In all honesty, Blake Griffin himself could start a social network that served no purpose outside of featuring his dizzying (and disgusting, if you will) array of dunks, and it'd probably go over quite well. Instead, he -- along with other superstars in the National Basketball Association -- will soon see replays of in-game highlights making waves across Twitter in more official fashion. Hot on the heels of a deal between ESPN and Twitter comes this: a partnership between the NBA and the aforesaid social network that'll get video highlights to the world while the game is still ongoing.

#NBARapidReplay will be the hashtag to watch for as the playoffs progress, and as you'd expect, short advertisements will appear alongside those clips. Twitter's foray into the television universe is hardly a new one, but it's becoming ever more obvious that the company is following the ad dollars into the homes of everyday viewers. Up next? A deal to tweet highlights from the 2014 Masters golf tournament... but only in extremely soft spoken, lowercase, predominantly pompous characters.

Filed under: Internet

Comments

Source: Bloomberg

The I/O keynote may be a fading memory, but Google's work isn't done just yet. Today its various services are getting a little more tightly knit as Offers comes to your Google+ stream. A select few brands (Zagat, Hello Kitty, Art.com, NOOK and Adafruit) will be part of the pilot program, which will allow businesses to post special updates that include discounts you can save directly to your Offers queue. Obviously, you can also share these offers with people in your circles who you think might be interested. It might seem like a small tweak, but it's one companies are likely to embrace as a way to simplify their digital coupon offerings and increase engagement on Google+. You should start seeing in-line offers pop up today, so long as you follow one of the pilot brands.

Filed under: Internet, Google

Comments

Via: The Next Web

Source: Google Offers (Google+)

Despite being one of the hotter social networks, Pinterest hasn't been on the cutting edge of sharing: members wanting to send their pins through official channels have had to use old-fashioned email. The service is catching up to the modern era in style, however, with a new option to send pins directly to friends through Pinterest's mobile and web apps. While email is still hanging around, both ends now just have to be mutual followers on Facebook or Pinterest for the magic to happen. Sharers will also receive any adulation (or criticism) right away -- comments, likes and repins on those items will appear as notifications. It will take weeks to fully deploy the direct sending feature, but it shouldn't be long before everyone is on the same page.

Filed under: Cellphones, Internet, Facebook

Comments

Via: CNET

Source: Pinterest

Today at Google I/O 2013, Big G revealed a big redesign for Google+. Starting later today, users will see their content in a multi-column setup fit for any size screen. The home page for G+ now has up to three columns populated with individual cards for posts and pictures, and the social network can intelligently learn the content of those posts and automatically add related hashtags for you. Columns appear or disappear depending upon the size of your screen, and cards can be flipped to reveal editing options, or moved to suit users' aesthetic tastes. Should you have the requisite screen real estate, pictures and videos expand to the width of multiple columns to further provide a more visually pleasing social experience. In order to eliminate clutter, Google + has adopted a familiar looking left-side menu layout that disappears until a hovering cursor (or presumably a swiping finger) reveals it.

Update: You can see the new layout and auto hashtagging in action in the video after the break.

Filed under: Mobile, Google

Comments

Source: Google+

In mid-March Facebook announced that it would be updating its Timeline design with a focus on users' interests and app activities. Now the the new "Sections" are finished rolling out and you should be able to find them in the left-side of your profile. Now users can rate books, shows and movies in addition to curate personal content from other apps. As a bonus to developers that are integrating their services (such as Goodreads, Spotify and Endomodo), Facebook is offering a new App Insights tool to track user engagement through the Sections section of people's profiles. So head on over to your profile right now to get a tweaking -- you probably don't want people to see how much you love that Bruno Mars album.

Filed under: Internet, Facebook

Comments

Source: Facebook

Twitter would really, really like to make ad-driven TV experiences central parts of its service, and it just confirmed that laser-like focus through an expanded deal with ESPN. The sports broadcaster will soon show in-tweet video highlights of football, soccer and the X Games; Twitter, in turn, gets a guaranteed volume of promoted tweets to parallel ads inside the videos themselves. While we're not looking forward to the new marketing pitches when they surface in the year ahead, we'll be happy if we can catch more replays without losing our place in the social stream.

Filed under: Cellphones, Home Entertainment, HD

Comments

Source: Wall Street Journal

Yelp users have enjoyed advanced sorting for years, but as Foursquare grows beyond basic tips and incentivized check-ins, such search filters are making their way to that site, too. Today's announcement details a few handy additions, enabling you to locate businesses by price range, available specials and hours of operation. If you're willing to sign into the service, you'll see a few more options pop up, letting you find both new haunts and places you've saved, along with your friends' favorite locales. The Foursquare team promises to release more options in the future, and while these latest tools are only available on the company's website today, they should be hitting your smartphone soon.

Filed under: Internet, Software

Comments

Via: The Next Web

Source: Foursquare

Competing with Google for search traffic is no easy task, even for a software giant like Microsoft. Unique features and customization have helped keep Bing afloat, though -- and now, MS is counting on some more comprehensive Facebook integration to boost appeal. Beginning today, the site's "Social Results" sidebar will be pulling in a bit more Facebook content, including posts from your friends that the tool deems relevant to the search at hand. You can also pub directly to your timeline from within the tool, sharing search results with your online buds. It's hardly a revolutionary refresh, but if you haven't yet managed to annoy your friends with posts about your favorite Spotify tracks or those shoes you just purchased online, Bing's now ready to step in by making your search habits public, too.

Filed under: Internet, Microsoft, Facebook

Comments

Source: Bing

BlackBerry isn't done with improving the BlackBerry 10 editions of LinkedIn and Twitter -- not by a long shot. The company has once more upgraded the two social apps, this time with an emphasis on search. LinkedIn now lets users import contacts to find people they already know; in Twitter, meanwhile, universal search now shows photos, profiles and tweets on a single page. There's more than just these two upgrades, of course. LinkedIn reveals more about companies and carries a slew of minor UI tweaks, while Twitter keeps content fresher with automatic caching. If the new versions are tempting, they're waiting at the source links for Q10 and Z10 owners alike.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Blackberry

Comments

Via: Inside BlackBerry, Phone Scoop

Source: BlackBerry World (1), (2)

Despite App.net's positioning as a Twitter alternative, it hasn't had either an app to call its own or a way to sign up without at least an invitation. The social network has just crossed both of those items off its list with its new App.net Passport for iOS, albeit through an unconventional path. Passport is a gateway app, not a client: it lets users manage their profiles, but it really exists to point users to third-party apps and people they'd want to follow. Don't write off Passport as a promo stunt, though. It also represents the first place where the curious can sign up without either an invitation or paying up front. CEO Dalton Caldwell warns that the wide-open registration is an experiment, not a guaranteed change in policy -- if it doesn't work out, the company may return to business as usual. Whether or not the strategy bears fruit, Passport should both serve as a fast track for newcomers and a launchpad for App.net development beyond iOS' borders.

Filed under: Cellphones, Internet, Mobile

Comments

Via: iMore

Source: App Store, App.net

LinkedIn is quickly settling into its ownership of Pulse: fresh from integrating itself into the news app's Android edition, it's doing the same for iOS. Version 3.1 of the news aggregator largely mirrors the Android refresh and lets users flick a switch to share stories through the extra channel. The update also simplifies saving articles to Evernote, Instapaper and Pocket for those that aren't quite so public with their reading habits. Whichever camp you're in, the Pulse upgrade awaits at the source link.

Filed under: Cellphones, Internet

Comments

Via: 9to5 Mac

Source: App Store

If you're not familiar with Kevin Thau, you ought to be: he worked on many of Twitter's early mobile efforts, helped integrate it into major platforms and headed up the Twitter #Music app. That's what makes his newly confirmed move to Twitter co-founder Biz Stone's new firm, Jelly, so interesting. While little is known about Jelly beyond its plan for a decentralized service, Thau will be heading up numerous aspects of business operations at the company while it builds "world class mobile products." We'll have to wait awhile before we see his influence, but his presence hints that Jelly is more than just a casual project.

Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Internet, Mobile

Comments

Via: The Next Web

Source: Jelly

Those who preferred Twitter's earlier, more liberal ways have regarded May 7th with a sense of dread, as that's when API 1.0 (and our chance at a truly competitive app ecosystem) was supposed to go dark. While the company isn't about to reverse course, it is giving the refuseniks a break by delaying the shutdown until June 11th. More time is necessary for blackout tests, Twitter says. We wouldn't lean too heavily on remaining API 1.0-era apps and services when that instability exists, but the extra month does allow for a gentler transition into API 1.1's brave new world.

[Image credit: Coletivo Mambembe, Flickr]

Filed under: Cellphones, Internet

Comments

Via: Android Central

Source: Twitter

It was just a matter of time, really. We're well acquainted with Facebook letting us tag friends in our photos, so it's no shock that a similar feature has just spread to the social network's mobile darling, Instagram. The Android and iOS apps will both hit version 3.5 today, letting users tag others in a shot (whether or not they're human). A new Photos of You section has also been added to members' profiles, where you can see any photo linked to that account. As you might imagine, Instagram is already trying to head off potential privacy issues -- account holders have until May 16th before their Photos of You sections become public, and settings will let them turn down connections to any revealing (or simply inaccurate) images. The update is already available through the iTunes App Store and should be landing soon in Google Play. Hit up the source links if you've ever wanted to see how other Instagrammers see you.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Facebook

Comments

Via: Instagram

Source: App Store, Google Play

The social beer tracking service Untappd is finally available on Windows Phone 8 as a "native" app. The popular check-in platform has long been available on iOS and Android, and it was one of the few must-have titles available on BlackBerry 10 at launch. Finally those whose loyalties lie in Redmond can take advantage of all that Untappd has to offer, and remove the bookmark to the spartan mobile site from their home screen. While the free download is definitely a vast upgrade over using the browser, there is room for improvement on this 1.0 release. Most notably is its non-native appearance and lack of live tile support. In fact, we're pretty sure the Windows Phone version is simply a port of the Android app. Still, if you enjoy a fine craft brew and like sharing that experience with friends, this should be an indispensable part of your arsenal. Plus, if you look hard enough, you might just find an Engadget editor or two frequenting the virtual stools at the Untappd pub.

Update: It's been brought to our attention that Untappd was built using the cross-platform development tool PhoneGap. That means that the various versions of the app share much of the same code (primarily HTML5 and JavaScript) which would explain the similarities in appearance.

Filed under: Mobile

Comments

Source: Untappd

There's a fairly good chance that Mark Zuckerberg's heading Home today without a massive bonus check. Zuck's social network, Facebook, hasn't quite reached the level of profitability that some investors once expected -- its first year of public trading brought highs and lows (though, mostly lows). But, revenues steadily grew, and, in the final quarter of 2012, the company finally turned a profit. And now, for the most recent quarter, Facebook is reporting revenue of $1.46 billion, a 38-percent boost over the same period in 2012, with a net income of $312 million and earnings of 12 cents per share.

Daily active users jumped to 665 million worldwide, compared with 526 million in Q1 2012. As we learned last month, Instagram also saw a significant boost, with more than 100 million people actively using the service each month. Mobile is clearly in focus this year, and 751 million users are already accessing the site each month through smartphones and tablets, though the company's efforts in that arena may be better reflected in the future -- the site's legacy products are responsible for Q1 2013's figures. We hope to get some more insight during the earnings call this afternoon, and we'll be sure to share any notable tidbits as they're made public.

Filed under: Internet, Facebook

Comments

Source: Facebook

When Pinterest unveiled its big redesign last month, it took the sort of gamble on feature trade-offs that we've seen before: some big leaps forward at the expense of a few leaps back. Much to the relief of many, the company is already doing what it can to restore what was lost while still forging ahead. Veteran users can once again see pins they've just posted, mention friends and find would-be contacts on Facebook on Twitter. As for the less nostalgic among us? The progress isn't as dramatic, but it's there: Pinterest has reworked notifications to show their history, and searches now include as-you-type keyword suggestions. More updates are on the way, including notifications for new pins, so we wouldn't worry that Pinterest is spending most of its time mending broken fences.

Filed under: Internet

Comments

Source: Pinterest Blog

Look, we've all been there -- that moment when palm meets face after viewing the umpteenth image of your best friend's child. As cute as Louie is, there's a finite quantity of JPEGs that one can stand if you aren't Louie's creator. Of course, scaling back the number of offspring photos uploaded to public social networks wasn't the intention of those who crafted Ukky, but it's a side effect that the childless among us will no doubt appreciate. Showcased this week at The Next Web Conference, Ukky is a (gorgeous) iPhone app that's designed to journal the life of your youngster, and your interactions along the way. The word itself is Dutch for "little one" (or so I'm told), and it effectively brings the world of Path to a different niche.

Gallery: Ukky iPhone app demo

Filed under: Internet, Software, Mobile

Comments

Source: Ukky

When you're sharing a file in Google Drive, your time should be spent collaborating, not arranging conversations. Right? Google agrees strongly enough to have just finished tweaking Drive's web interface for better teamwork. Users actively working on the project now show as mouse-over icons, with their Google+ relationship front and center -- if they're not friends and you want them to be, you can change that almost immediately. It's even faster to start group chats, as a new dedicated button will launch a chatroom for everyone who's currently looking at the project. Google expects the speedier Drive socialization to reach us within a day or two, and it's planning to bolster the update with wider file support sometime in the near future.

Filed under: Internet, Google

Comments

Source: Google Drive Blog

Twitter client Tweetbot showed its support for Flickr and Vine in the last update to its iOS apps, and making media easier to consume is again a focal point in newly released version 2.8. Debuting with the update is the "media timeline" -- a feed option which'll only shows tweets that include pictures or video. Also, the in-app image viewer has been treated to a full redesign and among the obligatory bug fixes, issues plaguing Instagram previews have been addressed. The update isn't all about pics and clips, though, as the tweet detail view has now been amended so it shows favorite and retweet figures. If you haven't yet received the update, you know where to go. Alternatively, if you don't use the client but like the idea of putting eye-candy in the spotlight, then Tweetbot can be had for $2.99 from the App Store.

Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Software, Mobile

Comments

Source: iTunes App Store (iPhone/iPod Touch), (iPad)

To share or not to share was never a question for the creation of the PS4 -- it was always more about the how. Right from the start, Sony's upcoming, next-gen console had been planned with a social networking bent, but as Shuhei Yoshida, the company's head of Worldwide Studios, revealed to Edge, the decision to build a Share button into the DualShock 4 was the result of one first-party developer's eureka moment, not a cross-SCEI compromise. All credit is due Nathan Gary, creative director at Santa Monica Studio (best known for its God of War series), who successfully pitched the concept of a dedicated controller button to the PS4 team; an idea that was not only quickly met with unanimous praise, but also immediately implemented into the final product. It's yet further proof that Sony's learned from its past PS3 fumbling and has crafted a machine for developers, by developers.

Filed under: Gaming, Sony

Comments

Source: Edge

The concept of a Twitter-aware cuckoo clock has certainly been done -- just not by Twitter itself, until now. Twitter UK has teamed up with Berg to produce #Flock, a smarter-than-average clock that both marks time and pops out a bird whenever there are new followers, replies and retweets. It's comparatively simple underneath the wood, as a Berg Cloud developer kit links an arm mechanism to the owner's Twitter account. The trick will be owning one in the first place. As much as we'd like Twitter to sell #Flock on a general basis, the company is giving away its hand-built creation only to companies and people that "push the creative boundaries," which will mostly involve advertisers rather than any of us common folk.

Filed under: Household, Internet

Comments

Via: The Verge

Source: Twitter Ads UK (Twitter)