Has the #Spotify privacy policy gone too far? Will you #QuitSpotify? - http://clapway.com/2015/08/23/%e2%80%8bthe-spotify-privacy-policy-has-changed-the-internet-is-going-crazy-342/

Spotify’s new privacy policy has led its users to object to the streaming service that counts more than 20 million paid and 55 million free subscribers. With members threatening to leave the service over changes in terms and conditions, the Spotify chief executive, Daniel Ek, apologised publicly in a written blog post.

THE NEW SPOTIFY PRIVACY POLICY

The new terms and conditions of the music service include access to sensitive and sensor data, found on the users’ smartphones. Phone numbers, photographs, locations and other information stored in your phone have been sent to the Spotify servers if you’ve hit “yes” when the new Ts&Cs popped up.

Yep, that’s what you signed up for.

QUIT SPOTIFY

The hashtag #QuitSpotify has become trending after the announcement, and users all over the world express their complaints to the service with Markus Persson (also known as Notch), creator of Minecraft, tweeting to his 2.4 million followers that he was cancelling his own account.

Spotify has said in response that those changes are meant to improve the user experience. For example, new Spotify terms and conditions request access to how fast users move in order to help the Spotify Running app which matches beats per minute of songs it chooses to play, to the pace you run.

Related post: Amazon Launches Prime Music to Combat Apple Music and Spotify

THE PUBLIC APOLOGY

Mr. Ek apologised in a blog post and he promised an update to the new policy, which will clarify it, but he did not suggest that the terms themselves would be changed.

What he wrote was that the team should have communicated the meaning of these policies better and make clear how the information users share with Spotify will -and will not- be used. Also, he noted that Spotify will not access photos, contacts, GPS or sensor without the user’s permission.

THERE IS A SOLUTION

If you don’t wish to give access to any personal data but you still love using Spotify, the only thing you have to do is accept the new terms of service, and then deny access every time a Spotify prompt hits your screen.

However, Spotify does not want to collect your personal data just for fun or because of a spy-type “New World Order” game. Contacts are most likely to assist you in connecting with friends on the app, and photos and location data are collected to provide advertising agencies with useful, marketing information.

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In case you missed it, we’ve got it for you — find out what you missed this week on Clapway:

 

​The Spotify Privacy Policy Has Changed. The Internet is Going Crazy.

Google Unveils Free Version of Music Streaming Service in the US - http://clapway.com/2015/06/24/google-unveils-free-version-of-music-streaming-service-in-the-us876/

Today, Google launches its free music streaming service, called Google Play Music, for United States residents’ hearing pleasure.

Google, their free music service Google Music Play, and the race for a big debut

Despite Google already having a paid version of their free music streaming service, the worldwide, popular search engine decided to try a new approach. They wanted users to see just how amazing the free service is and eventually decide to subscribe to the paid version. According to recent reports, its paid version “had around 815,000 subscribers in the US last December.”

Speaking of strategies, the race for the big debut was with Apple, as Apple has been speaking of releasing its music streaming service (featuring a 90-day free-trial), Apple Music, on June 30th. Apple’s music streaming service’s debut has been endlessly discussed for a while and it was apparent that the wait would be over. However, due to Google’s sprint for the big debut, they have beat their competition thus far. Will the lead last once Apple releases their music streaming service?

What will be featured in Google Play Music created by Google?

Currently, Google and its free music streaming service, Google Play Music, will feature advertisements, similar to other well-known, popular music streaming services. In addition, it will also feature ways to match music based on many factors, such as what task a person is doing, what mood the person is in, and what kind of music the person feels like listening to. This feature may sound familiar to other music streaming services that are out there today (and it does), and that will be further discussed in-depth.

How Google Play Music curated by Google is different from other free music streaming services out there

Free music streaming service Google Play Music, created by the well-known, heavy-hitting, search engine giant Google, is by no means innovative or revolutionary when it comes to providing music to the general public. Its features conspicuously mimic music streaming apps like Spotify and Songza (which Google actually bought last year). Especially with Songza, Google Play Music is following suit by using their well-known feature which is selecting music based on either mood, task, music genre, or playlist.

Overall, Google’s free music streaming service is only available online and will be released for iOS and Android this week as well. At the moment, there is no further discussion of the streaming service being available being released outside of the US, but the paid version is currently still available in over 50 countries.

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No matter how awesome a free music streaming service may be, it’s useless without good headphones. Check out the wireless bluetooth Rokit Boost SwageU headphones here:

Google Unveils Free Version of Music Streaming Service in the US

If you"re a journalist, this could be of great interest. - http://clapway.com/2015/06/10/apples-latest-news-app-is-worrisome-for-the-journalists-123/

Apple’s News app can algorithmically compile stories from the major media giants.

If you’re a journalist, this could be of great interest. Apple has come up with the latest news app which will compile all the top stories algorithmically thus, controlling the news distribution. This news has definitely taken the entire media world by storm.

The media agencies are mostly worried about the technology companies owning the network and news distribution system. Apple is already is associated with highly established publishing partners for latest app named as News (which includes CNN). Read more about the app here.

News on the News App is expected to be revolutionary for the consumer but a death knell for many.

In this regard, there is huge confusion and one can notice immense war of words from around the world. As per some media companies, it is really difficult to pace up with mammoths in the global arena. Facebook was already controlling on the news consumption and now with the arrival of Apple’s new app, things are going get tougher.

According to the technology experts, this news app going to be more like a personalized magazine owning a large variety of stories. The content is going to be very engaging as it will have equal amount of pictures, maps, audio and visual content. Made for iPhones and iPads, the app is way to reach out to more and more readers. The media outlets which will participate shall be the complete owners of the money they make from selling the ads that are attached to their news. Though, these participants may cede on the control over the news environment.

With the arrival of this app, the individual apps or news brands shall only serve as the source. From the perspective of consumer, this is something great as they have a lot of pure content to read and from strong sources. At the same time, publishers shall also be able to earn brownie points.

News readers will see various topics they are following and publisher channels.

Experts say that from the end of Apple, there are no more loyal to any one news provider rather several places delivering news. This is definitely a setback for many news and media companies. Let’s hope something better comes up for the journalists.

As the early bird gets the worm–or in this case, the news–you’ll want to be awake for it. Try SensorWake to assure of this!:

Apple"s Latest News App Is Worrisome For The Journalists

“Unfriend alert” app is the only app that alerts the users when their friends unfriend them on Facebook. - http://clapway.com/2015/06/08/getting-unfriended-on-facebook-may-cost-your-personal-data-too-123/

The “Unfriend Alert” app steals all your personal information just as you get notified on being unfriended.

Ever thought you could lose your data if someone unfriended you on Facebook? …Yes, this is happening. Experts will tell you users should be sure to be careful in downloading any sort of app. The app “Unfriend Alert” is doing the same to a lot of people. This app is meant to alert you when someone “unfriends” you on the famous social-networking site Facebook. But apart from updating you on this, the app steals your personal data as well. This comes as an alarming news to many and is creating a sense of anxiety as well.

The alert application is free and notifies the user each time his or her friends “unfriend” them from their list on Facebook. Though, while downloading the app, you are required to sign in and fill your password. This app shows ads and installs malicious software on your device. So, before you download, just be alert!

As per experts, the login credentials do not go directly to Facebook rather to yougotunfriended.com (as checked in Wireshark log). Adding to the misery, the app is not shown in the Facebook apps list. As a result, the user may have a tendency to forget about it.

On the flip side, it is monitoring all your activities, so it is recommended that if you have the app in your phone, you should remove it and change your Facebook password right away.

Across the market, the “Unfriend alert” app is the only app that alerts the users when their friends unfriend them on Facebook. But it seems that the app has been designed and developed to steal passwords. For any user, it is extremely important to be alert while downloading apps. Just do not get swayed by swanky free apps. Every app that you download may not be as good as you think. You have to be very cautious with your smartphones and the way you download the apps. You can check the tips here.

Smartphone users should always take care of their devices and never lose them. It is widely recommended to all the app users that they should have anti-virus scanning apps before they go for any other app. The more technology is getting advanced, the more hackers are getting fueled. Across the web, one may find a big number of tools that helps to tackle with the chaos of harmful apps. Find out about them at here.

Just keep yourself alert by following the precautionary measures and having enough anti-virus scanning apps. Let the right apps come to your smartphone.

Technology got you down? No longer with Sun Lifelight!:

Getting Unfriended on Facebook May Cost Your Personal Data, Too