If you’re excited about Prime Video’s lavish Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power TV series, chances are you’re also excited by Warner Bros.’ The War of the Rohirrim anime movie, announced last summer. Unfortunately, you’ll be waiting quite a while for the horse-lords of Middle-earth to come trotting onto movie…
Microsoft is finally ready to reopen key offices after two years of pandemic-related closures and numerous delays. The company now plans to enter the “final stage” of its Washington state return-to-work plan starting Feb 28th, at which point facilities (including the company’s Redmond headquarters) and services will be completely open to workers and visitors alike. From that day forward, staff will have 30 days to adjust to whatever work routine they and their managers have chosen, whether it’s in-person, remote or hybrid.
Offices in California’s San Francisco Bay Area will also open starting February 28th. Other US offices would follow “as conditions allow,” according to Microsoft.
The Windows creator justified the move by pointing to high vaccination rates in its home county as well as falling hospitalizations and deaths. Local testing and compliance with government guidance were also part of the strategy, Microsoft said.
The schedule is more aggressive than the timelines seen at some of Microsoft’s peers. Meta is currently aiming for March 28th, while Apple and others have indefinite delays. Amazon is dropping mask mandates for fully vaccinated warehouse workers, but it’s also ending paid leave for unvaccinated workers who develop COVID-19. The company also loosened its in-person work requirements for office employees.
Microsoft’s decision signals confidence that the worst of COVID-19 and the Omicron variant surge are behind the company. However, they also reflect changed expectations — remote work is more practical, in part through Microsoft tools like Teams and Viva. The firm is also preparing for a future where Mesh enables mixed reality collaboration. There just isn’t as much pressure to return to the office as there was in 2020, and those who do return may see more sparsely-populated buildings — at least, for now.
Rev. Bryan Massingale supports the ordination of women and making celibacy optional. He also disagrees with the church’s doctrine on same-sex relationships.
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When it’s looking like a Wonder Twins movie might actually become a reality, it’s OK to question reality. But yes, you are alive, you are reading this, and Warner Bros. has hired someone to write and direct a movie based on DC’s Wonder Twins.
Snapchat is introducing a new way for some of its most popular users to earn money. Starting today, you’ll begin seeing mid-roll ads in public Stories from Snap Stars. Those are individuals with verified accounts that have a large number of followers.
In introducing mid-roll ads, Snap has also decided to share ad revenue with creators, marking a first for the company. How much someone will earn off their Stories will depend on a formula that considers factors like how often someone posts and the engagement their content attracts. Snap is testing the advertisements with help from a small group of Snap Stars in the US. The company currently plans to roll them out more widely sometime later in the year.
“Stories lower the barrier to content creation and engagement, and we believe placing ads within a Snap Star’s public Story will allow an easier path to financial success,” the company said.
Unintuitively, the introduction of mid-roll ads to some Stories follows a period in which Snap saw a dip in the format’s popularity. “We are seeing people post fewer Stories to their friends, [and] view fewer Stories from their friends,” Snap CEO Evan Spiegel said during the company’s recent fourth-quarter earnings calls. “But at the same time, we’ve seen folks watching more premium content, watching more content in Spotlight.”
Spotlight is Snapchat’s take on TikTok-like short-form videos. The company has invested significantly in the format, including announcing a commitment to spend $1 million per day to fund creators supporting the platform. Snap’s decision to share ad revenue generated by Stories shows the company is just as serious about ensuring they continue to grow.
The former president’s longtime accountants at Mazars USA told the Trump business on Feb. 9 that its financial statements “should no longer be relied upon.”
Nintendo revealed a selection of photos of what appear to be delicious Switch controller chocolates for Valentine’s Day 2022. Then they dropped the bad news.
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Jared Isaacman announced Polaris Program with an aim to “ultimately culminate in the first flight of SpaceX’s Starship with humans on board.”
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