WEBVTT - Tech News: US DOE Recharges Battery Production 0:00:04.400 --> 0:00:07.800 Welcome to tech Stuff, a production from I Heart Radio. 0:00:12.039 --> 0:00:14.680 Hey there, and welcome to tech Stuff. I'm your host, 0:00:14.840 --> 0:00:18.320 Jonathan Strickland. I'm an executive producer with I Heart Radio. 0:00:18.360 --> 0:00:21.040 And how the tech are you. It's time for the 0:00:21.079 --> 0:00:26.360 tech News for May third, twenty twenty two, and let's 0:00:26.400 --> 0:00:29.639 just get into it. So in a previous episode, I 0:00:29.680 --> 0:00:33.640 talked about how we're heading towards a real bottleneck when 0:00:33.640 --> 0:00:38.680 it comes to electric vehicles because of supply chain issues. Namely, 0:00:38.960 --> 0:00:41.280 you know, more places around the world are starting to 0:00:41.320 --> 0:00:44.800 pass laws and regulations that are going to require automakers 0:00:45.320 --> 0:00:49.800 to migrate away from producing new internal combustion engine vehicles 0:00:50.200 --> 0:00:55.240 and switch to electric vehicles or maybe hybrid vehicles or 0:00:55.280 --> 0:00:59.680 even fuel cell vehicles, but mostly we focus on e vs. However, 0:01:00.520 --> 0:01:04.240 a massive challenge that faces us is that currently the 0:01:04.280 --> 0:01:08.480 world doesn't produce nearly enough batteries to make that kind 0:01:08.560 --> 0:01:12.840 of future possible. One estimate is that right now we're 0:01:12.880 --> 0:01:16.240 making around ten percent of the batteries we're going to need, 0:01:16.800 --> 0:01:20.720 assuming we do see this massive change from internal combustion 0:01:20.760 --> 0:01:24.920 engine vehicles to electric vehicles. Now that doesn't mean we're stuck, 0:01:25.800 --> 0:01:27.880 but it does mean we have to put more money 0:01:27.920 --> 0:01:32.400 and effort into battery production. To that end, the US 0:01:32.440 --> 0:01:35.280 Department of Energy announced it will be granting three point 0:01:35.319 --> 0:01:39.600 one billion dollars that's billion with a B two various 0:01:39.600 --> 0:01:42.200 companies that are meant to use that money for a 0:01:42.280 --> 0:01:47.640 quote the creation of new, retrofitted and expanded commercial facilities 0:01:47.720 --> 0:01:52.280 end quote within the battery ecosystem, and that includes everything 0:01:52.360 --> 0:01:56.680 from the processing of raw materials all the way to 0:01:56.920 --> 0:02:00.880 recycling old batteries once they've reached the end of their 0:02:00.960 --> 0:02:03.960 useful life. Now, not only is this meant to give 0:02:04.640 --> 0:02:08.160 battery production of boost, it's also an attempt to bring 0:02:08.200 --> 0:02:11.400 the cost of electric vehicles down. With more R and 0:02:11.520 --> 0:02:14.920 D dedicated to battery production, the thought is that companies 0:02:14.960 --> 0:02:18.760 are going to find more efficient ways to produce more batteries, 0:02:19.120 --> 0:02:22.160 and that will bring the overall cost of production down, 0:02:22.680 --> 0:02:27.680 and ultimately those savings would theoretically pass on to customers 0:02:27.760 --> 0:02:32.040 so that electric vehicles aren't prohibitively expensive for the majority 0:02:32.080 --> 0:02:35.520 of drivers those Right now, electric vehicles are more expensive 0:02:35.560 --> 0:02:40.280 than their internal combustion engine counterparts, unless you happen to 0:02:40.320 --> 0:02:42.520 live in a place where there are a lot of 0:02:42.720 --> 0:02:46.600 government incentives to get an electric vehicle where you might 0:02:46.639 --> 0:02:50.200 get tax breaks or refunds that sort of thing. Now, 0:02:51.040 --> 0:02:52.800 I may need to do a full episode about the 0:02:52.880 --> 0:02:57.960 challenges when it comes to, you know, producing batteries at scale, 0:02:58.520 --> 0:03:00.840 because because there's a lot of um, you know, there's 0:03:01.240 --> 0:03:04.560 not just the monetary cost, but there are social and 0:03:04.600 --> 0:03:08.120 political costs as well, particularly when you start looking into 0:03:08.120 --> 0:03:12.399 things like mining the materials that we use to make batteries. 0:03:12.440 --> 0:03:15.560 A lot of those are those operations are centered in 0:03:15.880 --> 0:03:22.560 countries that have absolutely horrible human human rights records. Uh, 0:03:22.720 --> 0:03:25.800 So we're gonna probably do a full episode about that 0:03:25.840 --> 0:03:31.519 in the future. Apple continues to face opposition among EU regulators. 0:03:32.040 --> 0:03:35.160 The company now must fend off charges from the European 0:03:35.240 --> 0:03:39.840 Union regulators that Apple has restricted competitor access to its 0:03:40.000 --> 0:03:44.840 NFC chip technology found on iPhones. UH. NFC stands for 0:03:45.040 --> 0:03:48.920 near field communication, and these types of chips are used 0:03:48.960 --> 0:03:53.880 for short distance wireless communications, typically of very small amounts 0:03:53.880 --> 0:03:57.480 of data. It's UH it's ideal for something like using 0:03:57.480 --> 0:04:01.080 your smartphone as a payment device, where it sends a 0:04:01.080 --> 0:04:04.160 little bit of data to a point of payment and 0:04:04.440 --> 0:04:08.560 authorizes the payment so that it goes through. So it's 0:04:08.640 --> 0:04:11.640 NFC technology that allows for this kind of thing. These 0:04:12.000 --> 0:04:13.840 you know, when you see someone holding or if you 0:04:13.960 --> 0:04:18.719 hold your smartphone over that mobile payment space, Uh, that's 0:04:18.800 --> 0:04:22.159 the technology that allows that to happen. So closing that 0:04:22.279 --> 0:04:26.520 off means that you're effectively discouraging iPhone users from relying 0:04:26.520 --> 0:04:29.719 on any payment system other than Apple's own. If Apples 0:04:29.760 --> 0:04:31.960 is the only one that works with it, then people 0:04:31.960 --> 0:04:36.840 aren't even gonna bother using alternatives. Now, Apple reps dispute 0:04:36.880 --> 0:04:40.279 the allegations and say that Apple has quote ensured equal 0:04:40.320 --> 0:04:43.960 access to NFC while setting industry leading standards for privacy 0:04:43.960 --> 0:04:47.599 and security end quote. If the regulators conclude that Apple 0:04:47.680 --> 0:04:51.560 has restricted access to NFC and that the restriction isn't 0:04:51.800 --> 0:04:55.680 solely based off of security concerns, which is something that 0:04:55.720 --> 0:04:58.039 Apple has suggested in the past, like the reason why 0:04:58.040 --> 0:05:00.320 it doesn't open up n FC more is beca because 0:05:00.920 --> 0:05:04.520 it could it could stand as a security vulnerability. If 0:05:04.560 --> 0:05:08.400 Apple can't prove that that that's the reason why they've 0:05:08.800 --> 0:05:14.240 they've limited NFC accessibility, then hypothetically, the EU regulators could 0:05:14.279 --> 0:05:16.640 levy a fine against Apple equal to up to ten 0:05:16.680 --> 0:05:20.440 percent of the company's global revenue, which, let me see, 0:05:20.520 --> 0:05:23.279 let me check my notes is yeah, it says here 0:05:23.360 --> 0:05:27.120 a crap ton of money. Yeah whoo. Finance reports that 0:05:27.200 --> 0:05:30.960 a survey of Apple employees shows a growing opposition to 0:05:31.000 --> 0:05:35.000 the company's requirement that corporate workers return at least part 0:05:35.080 --> 0:05:39.039 time to the office. Now, I have a whole bunch 0:05:39.080 --> 0:05:41.560 of caveats I want to put out there before I 0:05:41.600 --> 0:05:46.040 go any further with this story. First, the survey was 0:05:46.160 --> 0:05:50.239 really tiny. I'm not sure how many people currently work 0:05:50.440 --> 0:05:54.800 in Apple's corporate offices, but it's famed spaceship campus is 0:05:54.839 --> 0:05:59.279 designed to allow for up to twelve thousand employees. But 0:05:59.400 --> 0:06:04.040 the survey includes just six hundred fifty two responses, So 0:06:04.760 --> 0:06:07.000 that would be less than five and a half percent 0:06:07.120 --> 0:06:10.480 of all employees, or at least all the total potential 0:06:10.520 --> 0:06:15.120 employees at Apple headquarters. And with a sample size that small, 0:06:15.880 --> 0:06:20.280 it's really not possible to extrapolate. And I'm sure you've 0:06:20.320 --> 0:06:24.240 also noticed that people who are really upset are far 0:06:24.360 --> 0:06:28.520 more likely to engage in feedback than those who are happy. Like, 0:06:28.839 --> 0:06:32.279 you know, it's just people are more prone to writing 0:06:32.760 --> 0:06:37.039 a negative response than a positive one. Positive they're just like, yeah, 0:06:37.160 --> 0:06:39.960 that was nice. Sometimes they'll they'll go to trouble but 0:06:40.880 --> 0:06:43.280 the folks who are mad, they are not shy about 0:06:43.520 --> 0:06:47.320 letting you know, So that means it's also possible that 0:06:47.400 --> 0:06:51.159 the most disgruntled employees were the ones who participated in 0:06:51.200 --> 0:06:55.279 the survey, while the UH the grunt old employees didn't 0:06:55.320 --> 0:06:59.240 bother anyway. This survey found that more than half of 0:06:59.279 --> 0:07:02.280 those who respond and did fifty six percent of them 0:07:02.360 --> 0:07:06.799 in fact, said they are looking to leave Apple explicitly 0:07:06.880 --> 0:07:10.360 because of the required return to office. So we're seeing 0:07:10.400 --> 0:07:13.200 some headlines talk about how more than half of Apple 0:07:13.400 --> 0:07:16.800 corporate employees planned to leave UH. I think we can 0:07:16.840 --> 0:07:19.840 safely say that there are a lot of Apple workers 0:07:19.840 --> 0:07:23.240 who do not like the return to office requirement. I 0:07:23.280 --> 0:07:25.800 also believe that some of them might actually be looking 0:07:25.840 --> 0:07:28.920 for work elsewhere and they do plan to leave the company. 0:07:29.000 --> 0:07:32.200 But I suspect that the total number is well below 0:07:33.440 --> 0:07:36.400 even of those who responded to the survey. I bet 0:07:36.440 --> 0:07:38.080 that a lot of the people who said they were 0:07:38.120 --> 0:07:41.920 doing that aren't really doing that, and that you know, 0:07:42.040 --> 0:07:44.119 once you expand that to the population as a whole, 0:07:44.400 --> 0:07:47.080 obviously we can't make any real determination because five and 0:07:47.080 --> 0:07:49.520 a half percent is just way too small of a 0:07:49.680 --> 0:07:53.200 size for us to base any firm belief on our 0:07:53.320 --> 0:07:58.400 estimation on um so. I've already heard predictions of a 0:07:58.440 --> 0:08:01.600 mass exodus of Apple employ ease. In fact, there was 0:08:01.640 --> 0:08:03.800 one that was supposedly going to happen in the middle 0:08:03.800 --> 0:08:07.960 of April, when people's UH share options were maturing, but 0:08:08.480 --> 0:08:11.960 it didn't happen. We didn't see a mass exodus, so 0:08:12.040 --> 0:08:15.840 I'll honestly be shocked if we do see something like that. Now. 0:08:15.920 --> 0:08:18.320 I do think some people are gonna leave, and it 0:08:18.360 --> 0:08:21.120 may even be a fairly significant number, but I don't 0:08:21.160 --> 0:08:24.840 think it's gonna be anything close to or even twenty 0:08:25.480 --> 0:08:28.000 who leave the company. I think this is more likely 0:08:28.040 --> 0:08:31.160 a case of frustrated employees attempting to send a message 0:08:31.160 --> 0:08:35.319 to management that their current policies are unpopular to say 0:08:35.360 --> 0:08:38.679 the least. Now, all that being said, if this does 0:08:38.960 --> 0:08:42.680 lead to massive employee turnover, I think the employees are 0:08:42.679 --> 0:08:45.840 in the right. We've heard a lot about Apple's culture 0:08:45.880 --> 0:08:49.480 and how it can be beyond demanding. We've also heard 0:08:49.480 --> 0:08:53.840 stories about Apple culture fostering harassment and other despicable behaviors. 0:08:54.400 --> 0:08:57.959 Whether anything changes or not remains to be seen. Currently, 0:08:58.440 --> 0:09:01.960 all eyes are on May. That's the day that Apple 0:09:02.000 --> 0:09:04.959 is going to step up it's in office policy and 0:09:05.000 --> 0:09:08.439 require corporate workers to go to the office at least 0:09:08.559 --> 0:09:12.240 three days a week. So if there is going to 0:09:12.280 --> 0:09:13.920 be something that will be a turning point, a lot 0:09:13.960 --> 0:09:17.480 of people are thinking it's going to be that. Over 0:09:17.520 --> 0:09:21.840 at Google, the company's AI division continues to court controversy 0:09:22.160 --> 0:09:28.080 in Google and AI ethicist Timnant Gebriu parted ways after 0:09:28.120 --> 0:09:31.880 gebrie published a paper about ethics and AI that Google 0:09:31.960 --> 0:09:36.640 claimed failed to meet the company's qualifications for publication, and 0:09:36.679 --> 0:09:40.640 Gebrie says that Google subsequently fired her, but the company 0:09:40.679 --> 0:09:44.400 claimed that Gebriu resigned. Now there is a reason for 0:09:44.440 --> 0:09:49.680 this apparent contradiction. Gebrew said that she pushed back against 0:09:49.720 --> 0:09:53.560 Google's objections to her paper and said that if her 0:09:53.600 --> 0:09:57.600 conditions were not met, she would resign, like this was 0:09:57.679 --> 0:10:02.960 essentially an ultimatum, and then Google subsequently accepted her resignation. 0:10:03.120 --> 0:10:05.400 Like first, Google said, we're not changing anything. We accept 0:10:05.440 --> 0:10:09.840 your resignation. And Gebrie at the time was was on vacation. 0:10:09.920 --> 0:10:12.320 She wasn't even at work, which is a big old 0:10:12.400 --> 0:10:16.400 yikes to me. And in February twenty one, David Baker, 0:10:16.480 --> 0:10:19.840 and engineer with sixteen years of employment with Google, left 0:10:19.880 --> 0:10:22.800 the company, stating that Gebber's departure was evidence that the 0:10:22.840 --> 0:10:27.479 company was actively suppressing diversity and dissenting voices within its departments. 0:10:28.120 --> 0:10:32.440 A software engineer named Venesh Canan also left, citing Gebber's 0:10:32.440 --> 0:10:34.800 treatment as one of the reasons for his decision to resign. 0:10:35.760 --> 0:10:39.920 Also in March of one, Google fired Margaret Mitchell, not 0:10:40.080 --> 0:10:42.720 the author of Gone with the Wind, but rather the 0:10:42.760 --> 0:10:46.760 other co lead of the Ethical AI Research Division. In 0:10:46.840 --> 0:10:50.760 February twenty two, Dr Alex Hannah and Dylan Baker also 0:10:50.840 --> 0:10:56.400 left Google, joining Gebra's new Distributed AI Research Institute nonprofit organization. 0:10:57.400 --> 0:11:00.240 And now Google has fired the tragic chatter Gee and 0:11:00.400 --> 0:11:04.360 my apologies for the butchering of that pronunciation. He's a 0:11:04.400 --> 0:11:07.760 scientist specializing in machine learning. He was part of a 0:11:07.800 --> 0:11:10.200 group within Google who wrote a paper pushing back on 0:11:10.400 --> 0:11:14.800 earlier research that Google published about using AI to design 0:11:14.920 --> 0:11:18.560 computer chips. His group raised concerns about the findings of 0:11:18.559 --> 0:11:21.240 the earlier research and argued that they weren't totally valid. 0:11:21.240 --> 0:11:26.560 In other words, that maybe AI isn't ideally suited for 0:11:26.760 --> 0:11:31.720 creating superior computer chip architecture. UH. He was later fired 0:11:31.760 --> 0:11:35.440 by Google. Now complicating this particular story, however, are reports 0:11:35.480 --> 0:11:38.400 that he harassed one of the authors of that original 0:11:38.440 --> 0:11:42.920 research and quote unquote impugned her work. Um. He has 0:11:42.960 --> 0:11:46.880 claimed that he was being scientifically rigorous in challenging the 0:11:46.960 --> 0:11:50.760 research and that was it. But obviously if harassment is 0:11:50.880 --> 0:11:54.280 a part of this, it does complicate things and may 0:11:54.320 --> 0:11:57.520 not fall into the general narrative of Google executives wanting 0:11:57.640 --> 0:12:01.599 AI research to follow a specific perspective and any deviation 0:12:01.640 --> 0:12:05.400 from that perspective ends up being suppressed. That's kind of 0:12:05.440 --> 0:12:08.360 what we're hearing. We're also hearing a lot from these 0:12:08.400 --> 0:12:15.160 same researchers that Google uh is overwhelmingly white in its hierarchy, 0:12:15.360 --> 0:12:18.319 and that that is also a big issue. So those 0:12:18.360 --> 0:12:21.439 are the kind of things that we're hearing from this UH. 0:12:21.480 --> 0:12:25.120 It's a very complicated topic and one that I think 0:12:25.520 --> 0:12:30.160 requires lots of investigation to see. You know, which stories 0:12:30.360 --> 0:12:34.839 are the most supported. I honestly don't know, but you know, externally, 0:12:34.960 --> 0:12:37.880 just looking in on this, it doesn't look great. It 0:12:37.960 --> 0:12:40.880 does look like Google has taken steps to kind of 0:12:41.480 --> 0:12:45.480 get rid of anyone who brought up anything that would 0:12:46.040 --> 0:12:51.800 potentially slow Google down with its deployment of AI products. 0:12:51.840 --> 0:12:54.840 But again that's just my perspective and it could be 0:12:55.040 --> 0:12:58.880 that it's off base. We have more stories to cover, 0:12:59.280 --> 0:13:01.360 but before we get to that, let's take a quick break. 0:13:09.000 --> 0:13:12.640 The Information reports that Meta Slash Facebook has plans for 0:13:12.800 --> 0:13:16.880 four different virtual reality headsets in addition to the company's 0:13:16.920 --> 0:13:21.959 work on developing an augmented reality headset. So these four 0:13:22.000 --> 0:13:26.040 headsets currently have names like Arcata, which was previously known 0:13:26.120 --> 0:13:33.320 as Project Cambria, Funston, Stinson, and Cardiff. Arcata and Funston 0:13:33.440 --> 0:13:36.199 sound like they're gonna be higher end headsets with greater 0:13:36.280 --> 0:13:40.200 resolution and the ability to do stuff like code in VR. 0:13:40.600 --> 0:13:43.480 Imagine you can wear that VR headset, you can read 0:13:43.679 --> 0:13:46.000 the text floating in front of you, and all you 0:13:46.040 --> 0:13:48.280 have to do is is wear something on your face, 0:13:48.320 --> 0:13:50.960 which is so much easier than you know, typing on 0:13:51.000 --> 0:13:55.600 a keyboard and using a computer display. Anyway, Stinson and 0:13:55.720 --> 0:13:59.320 Cardiff sound like they'll be updates to the company's Quest 0:13:59.440 --> 0:14:02.880 line of head sets, which are a tad less expensive. 0:14:03.400 --> 0:14:06.400 So on the Quest side, we're looking at hardware that 0:14:06.480 --> 0:14:12.680 costs between two and the Arcata and Fundstone levels sound 0:14:12.720 --> 0:14:16.640 like they're going to be closer to seven I'm still 0:14:16.720 --> 0:14:19.760 not entirely sold on all this, But then I'm also 0:14:19.840 --> 0:14:23.320 notoriously critical of Meta, and I have no plans to 0:14:23.360 --> 0:14:26.440 get a mixed reality headset that requires me to be 0:14:26.480 --> 0:14:30.560 an active part of Meta's ecosystem. So I admit I 0:14:30.600 --> 0:14:34.320 do have a strong bias against this. I do want 0:14:34.360 --> 0:14:37.400 to see more advanced VR and a R headsets out there. 0:14:37.720 --> 0:14:39.880 I just would prefer some that don't require me to 0:14:39.960 --> 0:14:44.360 feed yet more data to Facebook. I have no desire 0:14:44.520 --> 0:14:48.480 to be part of that machine. Now we've got a 0:14:48.520 --> 0:14:53.680 couple of podcasting related news items. First up, back to Facebook. 0:14:53.800 --> 0:14:57.920 It is shuttering its podcast platform service. And you might 0:14:57.960 --> 0:15:01.600 not know that Facebook had a pod cast platform, and 0:15:01.760 --> 0:15:04.160 it launched last year. In fact, it hasn't even been 0:15:04.160 --> 0:15:06.640 a full year since launch, and now it's shutting down. 0:15:07.080 --> 0:15:11.040 And the selling point to podcasters is the one that's 0:15:11.080 --> 0:15:13.600 the same for advertisers, namely that you know, there are 0:15:13.600 --> 0:15:16.760 a couple of billion people who have Facebook accounts, So 0:15:16.880 --> 0:15:19.040 wouldn't you just love it if your show could reach 0:15:19.160 --> 0:15:24.880 this huge audience? And yeah, that's like incredibly tempting. It's 0:15:24.880 --> 0:15:29.320 the same thing that tempted tons of content companies out there, 0:15:29.400 --> 0:15:33.560 like companies that create online content to engage with Facebook, 0:15:33.560 --> 0:15:37.600 because that looked like that was gonna be the big benefit, 0:15:37.800 --> 0:15:40.200 you know, instead of s e O, make sure that 0:15:40.240 --> 0:15:43.560 your stuff's on Facebook so that audiences find it. I'm 0:15:43.560 --> 0:15:47.080 sure a lot of podcasters were eager to jump on 0:15:47.120 --> 0:15:50.520 that opportunity, but apparently didn't work out so well. Now. 0:15:50.600 --> 0:15:53.560 I don't know the details behind all of it, but 0:15:53.600 --> 0:15:56.320 if I had to hazard a guess, just based on 0:15:56.440 --> 0:15:59.080 the way I've observed people using Facebook, I would say 0:15:59.120 --> 0:16:01.640 that when most folks or on Facebook, they're not really 0:16:01.680 --> 0:16:05.160 looking to engage in audio content like that. Like they're 0:16:05.200 --> 0:16:08.080 not likely to open the Facebook app in order to 0:16:08.120 --> 0:16:11.720 listen to a podcast. They're probably using a dedicated podcast 0:16:11.720 --> 0:16:15.080 app for that. Facebook will also be shutting down a 0:16:15.080 --> 0:16:18.960 couple of other audio related features. The one that I 0:16:19.000 --> 0:16:21.800 saw was Soundbites, which is kind of a short form 0:16:21.920 --> 0:16:26.320 audio service, so sort of like TikTok, but audio instead 0:16:26.320 --> 0:16:30.240 of video. In addition, Facebook is moving is Live Audio 0:16:30.440 --> 0:16:34.280 Rooms feature into the overall umbrella of Facebook Live. And 0:16:34.320 --> 0:16:37.520 if you're not familiar with the live Audio rooms offering, 0:16:38.240 --> 0:16:41.880 it's essentially what clubhouses, you know, the app that allows 0:16:41.920 --> 0:16:46.440 for streaming audio. Facebook is famous for imitating anything that 0:16:46.560 --> 0:16:48.800 gets buzz around it. Like, if there's anything that could 0:16:49.520 --> 0:16:54.520 theoretically take even a moment away from someone staying on Facebook, 0:16:54.800 --> 0:16:58.800 then Facebook wants to incorporate those features directly into Facebook 0:16:59.160 --> 0:17:04.320 and thus hopefully discourage people from leaving Facebook for even 0:17:04.359 --> 0:17:09.280 even a split second. Um. Unfortunately for Facebook, the buzz 0:17:09.320 --> 0:17:13.080 around clubhouse died out pretty darn fast. Like just last year, 0:17:13.160 --> 0:17:16.320 people were essentially saying that clubhouses is kind of a 0:17:16.359 --> 0:17:20.119 ghost town now, like once it once it stopped being exclusive, 0:17:20.840 --> 0:17:22.840 then people stopped wanting to be part of it, which 0:17:22.880 --> 0:17:25.080 just tells you, like people want to be part of 0:17:25.080 --> 0:17:27.880 a a an exclusive club. If a club says you're 0:17:27.880 --> 0:17:30.520 not allowed in, people really want to get in. And 0:17:30.560 --> 0:17:32.960 then once everyone's allowed in there are people are like 0:17:33.200 --> 0:17:35.520 it's not that special and they leave. Same thing happened 0:17:35.560 --> 0:17:39.000 to Google Plus, by the way. Anyway, Facebook found that 0:17:39.160 --> 0:17:42.280 making podcasting work on the platform was more trouble than 0:17:42.280 --> 0:17:45.960 what it's worth I reckon. So Bloomberg reports that Facebook 0:17:45.960 --> 0:17:51.840 will close down its podcasting platform on June three. Meanwhile, 0:17:52.320 --> 0:17:55.680 over at Spotify, the co founder of the podcasting platform, 0:17:55.760 --> 0:18:01.440 anchor Michael mcgano, has submitted his resignation from Spotify. He'll 0:18:01.480 --> 0:18:03.600 stay with Spotify until the end of June and then 0:18:03.640 --> 0:18:07.840 he's out Skis. So Spotify is obviously a big player 0:18:08.080 --> 0:18:12.359 in the podcast space. It's infamous for the incredibly lucrative 0:18:12.440 --> 0:18:17.240 and controversial deal with podcast provocateur Joe Rogan. It also 0:18:17.280 --> 0:18:20.920 went on something of an acquisition spree over the last 0:18:20.960 --> 0:18:27.080 few years, buying up companies like Anchor, Gimlet, wushaka, Megaphone, 0:18:27.280 --> 0:18:31.680 pod Sites, Charitable Podcast, and The Ringer, all of which 0:18:31.920 --> 0:18:36.320 are involved in the production, publication, marketing, ad sales, and 0:18:36.440 --> 0:18:41.040 content creation of podcasting. Spotify also has had some recent 0:18:41.119 --> 0:18:44.200 challenges in the space. Uh the company shut down its 0:18:44.240 --> 0:18:48.320 own in house podcast studio group, which internally was called 0:18:48.359 --> 0:18:51.600 Studio four. I should probably do a whole episode about 0:18:51.640 --> 0:18:55.399 Studio for, because I mean, it's it's kind of ugly. 0:18:55.560 --> 0:19:00.719 Spotify called its own podcast division Studio for because presumably 0:19:01.160 --> 0:19:05.760 Studios one through three were acquisitions like Gimlet Podcast and 0:19:05.840 --> 0:19:09.560 The Ringer. So if you work for a company that 0:19:09.640 --> 0:19:14.600 company acquires other companies and then the company says your 0:19:14.720 --> 0:19:19.479 department is fourth in line to those acquisitions, that just 0:19:19.560 --> 0:19:23.520 doesn't feel good. That's bad for employee morale anyway. Mcgono's 0:19:23.600 --> 0:19:28.720 upcoming departure follows other executives like Courtney Holt. Holt spearheaded 0:19:28.760 --> 0:19:32.280 the Joe Rogan deal for Spotify, so her departure was 0:19:32.320 --> 0:19:36.160 a big surprise, and Lydia Paul Green, who was head 0:19:36.280 --> 0:19:40.280 of Gimblet Media. Uh. I don't think this necessarily means 0:19:40.320 --> 0:19:44.800 that Spotify's podcasting division is in trouble. I do think 0:19:45.320 --> 0:19:50.640 that the company is having to reckon with some tough criticisms, 0:19:50.680 --> 0:19:55.639 mostly centered around the whole Joe Rogan situation and um 0:19:55.720 --> 0:20:00.000 and also just find a a settling point from which 0:20:00.080 --> 0:20:02.879 it can grow. Right now, a lot of the growth 0:20:02.920 --> 0:20:07.120 has been through acquisitions, which you can only continue for 0:20:07.160 --> 0:20:09.359 so long. It's not it's not something that you can 0:20:09.400 --> 0:20:14.479 sustain long term. Also in Spotify news, the company has 0:20:14.520 --> 0:20:18.800 announced it has opened an interactive space within the Roadblocks 0:20:18.920 --> 0:20:23.679 online universe called Spotify Island. And at Spotify Island, visitors 0:20:23.760 --> 0:20:27.680 can hang out in virtual venues, or they can make 0:20:27.760 --> 0:20:30.639 music like you can actually make music on Spotify Island, 0:20:31.440 --> 0:20:35.920 or of course they can purchase virtual merchandise. Because ultimately, 0:20:35.960 --> 0:20:39.960 what the metaverse really represents is ways for people to 0:20:40.600 --> 0:20:45.240 make more money. Now Apparently part of this island's offerings 0:20:45.560 --> 0:20:48.720 is a chance for musicians to connect with and thus 0:20:48.880 --> 0:20:51.960 sell their music to their audiences. I think that's kind 0:20:51.960 --> 0:20:54.919 of cool, right, Like this idea of being able to 0:20:55.160 --> 0:20:59.080 connect with artists that you really like, maybe you're able 0:20:59.119 --> 0:21:02.800 to like get rare recordings or demo recordings, that kind 0:21:02.800 --> 0:21:05.160 of stuff. I think that would be really neat and 0:21:05.200 --> 0:21:08.640 would really create a sense of community among fan bases. 0:21:09.000 --> 0:21:12.439 That could be actually really really cool thing to be 0:21:12.600 --> 0:21:16.320 part of. Um. Spotify, however, will also take a chunk 0:21:17.080 --> 0:21:20.560 of sales because you know they're facilitating those sales, so 0:21:20.600 --> 0:21:24.240 it's this isn't surprising. It's the same thing that Google 0:21:24.280 --> 0:21:27.879 and Apple do where they take a chunk of every 0:21:27.920 --> 0:21:30.359 sale that goes through their app stores. Spotify would be 0:21:30.400 --> 0:21:33.280 doing the same thing. We don't know yet how much 0:21:33.359 --> 0:21:36.479 of a chunk that would be. Um Uh. This story 0:21:36.680 --> 0:21:39.800 I found on engadget, and you know, in gadget also 0:21:39.880 --> 0:21:44.080 didn't have any any further information about what that that 0:21:44.320 --> 0:21:47.800 revenue split would be like. Roadblocks is one of those 0:21:47.840 --> 0:21:49.880 things I've really been meaning to check out. I've been 0:21:49.880 --> 0:21:52.240 hearing about it like for a couple of years now, 0:21:52.800 --> 0:21:58.360 but I've never have never actually experienced going on roadblocks 0:21:58.400 --> 0:22:01.320 at all. I know that I would probably find it 0:22:01.359 --> 0:22:05.360 really fascinating. I love this idea of user generated content, 0:22:05.400 --> 0:22:10.360 where users can create games and experiences. I'd probably put 0:22:10.400 --> 0:22:12.760 on the parental controls because I don't want to run 0:22:12.800 --> 0:22:16.240 into the weird stuff. I'm just tired of weird stuff. 0:22:16.440 --> 0:22:19.160 I'm not yucking anyone's yum. If weird stuff to your thing, 0:22:19.800 --> 0:22:22.639 more power to you. I just I don't know. I 0:22:22.680 --> 0:22:24.960 only got so many spoons, y'all, and I don't think 0:22:25.000 --> 0:22:27.880 I can use them to handle all the crazy things 0:22:27.880 --> 0:22:30.760 that people come up with that my my, my limited 0:22:30.760 --> 0:22:36.080 brain is incapable of processing. So again, more power to y'all. 0:22:36.400 --> 0:22:38.920 Let your freak flags brought fly. I just think I'm 0:22:38.920 --> 0:22:43.480 gonna be putting on those controls to preserve my own sanity. Uh. 0:22:43.560 --> 0:22:46.640 I don't know if this is in for the long 0:22:46.680 --> 0:22:51.240 haul or not. We saw a lot of similar enthusiasm 0:22:51.400 --> 0:22:55.560 around Second Life when it was first starting to gain attention. 0:22:55.640 --> 0:22:57.919 Like early on in the hype cycle of Second Life, 0:22:58.400 --> 0:23:00.720 there was this assumption that every single company in the 0:23:00.760 --> 0:23:06.080 world was going to establish a Second Life um presence, 0:23:06.600 --> 0:23:10.119 but it didn't really work out. That way, and Second 0:23:10.119 --> 0:23:12.359 Life is still a thing. It's just it's kind of 0:23:12.359 --> 0:23:16.120 faded into semi obscurity. Like there are people who still 0:23:16.119 --> 0:23:20.600 go to Second Life, but it's not nearly the massive 0:23:20.640 --> 0:23:23.280 amount of people that we were expecting it to be 0:23:23.680 --> 0:23:27.640 back when Second Life was first getting hyped up. Hopefully 0:23:27.720 --> 0:23:32.040 Roadblocks doesn't follow that same pathway. I guess we'll have 0:23:32.119 --> 0:23:34.760 to wait and see. Honestly, I'm curious to check out 0:23:34.840 --> 0:23:39.280 both Roadblocks and Spotify Island. I really want to see 0:23:39.320 --> 0:23:41.880 what kind of environment they've created and what you can 0:23:41.960 --> 0:23:46.720 experience there. I think it could be potentially pretty neat. Okay, 0:23:46.720 --> 0:23:49.600 we've got a couple more stories to cover, but before 0:23:49.600 --> 0:24:00.000 we get to those, let's take another quick break. Okay. 0:24:00.040 --> 0:24:04.800 Activision Blizzard, which I'm sure we all know, is heading 0:24:04.840 --> 0:24:09.600 towards being acquired by Microsoft, assuming regulators don't block the deal. 0:24:10.400 --> 0:24:15.080 Activision Blizzard has sent shareholders a notice about five proposals 0:24:15.119 --> 0:24:18.480 that are up for shareholder voting. This is something that 0:24:18.600 --> 0:24:22.880 happens with all companies that they'll send out to their shareholders. Hey, 0:24:22.920 --> 0:24:25.920 there's a big shareholder meeting. These are proposals that are 0:24:26.040 --> 0:24:29.440 up for vote. Uh, you know you can submit your vote, 0:24:29.440 --> 0:24:31.960 that kind of thing. The notice from the Board of 0:24:32.040 --> 0:24:36.200 Directors suggests that shareholders support three of the five proposals. 0:24:36.640 --> 0:24:41.440 Those three include approval of executive compensation, which of course 0:24:41.760 --> 0:24:45.280 they want that approved. Please let us pay our executives, 0:24:45.760 --> 0:24:49.679 those poor, poor executives, they make so few millions. And 0:24:49.680 --> 0:24:53.159 then there's also the ratification of the company's accounting firm, 0:24:53.200 --> 0:24:56.920 which is important. And finally, the election of the directors 0:24:56.960 --> 0:25:02.080 themselves is directors stand for election every so often. Uh, 0:25:02.160 --> 0:25:05.359 sometimes they stand for reelection, sometimes they'll step down and 0:25:05.520 --> 0:25:09.959 new people will new candidates will be considered. The notice 0:25:10.040 --> 0:25:15.400 also suggests that shareholders vote down to other proposals. One 0:25:15.440 --> 0:25:18.480 of those would allow for the nomination of an employee 0:25:18.480 --> 0:25:23.240 representative director, which I guess means that they Board of 0:25:23.280 --> 0:25:25.919 Directors does not want employees to have a spot at 0:25:25.960 --> 0:25:32.000 the table. I guess um, considering Activision blizzards past, that 0:25:32.200 --> 0:25:35.400 is a bad look. Uh. Perhaps an even worse look 0:25:35.600 --> 0:25:40.320 is that the fifth proposal would authorize the preparation of 0:25:40.359 --> 0:25:44.639 a report about how Activision Blizzard has been doing insofar 0:25:44.920 --> 0:25:50.960 as its effort to prevent abuse, harassment and discrimination. Uh. Yeah, 0:25:51.080 --> 0:25:53.879 that's even worse, right, Like it just looks bad because 0:25:53.920 --> 0:25:59.600 Activision Blizzard is has really gained a terrible negative reputation 0:26:00.119 --> 0:26:06.000