Tag Archives: googl

Twitter Adds New Technology To Bring Images To Visually Impaired

Twitter ( TWTR ) said people using Apple ‘s ( AAPL ) iOS or  Alphabet ‘s ( GOOGL ) Google Android can now add descriptions to images in tweets, a benefit to the visually impaired. The update allowing descriptions — also known as alternative text — empowers “ everyone to ensure content shared on Twitter is accessible to the widest possible audience,” said Twitter engineer Todd Kloots in a blog post Tuesday. . “Photos have been at the center of some of the biggest moments on Twitter,” said Kloots. “ As a core part of the Twitter experience, it’s important that images shared on our platform are accessible to everyone, including those who are visually impaired.” People can use the feature  via the “compose image descriptions” option in the Twitter app’s accessibility setting. When an image is added to a tweet, the user can tap the “add description” button and insert a description of up to 420 characters to the image. Visually impaired people will have access to the description by using assistive technology, such as screen readers and braille displays, Twitter said. Smartphones have other accessibility features, including VoiceOver, the iPhone’s built-in gesture-based app that reads text on a touchscreen aloud, and Google Android’s TalkBack, through which visually impaired users can access anything on their phones. Voice Activation Usage Still Low Voice-activated services, including Apple’s Siri, Amazon.com ‘s ( AMZN ) Alexa, Alphabet’s Google Now, Microsoft ‘s ( MSFT ) Cortana and others, can assist all consumers, including the visually disabled, as people increasingly rely on mobile phones for shopping, communicating and information. But surveys have found those voice-activated services aren’t getting much use. Just 13% of U.S. mobile phone owners use a voice-controlled personal assistant on their device each day, according to a survey last June from 451 Research. The Americans with Disabilities Act requires websites and mobile applications to be accessible. Google announced its Google Impact Challenge: Disabilities last year with a $20 million grant for technology innovators in the nonprofit community who work on technology to make people with disabilities more independent. In addition to Twitter and Microsoft, Adobe Systems ( ADBE ), Dropbox, LinkedIn ( LNKD ), Yahoo ( YHOO ), Facebook ( FB ), Intuit ( INTU ) and others have jointly asked universities  to train computer students in accessibility software design and are requiring new hires to demonstrate some familiarity with it, according to the Mercury News. Besides facing competition from rivals such as Facebook, Twitter is struggling to expand its user base as its user growth has slowed. Twitter has launched programs to reel in “logged out” users who visit Twitter’s site but don’t have accounts of their own, making them less coveted by advertisers. Twitter stock was up 2% in afternoon trading in the stock market today , near 16. Image provided by Shutterstock .

T-Mobile Ramps Data-Only Plans, Apple Adds Verizon Wi-Fi Calls

T-Mobile US ( TMUS ) is expected to announce data-only wireless plans soon, targeting consumers adept at using Internet calling apps or making free calls over Wi-Fi networks. The “Uncarrier”-branded wireless firm’s plans will include unlimited text messaging but no voice service, according to reports. T-Mobile’s data-only plans will range from two gigabytes of data at $20 monthly up to 22 GB at $95 a month, said TmoNews . T-Mobile’s move comes shortly after Apple ( AAPL ) provided improved support for Wi-Fi calling in its iOS 9.3 software update. Apple initially supported Wi-Fi calling when it rolled out the iPhone 6 in September 2014. T-Mobile was first to support Apple’s free Wi-Fi calling, followed by Sprint ( S ) and then AT&T ( T ) in 2015. Verizon Communications ( VZ ) says that it will offer the iPhone’s Wi-Fi calling feature to its subscribers following the iOS 9.3 software update. Apple released its new iOS 9.3 operating system in tandem with the new iPhone SE , announced March 21. Wireless firms have upgraded their 4G wireless networks to voice over LTE (VoLTE) technology. VoLTE sends voice calls over 4G networks as data. VoLTE is similar to, but technically not the same as, voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) services that have been offered via fixed-line broadband and Wi-Fi networks. Microsoft ’s ( MSFT ) Skype is the biggest VoIP calling service. AT&T and Verizon are still working on making their VoLTE systems interoperable so that their customers can make and receive calls to both networks, analysts say. VoLTE-based calling apps from Facebook ( FB ), Alphabet ’s ( GOOGL ) Google and other Internet firms have been anticipated, but technical issues remain, analysts say. Wireless firms have already lost significant revenue to free texting apps such as Facebook’s WhatsApp.

Yahoo Bidders Get April 11 Deadline, Must Unveil Financial Details

Yahoo ( YHOO ) is facing interest from as many as 40 groups and has set an April 11 deadline for any preliminary bids on its core Internet business and Asian assets, according to media reports Tuesday. Yahoo is sending letters asking suitors for bids, said a report in the Wall Street Journal. Bidders reportedly are being pressed on financing details along with conditions for a deal, including tax implications for separating Yahoo’s Alibaba Group ( BABA ) and Yahoo Japan assets from the core. Some buyers may be only interested in Yahoo’s core Web business in whole or in pieces, the report said, and some might bid for Yahoo’s 15% stake in China e-commerce giant Alibaba   or Yahoo’s holdings in Yahoo Japan. Yahoo wants to thin the field to serious potential buyers, the WSJ said. Yahoo is under pressure to get an auction process moving before this summer, when its shareholders will vote on whether to sweep out Yahoo’s current nine-member board and replace them with a slate proposed last week by activist investor Starboard Value. The hedge fund launched a proxy battle after criticizing Yahoo’s financial performance and slow movement toward a sale. Meanwhile, “any bids for Yahoo’s core business will show a discounted price target, and may not want to include Yahoo Japan assets if it’s from a domestically focused company,” wrote Rosenblatt Securities analyst Martin Pyykkonen in an industry note Tuesday. He added that “potential private equity buyers would seek a lowball price, with the plans of splitting the company even more so than just the core Yahoo assets from the stakes in Alibaba and Yahoo Japan.” This week, reports said  Microsoft ( MSFT ) might put up “significant” financing in a bid for Yahoo. Microsoft executives are in talks with potential investors about providing funds to buy the troubled Internet company , Re/code reported. A Reuters report said those talks are in the early stages. Microsoft and Yahoo have a longstanding search and ad partnership, and Microsoft is focused on preserving that relationship, it said. Private equity firms interested in Yahoo have approached Microsoft, Reuters said. In 2008, then-Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer tried to buy Yahoo for about $45 billion. But Yahoo’s core business has since weakened, Pyykkonen wrote. “Fast forward to today, and there are declining fundamentals in Yahoo’s core business, which include user and usage year/year declines and a write down of a portion of Yahoo’s Tumblr business,” he said, as Facebook ( FB ) and Alphabet ( GOOGL )-unit Google both have more revenue concentration from mobile advertising. “Based on yesterday’s closing prices, Yahoo’s core business and its minority stake in Yahoo Japan were valued at $3.43 billion, based on the majority of Yahoo’s market cap being in its Alibaba stake (16% = $30 billion). We see any potential sale of Yahoo’s core business as being a long and protracted process (due diligence, price negotiation, proxy battle, etc.) through much of this year and with limited upside, if any, from the current stock price,” said Pyykkonen. Yahoo stock was up 2.5% in midday trading in the stock market today , near 36. Shares of Alibaba, Facebook, Alphabet and Microsoft were all up about 1% midday Tuesday.