Meta

The Russian government said on Friday that it will begin to "partially restrict" access to Facebook, after the social network put restrictions on four Russian state-linked media outlets -- the television network Zvezda, news agency RIA Novosti, and the websites Lenta.ru and Gazeta.ru. Nick Clegg, Global Affairs VP at Meta, tweeted that ordinary Russians are using Meta's apps to express themselves and organize for action.

To help creators earn money from Facebook Reels, the company said it is expanding tests of overlay ads, starting with banner and sticker ads. "New Facebook Reels features include Remix, sharing to Facebook Stories and more," Meta said in a statement late on Tuesday. "Watching video is half of time spent on Facebook and Instagram, and Reels is our fastest growing content format by far," it added.

Founded by Maheshwari and Tanay Pratap, it provides employability-focused training to help the workforce realign with the digital world and secure themselves jobs in high-growth tech companies. "We will use this investment to bolster the product and technology team for the Metaversity platform, build a virtual-first curriculum and expand into Europe and the US," said Maheshwari.

The year 2023 is forecast to see 18.8 million AR/VR device shipments, riding on the Metaverse momentum. The growth momentum will come from increased demand for remote interactivity stemming from the pandemic, as well as Meta Oculus Quest 2's price reduction strategy. Microsoft HoloLens 2 and Oculus Quest 2 are first in market share for AR and VR, respectively.

Meta confirmed to TechCrunch that Jeren A Miles is no longer employed by the company after a video went viral on YouTube, Reddit and other sites, featuring him in a sting operation conducted by amateurs with the motive of catching paedophiles. The video shows two people questioning Miles, who admitted to having graphic and inappropriate communications with a 13-year-old boy.

A survey found that 58% of respondents have either heard of the metaverse but do not know what it means. Only 6% of people identify as being comfortable enough in their understanding of the metaverse to explain it to others. "This is a helpful signal to temper short term expectations of the metaverse, and its potential impact on consumer's daily life," said Kyle Rees

According to the US-based Advocate Group, more than 77 percent of those interested in joining a metaverse are worried about Facebook owning the data. An overwhelming 87 percent would prefer a metaverse on the decentralized blockchain. "This sentiment was even more pronounced among Gen Z respondents, who were 10 percent more likely to prefer a blockchain metaverse than their millennial counterparts," the findings showed.

The 'news' label has led some to believe that there are only news stories in the mainstream. "Starting today, our News Feed will now be known as 'Feed'," announced the company on Twitter. "Happy scrolling!" The 'News Feed' name had been in place since the feature was first introduced more than 15 years ago.

Meta-owned WhatsApp has started rolling out a new interface for voice calls for select beta testers on Android. According to WhatsApp beta tracker WABetaInfo, WhatsApp for Android beta 2.22.5.4 has brought the updated voice calling interface to some users. A few users are also able to see the change on WhatsApp for Android beta version 2.22.5.3.

Meta's Redirect Initiative, already available in Australia, the US, Germany and Indonesia, is now entering Pakistan and the UK to "disrupt the connection between followers and the violent, extreme content they seek". Now, when someone in Pakistan or the UK searches on Facebook using words associated with organised hate or violent extremism, the top search result will be a link to resources and support for how to leave violence and extremism behind.