In today’s wrapup of technology news:
- Automated Insights gets big press for fantasy football program
- DirecTV shareholders OK AT&T deal
- FBI criticizes new data protection of Apple and Google devices
- FAA gives OK for use of drones in movie making
The details:
- A Shout-Out for Durham’s Automated Insights
“The algorithm that can make fantasy football even more fun” – so reads the headline in The Washington Post about Automated Insight’s artificial intelligence programming that produces millions of articles used by fantasy football fans.
Matt McFarland writes:
“Yahoo Sports has found a way to make our beloved fantasy teams seem even more important. It’s turned to a tech company in North Carolina to auto-generate personalized articles about the thousands of fantasy football teams in its leagues. For the third year Yahoo has had weekly recaps for each of the thousands of matchups in its leagues. It’s the kind of effort that would be impossible if Yahoo relied on human writers.
“In 2013 the Durham-based start-up with about 30 employees published 300 million articles via its content-generating platform, Wordsmith. This year Automated Insights expects to auto-generate more than 1 billion articles for clients ranging from Yahoo Sports to Edmunds.com and the Associated Press.”
Read the full report online.
- DirecTV Shareholders Approve AT&T Merger
As expected, DirecTV shareholders on Thursday voted overwhelmingly to approve a $48.5 billion sale to AT&T.
The results were announced at a shareholder meeting in New York.
The deal is expected to close next April, pending regulatory approval, Bloomberg News reported.
- FBI chief: New phone encryption could cost lives
The FBI director is criticizing the decision by Apple and Google to encrypt smartphones data so it can be inaccessible to law enforcement with a court order.
James Comey told reporters at FBI headquarters that U.S. officials are in talks with the two companies. He accuses the companies of letting people put themselves beyond the law’s reach.
He cited child kidnapping and terrorism cases as two examples of situations where quick access by authorities to cellphone data can save lives.
Apple and Google announced last week that their new operating systems will be encrypted, or rendered in code, by default. Law enforcement could still intercept conversations but might not be able to access call data, contacts, photos and email stored on the phone.
- FCC OKs Drones for Movies
The government granted six movie and television production companies permission to use drones for filming, an important step toward greater use of the technology by commercial operators, Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx announced Thursday.
Dozens of other industries are lined up to follow Hollywood’s lead. Until now, the Federal Aviation Administration, which is part of the Transportation Department, had banned commercial drone operations with the exception of a lone oil company in Alaska.
However, the FAA permits come with limitations, including that the unmanned aircraft be used only in a restricted area and that they be flown under 400 feet in altitude and within the line of sight of an operator who holds a private pilot’s license. Each aircraft must be inspected before flight, and nighttime flights are prohibited. Reality television shows or other unscripted events won’t qualify for the permits.
