The Global Linkup is a summary roundup of important tech news curated from all around the globe. In this week’s edition, Akon wants to build Wakanda, Facebook is testing a paid model, Instagram is coming for YouTube, and Intel CEO is forced to resign. Read on.
Akon, Akoin and Wakanda
At the Cannes Lions Festival on Monday, Senegalese Grammy-nominated singer, songwriter and record producer Akon announced Akoin; a cryptocurrency named after him.
The BBC reports that Akon said he believes crypto is the saviour of Africa and so has made plans to build a "crypto city" in Senegal which he calls "a real-life Wakanda". The city will be a short drive from the country’s capital in Dakar. It will be "the first 100% crypto-based city and will use the Akoin ecosystem for transactions".
According to The Verge, the Akon Crypto City as it will be called has reportedly already gotten a 2,000 acre gift from the president of Senegal. The city will have real-life high tech and amenities like Wakanda.
Instagram TV, death to YouTube?
At a media event in San Francisco on Wednesday, Instagram announced IGTV that will give content creators longer video limits of up to 1 hour. Instagram also officially announced it had reached 1 billion users.
According to an Instagram blog post, like a regular television, IGTV has channels except that the content creators are the channels you can switch between. Content creators can record vertical high quality videos and watching a video is as simple as opening the app. Even though IGTV has its own app, Instagram says it will be available on the main Instagram app for accessibility.
A TechCrunch report says viewers will be able to see a variety of longer-form videos, browse personally recommended and popular videos, get alerts from creators they follow on new content and continue watching previously started videos.
There are currently no ads on IGTV but according to reports, Instagram co-founder and CEO Kevin Systrom says it is the best place to place ads, so they will definitely come in the future.
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With its growing number of users, Instagram is looking ready to take on YouTube with IGTV.
Intel CEO resigns
Last year, major chip manufacturer Intel came under heavy fire over their reaction to the Meltdown and Spectre security flaws. They quickly remedied this with a series of updates and patches.
However, on Thursday CNBC reports that Intel CEO Brian Krzanich has been forced to step down after 38 years at the company because of a relationship he had had a while back with an Intel staff. Even though the relationship had been consensual at the time, it still violated a non-fraternization policy, which applies to all managers.
Chief financial officer Robert Swan steps in as interim CEO, as search for a permanent one begins.
Facebook is testing a paid model on a small scale
Following Cambridge Analytica, data breach and talks of a paid version of Facebook, the social media network is trialing paid versions for groups.
According to CNET, the feature allows administrators create a paid tier option for their communities. Members can pay will pay between $4.99 to $29.99 for a monthly subscription as access to exclusive content like videos, tutorials and advice.
