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| Here’s a look at today's tech briefing: - Netflix to stream Christmas Day NFL games.
- Billionaire Frank McCourt organizing TikTok bid.
- Meta is shutting down Slack competitor Workplace.
- Uber to launch shuttle bus service for events.
- Apple announces built-in eye tracking for iPhones, iPads.
- xAI negotiating $10B cloud server deal with Oracle.
Beth
p/beth-duckett | |
| 1 | | Netflix inked a deal with the NFL to stream two games on Christmas Day this year. It's Netflix's first deal to broadcast live football and its first to license rights to a premiere sports franchise. More: - The streamer will pay about $150M for this year's games.
- Under the pact, Netflix also will host at least one NFL Christmas game in 2025 and 2026.
- Netflix will show ads during the broadcasts to all users in the market, not just those on ad-supported plans.
- This year's games will also air on TV in the teams' cities and on mobile through NFL+.
- The NFL games could draw millions of viewers to the streamer. The NFL dominates most of the top live TV broadcasts in the U.S. annually.
Zoom out: - Netflix is expanding into live sports to widen its programming and attract advertisers. It has deals to stream WWE's "Raw" starting in January and a boxing match between Mike Tyson and Jake Paul in July.
- Preferences for U.S. live sports viewing are generally split by age. 55-64 year-olds prefer traditional TV, while 18-34 year-olds favor streaming.
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| 2 | | Real-estate billionaire Frank McCourt is organizing an investment group to bid on TikTok. The former LA Dodgers owner tapped Guggenheim Securities to crowdsource funds from institutions and individuals and buy TikTok's U.S. business. More: - Last month, President Biden signed a bill to force TikTok's Chinese owner ByteDance to sell the app in nine months or face a U.S. ban.
- The forced sale has attracted potential bidders, including former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and former Activision Blizzard boss Bobby Kotick.
- McCourt is the latest mogul to announce a possible bid through his Project Liberty initiative, which aims to rebuild internet infrastructure and social media.
- He said the goal is to move TikTok to an open-source protocol and increase U.S. data control.
- McCourt's bid is backed by Tim Berners-Lee, creator of the World Wide Web.
Zoom out: - TikTok has sued to block the U.S. law on First Amendment grounds.
- China's government has also said it won't allow TikTok To sell its video-recommendation algorithm.
- Unlike other possible bidders, McCourt said he does not want to buy the algorithm.
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| 3 | | Meta will discontinue its Workplace app, an alternative to Slack and Microsoft Teams, in mid-2026 to focus on AI and metaverse technologies. Workplace will be available to users until September 2025 and shut down completely in June 2026. More: - Meta publicly launched the business communications app, formerly Facebook @ Work, in 2016.
- The app's growth slowed as offices reopened after the pandemic and new competitors emerged.
- After Sept. 1, 2025, Workplace will be read- and export-only until June 1, 2026, when access ends and data is deleted.
- Meta will continue to use it as an internal message board.
Zoom out: - Meta said it will offer Workplace customers the option to move to Workvivo, its preferred migration partner.
- Workvivo, acquired by Zoom last year, offers a similar social media-style interface and features that work with Zoom's video conferencing software.
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| 4 | | Uber will launch a shuttle bus service in select U.S. cities starting this summer. Customers can use the Uber app to book up to five seats in a bus for traveling to airports or event venues. More: - Uber Shuttle will partner with local fleet operators.
- The company claims the bus fares will cost "a fraction" of a regular Uber ride and will not include surge pricing.
- As part of the service, Uber has partnered with Ticketmaster parent Live Nation to access amphitheaters nationwide.
- Uber will launch the shuttles this summer at venues in Miami, Chicago, Pittsburgh, and Charlotte, with plans to expand later.
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| 5 | | Apple announced built-in eye tracking for users to navigate iPhones and iPads with their eyes. The tool for users with physical disabilities is among the new accessibility features coming to Apple's software platforms this year. More: - Apple will allow eye control of iPadOS and iOS apps without extra hardware.
- Users navigate apps using the device's front camera.
- The feature uses AI to interpret the user's gaze and intended gestures like swiping and tapping.
- On-device machine learning ensures data stays secure and isn't shared with Apple.
Other accessibility tools: - A new "music haptics" feature uses the iPhone to create vibrations and taps in sync with Apple Music tracks, improving the experience for people who are deaf or hard of hearing.
- Vocal Shortcuts lets iPhone and iPad users create custom phrases or utterances for Siri to execute shortcuts and tasks.
- The new accessibility features are expected in iOS and iPadOS 18 later this year.
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| 6 | | Elon Musk's AI startup xAI is reportedly negotiating a $10B cloud server deal with Oracle. The multiyear cloud-computing contract would make xAI one of Oracle's biggest customers. More: - xAI reportedly wants to rent Oracle cloud servers over an undisclosed number of years.
- The talks are ongoing and there's no guarantee an agreement will be reached.
- Last year, Oracle Chairman Larry Ellison said xAI had signed a deal to train its AI models in Oracle's cloud infrastructure.
- XAI is reportedly Oracle's largest H100 customer, using over 15,000 of the Nvidia-made AI chips.
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 | AI and technology writer | | Beth is a contributing editor and writer of Inside's AI and Tech newsletters. She has written for publications including USA Today, the Arizona Business Gazette, and The Arizona Republic, where she received recognition with a Pulitzer Prize nomination and a First Amendment Award for collaborative reporting on state pension cost increases. You can reach her at Beth.Duckett@yahoo.com. | | This newsletter was edited by Beth Duckett | |
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