Amazon’s ‘Lord of the Rings’ series might have bits and pieces of Peter Jackson’s take on Middle-earth

While Amazon’s multi-season show based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s expansive Middle-earth universe isn’t going to directly carry over from the Peter Jackson movie adaptations of Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit, it seems there might be elements of it in the series. At least this is according to the report from The Hollywood Reporter, which also claims that production must start “within two years.” Amazon said to have worked out a deal with New Line Cinemas and Warner Bros. to let them use bits of the movies in the rumoured five-season show. But the show, as Amazon describes, will “explore new storylines preceding J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring.” There is also talk of possible spinoff series. With rich world Tolkien created in these books, Amazon certainly has a lot of material to work with.

According to THR’s report, it isn’t certain if Jackson will be involved in the production. But this acquisition does help Amazon face up against the other big names in video streaming and content creation. It’s said that Amazon is expected to spend around US$1 billion on the show for the duration of its run. Now, whether this will be a hit with the fans is another question altogether and one we can only answer when the show or shows do materialize. 

Source: The Verge

Amazon becomes the world’s second most valuable company

The e-commerce giant overtakes Google as the world’s second most valuable company. Amazon has had its stock skyrocket for the past couple of years with things like the popularity of its shopping services, Alexa-powered devices, and even its offline efforts like the Go store and the acquisition of Whole Foods. Basically, as Android Authority points out, it’s due to the company being a market leader in several businesses. Amazon has overtaken Google’s parent company Alphabet with the former now valued at US$768 billion and the latter at $716 billion. Apple remains the world’s most valuable company with a market cap of $889 billion.

Amazon and Twitch will start giving away free games to Prime members

Amazon and Twitch partnered over a year ago with a promise to improve the experience for its users. Now one of the benefits is that Twitch Prime users will be getting 10 free games over the next two months. With eight out of the 10 games coming out of the Twitch Prime Indie Amplifier. The two companies are kicking it off with Superhot and Oxenfree, marking the first time Amazon and Twitch are using their partnership to give away games for free. You can check out the rest of the games here.

Source: The Verge

Amazon is recalling 260,000 AmazonBasics power banks due to ‘fire and burn hazards’

If you purchased an AmazonBasics power bank recently, you should expect to get an email from Amazon notifying you that the product is being recalled due to overheating reports. According to the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission, “the power bank’s battery can overheat and ignite, posing fire and burn hazards.” Amazon has reportedly gotten 53 reports of these incidents happening so far and it’s asking users to stop using the product. The power banks affected have the model numbers B00ZQ4JQAA, B00LRK8JDC, B00LRK8IV0, B00LRK8I7O, B00LRK8EVO, and B00LRK8HJ8 and come with 16,100mAh, 10,000mAh, 5,600mAh, 3,000mAh, 3,000mAh (with microUSB cable), and 2,000mAh (with micro USB cable) battery capacities.

The company is asking consumers to confirm through the link in an email that they still have the product and that they follow disposal instructions. A gift card will be issued within 10 working days for those confirmed to have the unit. If you bought one of the units and you still haven’t been contacted by Amazon, you can get in touch with the retailer online through this link or call Amazon toll-free at 855-215-5134 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET Monday through Saturday.

Source: Android Authority