LONDON: Alphabet Inc’s YouTube is planning to launch an online store for streaming video services, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.
The company has renewed talks with entertainment companies about participating in the platform, which it is referring to internally as a “channel store,” the report said, citing people close to the recent discussions.
The platform has been in the works for at least 18 months and could be available as early as this fall, the report added.
Alphabet did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
With more consumers cutting the cord on cable or satellite TV and shifting to subscription-based streaming services, the planned launch will allow YouTube to join companies like Roku Inc. and Apple in a bid to gain a portion of the already crowded streaming market.
Earlier this week, the New York Times reported that Walmart Inc. has held talks with media companies about including streaming entertainment in its membership service.
YouTube plans to launch streaming video service
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YouTube plans to launch streaming video service
- The platform has been in the works for at least 18 months and could be available as early as this fall.
Turkiye’s independent news websites face closure risk after Google changes
- Google implemented algorithm changes that led to reduction in reader traffic, outlets say
- Spokesperson for the tech giant argues that the changes do not target individual websites and that they are designed to improve its search facility overall
They said Google’s algorithm changes since the end of January had wiped out the vast majority of reader traffic to their websites, previously directed through Google’s “Discover” and “News” tools, and had harmed their finances.
Independent news websites including T24, Medyascope, Diken, and Birgun said that Google’s changes also blocked the public’s access to news, adding that they would take legal action.
“As independent media organizations operating in Turkiye, we announce that we will stand up for our corporate rights, our employees’ work and the support of our readers, which have been stolen by Google’s actions, on every platform,” they said.
They said they would apply to local and international legal bodies, notably Turkiye’s Competition Authority.
A Google spokesperson, requesting anonymity, said its changes do not target individual websites and that they are designed to improve its search facility overall.
“We don’t and would never manipulate search results, modify our products, or enforce our policies to promote or disadvantage any particular viewpoint,” the spokesperson said.
In 2024, Turkiye ranked 158th out of 180 countries in the press freedom index of the free speech advocacy group Reporters Without Borders. Its report said that with some 90 percent of Turkiye’s media under government influence, Turks recently turned to critical or independent media outlets for domestic news.
Independent media outlets in Turkiye are highly dependent on Google revenues as private companies are reluctant to advertise on independent websites.
On Wednesday, independent news outlet Gazete Duvar announced its closure, citing revenue losses triggered by Google’s algorithm changes alongside inflationary economic conditions.
Israeli authorities raid East Jerusalem bookstore for second time in a month, arrest owner
- Police said raid followed a complaint from a man who visited the bookstore, claiming to have seen books containing inciting content
- Educational Bookshop in East Jerusalem was raided in February amid similar accusation, sparking international outcry
LONDON: Israeli police have raided a prominent Palestinian bookstore in East Jerusalem for the second time in a month, seizing dozens of books and arresting one of the owners.
Local reports said 61-year-old co-owner Imad Muna was detained for several hours after Israeli officers arrived at the Educational Bookshop on Tuesday morning without a warrant. During the raid, they confiscated about 50 books after searching the stock using Google Translate.
“At 11:15 a.m., the police arrived at the store, and my parents were there at the time,” Muna’s son, Ahmad, said. “The police asked for the business licenses and reviewed the account books. I arrived, but they wouldn’t let me in. They went through the books, stacked a pile of books that they took.”
In February, police arrested Ahmad and Muna’s brother, Mahmoud, holding them for several days without the State Attorney’s office approval to launch an investigation. They were later placed under house arrest for five days but have not been charged.
During the first raid, police cited a children’s coloring book as evidence of incitement to terrorism.
Similar to the latest incident, authorities confiscated books based on titles, appearance, and authors, including works by British artist Banksy, Israeli historian Ilan Pappé, and US academic Noam Chomsky. Books containing visual elements associated with Palestine were also seized.
“They chose books by the cover, taking books that had a Palestinian flag, or just the word Palestine in the title,” another one of Muna’s brothers, Morad, said. “They were using Google Translate and took photos to send to their bosses.”
Police said the second raid followed a complaint from a man who visited the bookstore earlier that day, claiming to have seen books containing inciting content. Officers detained Muna “to verify his identity and details of the store,” police said, adding that they are reviewing three books seized during the operation.
“Based on the findings, a determination will be made on whether to refer the matter to the State Attorney’s office for further investigation into the suspected sale of inciting materials,” the statement said.
After Muna was released on Tuesday afternoon, most of the books were returned and the shop reopened.
However, the bookstore’s owners said the raids are part of an escalating effort by Israeli authorities to suppress Palestinian culture and should not be seen as isolated incidents.
Rights groups and intellectuals condemned the first raid as an attempt to create a “culture of fear” among Palestinians and an attack on freedom of expression.
At US trial, gunman admits to trying to kill Iranian journalist
- Masih Alinejad is known for criticism of Iranian government and women’s treatment
- Iran allegedly offered $500,000 for journalist’s murder, US says
NEW YORK: A self-professed member of a Russian organized crime group said on Tuesday he once tried to kill an Iranian-American female journalist and activist, making the admission in testimony at a US trial of two associates.
Khalid Mehdiyev, 27, told jurors he was arrested in July 2022 in his car in Brooklyn, while in possession of an AK-47 rifle and a ski mask.
“I was there to try to kill the journalist,” Mehdiyev said in Manhattan federal court.
Prosecutors say Mehdiyev was hired by the associates Rafat Amirov and Polad Omarov to kill Masih Alinejad, a New York-based journalist who left Iran in 2009 and is known for outspoken criticism of the government in Tehran and its treatment of women.
Amirov, 45, and Omarov, 40, have pleaded not guilty to murder for hire and attempted murder in aid of racketeering. They could face decades in prison if convicted.
In his opening statement on Tuesday, federal prosecutor Jacob Gutwillig said Iran’s government offered to pay Amirov and Omarov $500,000 to orchestrate Alinejad’s murder.
“The defendants were hired guns for the government of Iran,” Gutwillig said. “Masih Alinejad was almost gunned down on the streets of New York City by a hitman sent by the defendants.”
Amirov’s lawyer, Michael Martin, countered that prosecutors were relying on circumstantial evidence and “the testimony of a murderer and a liar.”
Michael Perkins, a lawyer for Omarov, said the evidence would not show his client intended to kill Alinejad.
A representative for Iran’s mission to the United Nations did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
On the stand, Mehdiyev testified that he directed murders, kidnappings and extortion plots during a life of crime that began a decade ago in his native Azerbaijan.
He also said he knew the target of the murder plot underlying the case against Amirov and Omarov as “Masih.”
Mehdiyev said he is cooperating with prosecutors after pleading guilty to attempted murder and illegal possession of a firearm, and faces a minimum of 15 years in prison for the attempt on Alinejad’s life and separate racketeering charges.
Tehran has called separate allegations that four Iranian intelligence officers sought to kidnap Alinejad in 2021 “baseless.”
Albania orders Internet operators to block TikTok within 24 hours
- Announcement of ban came after a confrontation that started on social media led to the killing of a teenager
TIRANA: Albanian authorities have ordered all Internet service providers to block access to TikTok by Thursday.
Providers are required to block relevant IP addresses and DNS servers linked to the app, according to a statement by the Electronic and Postal Communications Authority.
Prime Minister Edi Rama first announced the ban in December, after a confrontation that started on social media led to the killing of a 14-year-old student and another being injured in a fight near a school in the capital Tirana.
The killing sparked a debate about the impact of social networks on young people.
But the opposition has called for protests, saying the ban would have an impact on their campaign ahead of upcoming parliamentary elections in May.
TikTok has a huge following among young people with a never-ending scroll of ultra-brief videos and has more than one billion active users worldwide.
But the Chinese-owned platform has been regularly hit by controversy.
The app has faced allegations of espionage in the US and is under investigation by the European Union over claims it was used to sway Romania’s presidential election in favor of a far-right candidate.
Meanwhile in Albania, officials have slammed TikTok for its alleged role in promoting violence, including fighting at schools.
Elsewhere in the world, TikTok is regularly accused of confining users to content silos via an opaque algorithm and of promoting the spread of misinformation, along with illegal, violent, or obscene content — particularly among young people.
Several countries have banned it for varying periods, including Pakistan, Nepal and France in the territory of New Caledonia.
AFP, among more than a dozen other fact-checking organizations, is paid by TikTok in several countries to verify videos that potentially contain false information.
UAE launches global media initiative, Bridge Summit
- 2-day forum to be held in Abu Dhabi ‘will lead transformation in the sector,’ says UAE’s National Media Office
- UAE also announces launch of Bridge Foundation, a nonprofit aimed at supporting, elevating media sector
DUBAI: The UAE’s National Media Office has announced the launch of the Bridge Summit to “explore the future of media.”
Set to take place from Dec. 8-10 in Abu Dhabi, the summit also seeks to “lead transformation in the sector, and enhance its contribution to the global economy,” according to a press statement.
The forum will feature a media production exhibition and aims to attract CEOs, state leaders, and media professionals and experts from around the world.
The announcement was made by Abdulla bin Mohammed bin Butti Al-Hamed, chairman of UAE’s National Media Office and chairman of the board of directors of the UAE Media Council, during an event in Washington.
He said: “We launched the Bridge Summit to foster meaningful dialogue, develop solutions to current and future media challenges, and support the sustainable growth of this vital sector.”
Al-Hamed also announced the launch of the Bridge Foundation, a nonprofit aimed at empowering media professionals and elevating the media sector through training programs and research grants.
It will also support media startups through opportunities for funding and international partnerships.
The launch of the foundation is in line with the country’s “vision to position media as a powerful driver of development” contributing to “a more impactful media ecosystem that upholds societal values and advances sustainable development,” Al-Hamed said.
