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The Asia Pacific region faces all kinds of such as , home network threats, finance-related phishing scams, and attacks. In the circle of vulnerability are not just business organizations but also home networks. sophisticated cyberattacks QSnatch According to a report by cloud company , 10-16% of organizations globally encounter command and control (C2) traffic in their network in any given quarter, indicating the possibility of an attack or breach in progress. In APAC, Akamai observed about 15% of affected devices reaching out to Initial Access Brokers (IABs) domains. These are cyber-criminal gangs that sell unauthorized access to breached networks to other cybercriminals, such as ransomware groups. Akamai Technologies, Inc. According to Akamai’s data, between 10% and 16% of organizations globally encounter command and control (C2) traffic in their network in any quarter. The presence of C2 traffic indicates the possibility of an attack in progress, or a breach, and threats range from information-stealing botnets to Initial Access Brokers (IABs) who sell unauthorized access to breached networks to other cyber criminals. As Asia Pacific continues to accelerate its evolution as a global hub for economic and digital transformation, it is thus no surprise that attackers continue to explore any way to attack enterprises for financial gain Reuben Koh, Director of Security Technology and Strategy, APJ at Akamai Reuben Koh, Director of Security Technology and Strategy, APJ at Akamai, says, “As Asia Pacific continues to accelerate its evolution as a global hub for economic and , it is thus no surprise that attackers continue to explore any way to attack enterprises for financial gain. Akamai’s latest findings not only highlight the most prevalent attacks in each region, but also that multi-stage attacks have become a staple of the modern cyber landscape in our region. digital transformation “Threat actors are finding increased success when they work together or when they can combine various tools in a single attack. A C2 infrastructure is pivotal in the success of these attacks as they can be used for communication as well as to facilitate downloading a payload and the next-stage malware to move the attack onward,” “It is crucial that organizations stay ahead of bad actors because of the detrimental impact that multi-stage attacks can have on their businesses. More than the immediate impacts of direct financial loss, and loss of customer confidence and trust, there is also the long-term costs to recover compromised infrastructure, such as legal, reimbursement and clean-up costs”. QSnatch According to the report, QSnatch has become the largest APAC botnet threat. This malware that specifically targets QNAP, a type of network-attached storage (NAS) device used for backups or file storage by businesses, was by far the largest botnet threat in enterprise environments in APAC in 2022. Almost 60% of affected devices in APAC were infected with QSnatch, making this region second only to North America in terms of devices with QSnatch infections globally. Highest Home Network Threats Also, APAC suffers the highest home network threats globally. Already, an FBI report says that of the devices on the market are unprotected. While attackers often have their sights on enterprises because it presents a bigger payoff when they successfully breach their networks, home users are often an easier and quicker target as their networks are not as secure as a corporate environment. Attackers are seeking to abuse not only traditional devices like computers, but also mobile phones and Internet of Things devices. 40% According to Akamai’s data, APAC had the highest number of queries flagged in relation to the home network threats in the second half of 2022. The region had twice the number as compared to North America – the second most region with flagged queries. In APAC, more than 350 million queries related to Pykspa were observed, a threat that spreads through Skype by sending malicious links to the affected users’ contacts. Its to connect to a remote system and execute arbitrary commands such as download files, terminate processes, and propagate through various means, including mapped drives and network shares. backdoor capabilities allow an attacker Finance-Related Phishing Scams & Attacks Phishing campaigns are also actively targeting financial brands in APAC to lure in unsuspecting consumer phishing victims. Akamai’s research found that over 40% of all phishing campaigns were focused on financial services customers, resulting in close to 70% of all victims suffering from finance-related phishing scams and attacks. This clearly indicates that attacks against financial services and their customers were highly effective in 2022. It is unsurprising that we are seeing the rise of such attacks in our region, with Asia Pacific accounting for over 1.2 billion people accessing mobile internet services today, and with IoT spending forecasted to reach $436 billion in 2026. The continuing increase in mobile and smart device use and adoption in the region is likely to foreshadow the increase in such attacks, which requires home users to be on high alert to avoid falling victim to cyberattacks “Beyond the personal consequences that home users face of potentially losing all their data when their networks are compromised, there are far more insidious consequences if their devices become part of a massive botnet with attackers mobilizing zombie devices to perform cybercriminal activities without the user’s knowledge, like spamming and even launching DDoS attacks against organizations,” said Koh. “It is unsurprising that we are seeing the rise of such attacks in our region, with Asia Pacific accounting for over 1.2 billion people accessing mobile internet services today, and with IoT spending forecasted to reach $436 billion in 2026. The continuing increase in mobile and smart device use and adoption in the region is likely to foreshadow the increase in such attacks, which requires home users to be on high alert to avoid falling victim to cyberattacks,” he continued. Advice to Business & Home Users Following an analysis of the DNS landscape, Akamai shares the following guidance to business and home users: : Remain proactive in ensuring optimal cyber hygiene practices for all your digital assets and users Organizations should start by attaining visibility of all software and hardware assets and mapping out all critical vulnerabilities across every step of the organization’s data journey and the controls required to do so, such as DDoS protection, malware attacks and scrapping as well as lateral movement and exfiltration. Best practices include keeping all systems and software up to date, implementing Anti-Malware and Multi-factor Authentication and enforcing least privileged access for users and devices at all times. For larger organizations or those requiring more complex requirements, engage a specialist provider for help, but remain proactive in monitoring performance and for anomalous events concurrently. : Foster good security practices from home Homeowners should take proactive steps in securing all their devices by ensuring software updates are done regularly, installing Anti-Malware software and by using WPA2 AES or WPA3 encryption for their home WIFI networks. They should also be on high alert for any potential suspicious websites, downloads and messages via email or text message. As the threat landscape widens to not just business organizations, but also home networks, it’s time to become savvier about all the devices we use at home and how to protect them. This article was originally published by on Navanwita Bora Sachdev The Tech Panda.

APAC Business Entities and Household Networks Confront Advanced Cyberthreats

Government officials, utility providers, cybersecurity analysts and everyone in between are questioning the ability of the U.S. power grid to handle proposed plans. Objectives to decarbonize and adopt novel technologies feel lofty, as an overhaul’s financial and logistical burdens feel too much to bear. However, legislation is in place because fewer problems are more pressing than expanding clean energy access and dependability in a tech-dependent world. The State of the U.S. Power Grid The severity of the climate crisis yields catastrophic natural disasters and dismantles existing energy structures. Meanwhile, cybercriminals are honing their skills and using them to tackle critical infrastructure for lucrative payouts. International conflict creates even more opportunities for energetic interruptions. Today’s grid faces more antagonistic influences and it sits vulnerable. The U.S. power grid is ill-prepared to be resilient against new threats, causing more outages, public health crises and economic disruptions than ever. Additionally, most of the transmission lines, circuit breakers, fuses and more and haven’t received adequate attention , as equipment and machinery approach the end of their expected life spans. since the 1960s and 70s Issues compound as outdated grid tech cannot supply the output to meet the demands of a more consumptive and increased population. A carbon-friendly, energy-efficient future may need of electrical generation capacity before 2050 to energize the nation without complications. up to 27 terawatt hours more Extreme heat waves and cold snaps quickly exacerbate a national health and safety issue if homes cannot regulate temperature safely. Power suppliers operate less effectively in extreme temperatures, so they need assistance from an empowered distribution grid to provide more consistent and robust utilities. Overcoming Stagnation With Upgrades It’s apparent the best time to upgrade the grid is now. Grid improvements manifest as innovation, legislation and then installation. The energy revolution has created myriad tools that have entered the power sector in the last 60 years, such as electric heat pumps, battery energy storage solutions, upgraded solar panels and EVs, to name a few. These are a result of countless tech, energy and construction workforces that pooled to create viable solutions, leading to informed legislative action. In October 2023, the Biden-Harris Administration inspired by the Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnership (GRIP) program investments and efforts from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Here are the highlights of how funds will catalyze grid modernization and boost economic and energetic resilience: announced a $3.5 billion plan It will create many well-paying union jobs, assisting underserved communities. There will be greater access to renewable energy sources. Plans include natural hazard prevention tech. Microgrids will appear in more communities. Funds are spread across 44 states and 58 projects. These projects will install a range of technology and infrastructure enhancements. In Louisiana, one focus is installing battery backups and hardening existing transmission lines to be less prone to outages. The number of hurricanes and high winds is increasing in the state, making it a targeted priority. The Wildfire Assessment and Resilience for Networks project covers states prone to ravaging fires and will implement fire-resistant tech, like underground transmission lines. Additionally, not every aspect of grid modernization has to be 100% new and fresh — sometimes retrofits and refurbishing for timely and sustainable delivery. For example, transformers are an essential component of grid operations. Communities can opt for reconditioned transformers with intensified durability and quality control to reduce climate impact and hasten lead times. are the best options The Byproducts of Modernization The advantages of beginning grid modernization now are far-reaching. These projects will take time, but what rewards will the nation reap as the power grid develops? Fewer Cyberattacks Enhanced cybersecurity is a monumental bonus of upscaling the grid. While the U.S. needs a digitized future, it comes at the cost of more holistic defenses. The intensity of , and the digital transformation of mass infrastructure leaves infinite backdoors and vulnerabilities for the world’s savviest hackers. modern cyber warfare is unparalleled While upgrades may allow threat actors to infiltrate, cyberspaces are more protected than legacy systems that lack integration with today’s cybersecurity standards. Reinforced Economy Other boons include economic boosts and job stability. Reducing the frequency of cyberattacks on the power grid alone will save anywhere in damage. between $243 billion and $1 trillion However, expanding the potential of the power grid opens more job opportunities in other tangential sectors, like renewable energy installation and urban design. Fewer federal losses occur while communities rise in financial and career stability. For every $1 million put into a green grid, the nation that fosters rural communities. The allocation will tighten wage and class gaps nationwide. gets $1.5 million in value Strong Disaster Guards Another reason grid upgrades are so urgent is because of intense weather events. Barriers that prevent worst-case scenarios, like outages and structural damage, allow the planet to heal more productively. Debris from destroyed infrastructure and hazardous waste spread becomes less common, primarily as and emergency services thrive. Disaster remediation and recovery expedites because the consequences are less extreme. battery energy storage keeps lights on Reliable, Clean Energy The most prominent impact modernization produces is decarbonization. Renewable power’s reputation will soar when the grid can finally sustain its needs. Eventually, the grid will manage tech like smart meters and IoT to obtain data and optimize systems while dispersing resources on demand. This could reduce electricity costs, congestion problems and peak-time inefficiencies. At the same time, it balances clean energy discourse. More trustworthy systems mean less worrying about the consistency of solar panels or wind power because energy storage solutions carry enough juice to shoulder the population. Public and corporate buy-in will increase to maximize deployment to reach climate targets. Maintaining Momentum The nation must recognize valiant efforts up to this point to adapt the national grid to renewable energy and smart technologies to keep morale elevated. Simultaneously, there is still a noticeable gap between promised performance metrics and reality that must inspire more dedication to modernizing than ever. Collaboration between researchers, tech experts, builders and governments is central to centralizing assets and smartly allocating resources for streamlined implementation.

The U.S. Is in Desperate Need of Power Grid Modernization

For anyone who has interacted with both, a typical experience in decentralized finance (DeFi) can be significantly more complicated than in traditional finance. Even the savviest technophiles would admit to not always having the smoothest of experiences in the world of smart contracts and intricate plugins. The Interface Problem A walkaround in traditional finance would look like this: you sign up on Robinhood, deposit a few bucks, leverage their network of market makers to buy those Gamestop shares, and ride those shares to the moon (and back). Easy peasy, one would say. However, the landscape in decentralized finance is different. To buy some BONK on Solana, you would need to sign up on a wallet – say Sollet – write out your key phrase, and tuck it away from everyone. You then need to deposit some SOL by copying a long string of numbers and letters from Sollet and pasting it on your funding platform – often, a centralized crypto exchange. With this SOL, you would connect your wallet on Sollet to Raydium, where you can swap your SOL for some BONK. The process is more delicate than this, but you get the message. User interfaces and experiences in traditional are way more user-friendly than those of its DeFi competition. The Problem of Security Let's say you are not like me and find it relatively easy to navigate all of this complexity or have built the muscle memory for it on years of running a shitcoin hedge fund. There is always the issue of security waiting on the other end. You might be able to protect yourself against all targeted exploit attacks, but you are not exactly sure your wallet provider can. Last week, Ledger's DeFi connector was compromised. A hacker had attacked the front end of multiple decentralized applications (dApps) on the wallet service. The exploiter breached major dApps whose APIs had been conveniently plugged into Ledger's interface, such as SushiSwap, Phantom, and Revoke, and stole at least $484,000 in digital assets. Ledger's post-mortem admitted that the exploit resulted from a former employee falling victim to a phishing attack, which allowed the hacker to upload a malicious file to a javascript code stack Ledger shared with dApps. And Ledger is not alone in this worrying situation. In recent times, Electrum, Trezor, Trust Wallet, and even Metamask have had issues with protecting user assets. In simple terms, the message they are unknowingly passing is that you might be able to guard yourself properly but still lose money because they mistakenly forgot how to guard themselves properly. This is a strange place to be in, given that you left centralized platforms on the back of "not your keys, not your coins," only to lose those coins still because someone sold a weak lock to you. The Problem with Fiat On and Off Ramping Since non-custodial wallets are built to offer a gateway to decentralized finance, there would always be a problem of getting conventional money in and out of these wallets. Centralized platforms have filled in this gap for so long, but what happens if one – in the true ethos of the blockchain – wants to plug out completely from the world of intermediaries? How can one get money on the blockchain without hitting a Paypal or Visa API where all their details must be KYC'd beforehand? How can one swap their USDt to USD without being required to integrate their Sendwave account? For Ledger users who were affected by the issue, the bad news is that they might not get their lost assets back. The good news is that they can explore a few other great options elsewhere. Alternative Options for Self-Custody Users Komodo Wallet: Komodo is an interesting choice for one main reason – fiat on-ramps – and two other exciting reasons – a cross-chain DEX integration and a multi-blockchain bridge. Users on the Komodo wallet can easily put their cold currencies in bank accounts to work on red-hot DeFi platforms by utilizing third-party platforms like Ramp and Banxa, which are directly built into the wallet. Ramp is a platform that is available in 150+ countries and regions and currently supports over 40 fiat currencies and 90 cryptocurrencies. At the same time, Banxa is a similar option that has been trusted with approximately $3 billion in transactions to date. Getting money on DeFi became a whole lot easier. Get money off without using centralized exchanges? Crickets for now. As mentioned earlier, Komodo offers two other support services, which are important for interoperability, an area that has proven to be a serious headache for the industry over time. On Komodo, users have access to a DEX that sources liquidity across multiple blockchain networks and returns great prices for assets, whereas the bridge aids transfer across these different blockchains. This feature does not only significantly save costs for traders but also improves capital efficiency across DeFi as a whole. If you are new to the industry or an OG exploring options, you might want to check out Komodo. Blockchain.com: If you were to think of a wallet service provider that has been around for a while but has not been involved in major scandals, Blockchain.com will immediately come to mind. The company started by providing a blockchain explorer in 2011 but soon built a wallet that accounted for over 28% of all Bitcoin transactions between 2012 and 2020. One of the wallet’s unique propositions is an easy integration with its in-house centralized exchange to help with fiat off-ramps (for those who want it). It also provides a smooth fiat on-ramp service with its Blockchain.com Pay and has exhibited a relatively long history of resilience and security. Blockchain.com is a good option for crypto owners. Cold Storage Options: For users who do not actively need access to their coins or investors who have their skin in the long game, cold storage alternatives could be great choices. Ledger, Safepal, and even Trezor's hardware wallets have proven resilient for a while now and could be considered. The walk to financial industry-grade security and ease of use for non-custodial wallets has been slow. This is mostly due to the complexities involved in design and implementation. However, it is a necessary one given how much that would aid wider adoption and solidify the goals of DeFi to disrupt today’s financial services industry effectively. At the current pace of innovation, I believe the breakthrough point is close, as we should continue to support companies who are putting in the smart work.

A Crypto User’s Guide to Self-Custody

When hearing about the behemoth " " podcasts may be among the last things to cross your imagination. After all, it's not hours-long, stuffed dialogues that get the viewer through a dozen various emotions that fueled the platform's unmatched popularity and catapulted it among the top apps with the most considerable penetration rates. TikTok The short-form videos condensed the whole meaning and purpose of the piece of content in a matter of sentences and hooked users by delivering information in the most straightforward and captivating ways. Through its appeal and mainstreamness, TikTok can reach more than adults monthly. It sees its popularity going nowhere anytime soon, especially now that podcasters are getting a taste of the benefits it can deliver. 1 billion TikTok has lately embraced new purposes and become a thriving ecosystem for podcasters to have a louder voice and connect with the categories of internet users they're targeting. And because of Monolith, the large-scale, real-time recommendation system embedded in TikTok's algorithm made it such a reliable platform for those desiring content tailored to their needs and preferences, podcasters or aspiring podcasters can conduct their work with more support. And as seasoned podcasters are well aware, the journey to a thriving audience involves a multifaceted strategy. TikTok, coupled with niche tools and services designed to , excels beyond compare among social media platforms. help content creators in their quest for audience growth So, how can a platform designed and aggrandized for briefly summarized content become such a haunted tool for the opposite type of video? And what are some examples of world-famous podcasters who nailed it? Gen Z looks at podcasts as a leading source of information. Gen Z unearths fresh podcasts at a speed rate incomparable with any other generation, being the first ones flocking to the platform and slowly leaving others such as heavyweight Facebook and Instagram behind. Longing for a piece of the pie represented by the booming popularity of TikTok podcast viewing, quick-on-the-uptake platforms have mobilized in their attempt to meet the changing demands of this growing watcher category through features and options similar to those of TikTok. Spotify, the most revered music platform at the moment, has long expanded beyond its initial scope of allowing independent artists in their developmental stages and giant record labels to upload content, fairly paying each contributor for their share. Spotify is now a platform where podcasters are at home, and more and more look to it to boost their content's popularity and reach. Yet, it's premature and rushed to claim that Spotify will go as far as TikTok succeeded in the podcast game and build such a kingdom. Podcast creators are migrating to TikTok for its unparalleled potential Creators can use numerous ways to promote their channels and content on TikTok. Probably one of the most straightforward and accessible methods is to take the route of comments. That section allows users to share their thoughts, which often take the form of means to make one's digital offerings acknowledged. Undoubtedly, TikTok couldn't have made it among the myriad platforms aimed at publicizing podcasts without a specifically designed feature. In light of an increasingly refined user base, the " " section is precisely what a podcaster or any other type of long-format content creator needs to grow their following and gain notoriety based on their exact type of content. This focal point of the platform wins organic growth for any type of podcaster because it recommends videos after analyzing the user interests instead of how large the account's following is. Genuine effort is at play here! Those searching for videos on human evolution shouldn't be obscured by content speculating on the world's state a century from now. For Your Feed Celebrity Memoirs Book Club – one of the most successful stories to look to With over 305k followers at the moment and a growing cohort of viewers familiar with this podcast, Celebrity Memoirs Book Club has grown from serving a small user base of several hundred to a score that doesn't stop rising. This weekly podcast began over three years ago and has built a passionate following ever since on their platform. What fueled its ascension to popularity are the topics approached, serving as a fantastic means to help those with tight schedules learn the highlights in the celebrity world. After all, who wouldn't want to skip the part where they consume endless hours of content just to extract an essential that could have otherwise been delivered more succinctly and less boringly? Not to mention the pandemic of deceptive clickbait and misleading headlines that are the bane of today's online world. Celebrity Memoirs Book Club is the channel where today's internauts repelled by lengthy memoirs can elevate their knowledge about celebrities, famous individuals, and everything noteworthy. By looking at the hosts' ways of delivering their message and having watchers glued to their displays, more podcasters aspiring to achieve tremendous fame can take their efforts to the next level. Diary of a CEO – another example of a well-done job For the business world has always been one of the hottest (and most complex) topics; having interested parties wrap their heads around it, the podcasters approaching this topic in the savviest and cleverest ways are on the path to achieving unmatched success. Diary of a CEO is where collections abounding in wisdom catch the interest of individuals of any age category. The hosts approach subjects of both failure and triumph, making viewers feel empowered and optimistic about their future. There's something inescapable about content that tackles the ins and outs of such a complex topic and shades light on the most intricate aspects, whether it's about how the or how everyone can tap into their unearthed persuasive talker. rich evade taxes The wrap-up TikTok, conceived with the exact opposite thought in mind rather than dishing out minutes-long videos, has managed to meet more than its original purpose. Now, podcasters find a great ally in its technology and potential, and users flock from different podcast-based platforms to their competitor, TikTok, for numerous reasons, whether it’s the pursuit of entertainment or a thirst for education.

TikTok's Podcast Revolution: A Surprising Ally for Creators and Audiences

The contactless payment industry has taken off in recent years, offering customers an easy, secure way to pay without holding up the line at the grocery store. Tapping a card or phone on a terminal is much safer than swiping or using a chip reader. However, like any payment method, it’s still susceptible to tampering. Industry-wide cooperation among card reader companies, credit card networks, and issuers can make the practice safer. How Do Contactless Payments Work? Contactless payments use near-field communication (NFC) or radio frequency identification (RFID) to complete transactions. It’s the same technology behind unlocking a hotel door using a plastic room key. Within a credit or debit card, tiny plastic wires function as antennas to transmit the radiofrequency signal between the card and the reader. A card reader only picks up radiofrequency signals at a very short range, allowing you to hover or tap your card over the screen to pay. The reader requests more payment information — which is stored in the card’s shiny, metallic chip — when it detects a card in the area. The chip contains static data, which includes a card’s account number and expiration date. When you swipe your card or use a contactless payment app, the chip transmits static data along with a cryptogram — a unique numeric code issuers use to verify your device. The card reader sends this encrypted information to its servers. Then, the servers transmit the data to companies like Visa or American Express that send it to the issuer. Finally, the issuer approves the data and sends it back the way it came. All this happens in the amount of time it takes to read your card. The Rise of Touchless Payments Contactless payments are growing in popularity. A 2020 poll were using the method, with the pandemic spurring many people to stop paying with cash. The trend appears to be here to stay — and merchants are trying to keep up. found 79% of respondents worldwide According to a 2022 survey, a good checkout experience influences their decision to buy from that merchant again, so many stores have begun offering touchless card readers and payment app options for the first time. 91% of shoppers said However, as contactless payments become more common, so are the methods used to exploit them. Potential Security Issues Although contactless payments are generally safe, they still carry certain risks. For example, since you don’t need a PIN, anyone who steals your credit card or phone can potentially use it to make payments. It’s also possible for a bad actor to hack into your phone without physically lifting it. Because many of these purchases won’t come with a receipt, tracking them — and proving they’re fraudulent — can be tricky. Another technique hackers use to steal data is card skimming. Thieves employ specialized devices that intercept your card’s RFID information when they’re standing nearby. Once they have the data from your card, they can replicate it and create a cloned card. Thankfully, mobile wallets are virtually immune to these attacks since they use NFC to transmit data within an extremely close range of another device. Downloading potentially exposes your phone to man-in-the-middle attacks where hackers can access your data. Threat actors can collect information like your usernames, passwords, Social Security number, or bank account number. a mobile payment app Finally, there’s always the risk of a privacy breach. Contactless payment apps and cards collect a lot of data, and someone could potentially use that information to track you. Collaborating to Fight Crime Card reader companies, credit card networks, and issuers should work together to tackle these security issues. They can prevent contactless payment fraud by consistently adopting strong security controls, sharing threat information with each other, and creating more uniform guidelines across the sector. Projects like the Secure Payments Task Force — which the Federal Reserve created in 2016 and wrapped up two years later — can go a long way toward advancing payment security. Headed by payment industry experts, the Secure Payments Task Force worked across industry segments to identify ongoing challenges and potential solutions in data protection, payment identity management, and information sharing related to fraud. As companies release new products and services, they should integrate them with existing tools and risk assessment frameworks for a seamless transition into the payment system. The payment sector should also create frameworks to identify and secure sensitive data from different payment types to protect a diverse group of payment stakeholders. Strengthening Security Contactless payment is already one of the safest ways to complete a transaction. However, as it becomes more commonplace, hackers will get savvier, making it imperative to have strong safeguards in place. By collaborating, companies across the payment industry can make contactless payment even more secure, affirming its status as one of the most hacker-proof ways to buy a latte.

Why Industry Collaboration Is Key to Advancing Contactless Payment Security

Starting your own business is always a challenge. Moving to another country is often a leap of faith. Doing both at the same time is a warp jump that deserves admiration, and respect – but also requires a lot of careful planning. As the world got more and more disrupted with pandemics, war, and consequent economic turmoil, more people started to consider moving abroad to start a new business and a new life. Choosing the best destination has become a hot topic in the startup community. There are many approaches to untying this knot, let me share mine with you. Welcome to the fair visas are probably the oldest type there is. But as the tech industry grew in importance on labor markets and tax revenues, the governments had to adjust their immigration policies with tech in mind. Historically, an entrepreneur visa eligibility was more about the wallet size of a founder, rather than anything else, as most countries required hundreds of thousands of [insert currency] in “investment”. Entrepreneur However, as immigration officials were becoming savvier in tech entrepreneurship, they finally started to realize the damage such a barrier of entry does to a national startup environment. If you make the visa program money-only, you miss out on all soon-to-be-discovered innovative ideas - you attract exclusively well-established companies looking to expand, but not founders looking to build from scratch. It is idea & team first, money second. Thus, dedicated startup immigration programs finally commenced around 2010, . Building a tech startup hub promises great returns noticeable at the national economy scale, as proven by the US in Silicon Valley. pioneered by Chile, Ireland and the UK Consider Estonia for instance, a relatively small economy with vastly developed digital and startup infrastructure and a favorable tax environment. The country introduced startup visas in 2019. In 2022 alone, startups that used this type of visa for relocating or hiring talent generated , equal to 4.4% of the country’s GDP (36.2 bln euros). During the same year, they contributed . These combined make up about 2% of the central government budget ( ), almost as much as the government’s property income for 2022 (282 mln euros). Moreover, the average gross salary in those startups totaled 3,240 euros, 2.1 times the Estonian average salary. s 1.6 bln euro 136.4 mln euros in government taxes and a further 131.6 mln euros in employment taxes 13.9 bln euro In other words, talent seeks new places, but countries also seek talent. bring innovation, jobs, and tax revenues to the places they choose as their new base. Governments, in turn, offer and adjust their infrastructure, legal and tax environments. This is not charity and ideally, it should be a fair trade for both sides. So let’s take this as a foundation for our research. You know what you have to offer and now you need to choose from the opportunities you can have in different countries. Think of it in familiar terms. For instance, the process may be similar to looking for a property to buy or rent. Let’s get on! Startups Step 1: Study the offers When you look for a property, you would naturally want to study the neighborhood and the building quality, and know more about the construction company and maybe the architect who designed the project. It is the same with countries. Each of them (being different in so many ways) offers a different set of visa requirements, economic environment, and living conditions. Finding the right combination may be tricky. The demand for advice brings a plethora of articles, reviews, and ratings. Sources differ vastly, from insurance providers to specialized expat resources, and so do their methodologies. Here is a small selection of examples just to give you an idea of some approaches to selecting the top-5 best countries for foreign startups: Expatica, an expat info hub StartupBlink, a startup research centre William Russel, an international insurance provider New Zealand Singapore Hong Kong UK Denmark USA UK Israel Canada Sweden Ireland Switzerland UAE Singapore USA Data sources: World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business Index; the U.S. News Quality of Life ranking; WEF global competitiveness report; OECD Better Life Index Data sources: The Global Startup Ecosystem Index, a proprietary methodology mostly focusing on innovation, investment, R&D, and startup infrastructure Data sources: Data Commons, PwC, StartupBlink Of course, there are many more of those top-fives and top-tens of all sorts. With all due respect to their authors, most of such rankings share at least one (or more) of the following flaws: First, many of them are a compilation of data from different sources. Most often, authors just select top countries from different rankings (one best country for doing business, one best for quality of living, etc.) without directly comparing them. Also, data on one given criterion across several countries can be patchworked from different sources, making them hardly comparable. Thus, there can be little to no clear comparison and ranking methodology. Second, popular media not dedicated to research on this specific topic may use startup destination rankings as clickbait and SEO tools without really caring much about fair comparisons. Third and most important, there is simply no ranking that’s good for everyone. Some startup founders have families, others do not. Some might have health issues, others don’t. All these factors may drastically affect the choice. Don’t get me wrong. I fully understand that sometimes country choice may be pre-determined by factors like having your family, friends, or investors there to support you. Or it could be just a matter of being in love with a particular place on Earth. If you are already settled with your destination, a proper search prompt can probably fetch you a rating that will list your country of choice somewhere comfortably high. But if you are still in doubt, I would advise you to look at sources based on solid research and a clear methodology. Choosing with your heart is a great idea for a holiday destination. But it is unlikely to be just as good for choosing a home for yourself, your business, and possibly your family. Recently I spotted a by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Of course, their study is limited to 38 OECD member states. On one hand, it narrows the country's long list. But on the other hand, you will have a chance to visit more exotic destinations as a tourist as you succeed with your main goal. Besides, OECD is represented in both Americas, Europe, Southeast Asia, and Oceania, an area wide and diverse enough to satisfy most preferences. The research is based on the OECD Indicators of Talent Attractiveness, developed by the organization with support from the Bertelsmann Stiftung think tank. The paper itself is a comprehensive analysis of immigration policies in 22 OECD countries offering startup-specific visa programs and provides the following 5 best destinations for startup talent: research paper Canada USA France UK Ireland The good thing about this rating is its multidimensionality. It is based on eight factors, each supported by a number of parameters __(__38 in total!). Finally, OECD designed a that allows adjusting the rating to your personal preferences of all the major dimensions. It is worth noting that tweaking these parameters mostly affects the bottom part of the rating, while the leaders mostly remain the same. Try playing with it and build your own country shortlist. handy tool Step 2: Study the feedback What is the second most important thing you want to know when you are going to buy something expensive and important, be it a house, a car, or just a rare and pricey gadget? That’s right: you want to know what other people say about the seller and the property or item you are after. So the next thing you need to do is find a platform where you could crowdsource some more information. One of the best-known resources for this is Nomad List, a platform with almost a decade of history. It a 5+ million user base and 10K+ active community members and has a myriad of city rankings from air quality and cost of living to internet speed and LBGTQ+ friendliness. claims You are absolutely free to play with these but do not get too carried away. When it comes to big statistics, Nomad List mostly relies on the same data from the United Nations, World Bank, etc. as everyone else. In some cases, data flaws are obvious, especially when it comes to parameters related to hazards. For instance, has quite a few Syrian cities on top, reflecting gaps in official statistics rather than tranquillity and happiness in that particular country. In my opinion, Nomad List’s most valuable asset is the data reported by people. Of course, you have to be careful with places that get suspiciously high or low scores based on just a handful of reviews. Just stick to common sense and the rules of thumb you would use at any online marketplace and you will be fine. this blood-chilling ranking There may be countless more personal factors that you might consider. Just do your best to maintain awareness and be rational, as this decision will certainly affect a significant part of your life. Good luck and thanks for reading!

A Handy Tool Kit for Choosing Your Startup Destination

Hey Hackers! You have probably heard about this hot thing called Microservices Architecture but feel totally lost trying to make sense of what it actually is? You're not alone. All this tech jargon can make even the savviest of us feel like we've been dropped into a maze of acronyms and buzzwords with no map to navigate our way out. I'm going to explain Microservices in simple terms using real-world examples that anyone can understand. Let's Dive in! Why Microservices? Real-World Examples You'll Relate To Microservices are all the rage these days, but what exactly are they and why should you care? Let's look at a few real-world examples to understand why companies are adopting this new architecture. Have you ever used ? Uber Their mobile app connects you with nearby drivers to get you where you need to go. Under the hood, Uber's system is built using microservices. There are microservices to manage drivers, riders, payments, map routes, and more. If there's a problem with the map service, the rest of the app still works. This means faster fixes and more stable apps for you. Ever stream movies on ? Netflix Netflix also uses microservices. There are microservices for memberships, streaming content, recommendations, and payments. By breaking up its system this way, Netflix can make changes and add new features faster while keeping everything running smoothly. Their microservices architecture enables you to get new shows and movies quicker! How about Disney+? Their streaming service is powered by microservices too. Separate microservices handle content management, recommendations, playbacks, and user profiles. This modular architecture helps Disney deliver magical, personalized experiences to viewers like yourself. In summary, companies are using microservices to build flexible, reliable applications and services. By breaking down big systems into small, independent parts, microservices make it easier for organizations to innovate and scale to meet demand. The end result? Better apps and services for you and me. What Exactly Is a Microservice? Explained in Plain English So what exactly is a microservice? In simple terms, it's a small, independent service that works together with other microservices to make up a larger application. Rather than building one huge monolith app, you break it up into tiny, specialized services that each do one thing well. For example, say you're building an e-commerce site. Instead of cramming the product catalog, cart, payments, shipping, and everything else into a single app, you'd split them out into separate microservices: A product catalog microservice to manage the product listings A cart microservice to handle shopping cart functions Payments microservice to process payments A shipping microservice to calculate shipping rates and print labels Each microservice is deployed and operated independently. They communicate with each other through APIs to handle the overall workflow. Some key benefits of microservices are: : Microservices are highly modular, so you can organize and scale them independently. You can rewrite or replace one without impacting the others. Modularity : Microservices give you the flexibility to use different languages, frameworks, and data stores for each service. You're not locked into any one tech stack. Flexibility : You can scale microservices independently based on demand. So if your product catalog gets a ton of traffic, you can scale just that service. The other services can stay as is. Scalability : Issues are isolated to individual microservices. A problem with the payments service won't bring down the product catalog or shipping services. Fault isolation : Microservices enable continuous integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD). You can develop and release updates to each service independently on its own schedule. Continuous delivery : Microservices are highly reusable. You can reuse the same shopping cart or payment service across multiple applications. Reusability Of course, microservices also introduce complexity. There are more moving parts to manage, and distributed systems are hard. But for many companies, the benefits of microservices far outweigh the costs. They enable faster development and scalability, which is key for modern, customer-centric software. Designing a Microservice Architecture: A Simple Step-by-Step Guide Designing a microservice architecture is easier than it sounds. By following a few simple steps, you'll be building nimble, scalable applications in no time. 1. Define business capabilities The first step is to identify the key capabilities of your business. For an e-commerce site, . Each capability will likely become its own microservice. this could be things like product catalog, cart, checkout, payment, shipping, etc 2. Determine service boundaries Now determine how to split these capabilities into separate services. A good rule of thumb is the Single Responsibility Principle - each service should do one thing well. For example, split the product catalog into product information and product ratings services. Keep services as decoupled and independent as possible. 3. Choose a technology stack Next, decide on a technology stack for building your microservices. Some popular options are: Spring Boot / Java Node.js Python / Flask Ruby on Rails You'll want to choose a stack that is lightweight, scalable, and suited for web services. For most microservice architectures, the services are deployed separately, so they can even be developed in different languages and frameworks. 4. Define service contracts Now define how your services will communicate with each other through APIs. The most common approaches are REST over HTTP or messaging over a broker like RabbitMQ. For example, the product catalog service exposes a REST API that returns product info. The cart service calls this API to retrieve product data. 5. Implement service discovery With many independently deployed services, we need a way to keep track of them. Service discovery tools like Consul, Zookeeper or Netflix Eureka can register services and allow other services to lookup locations and API info. Our services can query the discovery tool to find the product catalog API, for example. 6. Add resilience Microservices architectures need to be resilient to failure. Add techniques like circuit breakers, bulkheads, timeouts and retries to your services. For example, if the product catalog service fails, the cart service should have a fallback and temporarily use cached data. 7. Monitor your system Finally, you need to monitor your microservices to ensure high performance and availability. Metrics, logging, tracing and alerting are essential for observability. Monitor things like request rates, latencies, error rates and resource usage for each service. By following these steps, you'll be designing and building a robust microservices architecture in no time! Common Challenges With Microservices and How to Overcome Them Microservices architecture is gaining popularity, but it does come with its own set of challenges. Here are some common issues you may encounter with microservices and tips to help you overcome them. 1. Communication between services Microservices are independent, so they need to communicate with each other. This can get tricky when you have many microservices talking to each other. Make sure you have a solid API gateway in place to handle all the communication and routing between services. Use lightweight messaging protocols like REST or gRPC to make communication fast and efficient. 2. Managing data Since your data is distributed across many services, data management and consistency can be difficult. Make sure each service has its own dedicated database so there are no dependencies between services. Use eventual consistency, where data will become consistent over time as it is updated, to handle data that spans multiple services. Have a data governance policy in place to prevent issues. 3. Deployment challenges Deploying many small services introduces complexity. Use automated deployment pipelines to make the process quick and error-free. Deploy services independently so you can update one service without impacting others. Have a rollout plan in place in case something goes wrong with a new deployment. Use techniques like or to minimize risk. blue-green deployment canary releases 4. Monitoring and logging With many moving parts, monitoring microservices can be challenging. Send logging data from all your services to a centralized logging system. Set up distributed tracing to follow a request as it travels through the system. Monitor services for key metrics like response time, traffic, and error rates. Monitor the overall architecture and how services communicate to catch issues early. Microservices offer a lot of benefits when built and managed properly. FAQs About Microservices: Answers to Questions You're Too Afraid to Ask So you want to learn about microservices but don’t know where to start? No worries, we’ve got you covered. Here are some common questions about microservices answered in plain English: Why use microservices? Microservices have a lot of benefits: They are easy to develop and deploy since they are small in size. They can be maintained by small teams since each microservice is simple. They are flexible and can be updated independently without affecting other services. They can be scaled individually based on demand. What are some examples of microservices? Some common examples of microservices are: Handles user-profiles and accounts User profile service: Product catalog service: Manages product listings and details : Allows users to add items to a shopping cart Cart service : Processes payments and shipping for orders Checkout service : Allows customers to leave reviews for products Review service How do microservices communicate? Microservices communicate with each other over a network using protocols like: Uses HTTP requests to GET, POST, PUT and DELETE data. REST (Representational State Transfer): (Google Remote Procedure Calls): Uses HTTP/2 for fast, scalable communication. gRPC Uses event-driven architecture with message queues to communicate asynchronously. Async APIs: Are microservices right for my application? Microservices work great for large, complex applications, especially if: You have a large team of developers working on the app. You expect certain areas of the app to change frequently. You want to scale certain parts of the app differently. You prefer loosely coupled, independent components. However, microservices also introduce complexity. For a small, simple app, a monolith might be easier to build and maintain. Consider your needs and team size before deciding on an architecture. Conclusion And that's the basics of microservices in a nutshell. Remember, start simple and build up gradually. Focus on creating small, independent services that do one thing well. Build APIs to allow them to communicate. Start small, and happy microservices building! Must Read Building Microservice Architecture With ASP.NET Core Building Java Microservices from Scratch The Complete Microservice Tutorial: Introduction [Part 1] Creating Microservices: Key Principles and Concepts

Microservices for Humans: A No-Nonsense Introduction

Consumers today can interact with businesses in more ways than ever before. That gives companies many options when reaching out to new and returning customers, but the savviest marketers don’t just choose one or two options. They capitalize on all of them through omnichannel customer experiences. The rise of e-commerce has also made it easier to sell to a broader market. As a result, competition has grown fierce in many markets, so businesses have to do all they can to stand out. An effective omnichannel strategy is an excellent way to do just that. What Is an Omnichannel Customer Experience? An omnichannel marketing approach creates a consistent experience across all available channels. Whether people interact with a company on their phones, computers, TVs, or brick-and-mortar stores, they’ll get the same experience. Some channels may be more effective than others — email marketing is still the — but not every user uses every channel. Some people may exclusively see a brand on social media, others will only interact through the official website and more may use a mix of everything. Making the experience the same across all platforms ensures everyone gets the same message and journey regardless of these differences. best method for making sales Omnichannel provides more data to understand the market and helps businesses reach more customers, create , and boost customer loyalty. Companies today can’t afford to overlook those benefits. a familiar and clear brand image How to Optimize Omnichannel Of course, omnichannel marketing’s effectiveness depends on how well businesses can use it. Making a great omnichannel experience may be a little more complicated than other methods, but here’s how marketers can optimize theirs. 1. Know Your Customers Knowing the target market is the first step in creating an omnichannel strategy. The whole point of omnichannel is to create a consistent brand image and experience, so if this image doesn’t gel with customers, the plan is doomed from the start. If a business already has a customer base, it should poll them. Ask what they like about the brand, their experience, and where they think it could improve. Brands underestimate how often customers have bad experiences by , so this first-hand feedback is invaluable. an average of 38% Looking at data outside of customer surveys is important, too. Companies should examine how much time their customers spend on different channels to learn which areas may yield the best results. Similarly, look at how users interact with various content types across channels. 2. Map Out the Customer Journey As businesses look at their customers and how they act across different channels, they should outline the customer journey. Pay attention to where users are and what they do at key sales funnel stages. Knowing this will inform more effective content at each phase. The journey may look different from user to user, but some overall trends should emerge. Brands can then adapt their marketing materials on each channel to fit the stage of the funnel customers typically are in when engaging with content on that channel. Every stage of the customer journey needs attention, but experts agree in marketing. Mapping these journeys will reveal what channels and behaviors on those platforms typically coincide with these first impressions. Companies can then focus their efforts here to ensure success from the beginning. first impressions matter the most 3. Keep Content Consistent But Not Identical Omnichannel experiences should be seamless across every step of the customer journey on any channel. Someone should be able to interact with the brand on social media on their phone, then pick up right where they left off in a physical store. However, there is such a thing as too much consistency. Each channel has unique strengths and weaknesses, so marketing materials should lean into these. That means content can’t be identical across every channel in every instance. It should provide a consistent image and experience but vary slightly depending on what the specific platform enables. Taking the brand’s TV ad and posting it on social media provides a consistent but unoptimized experience. A better strategy would take advantage of social media’s interactive nature. Instead, a company could use the same graphics and themes from the TV ad but try a live-streamed version or poll the audience to give them control over future content with the same characters. 4. Capitalize on Technology Managing content across multiple channels is complicated — especially when adapting it to each channel’s unique features. However, businesses can work around that complication by embracing newer technologies. Automation and AI are some of the most helpful, as they save time in many areas. Generative AI tools like ChatGPT or draft social media posts to let companies push this communication out faster. Email marketing tools can automatically reply to different interactions to keep potential customers engaged. can create personalized customer interactions Chatbots are another helpful tool — especially chatbot platforms that can pull data from multiple channels. Feeding omnichannel data into chatbots will let them provide the same help to customers even when they talk to them on different platforms, boosting the omnichannel experience. 5. Keep Up With Changing Trends It’s also crucial to remember an omnichannel experience should be dynamic. Businesses can’t set a strategy once and leave it alone. An effective omnichannel experience changes with its customers, adapting to new trends and old shortcomings. The secret to doing this effectively lies within the omnichannel strategy itself. When brands interact with customers across multiple channels, they’ll have a much wider range of user data to pull from. The world generates more than a year, offering plenty of information to show what users do and prefer. 64 zettabytes of data Businesses should routinely gather data from all channels and use this information to review their omnichannel strategy’s efficacy. Remember that what works well today may not work tomorrow. If a once-effective method starts declining, it’s okay to change it — evolving with the times will ensure a better customer experience. Just be sure to change consistently across all channels. Businesses Today Need Omnichannel Experiences People today rarely see and interact with companies on just one platform. Even if they did, everyone has unique habits, so only focusing on one channel means missing out on huge market segments elsewhere. In today’s hyper-connected world, marketing strategies need to be similarly connected. Following these steps to create an effective omnichannel customer experience is crucial to staying competitive in modern markets.

How to Improve Your Omnichannel Customer Experience

I’m Pavel, the CEO of a no-code company called Directual. Here, I’ll share my view on the latest on the AI frontier, as seen by a no-code platform that is integrated very tightly with OpenAI. The whole AI shebang isn’t new. It’s just that after OpenAI released and Dall-E things really started to spiral out of control. Now, you get some groundbreaking AI news every other day at the very least. ChatGPT Since Directual is a no-code platform tightly integrated with OpenAI, we also observe news headlines with bated breath. After all, who knows what will happen next? Is it the end of no-code platforms, as it could be for a whole gazillion businesses and jobs out there? Or is it the other way around? Anyway, let’s see what’s happening so far instead. What’s up on the AI frontier? Plenty! Investments in AI so far The world of generative AI is heating up faster than yet another Kardashian feud. High costs, ambitious goals, and external pressures have set the stage for a wild investment spree. It's like everyone's competing in the Olympics, except instead of medals, they're aiming for that sweet, sweet funding. All this is happening during times when venture capital isn’t exactly thriving. Interest rate have sent tech valuations into a nosedive. To make matters worse, tech companies have been laying off workers left and right, with over in 2023 alone. hikes by the Federal Reserve 185,000+ jobs axed Investors are flocking to the generative AI sector like moths to a flame, however, drawn in by its immense potential. And boy, have there been some massive funding rounds lately: OpenAI scored a ridiculous from in January. In fact, OpenAI's funding alone exceeded the entire investment in generative AI companies for 2022, according to CB Insights. Talk about making it rain! $10 billion Microsoft Jasper bagged in October and is now worth $1.5 billion. Not too shabby. $125 million Character.ai collected . $150 million Stability AI snagged and hit a $1 billion valuation. $101 million No wonder, really. Building a model like that is EXPENSIVE. According to Mike Volpi, a partner at Index Ventures, you're gonna need at least to develop a large language model like the one powering ChatGPT. A great lot of it is spent on computing power. That $10 billion investment into OpenAI by Microsoft? About half of it will go into Microsoft Azure. $500 million It’s also a big reason why the number of players in the AI market are likely to remain low—good luck getting into this kind of market unless you have a fat stack of cash laying around doing absolutely nothing else. So, if you're feeling FOMO, don't worry, there's still time to get in on the action in terms of investments into the frontrunners. Just like the tech sector during COVID-19, it seems that AI companies are set to be prize winners for many denizens of Robinhood and the like. Regulations rolling in Thanks for this by OpenAI’s CEO, if someone wasn’t scared of what AGI will do, they certainly are now. For legislators around the globe, AI is also about to become a tremendous headache. How do you secure the job market? How do you ensure private data stays private? So many different avenues to tackle, and so little time. totally-not-doomsaying post The European Union is stirring up the pot with ( ) and deployment, and it looks like OpenAI and other companies may have to cough up information about their use of copyrighted materials in training their AI. The EU's AI Act will also classify different AI technologies according to the risks they pose, and some chatbots could be slapped with a "high-risk" label. Figures, really. new regulations on AI development how about some irony: let ChatGPT give you a summary of this act. Wouldn’t that be a laugh? Recent debates over chatbot regulations suggest that the AI Act won't be finalized until at least 2024, but EU member states are already making their own policies in the meantime. This means companies like OpenAI will need to be extra careful as they navigate a tangled web of governance criteria. That may be a reasonable explanation for why Reddit users are complaining that ChatGPT is getting “ ” with every single update (although you can still try to into telling you what you want). nerfed gaslight it Hilarious! Akhem, anyway… Lawmakers are also proposing that chatbots like OpenAI's ChatGPT should disclose to users that they're not human, while also requiring AI platforms to provide greater transparency on the training of their models. In short, EU lawmakers are cracking down on the rise of generative AI technology, which is great news for people but not so much for companies like OpenAI. In fact, Italy banned ( ) ChatGPT at the beginning of April. OpenAI was given 20 days to sort this out, and they did. They announced that its banned chatbot is finally allowed to come back online, thanks to a few privacy-related changes made. and then unbanned The changes include a new article that explains how the bot collects and uses data, an opt-out form for EU users, a more visible privacy policy, and a tool to verify users' ages in Italy. A call for a standstill Slightly old news, but nonetheless. Over a thousand people, including Elon Musk and some big-shot researchers, have signed warning that the risks of AI are imminent if we don't slow down. They're calling for a six-month pause in all "giant AI experiments". an open letter In other words, they want to put a hold on developing powerful AI systems until we're sure they won't ruin everything. Because let's face it, we've hit pause on other potentially catastrophic technologies before (ozone layer destruction saga, anyone?). And right now, it seems like we're in an "out-of-control race" to create digital minds that we can't even control. It’s so bad, right?...right? It is rumored, however, that all of these big people signing the open letter and pushing the agenda to pause AI development are doing it to stall OpenAI’s progress, which is vastly outpacing everyone else at the moment. Because…my oh my, Elon has his in the works! own AI Time will only tell if everyone was right, but 2023 is bound to be a wild year for sure. NVidia’s text-to-video…wow. The nutty professors over at Nvidia created a Latent Diffusion Model that can make high-quality videos up to 4.7 seconds long, all from text. What’s more, they went ahead and used open source Stable Diffusion model and DreamBooth to tune it up even more! This just proves that we're barely scratching the surface of what's possible on this front. I mean… . just look at it AI music setting the whole industry on fire..figuratively and literally Universal Music Group (UMG) is playing whack-a-mole with AI-generated songs that imitate the voices of Drake and The Weeknd. The company filed a copyright infringement complaint resulting in the removal of "Heart on My Sleeve," a viral AI-generated song from streaming platforms, which gained over 15 million streams. Drake himself slammed the track on Instagram, calling it "the final straw," but legal experts are questioning UMG's claim since generative AI isn't explicitly addressed in copyright law. The original used to be , RIP. here Here’s a version that is still alive. It kinda slaps! , it appears to have selective outrage as it remains mum on other AI-generated songs that feature its artists, such as a cover version of Ice Spice's "Munch (Feelin' U)" and Beyoncé's "Cuff It" remix. While UMG is trying to take the moral high ground The end of the job market is nigh Seems like executives are not sure what to make of generative AI just yet. On one hand, of them believe it will have a big impact on their companies, but on the other hand, nearly the same percentage thinks it's still too early for that impact to happen. 65% Almost 4 in 10 of these executives are afraid that generative AI could turn their employees into social outcasts, decreasing social interactions and human connections. And while some are still on the fence, corporations like PwC are not wasting any time, investing a whopping $1 billion in AI over the next 3 years. Looks like they're taking the "go big or go home" approach when it comes to AI investments. The layoffs have already begun, and the most common topic on the OpenAI subreddit is “Are we going to see a shortage of jobs or not”. Or the likes of it. Opinions vary since some say it’s the biggest thing since the industrial revolution, and others don’t believe anything drastic will happen. I mean, look at the government systems. Germany still sends faxes. Computers are still on Windows XP. We’ll be fine, for the most part, yeah? What does it mean for no-code platforms? So, will no-code platforms like Directual be out of a job because of the rise of AI? In short, hell no. No-code platforms are only getting stronger, especially when they . Don't believe me? Let's take a closer look. integrate with AI First off, let's talk about the learning curve. Even the savviest programmers may struggle to interact properly with AI, and getting it to do what you want is like playing a game of 20 questions. With no-code platforms, however, you can just stack pre-made blocks together like Lego and your app will magically work. Coding with AI also means you'll be constantly copying and pasting snippets of code, testing them out, and praying they work. Not to mention, you'll need a lot of documentation to make sure everything's running smoothly. With no-code platforms, everything's already laid out for you in a single workflow, and templates can help you get started in just ten minutes. Just like that. I swear I didn’t write this entire article just to arrive at this video. What happens when you need to scale, though? That’s the big thing. AI has its limits in terms of memory and response length (even the likes of GPT4), which means you might end up with a headache trying to break up your problem into smaller chunks. Plus, if you need to copy logic from one scenario to another, good luck. AI will likely make errors or drift off into space. With no-code platforms, you can reliably stack everything together and scale your app without hitting any roadblocks. Thus, no-code platforms will be just fine, for one reason: you should be using both them and AI. No-code platforms can help you create apps faster and refine your processes, while AI can give your app advanced chat-based functionality and help with more complex tasks. Just make sure to say “thank you” to your AI overlord after you’re done with your query. No such requirements from us. Afterword The world of AI will keep on accelerating faster. Who knows what we’ll see tomorrow: a utopia where no one needs to work (machines go in, men go out!), or will it be Skynet eradicating humans like the little noxious pests that they are? For the time being, one thing is certain: you’ll be wise to invest into AI, and keep a close eye on what’s happening with it. Future-proof your job, your projects, and your company, because the competition’s landscape may look very different, very quickly. Cheerio.

What’s Up at the AI and No-Code Frontier?

As users become savvier and less responsive to traditional banner ads, publishers struggle to maintain revenue. In response, the advertising industry is constantly evolving as both advertisers and publishers look for new ways to improve ROI and diversify revenue. One option that has been gaining traction recently is interstitial ads, which have very high viewability and click-through rates (CTRs). However, these ads are intrusive and hamper UX, giving them a mixed reputation among publishers. In this article, I will give you an overview of interstitial ads and discuss a new study that shows how you can implement them while still maintaining user experience. What Are Interstitial Ads? Interstitial ads are full-screen advertisements that pop up between the user's current page and the page they intend to navigate to. These ads are hard to overlook and require users to take action in order to proceed to their intended destination. This feature makes them an excellent tool to grab users' attention and encourage them to engage with the ad. As user engagement increases, advertisers are willing to pay higher (cost-per-mille, or, cost per one thousand impressions), resulting in higher RPMs for publishers. CPMs Advantages For advertisers, engagement is the name of the game. The goal of digital advertisers is to have users see, click, and eventually purchase their product or service. Due to the incredibly high viewability of interstitial ads, more users click on them, which is why advertisers are willing to pay so much. For publishers, it is a simple matter of supply and demand. There is a large demand among advertisers for interstitial ads, but not a large supply because publishers need to limit them (more on this below). Given this situation, publishers can charge advertisers very high CPMs for interstitial ads. Disadvantages Given their high eCPM (effective cost per mille, or, how much the publisher receives per one thousand impressions), one may wonder why not all publishers use interstitial ads. The main drawback of interstitial ads is their effect on user experience (UX). The intrusive nature of the ads hampers UX, which can result in lower traffic. In addition, if implemented incorrectly, interstitial ads can lead to slower loading times and penalties for misuse. That is why publishers must implement frequency capping to ensure that the ads don’t appear too often. New Study Shows How to Boost Revenue and Maintain UX It’s pretty evident to everyone in the industry that interstitial ads yield more revenue for publishers than traditional banner ads. However, a by the ad monetization company Adnimation quantified just how effective the ads are. recent study According to the study, the average eCPM of interstitial ads was more than 4,000% higher than regular banner ads. This means that if your average eCPM for banner ads is $1, the eCPM of your interstitial ads would be $41. The study analyzed data from 50 random publishers, with half based in the United States and half based in Europe, for a duration of 3 months. According to the study, the effectiveness of interstitial ads was nearly identical for US and European traffic. A key takeaway from the study is that the high eCPMs of these ads can enable publishers to decrease the number of regular banner ads and improve UX, while still generating more revenue. In other words, due to the fact that eCPMs for interstitial ads are so high, publishers can now afford to improve the overall UX of their site by reducing the number of regular banner ads. This is great news for publishers who are on the fence about implementing this strategy due to UX concerns. That is not to say that interstitial ads don’t affect UX. They still do. However, their high value can allow you to offset the costs of showing fewer overall banner ads on your site. There’s a Catch Of course, there’s a catch, there always is. But in this case, the catch is simple: do it right! As noted above, incorrect implementation can lead to penalization. In fact, Google has for interstitial ads, and the last thing you want is to be penalized by Google. strict guidelines Given this, you need to ensure that interstitial ads are placed correctly, have a frequency cap, and feature a clear 'X' or close button. In addition, you need advanced ad-serving technology and ongoing management to maximize the prices. Don't just implement the ads and hope for the best. Yes, your revenue will improve, but you won’t get the most you can from the ads. For the best results, make sure to actively monitor the ads and make real-time decisions on when and to whom to show the ads based on the relevant data. Lead Image: Myriam Jessier Also published here.

Interstitial Ads: How to Boost Revenue While Maintaining UX

Even though the nonprofit sector is a major contributor to the U.S. economy — accounting for — its technology adoption has been slow. 10.2% of the U.S. workforce Various studies have indicated that the nonprofit sector needs to catch up to other industries in maximizing technology use. For business and donation purposes, nonprofits ultimately miss out on all that advanced technology and software can offer. A mere an effective digital strategy. Another study found that of measuring supporter engagement metrics — this comes amid 64% being unable to achieve engagement goals without a proper budget. 11% of nonprofits report having 75% of nonprofits have no means The lack of technology has left nonprofit operations disjointed, with chaos ensuing internally. Therefore, nonprofits should consider implementing these seven top technologies to streamline their processes and optimize donor engagement. Content Management System Regardless of your nonprofit’s cause or issue, having a reliable content management system (CMS) will help teams improve their organization and provide the tools necessary for reaching targeted audiences. Many new CMS technologies comprise customizable design features, search engine optimization (SEO), blogging mechanisms, marketing automation and the ability to integrate other software. Video Communication Although video conferencing through Skype and Zoom have been around for years, they became a normal mode of communication during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, other video and live-streaming platforms became just as prevalent during this time. Nonprofits that utilize live-streaming, such as Facebook Live, Instagram Live or YouTube, can reach donors near and far. Of course, for nonprofits. You should ask supporters with social media expertise to donate their time and knowledge to help with live-streaming events for your nonprofit. virtual events are a learning curve Customer Relationship Management Unlike how CMS improves internal relationships and communication, a customer relationship management (CRM) system aims to streamline interactions with current and future donors and volunteers. The overarching goal of a CRM is to boost working relationships systemically. With a CRM, nonprofits can utilize the stored information to manage donations while enhancing funder relationships. Donation Software Although traditional fundraising entailed mailings, online donations are better suited for today’s digital age. Advanced donation software is critical for nonprofit organizations since inadequate funding prevents ongoing efforts for the cause. Donation software improves nonprofit outreach and helps collect and analyze donor information. Ultimately, nonprofits can use this data to boost brand awareness and hone in on their target audience. Additionally, whatever donation software you choose should accept funding in numerous currencies with the growing popularity of payment services and cryptocurrencies. Cybersecurity Tools Nowadays, nonprofits must deploy highly-effective cybersecurity tools to protect their assets and sensitive information. The push for greater cybersecurity awareness comes as cyber criminals become savvier with phishing and malware attacks. Utilizing two-factor authentication — in which users for login access — will become commonplace. Biometric tools like fingerprints will also be effective in ensuring authorization. provide a password and additional answer Nonprofits can further explain their digital responsibility to donors by dedicating a page on their website or blog explaining their cybersecurity methods and protections. Email Marketing System According to a study by MailChimp, the average in the nonprofit sector — a good indication that email marketing works for building awareness, converting leads and retaining donors. email open rate is 25.17% A sound email marketing system can improve automation and communication with tools to measure engagement. Having a self-opt-in and opt-out capability can further heighten subscriber satisfaction and disseminate information to those interested in keeping up with the cause. Social Media Management Social media is another effective tool for engaging donors and volunteers and reaching broader audiences. Although managing multiple social media platforms can be challenging, there are numerous tools to streamline content simultaneously from one place. The leading social media management programs for nonprofits also allow organizations to monitor analytics and determine how effective their strategies are for reaching their target audiences. Nonprofits Can Level Up Using the Best Technology Tools Nonprofits’ technology needs may vary but deploying the right tools can help them level up. They’re also much easier to implement than many people believe. Take your nonprofit to new heights with the top technology tools.

Top Technology to Level Up Nonprofits

Finding the budgeting app that fits all your needs for iOS devices is a trial-and-error process. Fortunately, every app offers unique features for every circumstance, whether investing in stocks or wanting to share information with a roommate or partner. These are the best on the App Store for refining a budget at various prices and functionalities. Mint Mint is owned by the financial moguls behind TurboTax and Quickbooks and provides one of the most comprehensive budgeting suites on the market. Because of this inherent link, you can also sync your financial data to help with tax season. Like most budgeting apps, it links bank accounts so it can track expenses. It categorizes them, so you visualize where your money goes. It can also suggest a budget based on current spending. One of the unique features of Mint is its partnership with Billshark, giving users the with providers. The app also incorporates big-picture financial aspects like credit score summaries, credit card balances and investment analytics. Numbers like this can assist in setting in-app spending goals and limits, motivating you to save and succeed with every paycheck. agency to negotiate bills The app has a free version with ads or a premium edition for $4.99 per month. You Need a Budget (YNAB) YNAB is the app to download if you’re looking for an elaborate interface with countless educational resources, like videos and financial planning articles. After linking accounts, it categorizes much like Mint. However, you can manually input expenses and income, especially if you use or have inconsistent side gigs. other apps to make money YNAB is inspired by the classic budgeting system of separating your income over categories — as if you’re taking cash and slotting it in labeled envelopes. Therefore, this app is more hands-on than others, forging an awareness mindset around how you spend money. The app’s flexibility helps you easily account for unexpected expenses — move a few dollars from one envelope to another. It also offers exhaustive customer support every day of the week. The price is steeper than other apps after the free 34-day trial. The premium version costs $14.99 monthly, but the first year is complimentary if you’re a college student. Personal Capital Personal Capital offers more advanced financial features, primarily for tracking investments. Downloading this app should be a priority if your goal is wealth advancement. It connects to any account — checking, credit cards, retirement and investment — to form a portfolio. Apps , but this one is an insightful supplement for becoming familiar with your financial standing. shouldn’t replace an in-person adviser The app lacks some capabilities, like savings goals. You may consider using it in conjunction with others that provide more curated saving and spending features since Personal Capital isn’t made with that objective in mind. Regardless, it’s a priceless tool for understanding net worth and the scope of your investments that other apps don’t provide. Plus, it’s free on iOS and desktop. EveryDollar Become financially savvier with the — allocate every cent toward a goal. The idea embraces spending every dollar — hence the name — to lock in financial freedom. It doesn’t monitor credit scores or evaluate net worth, but if you want an easier-to-navigate interface, EveryDollar can provide it. zero-based budgeting strategy The app has detailed data about your spending habits, so it can provide recommendations based on your allocations for achieving your goals. The free version allows manual entry and offers limited features, but it is still usable. Premium pricing depends on monthly commitments — three months is $59, six months is $99.99, and 12 months is $129.99. Honeydue Honeydue was explicitly made for couples with joint finances to engage in transparency and planning. Even though this is its purpose, users can also analyze their personal finances. The app collaborates with Sutton Bank and lets users create joint accounts if they don’t have one. It’s simple to understand the financial standing of joint costs due to bill pay reminders and the ability to split expenses. Plus, it includes an in-app chat feature, allowing users to discuss financial details in a space for talking about money. It lacks several features other apps have, such as setting savings goals. Honeydue also doesn’t have a desktop-accessible version, but using the app is free to save money while maintaining your budget. No-Nonsense Budgeting From Your iPhone Each budgeting system has nuances that attract different personalities and mindset styles. Visual thinkers may prefer charts, while others like the simplicity of numbers on a spreadsheet. No matter which you choose, one of these apps will surely simplify any antiquated budgeting system — plus, it’s always with you in the palm of your hand.

Top 5 Budgeting Apps for iOS

For millions of prospective college students, applying online for federal financial aid has also meant sharing personal data with Facebook, unbeknownst to them or their parents, The Markup has learned. This information has included first and last names, email addresses, and zip codes. After The Markup questioned the U.S. Department of Education about the tracking practice, the feature that enables sharing those details with Facebook was turned off. But personal data from an unknown number of students remains in Facebook’s hands, to be used for its own purposes. , it may retain this type of data for years. And the tracker remains on the website and continues to share some information about visitors with Facebook. According to the company’s privacy policy The Markup found that code embedded in the website where students fill out the , was automatically sending the data to Facebook. Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA The data was being collected even if the visitor to the site did not have a Facebook account and began even before the user logged in to studentaid.gov, the site that hosts the form. A spokesperson for the Department of Education initially denied that the tracking had occurred in an email to The Markup. After publication, Federal Student Aid chief operating officer Richard Cordray sent a statement to The Markup saying that, as “part of a March 22 advertising campaign,” the agency changed its tracking settings. “This inadvertently caused some user information that falls outside of FSA’s , such as a user’s first and last name, to be tracked.” StudentAid.gov normal collection efforts But The Markup’s data shows information like a user’s first name, last name, country, phone number, and email address being sent to Facebook from the site as early as January 2022, months before the mentioned advertising campaign began. The data sent to Facebook “was automatically anonymized and neither FSA nor Facebook used any of it for any purpose,” Cordray said in the emailed statement. “The pixel functionality in question was deactivated soon after the campaign ended as part of FSA’s typical campaign maintenance.” The department declined to respond to follow-up questions about when the tracking was turned on or how the department could ensure the data did not make its way into Facebook’s algorithms. Facebook has repeatedly said it blocks the collection of especially sensitive personal information. “We are in touch with [studentaid.gov] to ensure proper implementation of our tools,” Alisha Swinteck, a spokesperson for Facebook parent company Meta, said in an emailed statement. “It’s also worth noting that Meta continues to proactively educate advertisers in sensitive verticals on how to properly set-up our business tools.” The Meta Pixel—the code in question—is present on many websites, marketed to businesses and organizations as a way to track online visitors. When a website uses the code, data on the visitor is sent back to Facebook and can be used by the business or organization to find an audience for its ads. Facebook also retains that data and can use it for its own advertising purposes—although it’s not always clear what those purposes are. The pixel is extraordinarily pervasive on the web—one prime example of the sort of tracking technology that leads a pair of shoes you looked at to haunt you across the internet, or in this case, on Facebook and Instagram. Girard Kelly, director of privacy at Common Sense Media, said this sort of code is so widely available that even website operators themselves may not know how they’re tracking their visitors. “They just grab the code from Facebook, copy and paste, and they’re done,” Kelly said. “They don’t necessarily think about the implications.” , a Markup project launched in 2020, found that 30 percent of the 100,000 most popular websites use the Meta Pixel, and Facebook has said are on websites across the internet. Blacklight millions of pixels To further understand how the pixel works—and exactly what sorts of data it transmits—The Markup, in partnership with Mozilla, started . The project is a in which anyone can install in order to send The Markup data on Meta’s pixel as it appears on sites that they visit. the Facebook Pixel Hunt project crowd-sourced undertaking Mozilla’s Rally browser add-on When a user comes across the pixel on the web, the pixel sends information to Facebook about the page they visit. At the very least it tells Facebook who is visiting what pages, but it is capable of sending a lot more. It may tell Facebook which buttons the user clicked and if that person made a purchase or donation, and it sometimes sends personal information such as a person’s name or the email address they entered in a form field. Participants in the Pixel Hunt project share with The Markup what data the pixel is collecting on a given website. The Rally browser add-on detects the presence of the Meta Pixel as participants browse the web. Mozilla then collects all the data that is shared with Meta through network requests the pixel makes to Meta’s servers. For a more detailed explanation of exactly what the add-on collects and how we analyze the data, please refer to the section of our . How We Analyze the Pixel Data methodology While the pixel is widely implemented around the web, some privacy advocates say its use on a government form that includes personal information about teenagers is questionable. Federal student aid forms require a student to enter such information as their, and often their parents’ or guardians’, financial details. While The Markup does not have evidence that everything a student typed in was being collected, the pixel was configured to collect identifying information such as the student’s name, email address, phone number, and zip code, data that could be used for targeting ads on Facebook. The U.S. government to help students fund their postsecondary education. offers more than $100 billion For many students, the financial assistance is their only means of  going beyond high school—and FAFSA is the primary way to apply for federal student aid, which means that, until the Department of Education turned off tracking following The Markup’s questions, only the savviest web users could avoid sending an online application to the government without also providing potentially sensitive information to Facebook. Leonie Haimson, co-chair of the Parent Coalition for Student Privacy, described the data collection as “horrifying,” saying the Department of Education was “asleep at the wheel” on data privacy. “They are sloppy and they are not focused on doing their job in general on the issue of privacy,” Haimson said. Tracking Aid Applicants Facebook’s pixel gathers personal information to fuel its . Advanced Matching feature By capturing information like names and addresses on third-party website visitors, Facebook can check to see whether a visitor has a Facebook account, then place advertisements based on the sites they visited. This feature allows Facebook to track its users even if they block their cookies. There are understandable reasons a government agency might want to include tracking on its pages, said Jason Kelley, associate director of digital strategy at the Electronic Frontier Foundation. The agency might, for example, want to place a Facebook ad that reminds families about an upcoming deadline to apply for aid. Using data gleaned from the pixel, the government could, theoretically at least, reach out to people who have visited the site and use Facebook. “But the fact that to do that they have to compromise the privacy of their users is a real problem,” Kelley said. For applicants who went to apply for aid before the recent change, the pixel started tracking them even before they started to fill out the FAFSA form. From the very beginning, when a visitor entered their email address on the sign-in page, that address was being sent to Facebook, The Markup found. As families filled out more of the form, the tracking continued—not just on pages requesting parents’ information but also on pages specifically meant to receive students’ personal information. A page for demographic information on the student applying for aid, for example, was sending names, email addresses, and zip codes to Facebook. Similar data was tracked on pages for student financials and even on pages asking for information on the student’s high school. Facebook generally “hashes” the data, a process that scrambles sensitive data. While it is moderately more secure than sending the data via plaintext, hashing of security. isn’t a guarantee Hashing does not prevent Facebook from using this data to match people who visit studentaid.gov to their Facebook profiles. The spokesperson for the Department of Education wrote in the emailed statement that “Federal Student Aid (FSA) does not track the names, emails, phone numbers, or street addresses of visitors to the StudentAid.gov website” but that it does use pixels “to track domains, devices, and URLs, as disclosed in the site’s .” privacy policy 2. Ad-blocking software can shut down pixel tracking, but for most visitors, tracking like this happens without their knowledge. The tool doesn’t rely on a visitor being signed in to Facebook, or even on having a Facebook account, to work. Only visitors willing to monitor the network traffic would see the data being sent to Facebook. Facebook has rules around both gathering potentially sensitive financial information and targeting ads to users under 18 years old. it doesn’t want businesses sending data like the amount of a loan or a student’s debt status to Facebook, although the list of banned practices Facebook provides “is not exhaustive,” according to the company. The company says Facebook also limits some types of ad targeting . for users under 18 years old Swinteck, the Meta spokesperson, declined to specify directly about whether the tool’s use on a government financial aid page violated any rules but said Meta works with organizations proactively to ensure compliance with its rules. Swinteck said the company also uses AI tools to detect potentially sensitive personal information. “When businesses do this, our filtering mechanism removes any potentially sensitive data it detects before that data can be stored in our ads systems,” Swinteck said. The company didn’t directly respond to a question about whether the data on students entered on studentaid.gov would be considered sensitive. Where Does the Data Go? When a company’s website uses the pixel, the company might be trying to understand visitor behavior, like what purchases users make or what pages they visit. That information can be helpful if a business wants to later reach customers who bought a certain product, for example. While there’s a potential benefit to websites placing the pixel on their pages, it’s not clear exactly how visitors’ data gathered outside of Facebook is later used by Meta. An internal Facebook document written by engineers at the company and suggested even Facebook itself often can’t say where the data it collects ultimately goes. published this week by Vice “We do not have an adequate level of control and explainability over how our systems use data, and thus we can’t confidently make controlled policy changes or external commitments such as ‘we will not use X data for Y purpose,’ ” the document said. An unnamed Facebook spokesperson told Vice in an email that the document “does not describe our extensive processes and controls to comply with privacy regulations.… New privacy regulations across the globe introduce different requirements and this document reflects the technical solutions we are building to scale the current measures we have in place to manage data and meet our obligations.” The ways Facebook tracks users off-Facebook have sparked concern from legislators in the past. When CEO Mark Zuckerberg was brought to testify in front of Congress in 2018, for example, on how much and what kind of data the company holds on non-Facebook users, including whether the service maintains so-called “shadow profiles”—dossiers of information on nonusers of Facebook. one congressman questioned the founder Zuckerberg responded that the company holds data on nonusers for “security purposes,” like preventing third-party collection of data, and later avoided directly answering from the European Parliament, saying nonusers could clear their information. a similar question Zuckerberg did  not specify exactly what information the company collects on them. (Facebook users can view their account settings to see which advertisers target them, but the information doesn’t detail how those advertisers first got hold of users’ information or what information Facebook has on users that made advertisers target them.) Swinteck declined to answer questions about how data collected through the pixel is used to inform other parts of Facebook’s ad-targeting algorithms. , meanwhile, say the company bundles data collected from tools like the pixel with other data points to improve the effectiveness of ad delivery models and to determine the relevance of ads to people. Meta’s terms of service But practically any web user browsing the internet runs the risk of getting caught up in Facebook’s advertising machinery, experts say—including while doing something as apparently private as applying for student aid. “All sorts of companies that you don’t have any affiliation with, whether because you don’t have an account with them or because you’re not signed in, might be collecting information about you,” Kelley said. “Because the ecosystem allows that sort of data-sharing, and rewards it.” . This story was copublished with , a nonprofit news organization covering public education. Sign up for its newsletters Chalkbeat here Updates This article has been updated to reflect a statement sent to The Markup by the U.S. Department of Education after publication. An earlier version of this article mistakenly referred the the Department of Education as the DOE. Credits: & Surya Mattu Colin Lecher Also published here Photo by on Matt Ragland Unsplash

Facebook Peeked at Your Info When You Applied for Student Aid Online 

On-chain analysis is a process where someone (i.e., a crypto trader) looks at the on-chain data to help them make decisions. On-chain data often comprises information on every transaction on a particular public blockchain network. Information, including transactions, wallet addresses, transfer amounts, and more, are stored on the public ledger. So anyone can use a block explorer to find this information. Users can also use block explorers to review miner fees, smart contract code, and more. The information obtained from an on-chain study enables anyone to determine who owns what and their transaction activity. For example, users can follow multiple transactions to trace their movements and determine where the payment originally came from. All of this information is recorded on the public ledger for anyone to see. When it comes to trading, on-chain analysis is a method of financial research driven by fundamentals rather than technical indicators. Instead of looking for patterns on a chart, traders look at the recorded activity on the public ledger. On-chain analysis focuses only on a particular cryptocurrency asset by investigating its transaction activity and historical patterns, all of which may be used to anticipate the direction the cryptocurrency will go. Trade data and investment activity may be retrieved from the blockchain network and evaluated to help investors create a viable trading strategy.  For example, users can create models to help them make trading choices based on historical data. While history does not always repeat itself, it does rhyme, so being able to see how assets have behaved in the past is a good indicator for future strategies. Additionally, people may use the gathered financial data to create prediction models that can effectively forecast future price movements. In addition to traditional research methods, including technical analysis (TA), on-chain analysis is progressively becoming more important for any investor serious about trading cryptocurrencies. Therefore, it is beneficial to approach the analysis of crypto assets from multiple angles instead of focusing on one approach. A wide variety of online platforms and tools enable users to gather and analyze on-chain data. For example, block explorers like EtherScan (for Ethereum) and BscScan (for Binance Chain) provide basic amounts of information regarding transactions on those networks. However, for deeper information gathering, more sophisticated tools are needed. , a leading on-chain data platform, has become the official provider of on-chain data for CME Group’s Datamine. This on-demand platform allows traditional financial institutions to access detailed historical data. CryptoQuant Being the first and only on-chain data provider of CME Datamine in July 2022, CryptoQuant offers its data via CME Datamine, which enables traditional financial institutions and hedge funds to purchase the data from the CME Group platform. They can now get digital asset data from CryptoQuant via the service. CME Group Datamine CryptoQuant data is recognized globally as the most reliable source of complex on-chain data for Bitcoin, such as exchange flows, miner flows, long-term holders, and many others. Used by many trusted media such as Forbes, Bloomberg, and CNBC, CryptoQuant has also worked with Valkyrie Fund to develop an overview of the Bitcoin market, contributing to Valkyrie’s Bitcoin Futures ETF approval in the US. Previously, CryptoQuant developed a patented wallet verification technology that served anti-money-laundering services in 2019. CryptoQuant collaborated with the Korean National Police Agency in tracking and arresting the infamous criminals behind the Nth Room . CryptoQuant has since grown exponentially, used by retail traders in over 200 countries and over 200 institutional clients. scandal “Digital asset investment was considered dangerous speculation compared to other assets such as stocks, gold, or properties. This bias has formed as there was no reliable information in this industry, and investors were purchasing digital assets without a data-based analysis,” said CryptoQuant CEO Ki Young Ju. “CryptoQuant’s main goal is to enable investors to redefine the way of digital asset investment, and to provide fundamental for digital asset valuation based on the data.” As more traditional financial institutions expand to digital assets, the importance of reliable on-chain data, delivered through already familiar tools, will increase ever more. With the partnership with CME Group, CryptoQuant is expected to become the staple of the traditional financial industry and is actively recruiting new hires to meet the institutions’ demands. CryptoQuant is backed by Hashed, Galaxy Interactive and other major ecosystem investors. Conclusion If you decide to use blockchain-based assets like cryptocurrency for your financial dealings, that data will be stored permanently and cannot be altered. Everyone has access to some of the data stored in a blockchain, including the results of any on-chain analysis conducted on that data. However, it is worth noting that on-chain data can be useful for formulating future trading strategies. Only the savviest traders and investors recognize the significance of the data recorded on the blockchain when determining how to best approach cryptocurrency transactions.

The Importance Of On-chain Analysis

Viruses - the most known ones for many years Viruses need an already-infected active operating system or program in order to work and are typically attached to an executable file (.exe) or Word document (hence the emails). So how does it work really? The virus lies dormant in the computer until you activate it. The simplest and more known example to us all is when you receive an email with an attached file that contains the virus. In order to , you need to download the file onto your computer. activate the virus Trojan Horses A is based on the mythology of the Trojan War back in Ancient Greece. Many of us might know about the Trojan War through the infamous movie “ ”. During the Trojan War, Greeks built a wooden horse and presented it as a gift to the people of Troy. But the horse was anything but a gift. It was a weapon that led the Greeks to win the war. The Trojan Horse was a disguise in which a select force of men hid inside. Trojan horse Troy A digital Trojan horse works the exact same way. It is a malicious program that is disguised as a legitimate file. Trojans are essentially a doorway to your computer and this type of malware can do multiple different things such as: Delete, modify and capture data Spy on your device Gain access to your network Worms Worms are spread via a glitch or weakness in software or in an operating system (known as software vulnerabilities) or via phishing attacks. Once a worm has been installed onto your computer, it starts to spread, infecting the whole computer and in some cases your whole network (meaning whoever accesses your internet). This type of malware can: Modify or delete files Steal data Install a “door” for hackers to access your computer (gain remote access) Ransomware Ransomware is a type of malware that denies or restricts access to your own files. In order for you to regain access to your files, you need to pay a ransom to the hacker. and cause damages that can reach hundreds of millions of dollars. Ransomware can have a huge impact on your computer To reduce the risk of ransomware attacks: Always keep your operating system up to date Use and update often your Antivirus or Anti-malware software Back up your most important files to an external drive Never open attachments from unknown sources Spyware A Spyware secretly records your online activity, such as usernames, passwords, , and so on. Spyware is a common threat and is often used for . Once you have downloaded the Spyware onto your computer, it sends your data to advertisers or cybercriminals. collecting your data and personal information browser history identity theft and credit card fraud Adware (aka Scams) Adware is one of the better-known types of malware. These are pop-ups or display ads that often have no relevance to you, i.e. “ ”. In general, Adware is annoying and slows your computer down. In most cases, these types of adware that are hidden within an ad are linked to sites where malicious downloads wait to be downloaded onto your computer. Moreover, allowing hackers to gain remote access to your computer. You have won an iPhone, click here to claim your prize Adware can also deliver Spyware Phishing & Spam Phishing is a bit different from other malware categories. Phishing or Spam is a type of attack, rather than software. . Phishing and Spam are shared via emails, texts, and web links which are “requests type of messages” sent by criminals in order to acquire your personal and financial information. For example, “FBI requires you to enter some data in order to disburse the amount of $100,000 that was sent by XXXX from Africa”, “your Netflix billing information needs to be updated”, or “your Apple ID has been hacked”, and many other email phishing scams that look as if they are sent by a well-known company. But when you see carefully who the sender is, you will not see support@apple.com, billing@netflix.com, but sdf@alksdfjkaljdfladks.com. These are highly sophisticated phishing scams and can fool even the savviest of us. Always look at the email address sender, look at who else is CC’ed in the email, and think whether this specific email address is actually linked to your apple id, Netflix, PayPal, and so on. social Phishing and Spam is the most common and widely known method of cyber attack Bots & Botnets A bot is a computer that’s been infected with malware in order to be . Once the hacker has remote access to your computer, the bot can then be used to launch more attacks on other computers or devices that are part of your home network, or to become part of a collection of bots, creating a botnet. Botnets have become a trend because of our IoT and Connected Home devices and it is an easy way for cybercriminals to access your home and spread ransomware. remotely controlled by a hacker This type of malware can: Keylog your every stroke on your keypad, take screenshots of your computer screen, and gain webcam access without your knowledge Send spam and phishing messages to your email or phone contact list Denial-of-Service-Attacks [aka DDoS] - is one of the most popular ways Botnets are used for. Multiple computers attempt to access one website at the same time. The more computers the hacker has at their disposal, the greater the attack. Unfortunately, if the website does not have the resources to host the number of computers that attempt to visit it, the site will eventually crash. Because these attacks are done from multiple computers, it is very hard for a simple website to identify the source and thus stop it. As a result, this leads to fake news, fake accounts, data breaches, and many other well-known new digital illegal actions. This type of network is also known as zombie computers, as computers act similarly to how zombies attack in movies; no identifiable pattern/common sense, all acting the same manner, and going in one direction. Computer warnings of malware infection One of the most common signs that you have been infected by malware is: A slow, crashing, or freezing computer Blue or red screen of ‘death’ Programs opening and closing automatically or altering themselves without your permission All of a sudden, a lack of storage space Increased pop-ups, toolbars, and other unwanted programs Unfortunately, the more technology evolves the more sophisticated the cyber-attacks become. Therefore, such as educational blog posts, company-focused user awareness training, as well as companies employing state-of-the-art cyber strategy protection, will allow us as a community to better position and protect ourselves against these unwanted cyber threats, making sure that we have a real positive impact on cyber security improvement programs. basic security practices - Online safety for everyone, just browse the web and leave the rest to the security experts. Make the internet fun again by protecting yourself with security that outsmarts the bad guys. Download Avast Secure Browser for free you want by , Senior Product Manager, and , Director Engineering at Avast Secure Browser Team Antoinette Cocorinos Thomas Salomon

What Are The Different Types of  Malware?

Getting into crypto for the first time can be intimidating. It’s a relatively new asset class, and while it is rapidly gaining in popularity and mainstream acceptance, it is still an area where, if you’re new to it, the level of detail and tech involved can be overwhelming. One of the common questions is “where do I store my purchases?” As digital-only resources, understanding where the crypto actually goes is important, both so you can access it again at a later date, and so that you’re storing your assets securely. This is important because crypto attracts a lot of criminal activity, and you want to make sure that you’re protected from theft and scams. There are three ways that you can store your crypto. One is at the exchange itself. Crypto exchanges are, like stock exchanges, places where digital assets are traded. Once you’ve bought something on one of them, it remains your asset, and if you don’t move it somewhere, it stays on the exchange until you’re ready to trade it or otherwise dispose of it. For investors that only have a small number of digital assets as part of an , exchanges can seem to be appealing as a storage option as they are hand’s off, and the investor is likely to simply hold on to the asset until they’re ready to sell it, rather than make active use of it. overall investment portfolio For people who are more deeply into the crypto world, there are two options for getting the currency off the exchange and making them available for instant use as desired: they’re called “wallets”, for obvious reasons, but the difference between the two is quite significant. What Is A “Hot Wallet”? A hot wallet is the most common kind of crypto, and it’s really just a piece of Internet-connected software. Imagine how Dropbox holds your files online, and Gmail holds your email. A hot wallet’s like that, only it holds your cryptocurrency (and NFTs, if you have those), and allows you to access it online anywhere, any time. Hot wallets have been largely credited with being the reason that crypto has accelerated in mainstream popularity. They’re a low-touch solution for a pretty technical area, allowing just about anyone to invest in crypto with the maximum of user—friendly ease. Another big benefit to hot wallets is that they’re free. Often they’re offered by the exchanges themselves (or the exchange partners with a third-party platform), and you can be set up and going with them almost instantly. Much like PayPal, really, only that’s a digital wallet for real currency, and these hot wallets are for digital assets only. The problem is that hot wallets are nowhere near as secure as just about everyone would like them to be. The list of hot wallet hacks is long and devastating and can affect just about everyone. Earlier this year, the DeFinance Capital founder in a hack, and that’s one of the savviest and most experienced people in the crypto space. lost $1.6 million Because every hot wallet has a public address (that’s how you exchange crypto back and forward between them) and is always online, hackers have a plethora of tricks up their sleeve to break in and transfer the crypto from your wallet to theirs. The worst part about it is that recovery of stolen crypto assets is almost impossible, and even if it were possible, law enforcement is usually out of their depth in this field. Hot wallet examples include: MetaMask - a hot wallet that specialises in Ethereum, and has the added benefit of allowing you to invest without having to download the complete blockchain. Coinbase Wallet - Well regarded as one of the most secure wallets (largely because it hosts your wallet’s private keys, which facilitate the transfer of funds, to your mobile device alone), Coinbase’s other benefit is that it has an interface that is no different from a standard banking app and is fully featured for a wide range of coins and other assets. So, Is The Solution A “Cold Wallet”? A cold wallet does address the underlying security risk that you find in hot wallets. A cold wallet is a physical piece of hardware (imagine a USB drive) that stores your digital assets. Until you physically connect the device to a computer and the Internet, there is no way to assess the crypto online. Cold wallets generally cost money. A good one will set you back around $200, which is significant for storage, but that comes with a lot of technology designed to make it as secure and rugged as possible, so the data doesn’t degrade at the rate it might with a USB or other cheaper storage options. There’s a reason that it’s important that the device not fail and corrupt: the cold wallet is the only location where the crypto is located. If the cold wallet is damaged, lost, or stolen, then the crypto is gone. It might not be accessible to anyone else (cold wallets have passwords and unless you’ve written it down and the thief has taken that too they’re not going to be able to break in), but all that means is that the crypto is lost for good. Just read this story about a journalist that accidentally threw away . This is the risk with cold wallets. $7.6 million in Bitcoin There is a further risk that a cold wallet can be compromised (which is why you shouldn’t buy them second-hand, ever), and in that event, set up so that when or if you do connect your wallet to the Internet, some malware on the device will automatically bleed the crypto to the hacker’s wallet instead. That being said, if you buy a cold wallet unused from the manufacturer, keep it safe and secure, and memorise the password, then it is a vastly safer way to hold crypto than on hot wallets. Cold wallet examples include: Ledger Nano X - This USB-shaped wallet is notable because it allows for more than 1,800 different types of currencies and tokens, and features Ledger Live software on the device, which is an easy-to-use interface for the management of assets. Safepal S1 - One of the most secure cold wallets, even if your Safepal S1 is stolen, and even if the criminals get the password somehow, you can still have the two-factor authentication to back it up. They’d need your phone as well, then. The Safepal S1 also has plenty of bonus features, including a controller on the device to physically manage it and a QR code scanner. So Should You Just Not Invest in Crypto? The security challenges that come with crypto are scary, but then, think about this – physical currency is a fundamentally insecure form of money, and it’s incredibly easy to modify ATMs to steal people’s card data. Rather than avoid using money, we’ve found ways to improve security and learned best practices to be as secure as possible. Crypto is an excellent investment opportunity and, increasingly, a genuine replacement for other, traditional forms of currency. It’s going to become more standardised and every day over time and so, rather than avoidance, the better solution is for people to do their research on security best practices and, whether it’s using a hot or cold wallet, take the right steps to protect their investments.

Hot vs Cold Wallets: Which Is Right For My Crypto?

Is customer onboarding a continuous process? Do you need to personalize it? Realistically, after your organization launches a product or completes the project it’s working on, the focus shifts to a new product or project. To execute a new project, your team needs additional skills; the process of onboarding starts all over again. When your organization completes a project or product, the obvious thing is to push the product into the market for consumers. Product Enablement translates feature to value; this enables consumers to understand how your products and solutions can help them solve their problems. Product enablement also guarantees that your solutions deliver value throughout the customer journey. How much information does a team member have about the new product or project? This continuous onboarding is what makes product enablement and customer enablement necessary. What Is Product Enablement? A holistic covers a wide area of an organization’s methods and processes; one area that is, however, outstanding is the organizational culture. If your company’s organizational culture is not flexible, you may encounter resistance from your employees, if you attempt to transform certain aspects of your processes digitally. digital transformation For instance, if you want to change to a product-led culture, you must have a product enablement strategy; what it means is that you must have a process associated with training the rest of your company about your product; you must raise internal awareness about your product. is a procedure you use specifically to provide relevant product knowledge to the different departments in your organization. It’s an automated system that enhances employees to deal with product-related issues in their departments in real-time. Product enablement Before now, the focus has always been on the sales department only having all relevant information about products to enable them to sell products. However, customers have become tech-savvier, and embarking only on sales enablement will not suffice. The fundamental difference between product and sales enablement is that any employee can undergo the process. Product enablement must not be the same for every employee, any information an employee has must be specific to the department. Ensuring that every department has the relevant information is the duty of the product enablement team. For instance, a sales team must know everything a customer stands to benefit from the product. On the other hand, the customer support team must be ready to address issues or queries that may arise after the customer purchases the product; for this reason, the customer support team must know the vital details about the workings of the product. What Is Customer Enablement? Source refers to collaborative processes and strategies you can leverage to enhance an improved customer experience. It enables the provision of tools, training, and resources consumers require for using your products or services effectively. Customer enablement Most often, SaaS and B2B organizations that run the subscription models require customer enablement. On the other hand, many B2C products don’t need education and follow-up information. If you are into B2B products, adding value to items your customers purchase through demos, onboarding, and community forums determines the quality of customer enablement. The success of customer enablement projects depends on your collaborative measures with customer service. It’s a win-win situation; the customer enjoys a better purchasing experience and brands gain brand ambassadors when agents equip users with the materials they need to achieve their goals, and buyers provide companies with feedback. Customer enablement can be likened to a flip of product enablement. Instead of focusing on the assets employees need for onboarding for new products, customer enablement concentrates on customer needs. The aim is to help consumers get the best value out of your product or service. For both product and customer enablement, the overriding factor is communication. You leverage educational resources and training to pass on the relevant information that will improve employees’ productivity and customer experience for consumers. Why Is Product Enablement Important For Productivity? Imagine having a product support group responsible for responding to your clients but lacking deep knowledge of your product; the clients channel their questions to the product manager. The number of clients you have translates to the number of questions you get; answering these questions distracts the product manager from focusing on the real business of building the next set of features? If the relevant information about your product is available to the different teams in your organization, you can concentrate better on your core functions and increase employees’ performance. The result is that you can have time to build a more competitive product. However, it’s not enough to just make artifacts and allow customers internal access to available products; the products must be available at the right time and context. The current top ways for both product and customer enablement include: In-App Guidance - The in-app guidance allows employees to learn while producing; even if you are using the platform in question for the first time, you can still be producing viable work. It saves valuable time and is a way to make learning relevant. Video Hosting - Video hosting tools allow for the passing on of knowledge in visual form, both as the main form of information or as a supplement embedded within a website or app. Webinar Streaming - webinars are live and can be interacted with by participants to provide specifics rather than the general overview that video lectures aim for. Knowledge Bases - A knowledge base, or knowledge bank, is the starting point for customer training. Customer Success Management - These are tools that enable you to keep records of how your customers use your products or services, understand their pain points and adjust your approach accordingly. Conclusion According to a study by Statista in 2021, of organizations in Australia believed that product enablement will reshape and improve their customer experience (CX) by 2022. Along the same line, when organizations enable customers with different tools, they enhance real-time feedback that will improve productivity and ultimately, ROI. 62.8%

Why Product Enablement And Customer Enablement Must Cross Paths

Where is the New Hollywood streaming industry headed after a wild and crazy 2022 thus far? The year has delivered some surprises and shocks already. Who could have predicted that upstart Apple TV+ would become the first New Hollywood operation to win a Best Picture Academy Award, ? Or that Netflix would after shunning ads for years? Or that CNN+ only 30 days after being launched? as it did in March welcome an advertising-supported tier would flame out And, perhaps the biggest shock of all: Netflix that it had lost 200,000 subscribers during its first quarter – the first time that had happened in 10 years (hence, the newfound interest in advertising). To put that numbers in perspective: Netflix had predicted an increase of 2.5 million subscribers for the first quarter. announced Netflix also predicted the loss of 2 million subscribers over the second quarter. The company’s stock value plummeted. The news also led to an outpouring of existential angst about the future of streaming -- especially as the post-pandemic, stay-at-home economy experienced a slowdown. But, not so fast: just weeks after the Great Netflix Disaster of 2022, Disney announced that subscriber growth for it Disney+ streaming service in the first quarter had exceeded Wall Street analysts’ expectations. Oh, and research firm MoffettNathanson reported that penetration of streaming in U.S. households actually expanded at the same time. New Hollywood is alive and well. But New Hollywood is maturing rapidly. And it’s entering a new chapter of heightened competitiveness. Here’s how I see New Hollywood evolving: 1. New Hollywood Is More Competitive Netflix that its growth is threatened by more companies entering the streaming industry. This is a far cry from the days when CEO Reed Hastings boasted that its only competition was sleep and other digital distractions outside of streaming. The subscriber growth of Disney+ – up 33 percent year over year to reach 137.7 million – is obviously a big threat to Netflix. But so is the success of smaller but notable New Hollywood brands. For instance, HBO Max and Peacock also enjoyed subscriber growth in the first quarter of 2022. In fact, Peacock’s paid subscriber growth was up 44 percent from the prior quarter. made it clear to investors Meanwhile, Apple TV+ has an , and its critical win at the Oscars (albeit not for an original Apple production) was quite a feat for a business that Apple launched only three years ago. Apple has deep pockets and patience. estimated 25 paid subscribers globally There is still a lot of room for streaming services to grow. The penetration of streaming in U.S. households expanded to 80 percent in the first quarter of 2022 from 79 percent in the fourth quarter of 2021, . And , 93 percent of Americans plan on either increasing their paid streaming services or making no change to their existing plans. But Nielsen says that nearly half of survey respondents say that there are too many content options. And that’s a problem. according to a report from MoffettNathanson according to a Nielsen survey A content glut is not sustainable financially. As too much content floods New Hollywood, the streaming companies will become less forgiving of shows that don’t make an immediate impact right away. TV shows that don’t attract eyeballs immediately will be canceled sooner than before. This is bad news for riskier, niche content that takes time to build a loyal following. New Hollywood will also witness more consolidation along the lines of Discovery's merger with WarnerMedia. Not every New Hollywood player will survive. Some will go the way of CNN+. The cost of competing in New Hollywood cannot be overstated. Peacock gained subscribers for the most recent quarter, but its losses were $456 million on revenues of $472 million; a year ago, Peacock . lost $277 million Mergers, acquisitions, and also-rans happen to every industry as they evolve. For example, in 1908, there were 253 U.S. automotive manufacturers. The industry evolved, and a shakeout occurred over a period of years. In the digital age, a shakeout can happen in weeks. 2. New Hollywood Is Getting Savvier about Monetizing Its Audience As noted, Netflix is . In other words, if you’re willing to endure ads, you’ll soon have the option of paying a lower price to be a Netflix customer. embracing an advertising-supported subscription tier The truth is, advertising is no stranger to New Hollywood. HBO Max and Hulu both offer different price plans that include an ad-supported tier. Netflix has taken note. In its most recent quarterly earnings announcement, Hastings the success of an ad-supported model at competitors such as Hulu. In a letter to employees, he , “Every major streaming company excluding Apple has or has announced an ad-supported service. For good reason, people want lower-priced options.” cited wrote But monetizing an audience means more than advertising. It’s about creating co-brands and merchandising based on culturally relevant content. Disney is the master of spinning gold out of entertainment. Disney rakes in billions from the sale of merchandise spawned by its movies and shows. The company has already turned its Disney+ streaming service into a cash cow for . merchandise inspired by shows such as The Mandalorian And then there’s Amazon. The company’s streaming service, Amazon Prime Video, exists in order to monetize its customer base, period. It’s why Prime Video is included as part of a Prime membership: to drive sign-ups of paying customers. In essence, being a Prime member means you pay $139 a year for Prime Video (as well as all the other benefits that come with a membership). Those who pay for Prime memberships spend reportedly annually than non-Prime members. As former CEO Jeff Bezos once , “When we win a Golden Globe, it helps us sell more shoes.” 133 percent more said But Netflix is learning quickly how to merchandise and monetize. , in 2021, Netflix partnered with Shopify to open up its own e-commerce operation, the Netflix Shop. This site complements Netflix merchandising deals with retailers such as Target and Walmart. Merchandising capitalizes on Netflix’s ability to create culturally relevant entertainment. Netflix hits reflect and create culture, which builds audience loyalty and love – the kind of loyalty and love that makes someone want to buy an hoodie or Chilleez plushie. As I wrote on Hacker Noon Ozark I expect Netflix will dial up co-brands with its shows – and knowing Netflix, the tie-ins will be done carefully in a way that cements its cultural relevance. In 2019, brands ranging from Burger King to Cadillac appeared in episodes of Netflix’s hit show , Season 3 – in fact, part of the fun of watching has always been seeing those brands in context of the 1980s vibe of the show. Netflix is monetizing those relationships. In 2019, launched 75 co-brands, including those with Burger King, Coca-Cola, H&M, and Nike. For example, Netflix and bike maker Mongoose agreed to offer a limited edition Mongoose based on a fictional bicycle used in . These relationships — hybrid in-show product placements plus real-world merchandising — offered a glimpse of how Netflix would monetize its titles more broadly. But in 2019, Netflix still viewed merchandising and co-brands as a way to gain exposure for Netflix shows as opposed to being a serious revenue stream. At the time, Hastings said that Netflix did not want to “get distracted with alternative revenue sources,” because its subscriber engine was the revenue driver. Well, those alternative revenue sources are no longer a distraction. They’re essential to Netflix’s future. Advertising will create impressions and revenue. Brand tie-ins and merchandising will create revenue streams that capitalize on fandom. Stranger Things Stranger Things Stranger Things 3. The Lines Are Blurring Between New Hollywood and Old Hollywood Remember movie theaters? Well, people are returning to them as the pandemic subsides. that ticket sales for 2022 won’t approach the $11.4 billion generated in 2019, but even so, sales should almost double the $4.4 billion collected in 2021. With movie theater attendance picking up, we’re seeing a change in the contentious relationship between the New Hollywood and the Old Hollywood movie distribution system. Entertainment analysts believe Streaming companies -- Netflix in particular -- have long been at odds with movie theaters over film distribution. In the pre-pandemic days, theaters insisted on exhibiting films for 75-to-90 days before they were distributed via video and streaming. Old Hollywood studios played ball. But this model didn’t quite work for New Hollywood streaming companies such as Netflix, which believed that giving movie theaters exclusive access to Netflix productions would cannibalize potential streaming subscribers. Why give away audiences? So, Netflix quarreled with movie theaters over the distribution of Netflix titles such as . The Irishman Then the pandemic changed everything. When movie attendance virtually disappeared, suddenly New Hollywood was holding all the cards. Exclusive streaming windows for theaters seemed pointless. Old Hollywood studios, saddled with enormous sunken costs for movies they’d created already, negotiated with streaming companies to distribute their films, bypassing theaters completely. Disney, an Old Hollywood studio with a New Hollywood distribution platform (Disney+), controversially released movies . This approach is known as a day-and-date release. simultaneously in theaters and through streaming Well, things have changed again. Netflix’s fortunes have fallen. is one of the sixth highest grossing movies ever (globally) with all of that money coming from in-theater tickets sales. The big-summer blockbuster movies such as and are enjoying strong opening weekends in theaters – with more potential theater-friendly hits such as , , r waiting in the wings. (I predict will be monster hit.) Meanwhile, movie theaters appear to be more flexible about insisting on a 75-to-90-day exhibition window: . Spider-Man: No Way Home Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness The Batman Top Gun: Maverick Jurassic World Dominion Thor: Love and Thunde Top Gun: Maverick 45 days is the new standard But even still, the times remain uncertain for everyone. I believe that: Netflix will become more flexible about allowing theaters to distribute its movies during the 45-day-window. This will happen for a number of reasons. First, Netflix’s previous strategy of living and dying by subscriber growth alone will change with the introduction of an ad-supported tier. Generating revenue from ads will lessen the need to grow through sheer subscriber volume. Second, Netflix needs to recoup the cost of movies. , cost $200 million – but it captured none of the buzz and staying power of Netflix’s limited series such as . Third, distributing films in theaters will help Netflix attract more Old Hollywood artists who prefer having their movies appear on the big screen. The most popular Netflix movie ever, Red Notice Stranger Things New Hollywood will expand its presence through the Old Hollywood distribution system, too. A few New Hollywood companies actually own theaters: Netflix owns the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood, and the Paris Theater in New York. Disney owns the El Capitan Hollywood theater, where it plays its own movies. Owning a limited number of brick-and-mortar theaters gives New Hollywood a means to hold special events and build buzz for major releases without competing with chains. But would it make sense for a streaming company to expand even further? One fascinating possibility is for Amazon to scoop up some cash-strapped theaters, . I could see movie theaters becoming cash cows for Amazon to hustle its private label brands in the lobbies and offer special rewards for Prime members. The time may or may not be right for Amazon. The company suffered a rare loss in its most recent earnings announcement. But then again, theater chains are still hurting financially. And Amazon is clearly moving into brick-and-mortar industries such as retailing (most notably via the acquisition of Whole Foods a few years ago). Will Amazon make a move now? as has been speculated Flexibility is the theme of 2022. Studios are increasingly comfortable distributing films – especially blockbusters – through movie theaters first under the new 45-day window. was closing in on $800 million worldwide before it became available to stream -- which raises an intriguing question: might a shorter 45-day window actually create buzz in advance of its streaming release? The Batman It will be a big summer for blockbusters that play well in theaters. But studios may take a different approach for quieter, “serious” fall and winter releases especially as the pandemic rears its head with occasional spikes as it will. 4. Netflix Will Rebound Netflix, the company that built New Hollywood, no longer enjoys undisputed leadership. But never underestimate Netflix. Don't mistake Netflix’s slumping stock price as a sign of a company in decline. Netflix is resilient. I believe the most intriguing development at Netflix consists of its embrace of gaming. Since September 2021, Netflix has to build gaming development chops. Netflix recently it’s going to partner with card and tabletop game studio Exploding Kittens to launch an mobile game and an animated cartoon series. Netflix has also made mobile games a part of its subscription package. made three acquisitions said Exploding Kittens All of this gaming action is happening for good reason: , 46 percent of Netflix’s weekly active users play games on mobile devices and 33 percent play on consoles. In addition, gaming keeps Netflix’s audience locked into its own platform. After you’re done watching , you can play the game without leaving the Netflix universe thanks to games Netflix launched in 2021. In addition, gaming creates the potential for revenue through features such as in-app purchases, a model that Fortnite has mastered. Not long ago, Netflix showed us another way the company is incorporating gaming — by embedding a gaming experience into the content itself, as we’ve seen with the choose-your-own-scenario interactive film Bandersnatch that Netflix aired in 2018, and the choose-your-own adventure experience . These are not games, per se, but interactive content in which the viewer participates in the storylines. according to MIDiA Research Stranger Things Stranger Things Stranger Things Minecraft: Story Mode Netflix Chief Operating Officer Greg Peters said the interplay between shows, films, and video games is part of the company's long-term strategy for boosting subscriber engagement. Watch for Netflix to create more sophisticated social experiences that merge plots with games, perhaps with augmented reality and virtual reality. Keep an eye on what Netflix is doing in gaming. It's a gigantic growth opportunity, especially with the Gen Z audience. Within the next five years, the company is capable of reinventing New Hollywood. Fasten Your Seatbelts Competition. Maturity. Reinvention. Disruption. New Hollywood is growing up quickly. And although New Hollywood is fallible, streaming companies are still re-writing the rules. To paraphrase Bette Davis in All about Eve: fasten your seatbelts. It’s going to be a bumpy ride. And an exciting one.

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