Category: UNCATEGORIZED

Twitter announced today it’s planning to relaunch its verification system in 2021, and will now begin the process of soliciting public feedback on the new policy ahead of its implementation. Under the policy, Twitter will initially verify six types of accounts, including those belonging to government officials; companies, brands and nonprofit organizations; news; entertainment; sports; and activists, organizers and other influential individuals. The number of categories could expand in time.

Twitter’s verification system, which provides a blue checkmark to designate accounts belonging to public figures, was paused in 2017 as the company tried to address confusion over what it meant to be verified.

The issue at the time was that Twitter had verified the account belonging to Jason Keller, the person who organized the deadly white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia. In response to the wave of criticism directed at Twitter as a result of this action, the company defended its decision by pointing to its policies around account verification, which explained its blue badges were awarded to accounts of “public interest.”

Critics argued that genuinely noteworthy figures were still struggling to get their own accounts verified, and that verifying a known white supremacist was not something that should ever be in the “public interest.” As a result, Twitter in November 2017 decided to pause all account verifications.

The following year, the company announced work on the verification system would be placed on a longer, more indefinite hold, so Twitter could direct its resources to focus on election integrity. That proved to be a significant undertaking, as it turned out.

Though the company this year verified medical experts tweeting about COVID-19 and labeled candidates running for public office, these efforts were managed in more of a one-off fashion.

Now, with the 2020 U.S. presidential election having wrapped, and with a transition underway, Twitter says work on its new verification system will finally resume.

The company today shared a draft of its new verification policy in order to gain public feedback. The policy details more specifically which accounts can be verified and introduces additional guidelines that could limit some accounts from receiving the blue badge.

For example, Twitter says the account must be “notable and active,” and the badge won’t be awarded to any accounts with incomplete profiles. Twitter will also deny or remove verification badges from otherwise qualified individuals if their accounts are found to be in repeated violation of the Twitter Rules.

The company additionally admitted it had verified accounts over the years which should not be, as based on these guidelines. To correct this, Twitter will begin to automatically remove badges from accounts that are inactive or have incomplete profiles, to help it streamline its work going forward.

The policy also lays out specifics about how it will determine whether an account in a supported category will qualify.

For example, news organizations will have to adhere to professional standards for journalism, and independent or freelance journalists will need to provide at least three bylines in qualifying organizations published in the last six months. Entertainers will need to be able to point to credits on their IMDb page or to references in verified news publications. Government officials will need to show a public reference on an official government website, party website or multiple references by news media. Sports figures will have to appear on team websites, rosters or in sports data services like Sportradar. There are a few other ways to be verified in these categories, too.

The guidelines for public figures are more detailed, as they must meet two different criteria for “notability” — one that quantifies their Twitter activity and another that highlights their off-Twitter notability, like a Wikipedia page, Google Trends profile, profile on an official advocacy site and more.

“We know we can’t solve verification with a new policy alone — and that this initial policy won’t cover every case for being verified — but it is a critical first step in helping us provide more transparency and fairer standards for verification on Twitter as we reprioritize this work,” a company announcement stated. “This version of the policy is a starting point, and we intend to expand the categories and criteria for verification significantly over the next year,” it noted.

Twitter users will be able to offer feedback on the new verification policy starting today, November 24, 2020, and continuing through December 8, 2020. The policy is being made available in English, Hindi, Arabic, Spanish, Portuguese and Japanese. Users can either respond to the survey Twitter has posted or they can choose to tweet their feedback publicly, using the hashtag #VerificationFeedback.

In addition, Twitter says it’s working with local non-governmental organizations and its Trust and Safety Council to gain a range of other perspectives.

After December 8, 2020, Twitter will train its team on the new policy and introduce the final version by Decemeber 17, 2020. The verification system itself, which will include a new public application process, will begin in early 2021.

Though Twitter is giving itself time to make policy changes based on public feedback, it had already begun to develop the underlying technology for the verification application process.

Twitter confirmed to TechCrunch this June it was in the process of building a new in-app system for requesting verification. The feature had been found buried in the app’s code by reverse engineer Jane Manchun Wong, who tweeted a screenshot of a new option, “Request Verification,” that appeared under Twitter’s account settings. At the time, Twitter wouldn’t confirm when the new system would go live.

Though not everyone will qualify for verification, Twitter says it’s working on other features that will help to better distinguish accounts on its platform. Also in 2021, the company will introduce new account types and labels that will help Twitter users identify themselves on their profiles. More details on these features will be announced in the weeks to come, Twitter says.

Last week, Udemy, an online learning marketplace, raised $50 million at a $3.32 million valuation, up from a $2 million valuation earlier this year. Language learning app Duolingo raised $35 million on a $2.4 billion valuation, up from a $1.65 valuation from earlier this year.

The valuation bumps for both Duolingo and Udemy underscore just how much investor confidence there is in edtech’s remote learning boom. Today, let’s examine some lessons early-stage startups can learn from late-stage edtech.

Content is no longer king

Edtech startups that have figured out how to convey information while engaging users have  a competitive advantage but, as the information economy booms, content is growing more and more commoditized. It’s an age-old question: Why would someone pay for information they could get for free on YouTube?

The solution for edtech businesses seeking growth is to make its content free and then charge for more specialized services. In Duolingo’s case, CEO Luis von Ahn says consumers are drawn to its freemium business model.

More than 97% of Duolingo users take lessons for free, but the remaining 3% account for nearly $180 million in bookings, a metric the company uses as a proxy for revenue. The company is “more than breaking even,” according to von Ahn.

Duolingo Plus, its paid product, is ad-free, offers offline access and more comprehensive tracking metrics. However, it’s not a world of a difference from the Duolingo free product — and that’s part of the point. Free users have saved the company paid acquisition, and widespread usage gives Duolingo insights on what they need to do on a week-by-week basis.

Last week, Udemy, an online learning marketplace, raised $50 million at a $3.32 million valuation, up from a $2 million valuation earlier this year. Language learning app Duolingo raised $35 million on a $2.4 billion valuation, up from a $1.65 valuation from earlier this year.

The valuation bumps for both Duolingo and Udemy underscore just how much investor confidence there is in edtech’s remote learning boom. Today, let’s examine some lessons early-stage startups can learn from late-stage edtech.

Content is no longer king

Edtech startups that have figured out how to convey information while engaging users have  a competitive advantage but, as the information economy booms, content is growing more and more commoditized. It’s an age-old question: Why would someone pay for information they could get for free on YouTube?

The solution for edtech businesses seeking growth is to make its content free and then charge for more specialized services. In Duolingo’s case, CEO Luis von Ahn says consumers are drawn to its freemium business model.

More than 97% of Duolingo users take lessons for free, but the remaining 3% account for nearly $180 million in bookings, a metric the company uses as a proxy for revenue. The company is “more than breaking even,” according to von Ahn.

Duolingo Plus, its paid product, is ad-free, offers offline access and more comprehensive tracking metrics. However, it’s not a world of a difference from the Duolingo free product — and that’s part of the point. Free users have saved the company paid acquisition, and widespread usage gives Duolingo insights on what they need to do on a week-by-week basis.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has issued rules that would allow public and private companies to offer equity compensation to gig workers.

The rule-making comes just weeks after California voters upheld an initiative that overturned legislation that would have classified gig workers as employees. The initiative replaced employment status with requirements that gig economy companies include an earnings guarantee of at least 120% of minimum wage while on the job, 30 cents per engaged miles for expenses, a healthcare stipend, occupational accident insurance for on-the-job injuries, protection against discrimination and sexual harassment and automobile accident and liability insurance, as TechCrunch reported. The earnings guarantees and reimbursement for expenses reflects a driver’s engaged time, not for the time spent between rides or deliveries.

Now the Securities and Exchange Commission is adding another potential perk, enabling companies to issue stock to gig employees as a form of compensation.

“As our economy and work arrangements evolve, we must be willing to experiment with concomitant changes to our regulations,” commissioners Elad Roisman and Hester Peirce wrote in a statement.

The proposed rules expand stock compensation for gig-workers for a five-year time period. During that time, stock issuers will give information to the Commission to assess the utility of the rules.

Those SEC guidelines also include certain protections to ensure that stocks issued to gig workers are compensation and not confused with fundraising.

These new rules are open to comment from platform workers, the SEC said.

Under the proposed guidelines, gig workers that provide services through a marketplace are eligible for stock compensation, not any consumers of those services. The commission is considering whether workers that sell goods could participate in the stock compensation program as well.

“The gig economy is here to stay. We are proposing to tweak one discrete area of our securities laws to allow the many Americans who engage in gig work because it provides a much-needed source of current income also build longer-term investments,” the commissioners wrote in their statement. “As our nation’s economy heals from the pandemic, many under- or un-employed individuals will be attracted to the flexibility and income opportunities that gig work can offer.  We view today’s proposal as a way to improve benefits for these important workers and to introduce them to the powerful role that our capital markets can play in building a nest egg for retirement and for passing along to the next generation.”

The Securities and Exchange Commission has issued rules that would allow public and private companies to offer equity compensation to gig workers.

The rule-making comes just weeks after California voters upheld an initiative that overturned legislation that would have classified gig workers as employees. The initiative replaced employment status with requirements that gig economy companies include an earnings guarantee of at least 120% of minimum wage while on the job, 30 cents per engaged miles for expenses, a healthcare stipend, occupational accident insurance for on-the-job injuries, protection against discrimination and sexual harassment and automobile accident and liability insurance, as TechCrunch reported. The earnings guarantees and reimbursement for expenses reflects a driver’s engaged time, not for the time spent between rides or deliveries.

Now the Securities and Exchange Commission is adding another potential perk, enabling companies to issue stock to gig employees as a form of compensation.

“As our economy and work arrangements evolve, we must be willing to experiment with concomitant changes to our regulations,” commissioners Elad Roisman and Hester Peirce wrote in a statement.

The proposed rules expand stock compensation for gig-workers for a five-year time period. During that time, stock issuers will give information to the Commission to assess the utility of the rules.

Those SEC guidelines also include certain protections to ensure that stocks issued to gig workers are compensation and not confused with fundraising.

These new rules are open to comment from platform workers, the SEC said.

Under the proposed guidelines, gig workers that provide services through a marketplace are eligible for stock compensation, not any consumers of those services. The commission is considering whether workers that sell goods could participate in the stock compensation program as well.

“The gig economy is here to stay. We are proposing to tweak one discrete area of our securities laws to allow the many Americans who engage in gig work because it provides a much-needed source of current income also build longer-term investments,” the commissioners wrote in their statement. “As our nation’s economy heals from the pandemic, many under- or un-employed individuals will be attracted to the flexibility and income opportunities that gig work can offer.  We view today’s proposal as a way to improve benefits for these important workers and to introduce them to the powerful role that our capital markets can play in building a nest egg for retirement and for passing along to the next generation.”

Building tech startups takes cash — and lots of it. But when you’re talking space startups, you’re talking galactic-level money. Costs blast right through Earth’s exosphere and become, literally, astronomical. If space is your jam, you’re going to need financial help, and you’ll learn where and how to access it at TC Sessions Space 2020 (December 16-17).

Set your transporter coordinates for our Fast Money breakout sessions. You’ll hear presentations from leading space accelerators and funding programs. You’ll learn how to access grant money and — wait for it — you can schedule individual appointments with representatives from each program.

PSA: Don’t have a pass yet? We’re offering a BOGO deal. Buy one Late Registration ticket for $175 and get one free. You and a colleague pay just $87.50 each — that’s less than the early-bird price. Buy your passes before this deal ends on Sunday, November 29, at 11:59 p.m. PST.

Attend these Fast Money breakout sessions and then use CrunchMatch to schedule private meetings with program reps.

• Fast Money — Space Force Innovation Ecosystem: The USSF wants to partner with innovative non-traditional companies as we look to build out the space architecture of the future. Come learn how to join us. Major Ryan Pennington, Deputy, Space Force Ventures, SMC Space Ventures.
• Fast Money — The Space Force Accelerators: Learn how the Hyperspace Challenge, Catalyst Space Accelerator, and other government accelerators can connect you to the U.S. Space Force. Gabe Mounce, Director, Space Force Accelerators, Air Force Research Laboratory.
• Fast Money — Working with the Army to Operationalize Science for Transformational Overmatch: Learn about DEVCOM Army Research Laboratory and the xTech Program of prize competitions that accelerate innovative solutions that can help solve Army challenges. Peter Khooshabeh, Regional Lead, DEVCOM, ARL West.
• Fast Money — Advancing Space Technology with NASA SBIR: Learn about the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and the Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs powered by NASA. Jenn Gustetic, Early Stage Innovations and Partnerships Program Director, NASA HQ Space Technology Mission Directorate.
• Fast Money — NAVWAR SBIR/STTR Primer: The SBIR/STTR is a robust program designed to help small businesses address government needs while promoting commercialization. This session is dedicated to providing a primer on the program with tips on getting involved and getting engaged with the Naval Information Warfare Systems Command (NAVWAR). Shadi Azoum, Small Business Innovation Research & Rapid Innovation Fund Program Manager, Naval Information Warfare Systems Command.
• Fast Money — Introduction to In-Q-Tel’s investing activities in the commercial space sector: In-Q-Tel is a strategic investment firm that works with the national security community of the United States. For 20 years, In-Q-Tel has served one mission: to deliver the most sophisticated strategic technical knowledge and capabilities to the U.S. government and its allies through its unique investment model. Over the past decade, In-Q-Tel has been one of the most active investors in the commercial space sector, with a broad investment thesis that touches many aspects of the sector. This session will provide an overview of In-Q-Tel as a whole, as well as a discussion of the firm’s activities in the commercial space sector. Tom Gillespie, Managing Partner and Investment lead for In-Q-Tel’s Field Technologies Practice.
• Fast Money – Enabling a dual-use business model with Defense Innovation Unit (DIU)

Explore all the TC Sessions: Space presentations in the event agenda and start planning your schedule now. And don’t sweat any conflicts — with VOD, you can catch anything you miss at your convenience.

Learn how to find and access the funding to fuel your space startup. Don’t miss the Fast Money breakouts at TC Sessions: Space 2020. And get your buy-one-get-one-free ticket before our week-long Black Friday sale ends Sunday, November 29, at 11:59 p.m. PST.

Is your company interested in sponsoring TC Sessions: Space 2020? Click here to talk with us about available opportunities.

Trump’s election denialism saw him retaliate in a way that isn’t just putting the remainder of his presidency in jeopardy, it’s already putting the next administration in harm’s way.

In a stunning display of retaliation, Trump fired CISA director Chris Krebs last week after declaring that there was “no evidence that any voting system deleted or lost votes, changed votes or was in any way compromised,” a direct contradiction to the conspiracy-fueled fever dreams of the president who repeatedly claimed, without evidence, that the election had been hijacked by the Democrats. CISA is left distracted by disarray, with multiple senior leaders leaving their posts — some walked, some were pushed — only for the next likely chief to stumble before he even starts because of concerns with his security clearance.

Until yesterday, Biden’s presidential transition team was stuck in cybersecurity purgatory because the incumbent administration refused to trigger the law that grants the incoming team access to government resources, including cybersecurity protections. That’s left the incoming president exposed to ongoing cyber threats, all while being shut out from classified briefings that describe those threats in detail.

As Biden builds his team, Silicon Valley is also gearing up for a change in government — and temperament. But don’t expect too much of the backlash to change. Much of the antitrust allegations, privacy violations and net neutrality remain hot button issues, and the tech titans resorting to cheap “charm offenses” are likely to face the music under the Biden administration — whether they like it or not.

Here’s more from the week.

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THE BIG PICTURE

Apple and Facebook spar over privacy — again

Apple and Facebook are back in the ring, fighting over which company is a bigger existential threat to privacy. In a letter to a privacy rights group, Apple said its new anti-tracking feature will launch next year, which will give users the choice of blocking in-app tracking, a move that’s largely expected to cause havoc to the online advertising industry and data brokers.

Given an explicit option between being tracked and not, as the feature will do, most are expected to decline.

Apple’s letter specifically called out Facebook for showing a “disregard for user privacy.” Facebook, which made more than 98% of its global revenue last year from advertising, took its own potshot back at Apple, claiming the iPhone maker was “using their dominant market position to self-preference their own data collection, while making it nearly impossible for their competitors to use the same data.”

Trump’s election denialism saw him retaliate in a way that isn’t just putting the remainder of his presidency in jeopardy, it’s already putting the next administration in harm’s way.

In a stunning display of retaliation, Trump fired CISA director Chris Krebs last week after declaring that there was “no evidence that any voting system deleted or lost votes, changed votes or was in any way compromised,” a direct contradiction to the conspiracy-fueled fever dreams of the president who repeatedly claimed, without evidence, that the election had been hijacked by the Democrats. CISA is left distracted by disarray, with multiple senior leaders leaving their posts — some walked, some were pushed — only for the next likely chief to stumble before he even starts because of concerns with his security clearance.

Until yesterday, Biden’s presidential transition team was stuck in cybersecurity purgatory because the incumbent administration refused to trigger the law that grants the incoming team access to government resources, including cybersecurity protections. That’s left the incoming president exposed to ongoing cyber threats, all while being shut out from classified briefings that describe those threats in detail.

As Biden builds his team, Silicon Valley is also gearing up for a change in government — and temperament. But don’t expect too much of the backlash to change. Much of the antitrust allegations, privacy violations and net neutrality remain hot button issues, and the tech titans resorting to cheap “charm offenses” are likely to face the music under the Biden administration — whether they like it or not.

Here’s more from the week.

---

THE BIG PICTURE

Apple and Facebook spar over privacy — again

Apple and Facebook are back in the ring, fighting over which company is a bigger existential threat to privacy. In a letter to a privacy rights group, Apple said its new anti-tracking feature will launch next year, which will give users the choice of blocking in-app tracking, a move that’s largely expected to cause havoc to the online advertising industry and data brokers.

Given an explicit option between being tracked and not, as the feature will do, most are expected to decline.

Apple’s letter specifically called out Facebook for showing a “disregard for user privacy.” Facebook, which made more than 98% of its global revenue last year from advertising, took its own potshot back at Apple, claiming the iPhone maker was “using their dominant market position to self-preference their own data collection, while making it nearly impossible for their competitors to use the same data.”

HuffPost is becoming part of BuzzFeed, but HuffPost India and HuffPost Brasil will not be making the transition — both sites are shutting down today.

“Today is @huffpostIndia’s last day,” tweeted the team’s editor in chief Aman Sethi. “Pound for pound, story for story, reporter for reporter, this is the greatest newsroom I have worked for; (and I still can’t quite believe I had the privilege to lead)[.] Thank you everyone for reading our stories and supporting our journalism.”

Last week, BuzzFeed announced that it was acquiring HuffPost as part of a broader deal with Verizon Media (which also owns TechCrunch). As part of the deal, the companies will be collaborating on content syndication and advertising.

“We confirm that HuffPost has closed its editions in India and Brazil with immediate effect,” Verizon Media said in a statement. “We would like to thank the HuffPost India and HuffPost Brazil teams for their hard work and contribution to the organization.”

The Daily Beast’s Maxwell Tani tweeted what appeared to be an internal comment from BuzzFeed CEO Jonah Peretti, who said that the company wasn’t “legally allowed to take on the Brazil and India editions” — he claimed that “foreign companies aren’t allowed to own news organizations” in India, while BuzzFeed cannot operate in Brazil as one of the conditions of selling BuzzFeed Brasil.

Fortnite’s free to play model has no doubt been a big driver in the battle royale title’s stratospheric success. Epic clearly hasn’t had much issue monetizing the game. While revenue slipped last year, it still managed to pull in a massive windfall of $1.8 billion (down from an even more staggering $2.4 billion).

The company has had no shortage of investments, though it could always use some extra cash for…reasons.

Today, the publisher announced a new model designed to deliver reoccurring payments, in addition to its standard micro transactions — offering up a discount on some of its virtual wares in the process.

The $11.99 monthly Fortnite Crew fee entitles players to a full season battle pass, 1,000 monthly bucks and a Crew Pack featuring an exclusive outfit bundle. The monthly fee adds up — as monthly fees do. It’s certainly significantly pricier than just going in for the standard battle pass, which runs a couple of bucks less and generally lasts a few months or so. Ditto for a 1,000 V-Bucks, which run around $8.

The plan will launch December 2, along Chapter 2, Season 5 of the game. The first pack includes a Galaxia outfit. It’s a space-themed suit that also includes a unicorn-head pickaxe. Content from popular properties like the Star Wars series “The Mandalorian” may also be on the horizon, as well. Certainly exclusive access to well-known IP would go a ways toward sweetening the appeal of yet another monthly subscription.