Report claims Yahoo! plans to lure YouTube stars to its own video service

Yahoo! is reportedly working on a new video site geared towards having more established stars and networks use the service than the more open-to-all approach of YouTube. And to do so, it would seem they are trying to lure away YouTube’s big stars with more money, including better ad revenue, boosted marketing, and guaranteed ad rates. Recode claims Yahoo! is planning to get the ball rolling on this project in the coming months.

HTC tipped to release One M8 Mini and M8 Ace

HTC One M8 is barely out the door and already rumours are swirling that there will be two variants based on HTC’s new flagship. @evleaks on Twitter reports that there will be a One M8 Mini and M8 Ace. The mini version is supposedly “confirmed” while the Ace is still up in the air. We can’t verify the veracity of the rumours at the moment but would you ever consider getting a less powerful version of the the One M8?

Source: Ubergizmo

iTunes Radio adds NPR as first news station

Apple is bringing talk radio into its iTunes Radio streaming service with the introduction of NPR. This first and new non-music station will run 24 hours a day and offer both live reporting as well as pre-recorded NPR shows. This new addition will help open NPR to new markets and help Apple differentiate its service from other streaming audio services. According to Tech Crunch, there are rumours going around that iTunes Radio will be offered to other markets, including Canada and UK. Hopefully, we can verify the veracity of that information. 

Apple reportedly working on Spotify competitor, iTunes Android app

Apple is tipped to be working with record label executives to build an on-demand streaming music service that can take on the likes of Spotify and thinking of creating an iTunes Store app for Android. A report from Billboard cited three unnamed sources that claim the “exploratory talks” are in its very early stages.

Apple does seem to need to rethink its strategy with iTunes. Nielsen reports downloading on the platform has dropped 13 percent from the week of March 9 and digital track sales are down 11 percent from 2013.

Source: CNET