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Source: Gilbert Flores / Getty / Kerry Washington
Spill, the Black-owned alternative to Elon Musk’s floundering platform X, formerly known as Twitter, has a big backer in Kerry Washington.
Tech Crunch reports that actress Kerry Washington is now an investor in the Black-owned social media platform Spill. The news comes as the platform celebrates its second year in existence.
Spill is the brainchild of Alphonzo Terrell, a former global head of editorial at Twitter who was laid off by the company following Musk’s reluctant acquisition of the platform, which he stupidly rebranded as X.
When Spill was created, he raised a $2 million seed extension and grew the app’s user base to around 200,000. One of those users was Emmy-Award-winning actress Kerry Washington.
Washington’s presence on Spill was very loud. She hosted Tea Parties, the platform’s name for live video conversations, and actively engaged in discussions with other users, encouraging people to vote.
Speaking with Tech Crunch, Terrell spoke about Washington’s presence on the platform.
“She’s incredibly accessible and knowledgeable, especially around these topics, and is not scared in any way, shape, or form about really engaging with people directly,” Terrell told the website. “I think it really does represent the kind of environment we want to cultivate on Spill … We’re all human here, too. Let’s connect.”
Washington, who is no stranger to making investments, added, “In a digital world where marginalized groups, especially Black, Brown, and LGBTQIA folks, rarely feel prioritized, Spill stands out. I’m proud to be part of this community as both a user and an investor.”
Spill Is Offering A New Space For Black & Brown Users To Be Creative On Social Media
Since Musk took over Twitter, users, specifically Black users, have sought a new platform to express their creativity. Spill, BlueSky, and Instagram Threads were among those options.
Spill has made significant strides in keeping people engaged on the platform. One reason is that it has found success in that area thanks to launching a live multiplayer Spades game.
We hope Spill continues to make a splash in the social media space.
Last year, TikTok attempted to answer a seemingly simple question: What would TikTok be without music?
In February 2023, the company ran tests in Australia limiting the amount of licensed music some users encountered on the app. TikTok never revealed the results of those tests to the public, but some Australians who had their music libraries limited took to Twitter (now X) to complain. “wtf is up with tiktok removing like half the sounds??? like i swear ive seen SO many tiktoks where the sound has been removed,” tweeted one user.
The evidence is only anecdotal, but these tweets suggest that having limited access to licensed music did have at least some impact on the user experience in Australia.
Since its inception, the value of music has been an existential question for TikTok. This comes as no surprise; the company started out as the lipsyncing app Musical.ly, and in its current form, it is one of the most effective music discovery tools in the world. But since the modern-day TikTok launched as a general social media app — one that still features lots of music — the company has struggled to figure out how big a role music should play in their business — and how much they should have to pay for it.
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In the last year or so, TikTok has fought a prolonged battle against Universal Music Group over music licensing rates, AI, and safety concerns, leading to UMG’s three-month boycott of the platform; downsized parts of its music team; shut down the development of TikTok Music, its nascent music streaming app; and, last week, “walked away” from Merlin’s attempts to negotiate a renewed collective license for the 30,000 indie labels and distributors it represents. Instead, citing issues around fraudulent content, TikTok is only pursuing direct deals with Merlin’s member labels.
The UMG feud in particular seemed to represent a major turning point in TikTok’s perception of the value of music. The stalemate, which lasted from February to May, essentially took the small experiments done in Australia and brought them to a global stage with the world’s single largest catalog. Everyone from stars like Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish, Drake and the Weeknd, down to small artists signed to labels using UMG distributor Virgin, were removed from the platform overnight. If any event would have proved that music had negotiating power over TikTok, it would’ve been this one — but the impact was much more limited than the music biz would have hoped.
From talking to TikTok users during the UMG feud, many felt that the app experience was largely the same. Rarely, if ever, would anyone find a video on their “For You Page” with muted UMG audio. Whatever unknowable algorithm controls that feed simply adjusted to serve videos with still-available songs instead, seamlessly. The only time a user would notice the difference is if they were making a video themselves and realized they couldn’t find songs from a UMG-affiliated artist.
Plus, UMG artists big and small proved that they still wanted to make content for the app, even though doing so diminished the pressure UMG could put on TikTok to improve their compensation. Some UMG artists played their songs live instead of using the UMG-owned recording. Others would use unauthorized remixes (including sped up, slowed down and mashed up versions) of their UMG-controlled songs. Some ended up striking direct deals with the platform or finding contractual workarounds to skirt the ban, and the final nail in the coffin seemingly came when Taylor Swift’s catalog suddenly came back to TikTok on April 11 —– complete with a special campaign around her then-upcoming album, The Tortured Poets Department.
When the two companies finally reached a deal three weeks later, just before UMG’s next earnings call, UMG chairman/CEO Lucian Grainge spoke triumphantly about the new TikTok deal. “This new chapter in our relationship with TikTok focuses on the value of music, the primacy of human artistry and the welfare of the creative community,” Grainge said. It’s quite possible that, with the new deal, UMG extracted many of the concessions that it wanted from TikTok.
Still, overall, the effects of the three-month standoff were pretty limited: many TikTok users didn’t notice a change, while UMG’s stream count went unaffected. The key takeaway is that artists, desperate for promotion, would still make musical content for the app for free, even if it infringed on their own unlicensed copyrights. It became a race to the bottom, like so many other things in music.
So it comes as little surprise that when Merlin’s TikTok license came up for renegotiation, TikTok played hardball —– or rather, TikTok just refused to play ball with Merlin altogether.
Instead, TikTok wants to license its 30,000 indie record label members individually — a move which Merlin sees as an attempt to “fractionalize” members to “minimize” licensing costs, according to a letter Merlin sent to its labels last week.
The whole idea of Merlin — which says it represents 15% of music repertoire globally — is for these small, individual labels to be able to band together and negotiate deal terms with digital partners that are at least in the same neighborhood as their bigger major label brethren. Antitrust laws prevent Merlin from telling its members what to do, meaning TikTok is technically free to negotiate individually and bypass their coalition. Even if Merlin could pull such a move to band together its membership against TikTok, it’s hard to imagine a boycott of indie music going any better than UMG’s.
Optically, it’s one thing for TikTok to stand up to the biggest music company in the world and argue that UMG had put their own greed above the interests of their artists and songwriters” in an attempt to lower the rates it had to pay the label. It’s another entirely for the app, which has over a billion users, to lowball the little guys.
Overshadowing all of this, of course, is the fact that TikTok’s corporate parent Bytedance is in a court battle with the U.S. government that, if it loses, could mean it would be forced to sell its U.S. business. In preparation, TikTok is likely cutting costs wherever it can. Given how tough it is for the music industry to walk away from TikTok, it’s unfortunately one of the easiest places to start.
So what is the value of music to TikTok? It’s been a moving target throughout the company’s history. In light of recent events, however, I’ll let you be the judge.
This story was published as part of Billboard’s new music technology newsletter ‘Machine Learnings.’ Sign up for ‘Machine Learnings,’ and Billboard’s other newsletters, here.
All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes.
End 2024 with a bang, thanks to Samsung‘s newest flagship tablet for the year. Enter the Samsung Galaxy Tab S10, the tech company’s best and brightest tablet.
Starting at $999.99, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 tablet models are available for pre-order at Samsung, Best Buy and Amazon with release on Thursday, Oct. 3.
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For 2024, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 tablet comes with two varieties: S10+ and S10 Ultra with storage sizes between 256GB and 1TB — depending on which model you pick.
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In addition, there are a few interesting deals, if you pre-order now through samsung.com. You can get 50% off a Samsung Book Cover Keyboard Slim to go with the tablet, or you can get up to $800 with eligible trade-in. The South Korean tech company is even offering three times more Samsung Rewards points with pre-order. Learn more about Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 deals and offers here.
In the meantime, scroll down to learn more about the Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 and how to reserve and pre-order yours, below:
Pre-order
Samsung Galaxy Tab S10+
Release date: Oct. 3
$999.99 and up
12.4-inch Display
Samsung
Pre-order
Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 Ultra
Release date: Oct. 3
$1,199.99 and up
14.6-inch Display
Both models of the Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 even comes with the Samsung S-Pen stylus and comes in seven colors, including Moonstone Gray and Platinum Silver.
Meanwhile, each model runs the latest Android 14 and comes with Samsung Galaxy AI features, such as Circle to Search with Google advanced image search, Live Translate real-time call and text translations, AI Photo Editing to tweak and edit photos to look their best and much more.
Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 tablets are available for pre-order now at Samsung, Best Buy and Amazon with release on Thursday, Oct. 3. Prices start at $999.99.
Want more? For more product recommendations, check out our roundups of the best Xbox deals, studio headphones and Nintendo Switch accessories.
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Source: Serato / Serato
Serato Scratch Live shifted DJ culture, and probably saved millions of dollars in future chiropractor bills. To celebrate its 25 anniversary, Serato just released a special limited-edition reissue of its original Serato Scratch Live Control Vinyl.
Source: Serato / Serato
The OG Digital Vinyl System (DVS) helped the art of the DJ become digital yet maintain its analog roots of manipulating vinyl physically. Think DJ’s like Jazzy Jeff being able to scratch and mix their digital files instead of lugging around heavy crates of records. Instead, all you needed was a pair of control vinyls and a hard drive full of music (and software and hardware but that’s another story).
Originally released in 2004, 20 years later only 1,500 units are available for sale for $49 USD. That gets you the “Serato Scratch Live Control Vinyl – 25th Anniversary Edition” package that includes a pair od 12” 140g control vinyls tucked into a commemorative jacket. The reissue arrives in five colors (black, transparent red, transparent blue, orange, and gray marble). However, you won’t see what color you get until you unwrap your purchase.
“At Serato’s core is a passion for music and technology, and we’ve built our foundation on the ongoing commitment to creating best-in-class products for DJs and music producers,” said Nick Maclaren, Serato’s Chief Strategy Officer, and a DJ himself, in a statement. “When Serato Scratch Live was first introduced, it reinvented what was in the realm of possibilities for DJs at the time. As we celebrate 25 years of empowering artists through Serato’s advanced technology, we’re excited for our community to experience the magic of this innovation once again with the reissue of the Serato Scratch Live Control Vinyl.”
Find out where to get the Serato Scratch Live Control Vinyl – 25th Anniversary Edition set right here.
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Source: PHILIP FONG / Getty / PlayStation Network
PlayStation owners were stressed last night because they couldn’t get any online gaming in.
The issue has been resolved, but if you checked on your favorite gamer last night, they were probably mad because the PlayStation Network was down.
Sony did not reveal the cause of last night’s massive outage, which lasted around eight hours. It barely acknowledged that it was happening, only sending a message to users that the issue was resolved.
Per The Verge:
PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4 console users are now able to play online games again following a massive outage on Sony’s gaming network that started on Monday night. The official PSN Service Status page confirms that “all services are up and running” now, after previously warning users that they “might have difficulty launching games, apps, or network features.”
“This problem has now been resolved,” said a message posted by the Japanese Ask PlayStation customer support account. “We apologize to our customers for any inconvenience caused.”
The outage prevented users from signing in, playing multiplayer games, or playing single-player games that required online connectivity.
It’s been a somewhat rough week for PlayStation, with the shaky PlayStation 30th Anniversary Collection preorder event, a bug plastering ads on the new PlayStation 5 home screen, and now this situation that surely gave PlayStation 5 and 4 owners flashbacks of the 2011 PSN outage that lasted for 23 days after the service was hacked.
Again, Sony has yet to reveal the cause of the massive outage, but one user on X, formerly Twitter, claims PSN was hacked allegedly.
We shall see if Sony ever admits what happened; until then, you can see more reactions in the gallery below.
2. Very unserious people on X, lol
3. HOWLING
8. Will we ever learn what really happened ?
9. It’s been a roller coaster ride
10. Imagine that
All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes. TikTok has become more than just a source of entertainment, the social media app has evolved into a destination to find […]
California Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed a landmark bill aimed at establishing first-in-the-nation safety measures for large artificial intelligence models Sunday.
The decision is a major blow to efforts attempting to rein in the homegrown industry that is rapidly evolving with little oversight. The bill would have established some of the first regulations on large-scale AI models in the nation and paved the way for AI safety regulations across the country, supporters said.
Earlier this month, the Democratic governor told an audience at Dreamforce, an annual conference hosted by software giant Salesforce, that California must lead in regulating AI in the face of federal inaction but that the proposal “can have a chilling effect on the industry.”
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The proposal, which drew fierce opposition from startups, tech giants and several Democratic House members, could have hurt the homegrown industry by establishing rigid requirements, Newsom said.
“While well-intentioned, SB 1047 does not take into account whether an AI system is deployed in high-risk environments, involves critical decision-making or the use of sensitive data,” Newsom said in a statement. “Instead, the bill applies stringent standards to even the most basic functions — so long as a large system deploys it. I do not believe this is the best approach to protecting the public from real threats posed by the technology.”
Newsom on Sunday instead announced that the state will partner with several industry experts, including AI pioneer Fei-Fei Li, to develop guardrails around powerful AI models. Li opposed the AI safety proposal.
The measure, aimed at reducing potential risks created by AI, would have required companies to test their models and publicly disclose their safety protocols to prevent the models from being manipulated to, for example, wipe out the state’s electric grid or help build chemical weapons. Experts say those scenarios could be possible in the future as the industry continues to rapidly advance. It also would have provided whistleblower protections to workers.
The bill’s author, Democratic state Sen. Scott Weiner, called the veto “a setback for everyone who believes in oversight of massive corporations that are making critical decisions that affect the safety and the welfare of the public and the future of the planet.”
“The companies developing advanced AI systems acknowledge that the risks these models present to the public are real and rapidly increasing. While the large AI labs have made admirable commitments to monitor and mitigate these risks, the truth is that voluntary commitments from industry are not enforceable and rarely work out well for the public,” Wiener said in a statement Sunday afternoon.
Wiener said the debate around the bill has dramatically advanced the issue of AI safety, and that he would continue pressing that point.
The legislation is among a host of bills passed by the Legislature this year to regulate AI, fight deepfakes and protect workers. State lawmakers said California must take actions this year, citing hard lessons they learned from failing to rein in social media companies when they might have had a chance.
Proponents of the measure, including Elon Musk and Anthropic, said the proposal could have injected some levels of transparency and accountability around large-scale AI models, as developers and experts say they still don’t have a full understanding of how AI models behave and why.
The bill targeted systems that require a high level of computing power and more than $100 million to build. No current AI models have hit that threshold, but some experts said that could change within the next year.
“This is because of the massive investment scale-up within the industry,” said Daniel Kokotajlo, a former OpenAI researcher who resigned in April over what he saw as the company’s disregard for AI risks. “This is a crazy amount of power to have any private company control unaccountably, and it’s also incredibly risky.”
The United States is already behind Europe in regulating AI to limit risks. The California proposal wasn’t as comprehensive as regulations in Europe, but it would have been a good first step to set guardrails around the rapidly growing technology that is raising concerns about job loss, misinformation, invasions of privacy and automation bias, supporters said.
A number of leading AI companies last year voluntarily agreed to follow safeguards set by the White House, such as testing and sharing information about their models. The California bill would have mandated AI developers to follow requirements similar to those commitments, said the measure’s supporters.
But critics, including former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, argued that the bill would “kill California tech” and stifle innovation. It would have discouraged AI developers from investing in large models or sharing open-source software, they said.
Newsom’s decision to veto the bill marks another win in California for big tech companies and AI developers, many of whom spent the past year lobbying alongside the California Chamber of Commerce to sway the governor and lawmakers from advancing AI regulations.
Two other sweeping AI proposals, which also faced mounting opposition from the tech industry and others, died ahead of a legislative deadline last month. The bills would have required AI developers to label AI-generated content and ban discrimination from AI tools used to make employment decisions.
The governor said earlier this summer he wanted to protect California’s status as a global leader in AI, noting that 32 of the world’s top 50 AI companies are located in the state.
He has promoted California as an early adopter as the state could soon deploy generative AI tools to address highway congestion, provide tax guidance and streamline homelessness programs. The state also announced last month a voluntary partnership with AI giant Nvidia to help train students, college faculty, developers and data scientists. California is also considering new rules against AI discrimination in hiring practices.
Earlier this month, Newsom signed some of the toughest laws in the country to crack down on election deepfakes and measures to protect Hollywood workers from unauthorized AI use.
But even with Newsom’s veto, the California safety proposal is inspiring lawmakers in other states to take up similar measures, said Tatiana Rice, deputy director of the Future of Privacy Forum, a nonprofit that works with lawmakers on technology and privacy proposals.
“They are going to potentially either copy it or do something similar next legislative session,” Rice said. “So it’s not going away.”
A trailblazer in fan communication, Dear U has officially begun the expansion of its messaging platform, Bubble, into the Western market with J Balvin and Peso Pluma.
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Billboard can exclusively share that starting Sept. 30, the Latin music powerhouses will be the “first of many artists outside of Asia” to engage with fans through Dear U’s newly launched U.S. version of the platform. The duo joins a large number of K-pop artists using the Bubble platform (also known as “the bubble”) to share private messages, voice notes, video content, and behind-the-scenes moments with subscribers including chart-toppin acts like Stray Kids, (G)I-DLE, BLACKPINK‘s Jisoo and Lisa, as well as a handful of Korean actors, athletes and content creators.
Since launching its artist-to-fan messaging service in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic era of social distancing, Dear U’s various Bubble apps have become a top marketing and social tool in the K-pop and Asian entertainment industries, currently connecting more than 600 artists to communicate directly with some of their most dedicated fans. With the company reporting over 73 percent of its two million paid subscribers living outside of Korea, introducing these two chart-toppers mark a significant shift to expand its offerings to the Western landscape successfully.
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“While the entertainment market continues growing, the service industry leveraging fandoms has not received as much attention,” Chong-oh An, the CEO of Dear U, tells Billboard. “In Korea, where fandom culture is fully established, Dear U has built a business model to harness this culture. Our aim is to introduce a fresh perspective to the global entertainment landscape and bring new excitement to fans around the world.”
While platforms like HYBE’s Weverse launched services like Weverse DM as a paid messaging service in 2023, Bubble was first to market in 2020 in launching the service for a slate of artists under the SM Entertainment roster. Dear U’s major shareholders are SM Entertainment (home to groups and Bubble users like NCT, aespa and Lucas) and JYP Entertainment (J.Y. Park, TWICE and ITZY), with the companies also featuring some of their international acts like SM’s China-focused boy band WayV and JYP’s Japan-based girl group NiziU partaking in the platform.
With a combined 13 No. 1s on the Hot Latin Songs chart, 50 Billboard Hot 100 entries between them, as well as highly dedicated fan engagement across their social media accounts, J Balvin and Peso Pluma are seen as ideal partners for Dear U’s next phase with Bubble.
“For me, it has always been important to be connected to my fans, La Familia,” says current Billboard cover star, J Balvin, in a statement. “I love reading comments and conversations so it’s exciting to communicate with fans no matter what their first language might be. This is why the Bubble is the perfect platform to keep in touch.”
“Peso Pluma wouldn’t exist without our dedicated fans who have supported us since the very beginning,” the 25-year-old Mexican rapper-singer adds. “Even though we don’t speak the same language, our music is crossing borders and I’m always excited to find new ways, such as through this partnership with Bubble, to connect with them.”
Teasing that Bubble’s services will “continue expanding into different genres across Western markets with major superstars,” the international, U.S. app can be downloaded here or for Android here. Fans can subscribe to an artist’s Bubble platform, which costs $4.99 per month per artist. Read on for more insight into Bubble’s big moment from Dear U’s CEO Chong-oh An.
Billboard: Congratulations on the latest news about the expansion and new offerings with Dear U. What does this moment signify for the company?
Chong-oh An: This moment signifies Dear U’s global expansion to the Western market. While the entertainment market continues growing, the service industry leveraging fandoms has not received as much attention. In Korea, where fandom culture is fully established, Dear U has built a business model to harness this culture. Our aim is to introduce a fresh perspective to the global entertainment landscape and bring new excitement to fans around the world.
Why were J Balvin and Peso Pluma the right partners to kick off the expansion?
Both of these artists are extremely popular, beloved, and influential. But they also bring unique cultural significance and strong fan engagement to the table. J Balvin and Peso Pluma frequently interact with their followers on social media, creating a sense of community and loyalty that aligns perfectly with Dear U’s mission to enhance artist-fan communication.
J Balvin and Peso Pluma are huge names in the Latin market and community. Was there a specific reason you wanted to team with Latin artists after primarily focusing on Asian and K-pop talent?
Our goal is to help connect artists with their loyal fans around the world, regardless of genre or market. Latin music has truly gone global over the past few years, and we are providing a platform to connect these passionate fanbases. J Balvin’s contributions to the global reggaeton movement and Peso Pluma’s fresh influence in regional Mexican music will help the platform cater to not only a large number of fans, but also a wide array of music tastes, languages, and cultural backgrounds. They will help us break barriers with fan connection.
Dear U’s story is interesting because it launched Bubble in 2020 when the digital conversation was so prevalent, yet the company continues to expand today. What did the pandemic teach you?
The pandemic required us to create innovative ways to connect artists and fans that we’ve continued to use today. Because artists have fans across the world and can’t always be physically present to engage with them, we’re proud to help bridge that gap and create connection.
In your opinion, what’s a very special or highly engaging moment an artist can have on their Bubble compared to traditional social media platforms?
Artists see their bubble subscribers as true superfans. With bubble, they can share intimate moments – from behind-the-scenes photos, selfies, and audio messages to polls about dinner or outfit choices. Even during [professional] breaks, artists can maintain this closeness by sharing personal snapshots, like photos from family trips. More than public social media, this exclusive content fosters a more personal and intimate connection, allowing fans to feel included in their favorite artist’s life.
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Source: Kojima Productions / Death Stranding 2 On The Beach
TGS (Tokyo Game Show) has come and gone, and we got a minor update on Hideo Kojima’s next video game opus, Death Stranding 2: On The Beach.
We have no idea when Death Stranding 2: On The Beach will arrive, which makes us all want a PS5 Pro. Hideo Kojima knows the game’s release date but can’t tell us yet due to “unforeseen circumstances.”
During a panel for the forthcoming sequel to his post-apocalyptic walking simulator, which stars Norman Reedus as the game’s main protagonist, Sam Porter Bridges, Kojima revealed that he could yet give a firm release date “in preparation” for the release date. Still, we can expect it to arrive at “some point next year.”
“I haven’t said the release date today, but the release date has already been decided, and I’m currently working on it in preparation for that,” VGC reports.
He continued, “Since we are talking about 2025, it will be released next year, so we will announce it at some point next year. But, due to some unforeseen circumstances, we cannot announce it today.”
The panel also featured roughly 20 minutes of gameplay footage that also showed off DS2’s photo mode, which looks like it will probably take the title of the greatest photo mode ever.
We also learned that Elle Fanning will be joining the all-star cast for the game as a character named Tomorrow. Joining Reedus and Mad Max director George Miller.
Kojima Hints At His Age Catching Up With Him
Kojima didn’t reveal those “unforeseen circumstances,” but he admitted to not being at his best due to his age.
“Yes, I got tired today, and my back still hurts. So, I’m gonna watch a movie by a director I love. I guess I’m getting old,” Kojima wrote on his English account on X, formerly Twitter.
Kojima’s back could be hurting for having to carry the industry on his back for so long.
Just saying.
You can see more reactions in the gallery below.
1. This merch is sick!
2. Hideo Kojima continues to innovate in the video game space
3. This is so crazy
4. Kojima the goat!
5. We all do!
All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes. Hosting a party requires a few must-have supplies to turn the night from fun to unforgettable. Instead of investing in a […]