Sarah Perez
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This Week in Apps: Apple launches a COVID-19 app, the outbreak’s impact on social and video apps and more
Welcome back to This Week in Apps, the Extra Crunch series that recaps the latest OS news, the applications they support and the money that flows through it all. The app industry saw a record 204 bill
Report: WhatsApp has seen a 40% increase in usage due to COVID-19 pandemic
Social media usage has grown as a result of the COVID-19 crisis, as more users go online to stay connected with family, friends and colleagues. Now, new data from insights and consulting firm Kantar r
Over 30K creators joined Patreon this month, as COVID-19 outbreak spreads
Creative professionals whose livelihoods have been impacted by the COVID-19 outbreak are flocking to membership platform Patreon in record numbers, the company claims. During the first three weeks of
Target pauses plans for grocery pickup amid COVID-19 outbreak
Target is pausing its plans to offer curbside pick-up of groceries and alcoholic beverages, citing the COVID-19 outbreak as the key factor in its decision to delay the launch. Although groceries via O
News-reading app Flipboard expands local coverage, including coronavirus updates, to 12 more US metros
Earlier this year, personalized news aggregation app Flipboard expanded into local news. The feature brought local news, sports, real estate, weather, transportation news and more to 23 cities across
88 out of top 200 US cities have seen internet speeds decline this past week, 3 cities by more than 40%
The impacts of telecommuting, shelter-in-place laws and home quarantines resulting from the COVID-19 outbreak are starting to impact broadband speeds across a number of U.S. cities, a new report has f
Online marketplace OfferUp raises $120M, acquires top competitor letgo
OfferUp, a top online and mobile marketplace app, announced this morning it’s raising $120 million in a new round of funding led by competing marketplace letgo’s majority investor, OLX Gro
Spotify adds fundraising features and a COVID-19 news hub to address the health crisis
Spotify this morning announced a series of new initiatives to address the COVID-19 health crisis across its platform. The company is launching a financial relief effort for those in the creative commu
Second Nature raises $16.4M for ‘healthy home’ subscription products like air and water filters
After a confusing trip to the store to purchase an air filter back in 2012, two N.C. State University students, Thad Tarkington and Kevin Barry, came up with the idea to make this routine home mainten
Pinterest launches a ‘Today’ tab featuring daily recommendations and trending topics
The COVID-19 outbreak has led to record Pinterest usage as people stuck at home have increased their searches for things like lesson plans, kids’ crafts, new recipes and gardening ideas. Last we
Watchworthy’s personalized TV recommendation app will help you find your next binge
Ranker, an online publisher that turns crowdsourced lists and fan rankings into a data business, is now turning its attention to the world of streaming services. The company this week launched a new a
Apple Music adds a personalized playlist of happy songs to cheer you up, plus a work-from-home mix
Apple Music is launching a new playlist the company hopes will raise your spirits during these difficult times. On Monday, the service began rolling out a new personalized playlist called “The G
Streaming service fuboTV to merge with virtual entertainment technology company, FaceBank
Over-the-top live TV streaming service fuboTV announced today it plans to merge with the virtual entertainment technology company, FaceBank Group. The proposed merger would retain the name fuboTV for
Amazon Prime Video is streaming kids’ movies and TV for free, no Prime membership required
Amazon is making a selection of family-friendly and programming for kids available for free streaming on Prime Video as a result of the COVID-19 health crisis, which has people trapped at home. The co
Oprah Winfrey’s new Apple TV+ show, ‘Oprah Talks COVID-19,’ arrives for free streaming
Over the weekend, Apple introduced the first two episodes of its new Apple TV+ show, “Oprah Talks COVID-19,” for free viewing. In the first episode, Oprah Winfrey interviews actor Idris El
The New York Times Company acquires Audm, an app that turns longform journalism into audio
Audm, a startup that turns longform journalism into audio content, has been acquired by The New York Times Company, it announced this morning. While there are other services that turn news articles in
This Week in Apps: Coronavirus special coverage, Apple tries to save AR with lidar and more
Welcome back to This Week in Apps, the Extra Crunch series that recaps the latest OS news, the applications they support and the money that flows through it all. The app industry is as hot as ever, wi
In response to COVID-19, Hulu adds a free live news stream to its on-demand app
In response to the COVID-10 outbreak, Hulu is adding a free, live news stream to its app for customers who only subscribe to its on-demand service, not its live TV add-on. The news coverage is provide
Spotify opens its podcast catalog to third-party apps, but not for streaming
Spotify is opening its podcast catalog to third-party apps. The company this week launched a new version of its Podcast APIs that makes it possible for third-party apps to connect to Spotify in order
Nextdoor adds Help Maps and Groups to connect neighbors during the coronavirus outbreak
Neighborhood social networking app Nextdoor has introduced two new features, Help Maps and Groups, to give people a way to better support one another during the coronavirus outbreak. The Help Map offe