Telegram is testing paid posts to help creators monetise their content: Heres how it works

Earlier this year, the popular instant messaging service Telegram released a Premium subscription model. As a part of the subscription, Telegram offers exclusive features to users, such as the ability to follow more channels and download files at the fastest speed possible. Most recently, Telegram has been spotted experimenting with paid messages and media, a feature that could enable several content creators to monetise their work on the platform. A report by 9To5Mac tells us that Telegram is testing paid posts.

Here is how paid posts could look on Telegram

Telegram is testing pay to view posts?! pic.twitter.com/ZDI5xUpBkR

— Matt Navarra (@MattNavarra) October 27, 2022

As seen in the screenshots shared by Matt Navarra, paid posts seemed to be locked behind a paywall. The posts could include images, videos and even text messages, and they can only be viewed once a user pays the mentioned amount through a button at the centre. 

Otherwise, the video and image previews are blurred out, and messages are collapsed. The report mentions, "paying to access individual posts could also become a simple way to gauge interest in a creator's work, helping them gather funds for small-to-medium-scale projects, or rally support for social causes."

The platform is looking for ways to help creators monetise their content

In a post, Telegram's CEO Pavel Durov said that "some content creators started using third-party payment bots to sell access to individual posts in their Telegram channels." This way, they could receive close to 100% of what their subscribers paid. However, Cupertino-based tech giant Apple raised this issue with Telegram, saying that it has a problem with creators monetising their work without paying a 30% tax to Apple. 

Hence, Telegram had to disable the bots on iOS devices. Adding to his statement, Durov says, "this is just another example of how a trillion-dollar monopoly abuses its market dominance at the expense of millions of users who are trying to monetise their own content."

In the past, apps like Fortnite were unlisted from the Apple App Store for not following payment-related guidelines. Although something like this should not happen with Telegram, there is nothing wrong with the platform looking for ways to help creators monetise their content. If paid posts become a thing on Telegram, other social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and even WhatsApp will likely follow. 

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Google preparing to challenge Competition Commission on Indias anti-competitive directives: Report

Last week, the Competition Commission of India imposed a heavy penalty of Rs. 1,338 crores on Google for "abusing its market dominant position." The CCI had considered five relevant markets to investigate Google, wherein it found that the Alphabet-owned company is dominant. The regulatory authority also released a set of guidelines for the company, including the manufacturer's right to choose which Google service they wish to ship with the phone. 

Google is preparing a legal appeal against CCI’s directive

While the search giant was still in shock, the CCI imposed yet another penalty of Rs. 936 crores for "anti-competitive policies" on the Play Store. In total, the company has to pay Rs. 2,274 crores. However, a report by Reuters suggests that Google is planning to challenge the CCI legally. 

The news agency's source informed that Google was concerned that the CCI's ruling could increase regulatory pressure in other parts of the world. Hence, the company plans to present a legal appeal to "block implementation of the antitrust directive" within weeks. 

Reiterating its statement from last week, Google said that the decision was "a major setback for Indian consumers and businesses, opening serious security risks ... and raising the cost of mobile devices for Indians." The lead counsel for Google before the CCI, Abhishek Manu Singhvi, tweeted recently that "inherent & patent infirmities" in the directive make a challenge inevitable. 

Google is facing global scrutiny

This is not the first time that Google has faced such criticism and monetary penalty. In 2018, the European Commission ruled that the company abused its dominant position by compelling smartphone makers to pre-install its apps, including Google Search and Chrome. Although the company appealed to the EU as well, it lost the appeal and has to pay $4 billion. However, the Indian order takes it even further, imposing restrictions on various Google apps such as YouTube, Maps, Gmail and more. 

If Google complies with the CCI directive, it might come up with a new revenue model wherein the company could charge a licensing fee from smartphone manufacturers. The manufacturers will, in turn, charge this cost from consumers by increasing the prices of their smartphones. Such a model is already in place in Europe.  

On the other side, CCI's order is welcomed by platforms such as the Indus App Bazaar, a local online app store that provides thousands of apps in regional languages and in English. Nevertheless, it looks like Google will prepare an appeal and try to reduce the fine amount as much as possible. 

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Google Messages is testing end-to-end encryption for RCS-enabled group chats

Popular messaging service for Android users, Google Messages is testing end-to-end encryption for group chats. Recently, Google is adding a lot of features to its messaging platform. For instance, Google Messages users can now watch YouTube videos in the app and react to messages sent by iPhone users. Now, it looks like the platform will get a security upgrade.

Redditors discovered the ongoing encryption test for group chats

As per a report by 9To5Google, Google is testing end-to-end encryption for group chats over RCS in the Messages app. Earlier this year, the company said it would start experimenting with the feature in late 2022. The report cites users in the r/GoogleMessages subreddit, saying they noticed one encrypted group message. 

The people in the subreddit used both Google Messages and Samsung Messages RCS. Upon investigating, the Redditors found that end-to-end encryption was enabled via Google Messages, which means it would encrypt the messages sent via RCS group chats. However, for an RCS group chat to be encrypted, it should be enabled on all devices. 

On the other hand, the report also mentioned that in one example the publication has seen, the app tried to send an encrypted message anyway but was unsuccessful (when encryption was not enabled for all users). Additionally, there is no easy way for users to tell whether E2EE is enabled on their devices for group chats. To recall, E2E was first added to Google Messages in late 2020. However, the feature was limited to one-to-one conversations only. Although other online messaging platforms like WhatsApp and Telegram provide E2E for group chats. 

Here is how Google Messages’ end-to-end encryption works

On a support page, Google writes that users' eligible messages and attachments, including photos and videos, are end-to-end encrypted. It is a security method that keeps their communications secure so that no one, not even Google, can read the eligible messages. They travel between the users' phones and the receivers' phones. 

When texting in an encrypted environment, both the sender and receiver have a code, which should be the same for both. The code is called a secret key and exists only on the two devices. However, it is an old support page published before Google started texting end-to-end encryption for group conversations on Messages. Nevertheless, the underlying technology that encrypts the messages remains the same. 

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Realme 10, Realme 10 Pro, and Realme 10 Pro+ specifications surface online

The Chinese smartphone manufacturer Realme is gearing up to launch three new smartphones in India. The smartphones will be a part of the Realme 10 series, becoming the successor to the Realme 9 series. The series consists of three smartphones: the Realme 10, Realme 10 Pro 5G and Realme 10 Pro+ 5G. However, ahead of the official launch by the company, the specifications of all three models have surfaced online. Here are all the details about the smartphones in the Realme 10 series. 

Realme 10 expected specifications

Realme 10 series official promo image. 2nd image Realme 10 3rd image Realme 10 Pro 4th image Realme 10 Pro+#realme #Realme10Series pic.twitter.com/kGTrmaHJbW

— Abhishek Yadav (@yabhishekhd) October 28, 2022

To begin with, the base model of the Realme 10 series, Realme 10, could come with a 6.7-inch display with a resolution of 2400 x 1080 pixels. The smartphone will feature a 4,870 mAh battery as well. Mukul Sharma also suggests that Realme 10 will feature a 108MP primary, a 2MP secondary camera, and a 16MP selfie shooter. 

What's more interesting is that the smartphone could come in multiple RAM and storage models. Mukul's tweet mentions RAM options as 6GB, 8GB and 12GB while storage options as 64GB, 128GB, 256GB and 512GB. Last but not least, the smartphone might weigh 190 grams and measure 8.1mm in thickness. 

Realme 10 Pro 5G expected specifications

As per another tipster Abhishek Yadav, the Realme 10 Pro 5G will come with a curved 120Hz AMOLED display. Under the hood, the smartphone may feature MediaTek Dimensity 1080 chipset, which was announced recently. Users may get a 50MP primary camera with optical image stabilisation for taking pictures. The smartphone could feature a 5,000 mAh battery to power through a day. Additionally, it could support 67-watt fast wired charging as well. The source tweet that contains two images and the leaked specifications of the Realme 10 Pro 5G is attached below. 

Realme 10 Pro+ 5G expected specifications

Out of the box, the Realme 10 Pro+ 5G may come with a 6.7-inch AMOLED display with a resolution of 2412 x 1080 pixels. Although Mukul's tweet does not mention anything about the smartphone's processor, it includes details about RAM and storage options. The Realme 10 Pro+ 5G could come with 6GB, 8GB and 12GB RAM options and 64GB, 128GB, 256GB and 512GB storage options. On the rear panel, users may get a triple camera setup, including a 108MP primary sensor, 8MP secondary sensor and a 2MP tertiary sensor. On the front, users should get a 16MP selfie shooter as well. 

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Amazon Prime Video viewing habits stored on internal server exposed online

New Delhi, Oct 29 (IANS) A database containing viewing habits of Amazon Prime Video users, stored on an internal Amazon server, was accidently exposed online that could be accessed by anyone with a web browser.

Cyber-security researcher Anurag Sen found the database with Amazon Prime viewing habits stored on an internal Amazon server that was accessible online.

TechCrunch reported that according to the search engine Shodan, the database was first detected as exposed to the internet on September 30.

"But because the database was not protected with a password, the data within could be accessed by anyone with a web browser just by knowing its IP address," the report noted.

The database had nearly 215 million entries of viewing data, such as the name of the show or movie that is being streamed, what device it was streamed on, and other internal data.

The Amazon Prime Video database was later removed from the Internet.

An Amazon spokesperson told TechCrunch that there was a "deployment error with a Prime Video analytics server".

"This problem has been resolved and no account information (including login or payment details) was exposed. This was not an AWS issue; AWS is secure by default and performed as designed," the spokesperson added.

In its latest Q3 earnings call, the company said that 'The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power', attracted more than 25 million global viewers on its first day, the biggest debut in Prime Video history, and closing in on 100 million viewers to date.

It also kicked off the inaugural season of Prime Video as the exclusive home of NFL Thursday Night Football with more than 15 million viewers for its first game.

(Except for the headline and cover image, the rest of this IANS article is un-edited)

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Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra could feature a 200MP camera: Check out the details here

Samsung will be launching its flagship device lineup, the Galaxy S23 series next year. While the company hasn’t given any details about the launch just yet, details about the devices have been floating around for quite some time now. Now according to a new report, the S23 Ultra will feature a 200MP camera. Let’s take a detailed look at the specifications the Galaxy S23 Ultra could offer! 

Samsung Galaxy S23 Series: Specifications and Features

As per a few leaks, Samsung is planning to bring the ISOCELL HP3 200-megapixel main camera on the Galaxy S23 Ultra. The camera sensor is said to bring huge improvements over the Galaxy S22 Ultra as it will deliver better low-light performance for both videos and photos. Along with this, the camera is also said to feature a new and improved telephoto lens. 

Along with the 200MP camera sensor and the improvements made to the telephoto sensor, the S23 Ultra is also said to feature improvements in colour and “some AI algorithms” that will make big improvements in overall quality on the newer flagship model. While we’re still not sure about the exact specifications, the rumours suggest that the smartphone could come with a 3x and 10x periscopic zoom lens. 

Under the hood, the Galaxy S23 Ultra is said to be powered by the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 SoC which is also launching very soon. The display will most likely feature a QuadHD+ resolution and along with that, it could also come with a refresh rate of 120hz. In terms of battery and charging, the S23 Ultra could pack a 5000mAh battery with support for 25W fast charging.

That’s all we know of the Galaxy S23 Ultra so far! If there’s any more news regarding the device, we’ll make sure to update our post in the future. 

For more technology news, product reviews, sci-tech features and updates, keep reading Digit.in.

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OxygenOS 13 update roadmap released: Check out when your OnePlus smartphone will get the update

OnePlus announced OxygenOS 13, based on Android 13 a few months back. Since then, the update has only been released for a few phones in their lineup. However, the company has now finally revealed the beta update timeline of when each of its eligible phones. So let’s check out the rollout roadmap for the OxygenOS 13 update in detail! 

OnePlus OxygenOS 13 update: What’s new?

Before checking out the updated roadmap, let’s first talk about the features of OxygenOS 13. The new update features softer, rounder edges across UI elements. The update also brings a sidebar, where users can pin quick app shortcuts and pull out the sidebar to access these shortcuts when they want to multitask. 

Along with this, the new update also comes with new Always-On Display modes. There is even better app compatibility, with apps like Spotify now allowing you to control playback directly from the AoD screen with a new AoD widget. Last but not least, OxygenOS 13 also brings Spatial Audio support for select devices that offers a more immersive experience to users.

OnePlus OxygenOS 13 beta rollout roadmap:

Starting Q4 2022 OnePlus Nord 2T 5G OnePlus Niord CE 2 Lite 5G

Starting H1 2023:

OnePlus Nord 2 5G OnePlus CE 2 5G OnePlus Nord CE 5G

Apart from this, other supported OnePlus devices have also started to receive the OxygenOS 13 update. The company has also confirmed that the Nord N20 SE will get a stable update later in 2023. Since the beta update will be released on a batch-by-batch basis, not all users will get the update at first, and it will be available in select markets only. 

If you do wish to get the OxygenOS 13 update on a supported phone then you’ll need to sign up for the beta program, and then you can keep checking for updates in the settings app.

For more technology news, product reviews, sci-tech features and updates, keep reading Digit.in.

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