Tag: Android OS

  • Netflix launches its mobile games worldwide

    Netflix launches its mobile games worldwide

    Mumbai: Netflix has announced that it will launch its games on mobile across the world. Every Netflix subscriber can play up to five mobile games including “Stranger Things: 1984” (BonusXP), “Stranger Things 3: The Game” (BonusXP), “Shooting Hoops” (Frosty Pop), “Card Blast” (Amuzo & Rogue Games), and “Teeter Up” (Frosty Pop).

    Netflix members can play these mobile games without paying any additional fees, ad-free and without any in-app purchases. These games are currently only available on Android devices. Members on an Android tablet will see a dedicated games row or be able to select games from the categories drop down menu to download and play. The games are available in multiple languages but will default to English if the language is not available in a particular country, said the streaming giant in a statement.

    Users can play games across multiple mobile devices via the same account. If you hit your device limit, you can sign out of devices not in use or deactivate them remotely on Netflix website to free up a slot. Keeping in mind child safety controls, Netflix has made these games unavailable on kids’ profiles. While some mobile games will require an internet connection, others will be playable offline, it added.

    “We are in the early days of creating a great gaming experience, and we’re excited to take you on this journey with us,” said Netflix vice president for game development Mike Verdu.

    In July, Netflix hired former Facebook vice president Mike Verdu to head its video games unit as vice president, game development. Verdu has been associated with EA Mobile, Kabam, TapZen and served as chief executive officer at Zynga from 2009 to 2012. 

    The company officially revealed its plans to enter the video game market in its second quarter earnings call. Netflix views gaming as a segment that will help it attract and retain customers. Co-CEO Reed Hastings emphasised that Netflix is not looking to generate revenues from video games per se, it is about “enhancing the big service that we have.”

    The company announced its first big move in the gaming space on 28 September with the acquisition of indie video game creator Night School Studio.

  • Twitter to simplify its 140 character rule

    Twitter to simplify its 140 character rule

    MUMBAI:  Twitter  is to simplify Tweets in the coming months, making it faster and easier for people to express themselves with more room in their 140-character Tweets. Media attachments, such as photos and videos, will no longer count toward the character limit; @names in reply to Tweets will be removed from the count; and people will now be able to Retweet and Quote Tweet themselves, enabling them to resurface any of their previous Tweets and add new commentary. In addition, any new Tweet beginning with an @name will be seen by all followers.

    “One of the biggest priorities for this year is to refine our product and make it simpler,” said Twitter CEO and cofounder. Jack Dorsey. “We’re focused on making Twitter a whole lot easier and faster. This is what Twitter is great at – what’s happening now, live conversation and the simplicity that we started the service with.”

    “We’re not giving up on the idea of Twitter being in the moment. That concept of brevity, speed and live conversation – being able to think of something and put it out to the world instantly – that’s what’s most important,” added Dorsey. “We’re always going to look for opportunities to make Tweets a lot more expressive, and enable people to say what they want to say. As long as things are fast, easy, simple and expressive, we’re going to look at what we can do to make Twitter a better experience.”

    Earlier this year, Twitter announced changes to its timeline, enabling people to get back to live as quickly as possible while still making sure they didn’t miss important Tweets while they were away. The reaction to the enhanced timeline has been positive with less than two percent of people opting out, and has increased engagement from people on Twitter with significantly more Tweets, Retweets, Replies and Likes.

    Additionally, improvements were made this year to the process of signing up new people on Twitter, helping them find new accounts by topic, location and people. This new on-boarding flow has resulted in dramatic increases in Follows, up 48 percent, and Mutual Follows, up 56 percent, on average across both iOS and Android OS. Mutual Follows are important because it’s two people who recognize each other, talk to each other and give each other feedback. That’s critical for new engagement and usage.

  • Twitter to simplify its 140 character rule

    Twitter to simplify its 140 character rule

    MUMBAI:  Twitter  is to simplify Tweets in the coming months, making it faster and easier for people to express themselves with more room in their 140-character Tweets. Media attachments, such as photos and videos, will no longer count toward the character limit; @names in reply to Tweets will be removed from the count; and people will now be able to Retweet and Quote Tweet themselves, enabling them to resurface any of their previous Tweets and add new commentary. In addition, any new Tweet beginning with an @name will be seen by all followers.

    “One of the biggest priorities for this year is to refine our product and make it simpler,” said Twitter CEO and cofounder. Jack Dorsey. “We’re focused on making Twitter a whole lot easier and faster. This is what Twitter is great at – what’s happening now, live conversation and the simplicity that we started the service with.”

    “We’re not giving up on the idea of Twitter being in the moment. That concept of brevity, speed and live conversation – being able to think of something and put it out to the world instantly – that’s what’s most important,” added Dorsey. “We’re always going to look for opportunities to make Tweets a lot more expressive, and enable people to say what they want to say. As long as things are fast, easy, simple and expressive, we’re going to look at what we can do to make Twitter a better experience.”

    Earlier this year, Twitter announced changes to its timeline, enabling people to get back to live as quickly as possible while still making sure they didn’t miss important Tweets while they were away. The reaction to the enhanced timeline has been positive with less than two percent of people opting out, and has increased engagement from people on Twitter with significantly more Tweets, Retweets, Replies and Likes.

    Additionally, improvements were made this year to the process of signing up new people on Twitter, helping them find new accounts by topic, location and people. This new on-boarding flow has resulted in dramatic increases in Follows, up 48 percent, and Mutual Follows, up 56 percent, on average across both iOS and Android OS. Mutual Follows are important because it’s two people who recognize each other, talk to each other and give each other feedback. That’s critical for new engagement and usage.

  • Star India launches video portal starsports.com

    Star India launches video portal starsports.com

    MUMBAI: Star India, which holds the BCCI media rights, has launched an India-focussed online platform starsports.com to exploit the digital media rights that it owns along with its sister concerns.

    The website which flagged-off with the Pakistan tour of India will provide a video experience for cricket fans that includes high definition video streaming, an advanced player that can be individually controlled and the ability to catch up on the game through both a video scorecard and a video timeline that marks the key moments of the game.

    Commenting on the launch, Star India CEO Uday Shankar said, "At Star, we have always focused on dramatically enhancing the overall consumer experience. Smart technology, combined with powerful content, can be disruptive and we are excited about offering Indian fans an entirely new way of experiencing their favorite game."

    The live streaming and video content will playback on select iOS devices and Android OS version 3.0 and above. However access to video content is currently limited to select operators.

    The non-video sections of the website pages will work on all tablets. The Live streaming and Video content will play back on select iOS devices and Android OS version 3.0 and above.