Major publishers are not sitting idly by, while digital textbook pirates use Google Ads to boost their website traffic and profit from subscription services or individual sales, often at a fraction of the market price. The publishing industry, including physical and digital textbooks, is a massive business in the United States, generating over 8.3 billion annually. The … [Read more...] about Should Google do more to prevent textbook piracy?
Google Sued by Publishers on Copyright Infringement Charges
A bunch of publishers has taken Google to court claiming the latter is promoting pirated copies of their books. As Reuters reported, the case has been filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York where the publishers - Cengage, Macmillan Learning, McGraw Hill, and Elsevier - accused Google of making a profit from the sale of pirated e-books that are … [Read more...] about Google Sued by Publishers on Copyright Infringement Charges
France slaps Google with $270 million fine for misuse of news publishers’ data
Publishers have always found themselves at loggerheads with makers of generative AI data models over their use of often copyrighted material for training of the AI models. Now, in a fresh new twist, the competition authority in France, Autorité de la Concurrence has imposed a fine of €250 million on Google for misusing news publishers’ data without consent of the publishers, … [Read more...] about France slaps Google with $270 million fine for misuse of news publishers’ data
Google introduces NotebookLM AI-powered note-taking app
In a groundbreaking move, Google has officially announced the launch of NotebookLM, an AI note-taking app that leverages the capabilities of its Gemini Pro large language model (LLM). This experimental app, originally known as Project Tailwind, was unveiled at Google I/O 2023 and has undergone substantial development. Now, powered by Gemini Pro, it's ready for users aged 18 and … [Read more...] about Google introduces NotebookLM AI-powered note-taking app
AI-generated Poem Postcards on Google’s Arts & Culture app
Recently, Google launched a tool that allows you to make exclusive AI-generated poem postcards according to your choice of artwork and subject. This new tool is added as Google's redesign initiative of its Arts & Culture app. Additionally, it's also a part of its rollout of generative AI features, including text creation in Docs and code generation with AI on … [Read more...] about AI-generated Poem Postcards on Google’s Arts & Culture app
Spotify gets special treatment from Google, exempted from paying Play Store fees
In a recent revelation during the Epic v. Google trial, it has come to light that music streaming giant Spotify has forged a distinctive and seemingly favorable deal with Google for Android-based payments. Google's head of global partnerships, Don Harrison, testified that Spotify managed to secure a remarkable 0 percent commission when users opted for subscriptions through … [Read more...] about Spotify gets special treatment from Google, exempted from paying Play Store fees
Spotify enhances user experience with Google’s AI integration for podcasts and audiobooks
In a groundbreaking move, Spotify has announced an extended collaboration with Google Cloud to leverage advanced language models for an enhanced user experience. By tapping into large language models (LLMs) such as OpenAI's ChatGPT and Google Bard, Spotify aims to revolutionize personalized recommendations within its podcast and audiobook offerings, The Verge … [Read more...] about Spotify enhances user experience with Google’s AI integration for podcasts and audiobooks
Google’s First ‘Book-Style’ Foldable Phone Launched with an Immersive Ebook Experience
Image credit: cnet After years of rumours, Google has finally launched its first foldable phone – The Pixel Fold – at Google I/O 2023. The phone goes head-to-head with Samsung's flagship foldable phone - the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5. Google commemorated the launch by releasing an immersive crime ebook. The tech giant partnered with Ajay Chowdhury, who is the best-selling … [Read more...] about Google’s First ‘Book-Style’ Foldable Phone Launched with an Immersive Ebook Experience
Google testing new ‘Read Aloud’ feature on Chrome browser
Google Chrome browser is poised to receive an upcoming feature that has been surprisingly lacking until now. It is the ability to read aloud online articles or anything that is on the browser, reported XDA-Developers citing tipster @Leopeva64. That includes even e-books or other pieces of texts that you'd rather listen to than read. This, as XDA-Developers reported, has been … [Read more...] about Google testing new ‘Read Aloud’ feature on Chrome browser
New Google AI-powered Search Generative Experience feature will summarize articles for you
Google announced a major new addition to its AI-powered Search Generative Experience (SGE) - its ability to provide you with a quick summary of an article so that you don't have to go through it in its entirety, The Verge reported. This comes on the back of a feature SGE had introduced earlier which essentially summarised search results which saves you from scrolling forever in … [Read more...] about New Google AI-powered Search Generative Experience feature will summarize articles for you
Google to offer native support for eSignatures in Google Docs and Drive
The adoption of electronic signatures as a convenient means for signing legal documents or managing crucial paperwork has seen a surge in recent years. It comes as no surprise, then, that Google is stepping into the realm of electronic signatures with the introduction of native support for eSignatures within Google Docs and Google Drive. As Android Central stated, the tech … [Read more...] about Google to offer native support for eSignatures in Google Docs and Drive
YouTube rolling out new 1080p playback option to select Premium subscribers
YouTube recently began testing a new video quality option called "1080p Premium" with an enhanced bitrate. Exclusively available to YouTube Premium subscribers, this feature promises to deliver a higher-quality viewing experience by providing more information per pixel, The Verge reported. For those unfamiliar with video resolutions, 1080p refers to a video resolution of … [Read more...] about YouTube rolling out new 1080p playback option to select Premium subscribers
Google announces tweaks in the search algorithm to prioritize tablet-oriented apps
Now that the Google Pixel tablet is out of the wild, the next thing the Mountain View company will have to deal with is setting its house in order. That points to making its app ecosystem more conducive to supporting large screen devices, something that can be considered to be of prime importance besides making available a well put-together tablet hardware. Fortunately, changes … [Read more...] about Google announces tweaks in the search algorithm to prioritize tablet-oriented apps
Google Reading Insights will let you keep a tab on your kid’s reading habits
Summer is here which means schools are off and it's time to relax and have fun with the kids. This is also when you can let the child inculcate the habit of reading e-books or listening to an audiobook. After all, nothing perhaps is better than letting them loose on a literary journey, something that they will perhaps be thankful to you for the rest of their life. That said, … [Read more...] about Google Reading Insights will let you keep a tab on your kid’s reading habits