Josh Constine
TechCrunch
San Francisco, CA, United States
Contact Josh
Discover and connect with journalists and influencers around the world, save time on email research, monitor the news, and more.
| Recent: |
|
Recent articles by Josh:
FB QVC? Facebook tries Live video shopping
Want to run your own home shopping network? Facebook is now testing a Live video feature for merchants that lets them demo and describe their items for viewers. → Read More
Facebook ends platform policy banning apps that copy its features
Facebook will now freely allow developers to build competitors to its features upon its own platform. Today Facebook announced it will drop Platform Policy section 4.1 which stipulates “Add something unique to the community. → Read More
Uber Eats test lets restaurants trade discounts for ranking boost
Uber Eats has effectively invented its own native ad unit. → Read More
Facebook adds free TV shows Buffy, Angel, Firefly to redefine Watch
Facebook hasn’t had a hit show yet for its long-form video hub Watch, so it’s got a new plan: digging up some deceased cult favorites from television. → Read More
Instagram now lets you share Stories to a Close Friends list
No one wants to post silly, racy, or vulnerable Stories if they’re worried their boss, parents, and distant acquaintances are watching. So to get people sharing more, and more authentically, Instagram will let you share to fewer people. → Read More
Spike Diabetes applies social pressure to keep patients safe
It can be tough for diabetes patients to keep a constant eye on their glucose levels. Spike Diabetes lets family and doctors lend a hand by sending them real-time alerts about the patient’s stats. → Read More
Facebook exempts news outlets from political ads transparency archive
Facebook pissed off journalists earlier this year when it announced that ads run by news publishers to promote their articles involving elected officials, candidates, and national issues would be included alongside political campaign ads in its ads transparency archive, albeit in a separate section… → Read More
Facebook staff discussed selling API access to app developers in 2012-2014
Following a flopped IPO in 2012, Facebook desperately brainstormed new ways to earn money. → Read More
Facebook must police Today In, its local news digest launching in 400 cities
Facebook has a new area of its app it will have to police for fake news and biased sensationalism. → Read More
Meet ‘Bitski’, the single sign-on wallet crypto desperately needs
The mainstream will never adopt blockchain-powered decentralized apps (dApps) if it’s a struggle to log in. They’re either forced to manage complex security keys themselves, or rely on a clunky wallet-equipped browser like MetaMask. → Read More
Facebook launches Watch Party for all, tests Live PiP commentating
Facebook Watch has failed to capture viewers with its content, so it’s hoping to differentiate through the company’s core strength: social. → Read More
Facebook denies report that election war room was disbanded
Facebook’s election war room monitors and dashboards remain, since so does the threat of election interference. → Read More
Tech giants offer empty apologies because users can’t quit
A true apology consists of a sincere acknowledgement of wrong-doing, a show of empathic remorse for why you wronged and the harm it caused, and a promise of restitution by improving ones actions to make things right. → Read More
LinkedIn cuts off email address exports with new privacy setting
A win for privacy on LinkedIn could be a big loss for businesses, recruiters, and anyone else expecting to be able to export the email addresses of their connections. → Read More
Amazon admits it exposed customer email addresses, doubles down on secrecy
Amazon’s renowned secrecy encompasses its response to a new security issue, withholding info that could help victims protect themselves. → Read More
Internal Facebook memo sees Elliot Schrage takes responsibility for hiring Definers
TechCrunch has attained an internal memo published by Facebook’s outgoing head of public policy Elliot Schrage in which he blames himself for hiring PR firm Definers. → Read More
LinkedIn launches its own Snapchat Stories: “Student Voices”
The social media singularity continues with the arrival of Snapchat Stories-style slideshows on LinkedIn as the app grasps for relevance with a younger audience. → Read More
Facebook is finally rolling out its “how long do I spend on Facebook” dashboard
15 weeks after Facebook announced its “Your Time On Facebook” tool that counts how many minutes you spend on the app, the feature is finally rolling out around the world. → Read More
Instagram kills off fake followers, threatens accounts that keep using apps to get them
Instagram is fighting back against automated apps people use to leave spammy comments or follow then unfollow others in hopes of growing their audience. → Read More
Genies brings lifelike avatars to other apps with $10M from celebrities
Genies is emerging as the top competitor to Snapchat’s wildly popular Bitmoji as Facebook, Apple, and Google have been slow to get serious about personalized avatars. → Read More