Amazon Continues to Dominate Ecommerce With 61% of Product Searches

Ecommerce has turned into a main focus for most major tech companies because of the fact that this is the sort of thing that could potentially end up allowing them to leverage their user bases and profit off of them greatly. While Meta and Google have made their own forays into the world of ecommerce, and Chinese companies like Alibaba have done much to diversify offerings, the reigning regent of the ecommerce sector continues to be Amazon with all things having been considered and taken into account.

According to a report recently released by Insider Intelligence, around 61% of searches for products done by Americans originate on Amazon. With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that search engines like Google are falling well behind, with only 49% of product searches starting off on those platforms. This is an interesting revelation, since it suggests that Amazon is one of the few companies that have managed to challenge the dominance of search engines such as Google in terms of helping customers find the products they are looking for.

Coming in third is Walmart with about 32% of searches, and it should also be noted that YouTube is where 20% of these searches start off. Combining YouTube and Google gives the tech giant a bit of a lead on Amazon, but it still suggests that there is no single entity that is capable of challenging Amazon’s supremacy in this particular sector.

Another interesting tidbit that can be found in this information is that around 11% of product searches are now starting on TikTok. 11% might seem low, but in spite of the fact that this is the case TikTok is a very new platform and its surge in popularity suggests that it has a strong chance of toppling Amazon in the near future. Its popularity among younger users as well as a slew of new ecommerce oriented features and upgrades to the platform make it a contender for the top spot, and that will spell bad news for Amazon in the long term.

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by Zia Muhammad via Digital Information World

Back to School Season Marred By Massive Uptick in Education Sector Cyberattacks

Malicious actors who participate in cyber attacks often change their targets up based on the season because of the fact that this is the sort of thing that could potentially end up maximizing the efficacy of their attacks. New data that has been revealed by Atlas VPN suggests that the education sector has become a prime target for cyber attacks over the past thirty days, and it is interrupting the return to school for a lot of children and parents.

Based on this data, the education sector has faced around 171,000 cyber attacks on a daily basis. With all of that having been said and now out of the way, it is important to note that this totals around 5.13 million cyber attacks, and it represents 80% of the total cyber attacks conducted during this period. The only other sector that came anywhere close to the education industry was that of retailers, and cyber attacks targeting retail outlets barely crossed the half million mark with all things having been considered and taken into account.

The shift to digitized education that started to occur during the peak of the pandemic have likely played a role in this occurrence. As more and more education is conducted through digital means, malicious actors have an increased chance of conducting successful cyber attacks. This is something that parents should keep in mind, since it might result in their children’s private data getting leaked to malicious actors who would sell it to the highest bidder.

In spite of the fact that this is the case, cyber attacks targeting this sector don’t seem to be focusing on educational institutions. Rather, they tend to prioritize enterprises who offer services in the niche. Hence, it is the companies who are digitizing education that are at the most risk here, and steps should be taken to improve their cybersecurity during the back to school season.

Upticks in cyber attacks are a common occurrence during this period of the year, and a lot of work needs to be done to keep them from doing too much harm to the industry.

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by Zia Muhammad via Digital Information World

Samsung’s new Galaxy Z Fold 4 is a good phone, but you can’t trust it to replace your current one

Samsung is undeniably one of the best android smartphone companies in the world and has created a lot of phones throughout the years. Samsung is generally a very affordable smartphone brand except for the GalaxyS22 Ultra and now this phone as well.

While folding phones seem like a good idea on paper, they aren’t of much practical use. Hey, don’t get me wrong, everybody loves tablets and everybody likes phones, so we can’t blame Samsung for wanting to get the best of both worlds. Also, we have to give credit to Samsung for willingly choosing to bear the consequences of finding out how to make a good foldable phone that not only has a unique design but is also practical as well.

Last year Samsung released the Galaxy Z fold 3 which was a very good foldable phone and this year’s Galaxy Z Fold 4 is even better, if only a little bit, but better.

Also, another thing that Samsung has managed to overlook is, why would anybody want a phone that is ultimately heavier on the wallet, fragile, and comes with a million compromises as well. Well, Samsung isn’t the one lacking in this department, as nobody has ever explained how foldable phones are better and ultimately the superior choice.

So to sum it up, what Samsung and all the other companies will eventually have to do is convince people that a foldable phone with all its cons is better than your phone, and you should get one. This phone is just a heavier, larger version of the S22 Ultra, how? Let me tell you.

The s22 ultra has a better battery life, better specs, and better camera quality as well. The S22 Ultra also supports the S pen. The Z4’s battery dies quickly, the screen looks weird, is almost 2 times thicker, and is an ounce heavier than the S22 Ultra.

Not to mention, the phone also costs that buyer 600 dollars more than what they would spend on an S22 Ultra. Also, the phone makes a lot of sacrifices to make way for Reality. But, it does not make sense to me why Samsung would demand such a sacrifice from its consumers.

The first point that the company offers about the phone on their website is that this phone can be propped up and can be used to talk or make videos hands-free. But, that is not a good bargain as you can get a phone stand from your local mobile appliances shop for a couple of dollars only.

Read next: Instagram Rolls Out Innovative Hands-Free Creation Option For Flip Phones From Samsung
by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World

Google Says Its New AI Model Is Producing Reliable Snippets For Users’ Searches

In case you weren’t aware, that tiny bit of information that pops up each time you make a search query on Google is known as a snippet. It’s usually highlighted and is bound to give you a brief understanding of what the answer to your search is like in the shortest time.

Now that we know you’re on board with us regarding what featured snippets are, let’s turn our attention to Google which says it's making use of AI-based technology to improve its snippets along the way.

And so far, the search engine giant says things are definitely moving according to plan as the results are not only more reliable but have greater accuracy too, thanks to the new AI-driven model.

The model is called Multitask Unified Model (MUM) that Google Search uses to arrive at a consensus whenever it plans on including a snippet that has to be featured next.

The great thing about this new model is how it has the capability to check various snippets by comparing them with other highly valuable sources on the web.

Therefore, when required, it can even check to see if the information is factual or not, even if the terms used by other sources are different. The only thing here that needs to be the same is the idea or the concept.

According to Google, the technique is very meaningful, not to mention super useful too. It has managed to really alter the quality of user searches and snippet callouts in the most helpful manner.

Meanwhile, experts claim that some questions can’t rely on AI models, especially those related to false premises. They end up putting feature snippets on display that isn’t really the greatest way to have information delivered. So to accommodate this, Google says it had to have its AI for searches altered as well.

This way, the particular update in question ends up producing fewer triggering snippets for such queries, dropping by nearly 40%.

Google also recently talked about how it plans on garnering greater access to its famous too called ‘About this Result’. This is the name given to panels that suddenly appear when a user presses the tab having three dots near a search result. This displays information on source websites, right before users make a visit.

Google is planning for a launch as early as this year, where around eight languages would be a part of the lineup. Meanwhile, it also hopes to include more types of information for the tool as well.

Common things we can expect to see are the way information gets circulated, any reviews pertaining to a firm, and also if a company is in the ownership of another entity. This way, users could better determine if what they’re seeing is reliable or not.

Last but not least, Google says that in case the snippet is deemed to be questionable, it will surely inform users with the help of a content advisory.

This way, users can stay at the top of their search game and be well alert and informed of the information displayed in the results.

Read next: Google Search has rolled out a new feature that will let users see images in split screen
by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

Instagram Rolls Out Innovative Hands-Free Creation Option For Flip Phones From Samsung

Just when you thought the classic trend of flip phones was long gone comes leading tech giant Samsung and its innovative range of mobile devices with a flip twist. And it’s safe to say the new findings have really caught many people’s eyes.

But wait, that’s not all. Popular social media app Instagram is on the lookout to well align itself with this trending reign of flip-phone devices. The platform plans on doing just that through the recent launch of several recording options for creators with Samsung devices that are surprisingly hands-free.

The announcement was recently made by the company through a blog post. It spoke about how there are a number of apps by Meta that have been designed to work well against such devices. But keeping that aside, Instagram now plans to make users adapt to the ultimate experience on flip phones.

Using the FlexCam that’s recently available across Galaxy Z Flip4 devices, users get the chance to fold the device and put it on any standing surface in a freestanding position. This way, users can easily record their content without using their hands. Similarly, they can make more Reels and Instagram stories too without requiring any stand or their usual tripod setup.

There are plenty of graphical illustrations that put the new feature on display, providing a seamless way through which users can capture their content on Instagram. Moreover, the whole concept of this flip display also enables users to get the best still-shots with in-built stands for working effortlessly on flat surfaces.

Even without such devices, Instagram users have the opportunity to make use of the option for Hands-Free, which can be availed as a mode that’s in-built into the app as a camera tool. So from that aspect, it’s not really a huge advancement but as far as flip phone users are concerned, it’s definitely something new.

They get the chance to be aligned with stable and better-quality shots, not to mention the best opportunity to record your videos on Instagram.

In addition to this piece of news, Instagram was recently reported as mentioning how hard it’s working to bring forward more options that enhance its features for Android users such as better loading times and great support for videos having high resolutions.

We need to keep an eye out for such updates as they’re currently still in the development phase. But for now, if you’ve got the cool new Samsung flip phone, well, then you can avail these hands-free options immediately.

Read next: Instagram CEO Highlights Control Features That Better Customize What Users See On The App
by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World

Report shows that watch time of live gaming streams significantly dropped just recently across gaming platforms

The streaming of video games has become a popular activity since 2010 on the American app, Twitch. Later, it continues to make its way to YouTube, Meta (formerly Facebook), and other services. Streamlabs, a software company, and Stream Hatchet's yearly streaming report indicates that from April to June, gamers on Twitch streaming , YouTube Gaming, and Facebook Gaming broadcasts came live for 273 million hours, and the report represents 19.4% low from the second quarter of the last year and 12% from the past quarter.

According to Streamlabs and Stream Hatchet’s report, the audience became part of live broadcasts for only 7.36 billion hours across the gaming sites past quarter. This shows a decline of 18.1% YOY (in the mid of 2021, viewership stands at around 9 billion hours) and 8.4% from the Q2 of 2022. The fundamental reason for a downturn of viewers towards these gaming platforms could be due to a shift of trend from online gaming to physical gaming as now people are not restricted to sitting at home as they were during the pandemic.

Considering the widely used gaming service, Twitch which is undoubtedly the best among YouTube gaming and Facebook gaming, has got more than half (76%) of the market share concerning hours watched which was 5.64 billion, and 92.7% of hours streamed (a total of 204.2 million hours). The statistics fell by 13.4% and 16% from the previous year's Q2. Furthermore, the report highlights that the new channels streaming on Twitch also declined by 2 million to 9.6 million. Despite this, a popular Twitch app category, Twitch's Just Chatting, grows daily, and the number of hours watched has risen to 2.2& from the last quarter. This Just chatting category has got the top viewership. The frequently-watched categories included (GTA) Vice City, with a time spent of 465 million hours, and League of Legends, with 464 million hours viewership.

Apart from Twitch, YouTube Gaming observed consistent growth from last quarter, although it declined by 13.1% from the previous year's second quarter to 1.13 billion hours. In addition, the total hours streamed also reduced by 9.6% YoY to 8.05 million.

Another live gaming streams platform, Facebook Gaming, saw a much bigger decline ratio, notwithstanding Mark Zuckerberg's efforts not to take a commission from creators, making money from Facebook and Instagram. Still, the watch time decreased by 51% from last year to 580 million. Moreover, the number of hours streamed also dropped to 7.9 million last quarter compared to 20.8 million in the second quarter of 2021.

We hope that sooner or later, the numbers will grow again, folks will again prefer indoor gaming streams, and these platforms will catch up with more viewership as it was during the pandemic.

Read next: New Study Proves How Small Businesses Are Suffering Thanks To Apple’s App Tracking Transparency
by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World

A New YouTube Creator Insider Video Reveals New Features And Experiments On The Way

A new YouTube Creator Insider video delves into more descriptive description boxes on videos, a new experiment with data stories, updates to Studio Mobile, and the addition of stickers.

Honestly, you’d probably be better off giving the actual Creator Insider video linked below a watch as well. They’re very well made, concise, and sum up important points in a neat, digestible content package. I honestly love the initiative, and it helps the average audience familiarize themselves with YouTube’s staff as well. Devs are no longer unknowns hunched over computers: they have faces and names to them. With all that aside, let’s take a look at the first feature being discussed, which is the addition of more descriptions to a video’s description boxes. More specifically, information about locations in the video will now be added to the box via Google Maps.

This feature was initially limited to select restaurants and cafes and was only available across the mobile version of YouTube. The feature has now expanded to include a variety of other locations as well, specifically the categories of travel locations, recreational facilities, and businesses. Of course, such locations are also initially limited as well, with more and more being added to the mix as the feature expands. It’s also still not available across desktops, limiting creators to their mobile phones and tablets. However, it should also be specified that with such an experimental feature, maybe creators either don’t like the suggested locations to be added, or they’d like to edit in more. For this, automatic additions can be turned off via settings, and other changes can be made during the editing process of a video.

Next, we have a new experiment that YouTube’s holding for creators on the platforms, specifically with regards to the data stories feature. Data stories are essentially accumulations of certain insights and stats that might be useful to a budding YouTuber, and they’re capped off by suggestions about what a channel should do to grow more. Of course, YouTube’s algorithm has been a decisively strong magnet of criticism, and such suggestions coming from an AI might come off as judgmental at the least, and frankly unhelpful at most. Therefore, YouTube is going to test it out with a limited pool of content creators, gauge their reactions, and proceed accordingly.

New updates to Studio Mobile make it so that users can now change a channel’s name, banner, avatar, and description. This is honestly a feature that might make the Studio Mobile app fully viable; however, the Creator Insider video was clear on the fact that this feature will roll out slowly, and will take the entirety of August. Finally, limited creators with access to iOS will be able to send stickers in response to their fans and community whenever they’re live streaming.

Read next: YouTube is releasing a feature that will allow users to zoom into a video but it will only be available for premium users
by Arooj Ahmed via Digital Information World