

Once you’d saved your file, all you need to do is double-click your BAT file. Instantly, your web pages will open. If you’d like, you can place this file on your desktop. This will allow you to access all of your favorite websites at once.

File Organizer

Have you been downloading multiple files a day, only to have hundreds of files clogging up your Download folder? Create a batch file with the following script, which orders your files by file type. Place the .bat file into your disorganized folder, and double-click to run.

@echo off

rem For each file in your folder
for %%a in (".\*") do (
rem check if the file has an extension and if it is not our script
if "%%~xa" NEQ "" if "%%~dpxa" NEQ "%~dpx0" (
rem check if extension folder exists, if not it is created
if not exist "%%~xa" mkdir "%%~xa"
rem Move the file to directory
move "%%a" "%%~dpa%%~xa\"
))

Here is an example of the my desktop before, a loose assortment of image files.

Here are those same files afterward.

It’s that simple. This batch script will also work with any type of file, whether it’s a document, video, or audio file. Even if your PC does not support the file format, the script will create a folder with the appropriate label for you. If you already have a JPG or PNG folder in your directory, the script will simply move your file types to their appropriate location.

Automate the Simple Stuff With Batch Scripts

This is just a taste of what batch scripts have to offer. If you need something simple done over and over—whether it be ordering files, opening multiple web pages, renaming files en masse, or creating copies of important documents—you can make tedious tasks simple with batch scripts.

Take things even further by incorporating IF statements into your batch scripts. And if you’re really keen, you may even want to learn PowerShell scripting instead.

Read the full article: How to Write a Simple Batch (BAT) File

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7 DIY Projects You Can Make With an Old Hard Drive

The 18 Best Free Movie Streaming Sites

Although streaming movies for free might sound synonymous with piracy, there’s a bevy of free, legal streaming content on the internet. In fact, there’s almost an overabundance of streaming services.

Whether you’re looking for movies or television shows, finding streaming video is totally feasible. It just requires you to search in the right places. With that in mind, here are the best free movie streaming sites to check out.

What to Expect From These Streaming Sites

There’s a ton of free and legal video online, so you’ll find a real mix of content. A healthy portion of the movies available to stream for free are public domain. Because these films have lapsed in ownership and fallen into common property, many sites host such video treasures.

But it’s not just B-movies available to stream online; many big budget releases can also be found. Often, these are ad-supported. Like watching a movie on television, you’ll have to sit through limited commercials. Nevertheless, movies are usually presented uncut. Just don’t expect to see the latest releases.

Instead, you’ll mostly see movies dating back anywhere from a few months to many years. Additionally, you can find some original productions, such as the Snatch TV series on Crackle. Need help figuring out what to watch next? These sites will help you find what to watch next.

1. YouTube

It’s no surprise that YouTube ranks among the best free movie streaming sites you can find. There’s a ton of free films to pick from, including many public domain films from channels such as the aptly titled Public Domain Films and Public Domain Cinema. Furthermore, sites such as Popcornflix host full movies via YouTube.

There’s a fantastic mix, from gems like Plan 9 From Outer Space, to action movies such as Recoil with Danny Trejo and Steven Austin, cult classics including Curse of the Puppet Master, and more. You may have to dig for what you most want to watch, but for those with patience, YouTube is a treasure trove of free, legal streaming cinema.

2. Crackle

Boasting a solid array of syndicated content and original productions, Crackle is a must for any film buff. Its rotating selection varies, but you’ll find quality movies such as action comedy Hot Fuzz, gothic horror flick Bram Stoker’s Dracula, the masterful 1988 remake of The Blob, Rodney Dangerfield comedy Back to School, and I Know What You Did Last Summer.

Aside from films, Crackle features television shows such as Blue Exorcist, Seinfeld, and even original programming like its Snatch original series. With its robust lineup of movies and shows, we think Crackle is one of the best free Roku channels.

3. Viewster

Although it’s anime-centric, there’s a mix of movies you can find on Viewster. Notably, Viewster features a robust line up of documentaries, films like Street Fighter II, and Lily C.A.T. Plus, you can legally stream shorts and television series including Murder Princess.

4. Vudu Movies on Us

While Vudu is best known for its digital video rentals and sales, the Vudu Movies on Us section makes it one of the best free movie streaming sites. With a comprehensive array of movies such as Bull Durham, Showgirls, and Return of the Living Dead, it’s a fantastic service.

Vudu Movies on Us operates in a similar way to Crackle by providing full, uncut movies with limited commercials. Through hosting films with ads, Vudu is able to offer free movies and TV shows.

You still need to register for a Vudu account to use this service, but it’s totally worth doing so. Moreover, you can use your account to activate digital copies of movies and shows, as well as buy and rent movies from Vudu.

5. SnagFilms

For a free Netflix alternative, check out SnagFilms. With unique categories such as “Before they were stars” and “Athletes & their triumphs,” SnagFilms specializes in fresh content. The library of more than 2,000 videos includes films, shows, and documentaries. Additionally, there’s a portion of original comedy shorts.

There’s a fantastic classic movies category as well. Don’t expect a ton of well-known fare, but for under the radar movies and more, SnagFilms is a gem.

6. PopcornFlix

Like Crackle, PopcornFlix presents full movies with limited ads. Here, you’ll find a range of movies in a rotating selection, from Sunset Boulevard and A Clear and Present Danger to Murder on the Orient Express and There Will Be Blood.

Flicks are segmented into categories such as popularity, genre, new arrivals, and staff picks, making PopcornFlix easy to use. With a beefy lineup and excellent navigation, PopcornFlix is an awesome choice for free, legal movie streaming.

7. Tubi TV

Providing free movies and shows, Tubi TV is a fantastic service. Here, you’ll be able to view newer movies including Lords of Salem, A Most Wanted Man, and Bulletproof Monk, as well as older titles such as sci-fi cult classic The Running Man.

Helpfully, Tubi TV offers a “Leaving Soon” category so you can stream movies and shows before they become unavailable, and thus prioritize your streaming queue. You will need to register to watch mature content, but creating an account is painless enough.

8. Pluto TV

Because Pluto TV features a live TV section, it’s easily one of the best free movie streaming sites. You can stream from the likes of Pluto Movies, Fox Sports, and specialized channels like Classic Movies and Horror 24/7. Plus, there’s an on-demand video library for instant movie watching.

With the live television aspect, Pluto TV is a must-have for cord-cutters.

9. Classic Cinema Online

As the name suggests, Classic Cinema Online focuses on older, classic content. Even its website aesthetic captures a decidedly retro vibe with a backdrop of red theater curtains. You can find classics such as Casablanca, Jane Eyre, and The Wasp Woman.

However, the inclusion of movies such as Muscle Beach Party does call into question the definition of “classic cinema.” Nevertheless, Classic Cinema Online is pure gold for old school movies.

10. Veoh

On Veoh, you’ll be able to stream tons of movies and shows. There are a lot of older films, such as Nosferatu. It’s akin to YouTube in that Veoh hosts user-submitted content and videos from established sources like CBS.

Since Veoh boasts a solid filtering system, you can select options such as language and video length to find what you want to watch. Veoh ranks as one of the alternatives to YouTube. Just beware of the popups.

11. Stremio

Whereas many free movie streaming websites offer content from one site, Stremio combines several elements. It’s a content aggregator, streaming service, and torrent client all rolled into one.

Thus, Stremio is a comprehensive platform which touts a bevy of home theater PC needs. Its robust search feature is similar to JustWatch, and add-ons for the likes of Netflix, FilmOn, and YouTube mean you can sync with your favorite video-on-demand services.

Streaming channels vary from Disney Channel offerings to Unbox Therapy, and more. Stremio gets bonus points for its cross-platform clients and torrenting capabilities.

12. Yidio

Although Yidio might not be a content host, it’s an excellent aggregator of free streaming movies and TV shows.
The way Yidio works is that it redirects to third-party sites such as Amazon Prime, Netflix, and more. As such, certain films and shows do require a subscription. Thankfully, listings for free movies and TV shows provide access to video that’s mostly libre.

Unfortunately, not everything in the free categories is actually free. Clicking on some titles prompts you to sign up for a free trial. Still, Yidio makes finding free movie streams far easier than checking individual sites.

13. The Roku Channel

Don’t be fooled by The Roku Channel. While it’s available for Roku streaming devices via an app, you can watch on the web too. In a few clicks, you can stream anything from Bad Boys to Ghostbusters.

The selection rotates, and there are helpful categories including Edge of Your Seat Thrillers, TV, Family Night, and LOL Hits. As expected, you’ll have to sit through ads, but ad-supported means free, right?

14. Kanopy 

Libraries are most often associated with books, but I recall regularly renting classics on VHS from my local library. Kanopy lets you stream tons of movies for free with a library card. So long as you have a compatible library card, you can watch hundreds of free movies and TV shows including recent releases such as Loving Vincent.

15. Free Movies Cinema

As the name suggests, Free Movies Cinema features, well, completely free legal streaming movies. Unlike many sites, the selection touts not only classics like Death Race 2000 and Plan 9 From Outer Space, but also short films.

There’s also a robust smattering of fanmade movies such as Uncharted, based on the video game series, Han Solo: A Smuggler’s Trade, and Voldemort: Origins of the Heir.

16. Big Five Glories

With the subtitle “a tribute to classic movies,” you can probably already guess that Big Five Glories is mostly dedicated to public domain cinema. Here, you’ll find mostly older fare such as The Old Dark House, Charlie Chaplin classic The Kid, and noir gems like The Scar.

The front page features a “now playing” section, and you can sort by rating to find quality flicks to stream.

17. Retrovision

Over at Retrovision, you’ll find loads of content similar to what’s available on Big Five Glories or Classic Cinema Online. Essentially, it’s packed with older, public domain, free streaming films. Watch golden flicks like Bonanza – Blood of the Land, The Last Man on Earth, and The House on Haunted Hill.

Site organization is pleasant with a sidebar highlighting genres such as film noir, crime, and cartoons, as well as specific actors or characters.

18. Top Documentary Films

If you’re looking for free documentaries online, try Top Documentary Films. Specializing in documentaries, you’ll find a varied selection including Cosmos, Hubble’s Universe, and Zeitgeist. Browse the top 100 documentaries and recently added movies, or peruse by genre.

You Just Need to Know Where to Look

If you know where to look, you can find loads of sites for (legal) free movie streaming. However, note that your ISP can secretly throttle your video streaming speeds.

In that case, you should use a VPN like ExpressVPN, CyberGhost, or Hotspot Shield to restore your video streaming speeds. A VPN is also good when you want to download videos off the internet.

Use this link to get three FREE months when you sign up for one year of ExpressVPN, our preferred VPN.

Read the full article: The 18 Best Free Movie Streaming Sites

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Anki Vector Is the Cutest Little Robot Who Just Wants to Hang Out

10 Classic Sega Games You Can Play on Your Smartphone

Retro gaming is one of the biggest nostalgia fixes you can get, and thanks to the Sega Forever collection, you can play some classic Sega games on your smartphone.

In this article we round up our pick of the best classic Sega games released under the Sega Forever banner. Telling you how to download them and why you should.

Sega Forever: What You Need to Know

Sega launched Sega Forever launched in June 2017 and it’s the banner name for the re-release of various classic Sega games on Android and iOS.

Featuring titles from the Sega Master System, Game Gear, Saturn, and the Dreamcast (incredibly, Dreamcast games are still being released), the games are ad-supported, although a $1.99 payment on each game will disable the ads. Payment also enables cloud saving of progress.

At the time of writing, 20 awesome games are available. Here are our favorite picks.

1. Streets of Rage Classic

Playing as one of three street-fighting cops, the aim of this beat ’em up classic (1991) is to overcome crime lord Mr X. Each character has his own moves and skills, and with the local Wi-Fi multiplayer option, you can team up with friends to overcome the level bosses.

As if any of that wasn’t enough, once you’ve cleaned up the streets the first time, Streets of Rage 2 is also available.

Download: Streets of Rage Classic for Android | iOS

2. Sonic the Hedgehog

The undisputed icon of Sega gaming, Sonic the Hedgehog has been around since 1991 (read our history of Sonic the Hedgehog). This is the original game, where the magic first began, and it’s available to play on Android and iOS.

Unfamiliar with Sonic games? The aim is simple: race across seven zones, collecting rings and defeating enemies, with the final target of defeating Dr Eggman and saving the world.

This mobile-optimized version with 60FPS scrolling is tricky to control, unfortunately, but does have support for other controllers. You can also play as Tails and Knuckles if you prefer, for a different sort of challenge.

Sonic the Hedgehog Classic isn’t the only Sonic game available under the Sega Forever banner. Look out also for Sonic CD Classic, and Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode 2, among others.

Download: Sonic the Hedgehog Classic for Android | iOS

3. Golden Axe Classic

A successful arcade machine port, 1989’s Golden Axe (as it was then known) features a trio of characters, each with their own strengths, moves, weapons, and magic. Set in a medieval-style fantasy world, the game is a quest, in which the Golden Axe can overcome the dictator, the Death Adder.

Golden Axe is one of the standout arcade games of the 1980s, and was developed by designer Makoto Uchida, who also worked on Altered Beast.

The best results with the original Golden Axe could be enjoyed in multiplayer mode. This is a feature that is expected to be introduced in the Sega Forever version.

Download: Golden Axe Classic for Android | iOS

4. Kid Chameleon Classic

Kid Chameleon is a 1992 platform game that features over 100 stages, with hidden areas to explore. It’s a somewhat forgotten classic that deserves another go.

With fantastic powers available to help you through the game, it’s Kid Chameleon’s job to track the villain. Magical masks give your character the power to convert into an unstoppable warrior, high-flying superhero, or human tank. You can also become a medieval knight, axe-wielding maniac, or even a cyclone if you fancy the speed run option.

Download: Kid Chameleon Classic for Android | iOS

5. Crazy Taxi Classic

Crazy Taxi (1999), is one of the most successful driving games of all time.

Sega’s open world driving game lets you spend your time collecting fares and getting passengers to their destination on time. Various combis and bonuses enable you to rack up huge profits, but you won’t win with sensible driving.

Like the original Dreamcast version, this features an arcade and original mode, and music by The Offspring and Bad Religion. While the onscreen controller works well, Bluetooth controllers are probably the better option.

Love Crazy Taxi Classic? Also available from Sega for mobile are Crazy Taxi City Rush and Crazy Taxi Tycoon.

Download: Crazy Taxi Classic for Android | iOS

6. Comix Zone Classic

Comix Zone is a beat ’em up with a difference: as the name suggests, the game (1995) takes place inside a comic. As Sketch Turner (no, really), you find yourself stuck in the comic you’ve created (on a break from being a rock musician), with your enemies drawn as you’re about to encounter them.

With some adventure elements (items can be collected and used to defeat enemies and solve challenges), Sketch and his pet rat, Roadkill, must defeat super-villain Mortus to escape.

Presenting an atmospheric and compelling comic-like game world, Comix Zone Classic is an addictive gaming experience. So much so you might just get lost in that comic world yourself.

Download: Comix Zone Classic for Android | iOS

7. Super Monkey Ball

Imagine placing a monkey in a ball, and then trying to guide the ball around 125 themed mazes, collecting bananas before the time runs out. Please don’t try this at home.

When you break it down, it seems ridiculous, but Super Monkey Ball is seriously good fun. First released in 2001 as Monkey Ball in an upright cabinet with a banana-shaped controller, Super Monkey Ball has been out on mobile since 2010. This reissued version lets you play as one of four adorable monkey characters: AiAi, MeeMee, Baby, and GonGon.

You’ll also find four mini games: Monkey Target, Monkey Golf, Monkey Bowl, and Monkey Base. This last game is tablet-only, and lets you compete with up to three other players.

Download: Super Monkey Ball for Android | iOS

8. The Revenge of Shinobi Classic

Neo Zeed have killed your master, and captured your bride. So, now, as Joe Musashi, you must take revenge on the crime syndicate, traveling the world dispensing “ninjitsu justice.”

This 1989 Genesis/Mega Drive title is considered by many fans of the series as being the best, and features side-scrolling platform combat. Armed with ninjutsu moves (including special techniques that can be used up to four times in each level), The Revenge of Shinobi also equips Joe Musashi with shuriken to throw at enemies.

Worried about running out of shuriken? Don’t! The old cheat code has been included!

Download: The Revenge of Shinobi Classic for Android | iOS

9. Altered Beast Classic

Playing as the Altered Beast, with the ability to transform into killer predators by collecting mystical orbs, this game places you into a world of horror. Your job is to tackle the realm of Hades to rescue Athena, daughter of Zeus. As you defeat hordes of demons and undead armies, you’ll explore the depths of Hell, morphing into a dragon, wolf, bear, and tiger as you go.

Altered Beast (1988) is not a short game, but fortunately the cheat codes from the original title have been left intact. This should make your journey through Hades a little easier!

Download: Altered Beast Classic for Android | iOS

10. Space Harrier II

A revision of the original Space Harrier, this 1988 sequel was a launch title on the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive and remains as visually stunning 30 years later.

A rails-based shooter (meaning your overall course is controlled by the game, even though you can move around to an extent), Space Harrier II features a checkers board-style arena across which the main character runs or flies.

The third person viewpoint makes for a slightly disconcerting experience, but the pace is fast and frenetic, with swarms of surreal enemies to overcome. With challenging bosses at the end of each level, there’s even a Dark Harrier character to beat along the way.

Download: Space Harrier II for Android | iOS

Want More Retro Action on Mobile?

The Sega Forever collection should keep you busy for a while, and it’s likely the list of games will be expanded in the future. But if you’re looking for even more classic gaming action, check out our list of free retro games for your smartphone!

Read the full article: 10 Classic Sega Games You Can Play on Your Smartphone

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Google rolls out ‘.new’ links for instantly creating new Docs, Slides, Sheets and Forms

Google Docs just rolled out a time-saving trick that’s sure to be welcomed by heavy users of Docs, or any of Google’s other productivity tools like Sheets, Slides, Sites, or Forms. The company this week introduced its  “.new” domain, which can be used to instantly create a new file across any of these services, it says.

For example, instead of going to Google Drive, clicking the “new” button, then the service you want to use, you can just type “doc.new” to get started in a new Google Doc.

Google helpfully registered many variations on this domain, as well, so docs.new and documents.new also work.

And the same format applies across Google’s productivity apps, meaning you can also type in things like sheet.new, sheets.new, spreadsheet.new, site.new, sites.new, website.new, slide.new, slides.new, deck.new, presentation.new, form.new, or forms.new.

(Don’t type in the “www” – just the domain.)

Introducing a .new time-saving trick for users. Type any of these .new domains to instantly create Docs, Sheets, Slides, Sites or Forms ↓ pic.twitter.com/erMTHOsdyH

— Google Docs (@googledocs) October 25, 2018

If you tend to work with Google Docs on a regular basis, this little hack can end up saving a ton of time throughout your day. You can even bookmark the domains to use as shortcuts, so you can get to the same blank document with just a click.

This is all possible because Google owns the .new domain, which allows it to create whatever subdomains it wants on the site.

just learned about typing https://t.co/BPxev0k1uj into the address bar and this is a game changer

— merritt k (@merrittk) October 26, 2018

After Google tweeted the news on Thursday, users were so thrilled about the trick they started requesting other domains, too. “Do drawings pretty please,” asked one Twitter user. “Please also add email.new,” said another.

Google didn’t respond to those requests, but it wouldn’t be surprising if the domain was used in other ways across its apps in the future.

 

 

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Twitch announces group streaming and a karaoke game for its 1M concurrent viewers

The teens were out in force today in San Jose for the annual TwitchCon game streaming conference. There, Twitch announced that at any given time, 1 million people are watching it (up from 746,000 last year), and it seemed like that many game lovers were at TwitchCon in person to meet some of the half-million web celebs that broadcast each day on the service. Considering Twitch said just 2 million were broadcasting per month in December, the service’s growth is still explosive under Amazon’s ownership.

Amongst the major reveals at TwitchCon were a new Squad Streaming feature that lets up to four people broadcast at once in split-screen that will test with select streamers later this year, and a Twitch Sings game that broadcasters can play to perform karaoke (though only with fake versions of songs since Twitch lacks major label music licenses). Broadcasters can sign up here for the Twitch Sings closed beta that starts later in 2018.

Twitch Squad Streaming

And Twitch broadcasters can now use Snapchat’s augmented reality lenses thanks to the new Snap Camera desktop app and accompanying Twitch extension launching today. Streamers can use hotkeys to trigger different Snapchat Lenses, let viewers try those masks by scanning an onscreen Snapchat QR code, and reward subscribers with a bonus thank you effect. Read our full story on Snap Camera here:

Snapchat’s new Camera desktop camera app brings AR masks to Twitch, Skype…

There were plenty of other minor announcements during the conference’s keynote:

• Over 235,00 streamers now have Affiliate status and are earning money on their channels while 6,800 have joined its Partnership program so they can earn even more through channel subscriptions and ads.
• Twitch’s Highlight editor can now stich together multiple clips from across a broadcasting session
• New homepage sections will feature up-and-coming streamers, new Partners and Affiliates, or streamers local to viewers
• VIP Badges will let creators recognize their favorite subscribers and moderators
• Moderators can now see how long someone has been on Twitch, view chat messages that person has sent in the channel, and see how many timeouts or bans that account has received in that channel to better understand who to boot
• 18 billion messages have been sent in Twitch chat and its Whispers feature in 2018, and fans have give creators 85 million Cheers and Subscriptions
• 150 million Twitch Clips have been created in 2018 to bring the best game stream and other weird content to the rest of the web.
• Twitch users have gifted $9 million worth of subscriptions to fellow users in just 9 weeks.
• Twitch will open its Bounty Board of sponsorship opportunities to to 30 more brands, and more Partners and Affiliates in the US and Canada in November
• The Twitch Rivals in-person gaming tournaments will double to 128 events in 2019. Some will have million-dollar prizes, and it already gave out $5 million in winners’ jackpots last year

Twitch Sings

As CEO Emmett Shear made the announcements, audience members hooted and hollered with delight. They out-yelled even Apple’s keynote attendees. Shear shouted out early users who’ve been with it since Twitch was a Y Combinator lifevlogging startup called Justin.tv. “When people have your back and support you for a long time, we think they should be recognized for it” he said, revelaing the new VIP badges and a counter that shows how many months a fan has been a channel’s paying subscriber.

“You spoke and we listened” Shear said. That truly seemed to be the message of this conference. Facebook’s F8 conferences held in the same San Jose Convention Center often seem to produce updates that are designed to help the company as much as the users. But Twitch has realized it can’t just be useful. It must remain beloved if people are going keep spending 760 million hours per month watching others game, joke, and express themselves.

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Snapchat’s new Camera desktop camera app brings AR masks to Twitch, Skype…

Snapchat is launching its first Mac and Windows software that takes over your webcam and brings its augmented reality effects to other video streaming and calling services. Snap Camera can be selected as a camera output in OBS Skype, YouTube, Google Hangouts, Skype, Zoom, and more plus browser-based apps like Facebook Live so you can browse through Snapchat’s Lens Explorer to try on AR face filters. And through its easily-equipped new Twitch extension. streamers can trigger different masks with hotkeys.

You can download the Mac and Windows version of Snap Camera now.

Despite Snap Inc’s troubles following yesterday’s Q3 earnings announcement that revealed it’d lost 2 million users causing its share price to hit a new low, Snapchat Camera isn’t about stoking growth. You won’t even have to login to Snapchat to use it. Instead the goal is to drive more attention to its community AR Lens platform so more developers and creators will make their own effects. “We’re going down the path of providing more distribution channels [for Community Lens creators] and surfacing their work” Snap’s head of AR Eitan Pilipski tells me. The desktop camera could win Lens creators more attention, and Snapchat connects top the most talented ones to brands for sponsorship deals.

Strangely, Snap Camera has no interface of its own. Really, it should have a Photo Booth-style app so you can record photos and videos of yourself with your webcam and share them wherever. “We don’t want to compete in that space. We just want to bring Community Lenses to whatever apps people are using” Pilipski explains. One major app that won’t support Snap Camera is Apple’s FaceTime. Why? “I don’t know. Apple didn’t comment on that. Believe me we tried” says Pilipski.

Since there’s “not even a facility to collect the impressions” and users don’t have to login, Snap won’t be able to add Camera users to its daily active user count. With that number falling from 191 million in Q1 to 188 million in Q2 to 186 million in Q3 as it announced yesterday, Snap really does need more ways to keep people straying to Instagram Stories. It will have to hope that when video chat users see their friends or family using Snap Camera’s lenses, it will remind them to fire up Snapchat more often. And Lenses could go viral if they show in a Twitch celebrity’s stream.

The Twitch extension comes amidst more announcements at today’s TwitchCon event including the reveal of Squad Streaming and a karaoke Twitch Sings game for the service’s average of 1 million concurrent viewers and half-million daily streamers.

The Snap camera equips Twitch broadcasters with extra features. They’ll have access to game-themed lenses for League of Legends, PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, World of Warcraft, and Overwatch. Viewers will see the QR Snapcode for the Lens on the screen which they can scan with Snapchat to try the mask on themselves for virality. Streamers get a button that lets viewers subscribe to them, and can set up a “bonus” lens that shows up as a thank you when someone follows them. And with hotkeys, streamers can trigger different lenses, like an angry one for when they lose a game or victory lenses for if they manage to beat all the other Fortnite addicts.

Over 250,000 Community Lenses have been submitted through Snapchat’s Lens Studio since it launched in December, and they’ve been viewed over 1 billion times. Snapchat realized it couldn’t dream up every crazy way people could use AR just in-house. Out-Lensing Instagram is critical to Snapchat’s business strategy. The more people that use Snapchat’s AR features, the more the company can charge businesses to promote Sponsored Lenses. With the user count shrinking, Snap needs to show its business is growing to salvage its share price and pull in the outside investment or acquisition it will likely need to make it to profitability. A desktop presence could not only make Snapchat more ubiquitious, but get it in front of older users and advertisers who might be a little scared of its mobile app.

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