Top News
* ESPN Inc. struck a multiyear agreement with Conference USA to ramp up college sports offerings on the ESPN+ streaming service, according to a post on ESPNMediaZone.com. The digital deal will deliver more than 175 C-USA games each year.
* Google Inc. will not use artificial intelligence for technologies that can cause harm in weapons or in surveillance software, Google CEO Sundar Pichai said in an official blog post. Pichai said the U.S. search giant will instead work with governments and the military in other areas such as search and rescue, cybersecurity, training, military recruitment and veterans' healthcare.
* With just days until U.S. net neutrality rules are set to end, Republicans and Democrats from the Federal Communications Commission remain divided on how the rule change will impact consumers, with the GOP promising more competition and the left warning of censorship.
Technology
* Microsoft Corp.'s acquisition of GitHub Inc. is expected to be a boon to both companies, providing development platform GitHub with more resources and enabling Microsoft to further explore open-source software opportunities. Cowen analyst Gregg Moskowitz said in a recent note that Microsoft's GitHub acquisition will allow the tech giant to monetize open source development by charging subscription fees and incorporating its proprietary software into open source libraries.
* Speaking at the Hong Kong IoT Conference 2018, the city's secretary for innovation and technology, Nicholas Yang, told the audience that a confluence of artificial intelligence, big data analytics and internet of things technology is needed to transform Hong Kong into a successful smart city.
* As companies and organizations ramp up investments in cybersecurity, in the wake of Europe's increased data privacy controls, industry executives said that creating a privacy-conscious culture will be more crucial for compliance. Cybersecurity experts at the annual Infosecurity Europe conference in London agreed that, while meeting regulatory demands is the top priority, businesses must steer clear of simply ticking boxes and instead pursue a system where transparency and accountability become second nature.
Wireless
* The U.S. Department of Justice is investigating the impact of T-Mobile US Inc.'s proposed merger with Sprint Corp. on smaller wireless operators, Reuters reports, citing two sources with knowledge of the matter. Smaller wireless operators buy network access from the larger providers at wholesale rates to offer packages to their own subscribers, who are often prepaid users or budget conscious.
Internet & OTT
* Facebook Inc. said it discovered a bug that suggested people post publicly when they were creating Facebook posts. In an official post, Facebook Chief Privacy Officer Erin Egan said the bug, which affected around 14 million people, occurred while the company was building a new way to share featured items on a user's profile.
* Netflix Inc. picked up worldwide film rights to Gulfstream Pictures Production's "The Last Summer," an ensemble romantic comedy. The company will release the film in 2019, according to a news release.
* DISH Network Corp.'s Sling TV service added Cheddar Big News, a new digital network from Cheddar focused on headlines and top stories, Multichannel News reports. Cheddar Big News is available on the Sling Orange and Sling Blue subscription packages.
* Apple Inc. acquired rights to develop a drama series based on Gregory David Robert's novel "Shantaram," Variety reports. The 2003 novel tells the story of a man on the run from an Australian prison who moves to Bombay.
The day ahead
Early morning futures indicators pointed to a lower opening for the U.S. market.
In Asia, the Hang Seng declined 1.76% to 30,958.21, and the Nikkei 225 decreased 0.56% to 22,694.50.
In Europe, around midday, the FTSE 100 was down 0.66% to 7,653.51, and the Euronext 100 was down 0.40% to 1,053.12.
On the macro front
The wholesale trade report and the Baker-Hughes Rig Count report are due out today.
Featured news
The Daily Dose Europe: Amazon secures UK Premier League rights; BT CEO to step down: Amazon has acquired exclusive rights to stream selected Premier League matches in the U.K., while British Telecom CEO Gavin Patterson will step down as CEO.
The Daily Dose Asia-Pacific: ZTE reaches US$1.4B settlement with US; Google-Huawei ties drawing scrutiny: The U.S. agreed to a US$1.4 billion settlement with ZTE Corp. that would lift the seven-year export ban imposed on the telco equipment-maker, while Google's relationship with Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. is drawing scrutiny from some U.S. lawmakers.
The Program Guide: 'Shark Week' returns for 30th anniversary; '13 Reasons Why' renewed for season 3:Stories about the renewal of "13 Reasons Why," Apple's straight-to-series order for a show about an acclaimed 19th-century poet and Discovery Channel (US)'s 30th anniversary celebration for "Shark Week" are included in this edition of The Program Guide.
Hires and Fires: Nickelodeon president stepping down; Twitter revamps content partnerships group: Cyma Zarghami is stepping down as president of Viacom Inc.'s Nickelodeon Group after more than 30 years with the network, while Twitter Inc. is overhauling its global content partnerships group as part of a strategic move.
Hires and Fires: XO Group chairman steps down; Univision sees board changes: XO Group Inc. co-founder David Liu stepped down as chairman of the company's board, while Univision Communications Inc. also saw some board changes.
Tencent, Bytedance war heats up; Discovery channels may go dark on StarHub: Tencent Holdings Ltd. and Bytedance have filed lawsuits against each other, while Discovery Inc.'s portfolio of 11 channels may be dropped from StarHub's platforms following a payment dispute.
Featured research
Technology: DOCSIS 3.1 deployments complemented by video QAM channel surge in Q1'18: A surprising year-over-year surge in converged cable access platform video quadrature amplitude modulation channels suggests that cable MSOs are preparing their video delivery networks for the pending transition to distributed access architectures.
Economics of TV & Film: Kagan Box Office Report, week 22: The summer season is red hot in 2018, with week 22 box office up 5.8% from $190.8 million in 2017 to $201.8 million in 2018. Total gross for the summer season is now up 30.2% to $1.17 billion in 2018 compared to $902.1 million in 2017.
Economics of Internet: Profile: iQIYI (China): iQIYI Inc.'s subscription online video offering is part of a multifaceted IP ecosystem that includes free, ad-supported and transactional content, a social media platform, live broadcasting, online gaming and online literature.
Economics of Networks: Widely distributed cable networks shed subs by 1% on average in June: An analysis of June universe estimates from Nielsen Holdings.
Multichannel Trends: Shares in non-cable multichannel operators lag overall pay TV market: The top telcos' stocks have struggled while smaller wireline players are up since the year began as they execute their growth strategies.
Technology: Apple launches new smart speaker as iPhone X sales surpass expectations: Apple's new iPhone X continued to help increase iPhone sales during the first quarter of 2018 despite rumors of weak demand for the device.
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