- New Biden Ad Tackles the Toughest Issue Head-OnIn a hard-hitting abortion rights spot, 20something Hadley Duvall,discusses being impregnated at age 12 by her sexually abusive stepfather. ... read more
- Bethesda Game Studios workers have unionizedImage: Bethesda Game Studios More than 200 developers at Bethesda Game Studios, the studio behind hit franchises like The Elder Scrolls and Fallout, have unionized with the Communications Workers of America (CWA). ... read more
- California’s Minimum Wage BackfireThe $20 fast-food mandate is harming workers and business. ... read more
- UK teen arrested in connection to MGM hackIllustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Police in the UK have arrested a 17-year-old boy in connection with last year’s cyberattack on MGM Resorts, as reported by the BBC and 404 ... read more
- X Launches Ads For Trending EventsX is introducing "Trend Genius" ads, which utilize AI to deploy "hyper-relevant ads" based on real-time conversation trends. ... read more
- Judge Sides With Amazon In False Advertising FightA judge has dismissed a class-action complaint alleging that Amazon touted free deliveries as a benefit of Amazon Prime, but charged users a $9.95 "service fee" for grocery orders from Whole Foods. ... read more
- Do you love sim racing enough to spend $2,499 on a steering wheel?The wheel features a handcrafted carbon fiber shell keeping it rigid but lightweight. | Image: Sim-Lab Sim-Lab has just released a new $2,499 steering wheel it claims is an “authentic as possible” ... read more
- Crypto CEO steps down after posts endorsing political violence and deportationsRyan Selkis, the co-founder and CEO of the crypto research platform Messari, is stepping down from his position in the aftermath of a social media tirade following the attempted assassination of former ... read more
- How NBCU, Google Deal Could Change TelevisionNBCUniversal's partnership with Google could change the direction of television if the company experiments as much as it can. ... read more
- Meta’s redesigned Quest app puts a big focus on Horizon WorldsImage: Meta Meta is rolling out a revamped version of its Quest mobile app that links it more closely with its 3D social platform Horizon Worlds. The app, now called Meta Horizon, ... read more
- CrowdStrike outage Blue Screen of Death photos from around the worldBlue screens of death in Indira Gandhi International Airport. | Photo by Kabir Jhangiani/NurPhoto via Getty Images Photos of a world seeing blue due to the massive outage affecting Microsoft Windows systems ... read more
- Twitch lifts its ban on Donald TrumpPhoto: Getty Images Twitch has reinstated former President Donald Trump’s account after “indefinitely” suspending him following the January 6th, 2021, attacks on the US Capitol. “We reinstated former President Trump’s Twitch ... read more
- Snapchat Launches 'Unconventional' AR Sports Series With Creators, BrandsThe immersive in-app viewing experience highlights "unconventional" sports - including dog surfing, hobby horsing and professional pillow-fighting - in an effort to channel users' viewing habits and make the experience unique to the app. ... read more
- Meta Opens Door To Research On Instagram's Impact On TeensMeta will open a small pilot program allowing academic researchers to access Instagram data for up to six months to learn more about how the social platform affects the well-being of teens and young adults, ... read more
- Just look at this huge flip phone screenThe Xiaomi Mix Flip features a 4.01-inch cover screen. | Image: Xiaomi Xiaomi has announced two new folding phones for the Chinese market. The upgraded Mix Fold 4, which introduces water resistance ... read more
- NetChoice decision is already influencing how courts consider social media lawsIllustration by Cath Virginia / The Verge | Photos via Getty Images It’s only been a couple of weeks since the Supreme Court issued its opinion on a pair of social media ... read more
- The workout-ready Beats Fit Pro have returned to their all-time lowAmazon Prime Day may be over, but some of the better deals — including those on Beats Fit Pro — are still kicking. | Photo by Chris Welch / The Verge I ... read more
- OpenAI’s latest model will block the ‘ignore all previous instructions’ loopholeIllustration by Cath Virginia / The Verge | Photos by Getty Images Have you seen the memes online where someone tells a bot to “ignore all previous instructions” and proceeds to break ... read more
- How to watch Evo 2024, the biggest fighting game tournament of the yearPhoto: Stephanie Lindgren Evo 2024 starts Friday July 19th, kicking off a weekend full of one of the most intense fighting game competitions in the world. This year over 10,000 players will ... read more
- NBCU: Upfront Sales Complete, With 'Modest Growth'NBCU says it saw growth of 45% in prime-time program advertising and nearly 60% in news and 90% in sports programming. A strong focus on sports programming across all linear TV network groups has driven ... read more
- Massive Outage Impacts Advertising, Publishing – What We KnowA massive information tech glitch impacted Microsoft cloud-computing services early Friday. Cybersecurity company CrowdStrike reported that the outages were the result of one of its routine software updates gone wrong - "not a security incident ... read more
- The FBI got into the Trump rally shooter’s phone in just 40 minutesImage: Kristen Radtke / The Verge The FBI used an unreleased tool from the Israeli mobile forensics company Cellebrite to unlock the Trump rally shooter’s phone — and opened it in less ... read more
- Oracle Settles Privacy Battle For $115 MillionOracle, which recently said it was shutting down its ad business, has agreed to settle allegations that it combined data about people's web activity with other information purchased from outside brokers. ... read more
- 3.know: Shelly's Take On Crowdstrike/Microsoft, The GOP Convention, And MoreThankfully, Shelly Palmer and I conducted this "3.know" via Zoom, not Microsoft Teams, otherwise you might not be seeing it now. He also puts his producer's hat on and assesses the GOP convention. ... read more
- Beet At The Berkshires: Mastercard’s Abdelsadek Relishes Measurement MeetingsIncreasing regulation and consumer demand for better privacy protections are forcing advertisers to adapt how they measure the effectiveness of their campaigns. But there are ways to improve measurement accuracy while remaining privacy-compliant, regardless of ... read more
- Mark Zuckerberg says Trump’s fist pump was ‘one of the most badass things I’ve ever seen in my life’Image: Kristen Radtke / The Verge; Getty Images Just days after former President Donald Trump vowed to send Mark Zuckerberg to prison for “long periods of time,” the CEO of Meta is ... read more
- AMD says its new laptop chips can beat Apple — but still has to prove itAMD touts its new Ryzen AI chips, aka Strix Point, on stage. | Image: Paul Sakuma for AMD 2024 will go down in tech history as the year Microsoft was finally able ... read more
- Microsoft on CrowdStrike outage: Have you tried turning it off and on? (15 times)Image: Channel 4 / Talkback Thames Have you turned it off and on again? That familiar refrain from IT departments and The IT Crowd is being echoed by Microsoft today as a ... read more
- Teads’ M&A rumors are firming up with a deal to merge with OutbrainThe sale of ad tech maven Teads is finally happening, in a reported deal with content recommendation company Outbrain for an undisclosed amount. The move comes after weeks of speculation, with initial reports of Teads ... read more
- The Halo TV show has been canceledImage: Adrienn Szabo / Paramount Plus Paramount has canceled its live-action Halo series for Paramount Plus, according to The Hollywood Reporter and Variety. But if you’re a fan of the show and ... read more
- Should Media And Creative Re-Integrate?Full-service agency benefit: Creative today is tightly woven into where it will appear. Decisions on what to say and when/where to say it should be closely connected. ... read more
- Starbucks mobile ordering falls victim to the CrowdStrike BSOD outagePhoto by Jakub Porzycki / NurPhoto via Getty Images Look, in the grand scheme of the global outage that’s wreaking havoc across airlines, banks, supermarkets, TV stations, and countless businesses, being unable ... read more
- Just Call It Monks: S4 Capital's Media.Monks Gets A Major OverhaulIt's designed to simplify operations and includes a transition to two main practices - Marketing Services and Technology Services, both powered by the agency's AI-driven workflow platform Monks.Flow. ... read more
- What is CrowdStrike, and what happened?Photo by Amelia Holowaty Krales / The Verge On Friday morning, some of the biggest airlines, TV broadcasters, banks, and other essential services came to a standstill as a massive outage rippled ... read more
- Google, Microsoft, OpenAI, Others Launch Coalition For Secure AIMajor tech companies have formed an industry group intended to enhance security in AI amid its rapid growth and adoption in advertising, media buying, marketing and content creation for websites, mobile apps and television. ... read more
- Oops, Trump and X did a copyright infringementThe Verge A “Trump2024” banner labeled “Promoted by Team Trump” sat atop the What’s Happening summary on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, during the fourth and final night of the ... read more
- CrowdStrike and Microsoft: all the latest news on the global IT outageImage: Microsoft A global IT outage grounded flights and resulted in outages at the London Stock Exchange and other systems early Friday morning. Continue reading… ... read more
- Here’s how IT admins are fixing the Windows Blue Screen of Death chaosPhoto by Anthony Kwan/Getty Images IT admins around the world are scrambling to fix a major issue with Windows computers today, after a faulty update from cybersecurity provider CrowdStrike knocked thousands of ... read more
- We now have dates for Meta’s forthcoming Quest headsetsThe report didn’t mention Ventura, which is rumored to be a more affordable headset slated for 2024. | Photo by Becca Farsace / The Verge Despite recent layoffs in its Reality Labs ... read more
- Yawn And Long: Trump Speech Goes Late, Sets Length RecordWatching Donald Trump's acceptance speech was like watching one of those interminable playoff baseball games that everybody complains about. ... read more
- Gadgets are getting weird — and so are iPhone homescreensImage: Alex Parkin / The Verge In 2024, it’s always gadget season. But in these hot mid-July weeks, after splashy announcements from Samsung and Motorola and before we see what’s coming from ... read more
- Thousands of flights temporarily grounded after major global IT outagePhoto by Mailee Osten-Tan/Getty Images Thousands of flights were temporarily grounded Friday after a major global IT outage caused airline computers to become inoperable. Some flights were resuming Friday morning, but airlines ... read more
- Samsung halts Galaxy Buds 3 Pro shipments over quality issuesPhoto by Chris Welch / The Verge Samsung has temporarily stopped shipping its new Galaxy Buds 3 Pro to retailers following complaints about quality control. Early customers who received the wireless earbuds ... read more
- Is Max Still Mostly About HBO? Subscribers Say YesSubscribers have high demand levels for HBO content versus everything else Warner Bros. Discovery has to offer. ... read more
- Is Max Still Mostly About HBO? Subscribers Are Saying YesSubscribers have high demand levels for HBO content versus everything else Warner Bros. Discovery has to offer. ... read more
- Google is purging ‘low-quality’ Android apps next monthGoogle is cracking down on functionally useless Android apps. | Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Google is raising its minimum quality requirements for Android apps, and will soon remove those ... read more
- Manchester City uses Fortnite to expand its global audienceManchester City is looking to become a global sports brand, and it’s using Fortnite as its secret weapon. Tomorrow, the football club will become the first Premier League team to launch its own experience inside ... read more
- Google’s shortened links will stop working next yearIllustration: The Verge If you ever used Google’s URL shortening service goo.gl before it was shut down in 2019, be warned — those links will stop working on August 25th, 2025. Google ... read more
- Major Windows BSOD issue takes banks, airlines, and broadcasters offlineIllustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Thousands of Windows machines are experiencing a Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) issue at boot today, impacting banks, airlines, TV broadcasters, supermarkets, and many more ... read more
- Netflix’s Advertising Business Is Boosting Profit MarginsNetflix grew its overall revenue by 17% year over year – a huge jump from Q2 last year, when that number was just 3%. Now that the platform’s ads plan is hitting a certain level ... read more
- Netflix Reports First-Half Surge In Ads, SubscribersNetflix says 45% of all new signups (ad-supported or ad-free standard/premium tiers) are for its ad option, and that percentage is accelerating - from 40% in Q1 and 32% in Q4 2023. ... read more
- How Toyota Uses TV Home Screens To Reframe The Camry BrandToyota is dipping its toes into home screen ads on Vizio TVs with a recent campaign for the new hybrid 2025 Camry model in hopes of reaching younger consumers. The post How Toyota Uses TV ... read more
- Comic: If Outstream Was A PersonEnjoy this weekly comic strip from AdExchanger.com that highlights the digital advertising ecosystem … The post Comic: If Outstream Was A Person appeared first on AdExchanger. ... read more
- Why Threads Does (And Doesn’t) Matter; The Pixel BullseyeThe Threads app is a counterpoint to the argument that scale and reach are what count. Plus, the USPS has been disclosing info on customers. The post Why Threads Does (And Doesn’t) Matter; The Pixel Bullseye ... read more
- How Chipotle’s fighting-game-focused esports strategy is paying off at Evo 2024Two years into its push into esports, Chipotle has become the unofficial official brand sponsor of the fighting game community. At this weekend’s Evolution Championship Series, for which the brand is a title sponsor, Chipotle’s ... read more
- How Revolut’s creator strategy is benefitting from YouTube’s long-form swingMarketers are paying close attention to YouTube’s recent lurch to long-form. In the case of Revolut, a U.K. based challenger bank, that’s playing into its focus on creators that base themselves on the Google-owned platform. ... read more
- Some ad tech vendors are pulling back from Google’s Privacy Sandbox amid uncertaintyAmid delays, regulatory backlash, and even its most ardent supporters turning sour, Google’s alternatives to third-party cookies are now murkier than a London fog. It’s no wonder some ad tech vendors are dialing down investments ... read more
- AI Briefing: Why eBay is adding more AI advertising tools for sellers
- FTC blasts Microsoft’s new ‘degraded’ Xbox Game Pass Standard tier and price increasesIllustration by Alex Castro / The Verge The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has blasted Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass price increases in a filing to the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth ... read more
- Xbox Live is back following major outageImage: The Verge A widespread Xbox Live outage lasting several hours has now been resolved. The issue prevented players from signing into their accounts and downloading or playing online games. “Users should ... read more
- Amazon's Back-to-School Campaign Preaches Parental RealismActor Michelle Buteau touts lunchboxes she got for less at Amazon -- "for a homemade meal they'll barely touch." ... read more
- Apple's Olympic 'Shot On An iPhone' Campaign Celebrates '2036 Hopefuls'The latest in the long-running series was helmed by legendary sports photographer Walter Iooss Jr., and includes social media and OOH activations. ... read more
- Google’s Gemini AI will be all over the Paris Olympics broadcastImage: Cath Virginia / The Verge, Getty Images Google has bought itself the title of “official AI sponsor for Team USA,” and when the 2024 Olympics broadcast starts on July 26th, you ... read more
- The FCC wants to force carriers to unlock phones within 60 daysPhoto by Tom Williams / CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images The Federal Communications Commission wants to standardize the amount of time consumers have to wait to unlock their cell phones to ... read more
- X Touts Misleading Engagement Stats, Ad Buys See 'Drastic Drops'In June, X advertising saw month-over-month and year-over-year declines, with click-through-rates down 78% month-over-month, a report by data intelligence platform Tracer finds. In addition, CPMs decreased 17% from May-June. ... read more
- X Offers Misleading Engagement Numbers, Advertising Sees 'Drastic Drops': ReportIn June, X advertising saw month-over-month and year-over-year declines, with click-through-rates down 78% month-over-month, a report by data intelligence platform Tracer finds. In addition, CPMs decreased 17% from May-June. ... read more
- Google reveals the Pixel 9 Pro Fold before it can leak again
- Please stop buying taxidermied bats onlineA painted woolly bat, or Kerivoula picta, roosts under a leaf in Indonesia. | Image: Abu Hamas / iNaturalist via UC Davis Scientists are sounding the alarm about taxidermied bats commonly sold ... read more
- Google Faces Privacy Investigation In ItalyThe Italian Competition Authority is examining whether Google obtains valid consent from users before combining personal data about them gleaned from different platforms. ... read more
- Netflix is getting more comfortable with adsIllustration by Nick Barclay / The Verge With Netflix raking in 8 million more global subscribers over the past few months, the streamer is turning its attention to its ad-supported plan — ... read more
- EssenceMediacom Top-Ranked In Global Billings For 2023OMD placed second with an estimated $24 billion, scoring the highest growth rate among the top 10 agency networks (8.7%). GroupM's Mindshare placed third with $21 billion (+6%). ... read more
- The Acolyte’s first season made Star Wars’ dark past feel like a bright futurePhoto: Disney / Lucasfilm Season 1 of The Acolyte was a master class in deepening Star Wars’ lore rather than just playing into its nostalgic past. Continue reading… ... read more
- Figma explains how its AI tool ripped off Apple’s designImage: Cath Virginia / The Verge Figma recently pulled its “Make Designs” generative AI tool after a user discovered that asking it to design a weather app would spit out something suspiciously ... read more
- YouTube Urges Court To Nix RFK Jr.'s Bid To Restore VideosGoogle is calling a judge's attention to two recent Supreme Court rulings, arguing the decisions show RFK, Jr. lacks grounds to sue over the removal of YouTube clips. ... read more
- Return Of Brian Lesser: 'Back To The Future' For WPPBrian was part of the digital ad world's 1.0 and 2.0. But now we're at 3.0, when marketing service companies like WPP need help driving innovation and technology. ... read more
- Microsoft Updates Plans For Performance MaxMicrosoft execs at a recent online meeting with brands spoke about a variety of updates to its ad platforms that make it easier for advertisers to connect with specific audiences. ... read more
- Flywheel Reboots C-Suite, Painter Moves To Omnicom Commerce ChiefSix months after its acquisition by Omnicom, Flywheel Digital reorganized its C-suite, naming long-time exec Alex McCord CEO replacing Duncan Painter, who moves to chief executive of Omnicom's commerce division. ... read more
- The biggest names in AI have teamed up to promote AI securityIllustration: Alex Castro / The Verge Google, OpenAI, Microsoft, Amazon, Nvidia, Intel, and other big names in AI are coming together to form the Coalition for Secure AI (CoSAI), according to an ... read more
- Portable CD players are back and now work with wireless headphonesInitially available in silver, the Fiio DM13 will eventually be released in four additional colors. | Image: Fiio It’s time to dig out those CD binders you refused to part with. Fiio, ... read more
- Boost Mobile is getting a $25-a-month unlimited planThe new Boost Mobile logo has the Infinite part included. | Image: Boost Mobile Boost Mobile, the historically MVNO wireless carrier acquired by Disk Network (which rejoined EchoStar), has relaunched as an ... read more
- Ladies and gentlemen, The Weeknd (on Apple Vision Pro)Image: Apple Apple is launching new “immersive” video content for the Vision Pro over the next few months, including one from The Weeknd, a close-up view of the 2024 NBA All-Star Weekend, ... read more
- Retail Media Can Help Drive Brand Loyalty: CMX’s Pamela YoungCANNES – Retailers that sell advertising make up one of the fastest-growing parts of the media marketplace. Drugstore chain CVS Pharmacy in 2020 set up a retail media network called CVS Media Exchange, or CMX, ... read more
- AI Empowers Faster, Better Creative Process: Celtra’s MikekCANNES — Artificial intelligence is set to revolutionize the creative and advertising process in the next few years – but what exactly will that look like? AI can make the process of creative supply much faster ... read more
- A Primer On The DOJ’s Upcoming Antitrust Trial Against GoogleThe Department of Justice’s (DOJ) antitrust trial against Google is just over seven weeks away. On this week’s podcast, amid the summer heat, we serve up an ice-cold refresher on the upcoming antitrust trial, filed ... read more
- The Boys season four finale gets a disclaimer following Trump rally shootingThe Boys has always reveled in its lampooning of the US’ fraught political landscape, but following the recent Trump rally shooting, Amazon has retitled the show’s season 4 finale and added a ... read more
- The FBI said it found the Trump rally shooter’s Steam account, then took it back
- Google solves its Pixel 9 Pro leaks by just showing the phone earlyImage: Google Google has revealed the Pixel 9 Pro following a series of leaks that revealed the phone in great detail, including hands-on videos and comparisons to other recent devices. The company ... read more
- Verizon To Leverage NBCU's Olympics In Peacock/Netflix BundleConsumers will pay $80 a year for Peacock Premium, its ad-supported option, and will get Netflix Premium free for a year. NBC Sports coverage of the the 2024 Paris Olympics will stream all Olympics coverage ... read more
- Instagram is adding expiring and semi-private commentsImage: Instagram Instagram Notes — a temporary away status-like feature — is expanding, the company announced today. Users will now be able to leave Notes on Reels and grid posts, where their ... read more
- Dune: Prophecy hits HBO in NovemberImage: HBO HBO’s Dune prequel series now has a premiere date — or month, at least. The upcoming show, called Dune: Prophecy, will hit both HBO and Max in November. The HBO ... read more
- OpenAI is releasing a cheaper, smarter modelImage: The Verge OpenAI is releasing a lighter, cheaper model for developers to tinker with called GPT-4o Mini. It costs significantly less than full-sized models and is said to be more capable ... read more
- B Lab Revokes Havas Agencies' B Corp CertificationB Lab began a probe after other B Corp agencies and Clean Creatives complained that Havas won and accepted Shell Oil's global media agency account last year. ... read more
- Hisense’s new TV is just like Samsung’s Frame but costs a lot lessThe 65-inch version of the CanvasTV is now available, while a 55-inch version will arrive later this summer. | Image: Hisense Hisense’s CanvasTV, a matte screen television designed to blend into your ... read more
- Ad Tech Leans On SMBs To Oppose The Next Attempt At A Federal Privacy LawThe Connected Commerce Council (CCC), a lobbying organization based in Washington, DC, hosted a virtual press conference to spotlight small businesses and their concerns with the APRA, the latest attempt at setting national privacy standards. ... read more
- Sorry, Cranky Conservatives: Consumers Crave InclusivityAmazon, Dove, and Apple rank highest in people's perceptions of inclusivity. And 75% of U.S. consumers say that impacts brand decisions. ... read more
- Google Provides New Tech To Team USA, NBCUGoogle has announced a commitment to sponsor and bring its innovative technology to Team USA and NBCU. ... read more
- Google Brings Innovative Technology To Team USA, NBCU For Paris Olympic GamesGoogle has announced a commitment to sponsor and bring its innovative technology to Team USA and NBCU. ... read more
- Newly Funded Startup Fibr Is Using AI To Personalize Landing PagesMost digital marketers know the importance of personalized ad creative. But even those brands often use a one-size-fits-all landing page. That’s the problem startup Fibr hopes to solve. The post Newly Funded Startup Fibr Is ... read more
- Splitgate’s portal-hopping sequel announced for next yearImage: 1047 Games Splitgate isn’t dead yet. On Thursday, developer 1047 Games revealed a cinematic trailer for Splitgate 2, a revamped version of the free-to-play multiplayer shooter, which uses the same portal ... read more
- Metaverse expert Matthew Ball still believes in the 3D internetIllustration by Alex Castro / The Verge This week on Decoder I talked to author Matthew Ball, who was last on the show in 2022 to discuss his book “The Metaverse: How ... read more