Comcast (CMCSA) announced on Thursday the launch of Sports & News TV, a new video package for its Xfinity internet customers, as part of its strategy to remain competitive in the streaming era.

Comcast launches Sports & News TV package to attract streaming customers

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Comcast Business 2024 Cybersecurity Threat Report: Artificial Intelligence 
Drives New Era of Cyber Threats and Defenses

Comcast Business released its 2024 Cybersecurity Threat Report based on the analysis of 29 billion cybersecurity events detected by Comcast Business across its security customers in 2023.

Comcast Business 2024 Cybersecurity Threat Report: Artificial Intelligence Drives New Era of Cyber Threats and Defenses - Orange County Business Journal

Comcast Business today released its 2024 Cybersecurity Threat Report, a valuable resource for IT and security professionals, based on the analysis of 29 billion cybersecurity events detected by Comcast Business across its security customers in 2023.

Artificial intelligence drives new era of cyber threats and defenses, reports Comcast | Security Info Watch

PHILADELPHIA, October 07, 2024--Comcast Business today released its 2024 Cybersecurity Threat Report, a valuable resource for IT and security professionals, based on the analysis of 29 billion cybersecurity events detected by Comcast Business across its security customers in 2023.

Comcast Business 2024 Cybersecurity Threat Report: Artificial Intelligence Drives New Era of Cyber Threats and Defenses

At Brilliant Detroit’s six technology hubs, the grant will be used to increase the nonprofits ability to provide residents with reliable, high-speed wireless internet

Comcast donates $50k, 60 laptops to Brilliant Detroit to advance digital equity

Comcast today announced the company completed the initial ... and stream leading entertainment, sports, and news through brands including NBC, Telemundo, Universal, Peacock, and Sky; and bring incredible theme parks and attractions to life through ...

Comcast Completes Initial Phase Of Multi-Million-Dollar Broadband Expansion To 700 Homes And Businesses In Mt. Angel, Oregon

Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA) announced that on Thursday, November 16, 2023, Jason Armstrong, Chief Financial Officer of Comcast Corporation, wi

Comcast to Participate in Morgan Stanley Investor Conference

Company will Make Fiber-Rich Xfinity 10G Network Available to More Than 1,000 Homes & BusinessesMt. Angel, OREGON----Comcast today announced the company completed the initial phase of its expansion to

Comcast Completes Initial Phase of Multi-Million-Dollar Broadband Expansion to 700 Homes and Businesses In Mt. Angel, Oregon

Comcast Corporation today published its 2023 Green Bond Report, which outlines the partial allocation of proceeds from its inaugural $1 billion green bond that it issued in February 2023. Comcast allocated $421.8 million of the $995 million net proceeds ...

Comcast Issues 2023 Green Bond Report Highlighting Allocations Made in Green Buildings and Electric Vehicles

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Media Conglomerates Are Taking Over The World

This is a post about two things I see in the evolution of companies, and I wish did not exist. The first is popularizing an all encompassing enemy to start a company, and the second is popularizing an all encompassing enemy to scale a company. So basically, everything I write here can be summarized as, ‘ .’ Are people “convoluted” enough to unite for something? BTW, don’t expect all encompassing facts to support my opinion here. I’ll give you a few examples, but this post comes from my gut—great teams are built from a purpose for something, and not a purpose against something. don’t grow a company by popularizing an all encompassing enemy Startup Phase Too often I see startups say, “We exist because X sucks” where X is the incumbent, the government, the higher priced competitors, the lower priced imitators, or an “inability” to go to the pet store to buy dog food. I get it, the lean startup, your boss, and most venture capitalists out there ask, ‘What problem are you solving for?’ And I get why they are asking this question — who wants to go into business with people who aren’t thinking big? But the question is ultimately flawed because the fundamental problems that exist for the first humans also exist for humans today. The rest is just f*cking details. All long-term businesses impact the customer’s , , , , , , , , , and/or . water food shelter sanitation healthcare education family travel entertainment access to information Saying you’re the “uber of dog biscuits” is going to imply that you’re the dog biscuit company that sexually harasses its employees, and is capable of hailing a cab from your smartphone within 5 minutes. Now, 5 months ago it mostly implied the latter… but which one is your company more likely to achieve? The math clearly indicates that a new company is more likely to be charged for sexual harassment than achieve a $50B evaluation by disrupting the long standing social norm of not getting into a stranger’s car. The point is simpler. Who you are is not who you are not. Product-Market Fit Phase Too often I see established companies say, “We’re not like Y” or “We’re like Y, but we do Z.” For established companies this comparison is often done with a change in tone for when the competitor is mentioned. There’s nothing wrong with admitting similarity — if you’re honest about it. Internet accessibility is a great thing to offer. If it’s reliable, it works. Many of the products and services we pay for are like this — binary, meaning the granular improvement is negligible to the customer’s utility. There’s nothing wrong with many companies offering similar services; in fact it should be the staple of capitalism: many companies willing to provide the goods and services that the population demands. Unfortunately, there is only one decent cable provider in my area, and that is the essence of where this headline unfortunately meets reality. In the the quest to achieve product market fit (aka maximum profits extracted from X subset of population), uniting against a common enemy becomes the norm — until there is no more competition. can literally raise my rates to whatever they see fit — because I need internet access and there is no other provider in my area. Luckily for me, they’ll only raise fees 18% or so year over year! What a great deal, they claim! What luck it is that I am 29 years old in 2017 America! Comcast In reality, this is where the common enemy of the company becomes the customer. True product-market fit is more accurately described as “monopoly.” You may have played this game before. To put it more accurately, you are probably playing this game right now with some/many of your existing bills. Ultimately, if you go down the all encompassing enemy route, your goal is a monopoly, and the reality is, it might work… as in, the tech conglomerate is less companies with more market share but you just may be the next Zuck. Ultimately, I Get It I get why many CEOs do it… if you are united against a common goal, you are — in a convoluted way — united. It’s how many revolutions and countries have been started. Many citizens won’t migrate for universal healthcare but many citizens will migrate when brothers and sisters have been mistreated. But in today’s world, is that the business you want to create? A business that is united against , , , or whatever the next investor deems worth fighting for? Whenever your business lacks a common purpose, it’s easy to go into the well and find a common problem. I I get why many CEOs choose to — figuratively — be the predatory douche at the bar, but I hope to never choose that road for my people. newsfeeds parking garages advertisements Be For Something I’d like to tell you, what I’m for: . I’m for helping the person who is alone with the internet and wants a story about thinking bigger, thinking different, or just, thinking like another interesting person. I work to surface the next great story. With hard work and attention to detail, anyone should be able to tell a story that reaches the people they want to reach. It may happen on the first post or it may happen on the eighth post, but the opportunity to deliver your story is there like it’s never been before. Be a storyteller, and doors will open for your business. digital storytelling

Uniting the Team Against a Common Enemy Is Not Team Building

A shortened and slightly different version of this article originally appeared as a guest post on Venture Beat The popular song “Video Killed the Radio Star”, released by the Buggles in 1979, was an ode to how changes in technology lead directly to changes in fortunes in the entertainment industry. This is a cycle that has played out multiple times, starting with radio to television in the 1950s. In the 1980s, the rise of cable television shook the entertainment industry. These changes are still happening today, as the rise of the Internet gave opportunity for on-demand video and new aggregation and streaming sites like Netflix and Hulu, or Amazon. Today, with the rise of a new type of technology, blockchain, powered by nodes of peer to peer computers around the world and funded by new tokens, will this trend continue? Could decentralized entertainment applications built on blockchain actually replace centralized streaming services like Netflix or Amazon and be the final death knell for Cable? With blockchain-based entertainment on the way, are existing entertainment structures (broadcast, cable, websites) even needed? The answer is not just technical; it also requires understanding how blockchain powered, token-based systems can provide economic incentives to different parts of the entertainment ecosystem. The Evolution of Entertainment Networks Let’s take a look at the history of television and video technology. In the late 1940s/early 1950s broadcast television networks came about. In the early days, these companies (NBC, CBS, etc.) were called “chain networks” because a central signal was sent from New York to nearby cities like Philadelphia, and then were sent onwards to further locations like Detroit, Chicago, etc. (first using a chained physical coaxial cable and then later dedicated microwave links). The local stations were the only ones broadcasting “over the air” to television sets with antennae. Today we would call this the “last mile problem”. Those of us old enough will remember our parents adjusting antennae in order to try to get a clearer signal from the local TV station. Television networks were an early example of a centralized content distribution platform. This tree like structure starts with a central trunk, and branch is like a local station and the leaves individual receivers. This isn’t an unfamiliar network like structure; we see it in airline schedules and in Internet streaming and broadcasting when using CDNs. Since broadcast signals weren’t very strong and didn’t go very far, many households typically had bad reception. Cable solved this problem by extending the coaxial cable all the way to the home — a different solution to the same “last mile” problem. This was a godsend for rural areas. I remember getting cable for the first time when we were living in rural North Dakota in the early 1980s — suddenly we could not only get the broadcast networks, we were able to access channels from far away like WTBS and WGN Chicago. Every new technology leads to new business models, often leaving behind existing players, and cable was no different. HBO, MTV, CNN, and other cable “stations” became common. Fortunes were created in this mass adoption of new technology and new business models (“subscription” and “pay TV”) and today, because of cable, the broadcast networks monopoly on content in homes is long over. Internet Streaming Still Relies on Central Sites Although Netflix started in the DVD era, where the Internet was used to simply place orders, it really came into its current position of dominance with the rise of video streaming via the universally available Netflix app. Today most TV networks have their own mobile apps which can be used to consume content in addition to watching it OTT (Over The Top) internet-based networks. The recent release of only via the CBS app and not having it show on the traditional CBS channels on broadcast or cable was a watershed moment in this regard. Star Trek: Discovery At the same time, websites like Youtube and Twitch have created a new mass market for user-generated content — which has stripped the cable networks and studios of being the only creators of content. Yet, despite the rise of these mega-websites, most high quality scripted entertainment content today, still comes via a largely centralized model, which is then sent down the pipe (Cable, OTT apps). Blockchain Relies on Decentralized Applications How might blockchain impact this ecosystem? The idea of a blockchain, first developed for cryptocurrency (ala Bitcoin) has the power to fundamentally disrupt the entertainment industry because it brings out a completely new, decentralized model for content distribution and monetization. In a blockchain, computers all over the world act together in a peer-to-peer network to work on some task. No central server, and no website or authority exists. The picture looks more like a mesh and not an orderly tree. On the business side, today Netflix and Cable still rely on the idea of “centralized” production, aggregation and distribution. Content creators must get past some number of “gatekeepers” and strike business deals with the network, which then puts it on a server and then distributes it over the air, via coaxial, or more recently, over the internet directly using CDNs (Content Delivery Networks like Akamai or Amazon CloudFront). What content is offered, when it’s offered, the price, and the distribution route are still very proprietary and hierarchical. In a decentralized world, no single website or authority would have a say over what “content” is to be distributed and how it will reach the “last mile”. No website would be able to block specific content. With DApps, or Decentralized Apps for Entertainment, whether it’s for live streaming or on-demand video, thousands of computers around the world would act as “broadcasters” in a mesh network that is not hierarchical. These “super nodes” would then solve the last mile problem by broadcasting the signal to computers that are geographically nearby. This will be particularly effective in countries which don’t have lots of presence from existing CDNs. A number of new crypto projects have cropped up that use either existing blockchains or completely new blockchains as infrastructure for decentralized video streaming. Some of these are optimized for ingesting and compressing content to make it available, some are end-to-end solutions, some are focused more on live streaming and some are better for streaming existing video files. My company, Theta Labs, is building a protocol that works for end to end live streaming and will have many DApps built on top of it. While the peer to peer delivery can help reduce the industry’s reliance on CDNs (a $20 billion industry today), the introduction of tokens with monetary value is as important to these new protocols as the delivery system and will lead to mainstream entertainment creators to adopt these systems much more quickly and enthusiastically than prior attempts. In the new blockchain model, tokens can be used to fund development of content, can be used by advertisers to bypass middlemen (networks), and can be used by consumers to pay for specific content. The Death of Netflix and Cable? Not only could these blockchain projects completely disrupt the distribution world because they no longer require centralized architectures, they can also disrupt the Netflixes of the world and make the idea of channels on cable completely obsolete. What is a channel but an aggregation of curated content over a well defined distribution network? Here are a few ways that a fully decentralized blockchain based entertainment network might disrupt the industry: ● . Content creators could create shows and make them available over a decentralized platform instantly — no need to go pitch a studio or try to get Netflix to put you on their system. No more “gatekeepers” or even websites that have to approve your content. Free Up Content Creators ● . End users can pay for content using tokens, or can pre-pay for content, resulting in novel new crowdfunding techniques to fund new TV series or movies. In a business model borrowed from video games, users of free live streams, can use tokens to reward the content creators with virtual gifts (which is already starting to happen in the esports world). This model could could be extended across different types of entertainment. Funding of Content ● New “channels” could be just aggregators of the content available on the network, again in a completely decentralized way. You could envision channels for esports, live events, fantasy, sci fi, news, etc. These channels can be set up by anyone and joined by content creators in a decentralized way and funded by tokens. New Channels. ● Free content could even disrupt the traditional TV advertising model (which is being followed by sites like YouTube) by using tokens. The new blockchain video projects usually provide tokens, which can be used by advertisers to buy advertising on these new decentralized channels. They can specify that those coins go directly to the content creator without having to have large middlemen taking a big chunk of the revenue — a large departure from existing practices where the middleman gets the biggest chunk. Advertising and Free Content. ● As for paid entertainment or subscription model, these new tokens could be used to subscribe to particular channels or to pay a particular content creator. This could replace cable on-demand and have unlimited choice of what can be seen “on-demand”. HBO and other subscription networks recently released their own apps so that you don’t need a cable subscription to watch them. The HBO may be a completely decentralized network that is not tied to cable at all but paid for by end users supplying tokens. Paid Content. next ● Many of the new protocols have incentive models that will encourage distributed peer to peer systems in new ways. Some require “paying” upstream nodes with tokens. In The Theta protocol, the introduction of mining of tokens becomes a way to “fund” the distribution network and an incentive to relay not just existing torrents but live streams world-wide. Today, entertainment companies may pay up to 50% of their operating budgets to delivery infrastructure, a cost that could be completely eliminated using a blockchain based token system as part of a peer to peer network. New entertainment players wouldn’t have this enormous cost to get started, and this could lead to an explosion of interesting content. Incentives for Infrastucture. Conclusion: Watch Out! Technology changes have always impacted the entertainment industry. While the internet has created new ways to consume content, the creation and distribution of high quality shows has for the most part still been dominated by a small number of players, studios, TV networks, cable providers, and aggregators like Netflix. This hasn’t led to the democratization of content that was the promise of the Internet. Blockchain is the next wave of technology and has the opportunity to fundamentally disrupt the entertainment industry by solving some of these problems. In a completely decentralized world, thousands of individual computers would replace the centralized “gate-keepers” and the tree-like orderly structure of content distribution would be replaced with a dynamic peer-to-peer mesh network. In this decentralized world, there would be no hoops for content creators to jump through to get their content up, no long business deals with gatekeepers, or getting only a fraction of advertising revenue. There would be no websites that users would go to in order to consume high quality video content. Moreover, the introduction of tokens create new interesting economic incentives for computers to share content, for streamers and content creators to use the network, for end users to compensate content creators, and create a new funding model for unique new entertainment content. Many of these projects will be going live towards the end of this year, and we can expect to see rapid growth of the new players in 2019 and 2020. Just as it took Netflix a number of years to displace Blockbuster and video rental stores as the dominant way to consume on-demand entertainment, it may take a number of years before the new decentralized blockcahin approach becomes the dominant trend in the industry. It’s just possible that because of blockchain, existing entertainment models (TV networks, cable companies and websites like Netflix) may go, as the Buggles might say, the way of the “radio star”. About Riz Riz Virk is an advisor, investor and the Head of Corporate Development at SLIVER.tv, and a member of the founding team at Theta Labs, Inc. He also serves as the current director of Play Labs @ MIT, and did his research at the MIT Media Lab. Rizwan is an early investor in cryptocurrency and many blockchain companies, including Ripio/BitPagos, CoinMkt, Bex.io, and has been active with BitAngels since 2013. He is the co-author of several crypto-currency related papers and columns including (2015), (2013), and . Rizwan received his BS in Computer Science & Engineering from MIT and his Master’s in Management from Stanford Graduate School of Business. Online Automatic Auctions for Bitcoin Over-The-Counter Trading Creating a Peer to Peer System for Buying and Selling Bitcoin Online How I Cornered the Bitcoin Mining Market With a Quantum Computer (Theoretically)

Why Blockchain Might Kill Both Cable and Netflix

Net Neutrality in 12 Tweets

Popular YouTuber OMI IN A HELLCAT was raided by the FBI last year in connection with his 'pirate' IPTV service Gears TV. With the authorities refusing to comment on the ongoing investigation, OMI himself is now claiming that Comcast prompted the FBI to take action, knowing that to tackle him on their own would be "an uphill battle". When large ‘pirate’ services are taken down, the tendency is for copyright holders and/or the authorities to make a lot of noise. Taking out big players is seen as an achievement and is often held up as an example to others not to follow the same path. Last November, when the founder of Gears Reloaded ‘pirate’ IPTV service Omar Carrasquillo was reportedly , not a single person in authority would confirm the existence of an investigation. Independent eyewitnesses to reveal what they saw but now, several months on, information from official sources remains non-existent. targeted in a massive FBI raid appeared on TV Carrasquillo, better known by his social media handle OMI IN A HELLCAT, has been talking a lot, however. He’s appeared in TV interviews with his lawyer, decrying the seizure of dozens of luxury cars, huge volumes of jewelry, and . He says the entire operation against him grew out of his position as the founder of Gears, an unpaid tax bill, plus allegations of money laundering. “at least” $5.2m in cash Nevertheless, he keeps maintaining his innocence. Time and again he’s said that capturing live TV broadcasters from cable providers and streaming channels to end-users over the Internet at an affordable price is completely legal. He found a loophole, he says, and companies didn’t like it. Until now, Carrasquillo has never directly pointed a finger at who might have prompted the case against him. In a live stream this week, however, he claimed that the second-largest telecoms company in the United States is at the root of his troubles. (Note: most expletives removed) “There’s nothing worse than coming home and grabbing your bills – electric company you gotta pay, water is an essential, gas you need to cook, $300 cable bill – what the fuck?” he said. “Everybody hates the cable companies, they’re a monopoly. So when you come out with a service that’s affordable to the world and it’s not illegal, oh my God, I’m in somebody’s pocket.” And then the bombshell. “Comcast is paying for this investigation [unintelligible]. There’s an unfiled Comcast claim but why didn’t Comcast sue me? ‘Cos they knew it was an uphill battle so what did they do? They got the FBI involved, tried to take me down,” he . claimed Coincidentally or not, Carrasquillo’s main home is in Philadelphia. Comcast has its headquarters in the same city. According to several videos posted by Carrasquillo in recent weeks, he has been working hard behind the scenes through official channels to try and reclaim his property. However, he claims there has been significant pushback after the FBI began using his videos and social media postings as evidence against him. Insisting again and again that streaming captured TV broadcasts to the public is not illegal, Carrasquillo says he filed a motion to get his property back. In response, the FBI had to send in evidence to support why the goods should continue to be held while the investigation continues. According to him, they “took his [social media] posts and sent them to the judge”. Since the raid, most of Carrasquillo’s posts have centered on him getting back on his feet, allegedly making significant amounts of money, some of it used to replenish his car collection. He believes those videos are now undermining him. “Look judge, he’s saying that he’s still a millionaire, he doesn’t need the money. We can still hold it throughout the whole investigation,” he in a mocking summary of what was allegedly reported to the court. said At this point, Carrasquillo seems to imply that not everything portrayed in those videos and postings should necessarily be taken at face value and that, in some cases, those in the entertainment business may face pressures to impress. “Entertainers, we have a certain image to uphold and this is why I don’t show anything anymore because frankly, it ain’t nobody’s business. Whether I got it or I don’t got it, I ain’t gonna say it no more. Because obviously you’re using what I say as an exhibit and send it to the judge,” he added. Carrasquillo says he’s hoping to settle his case with the IRS via a payment plan but he insists that any claims of money laundering are nonsense. He says he’s not upset with anyone working on the case and says that he’s “pretty sure” that the two investigators and district attorneys “are pretty nice guys.” That said, he is unhappy with what he describes as an “unethical process and the events that took place.” Just before he was raided, Carrasquillo went to the Dominican Republic and he believes this prompted the authorities to act earlier than they would’ve preferred. “Be honest you guys came to [sic] early I broke no laws apology accepted,” he in a separate post. “While Gears is down 20 more shitty services came up and I don’t see you guys doing shit about it. Want to know why? Steaming isn’t illegal. It’s victimless and not against the law. I did not host shit on servers this was a matter for copyright holders to sue. Not for the FBI to get involved.” wrote Only time will tell when the other side of this pretty one-sided story will see the light of day. As indicated previously, no one in authority is prepared to comment at this stage. Originally published as “ OMI IN A HELLCAT Claims Comcast Got FBI to Pursue Gears IPTV Case ” with the Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported (CC BY-NC 3.0) license

Comcast Got FBI to Pursue Gears IPTV Case - Claims YouTuber OMI IN A HELLCAT

It’s movie night, you’re busy prepping the snacks, hands sticky from the buttery popcorn and hot chocolate. You turn to your trusty home assistant and shout, “Alexa, it’s movie time.” Your Amazon Echo remembers the preset command and proceeds to dim the Philips smart light bulbs and turn on your Samsung smart TV. Your date is coming any minute: snacks, check; vibe, check; TV, check. Everything’s ready, and you did all that with sticky fingers; how impressive! It’s movie night, you’re busy prepping the snacks, hands sticky from the buttery popcorn and hot chocolate. You turn to your trusty home assistant and shout, “Alexa, it’s movie time.” Your Amazon Echo remembers the preset command and proceeds to dim the Philips smart light bulbs and turn on your Samsung smart TV. Your date is coming any minute: snacks, check; vibe, check; TV, check. Everything’s ready, and you did all that with sticky fingers; how impressive! Smart homes like this are our everyday environments, a growing ecosystem of devices and capabilities. In four short years, the smart home market worldwide is projected to grow from $174 billion in 2025 to $250.6 billion by 2029, a very impressive 44% growth. Household penetration will also reach a shocking 92.5% in the next four years. And telcos want a bigger slice of that smart home pie. $174 billion in 2025 to $250.6 billion by 2029 92.5% 92.5% A bigger slice? Do they already have a slice…? While you haven’t heard anyone shout “Hey Vodafone” to turn the lights on, telcos have been playing a fundamental role in smart homes by providing a fast and stable network that allows all the Echos, the Nest Audios, the Philips light bulbs, and the Samsung Smart TVs to connect and play together. Owning the network is a superpower in the smart home market, and telcos have finally recognized the need to use that superpower to take a more frontline role if they want a bigger market share in the smart home business. The booming smart home market isn’t, however, the Wild West that welcomes all brave pioneers. Prominent players have already made their names and riches in the field, and it’s up to the telcos to decide if they want to take them down or partner up. So, who are the telcos up against? Amazon and Google are notable first movers in the smart home space. Amazon got its head start in 2014 when it introduced its first smart speaker, Echo. By becoming the first to market, Amazon dominated the smart home market with three hundred million devices connected to Alexa in 2022. Google, the runner up, began investing in smart homes in 2014 by acquiring Nest Labs, where Google Nest then later Google Home, was born. Google Assistant is the most used voice assistant, winning over Apple Siri and Amazon Alexa. Amazon dominated the smart home market with three hundred million devices connected to Alexa in 2022 Amazon dominated the smart home market with three hundred million devices connected to Alexa in 2022 Google Assistant is the most used voice assistant, winning over Apple Siri and Amazon Alexa Google Assistant is the most used voice assistant, winning over Apple Siri and Amazon Alexa Despite the success in creating market-dominating products, the tech giants still have yet to resolve four main customer problems: reliable connectivity, cybersecurity risks, interoperability, and installation. These unmet customer needs leave room in the smart home market. As network service providers, telcos are uniquely placed to close that gap and win their seat at the big table with Big Tech. First, the Amazons and Googles have not been able to resolve connectivity and reliability issues that customers face when using their smart home products. All these products rely on Wi-Fi connectivity, and since these companies do not own the network, their hands are tied when it comes to resolving customers’ issues with lagging devices. However, ensuring seamless connectivity is telcos’ bread and butter. Telcos can provide smart home optimised broadband services, such as BT’s Complete Wi-Fi offering. It comes with Smart Hub 2, a router that can prioritise traffic from smart home devices to ensure low latency and high reliability, and a Wi-Fi Disc to provide a mesh network that ensures consistent signal throughout the home. BT’s Complete Wi-Fi offering Second, the tech giants have also failed to allow customers to enjoy the ease of multi-device smart homes without fearing the risks of cybersecurity. Securing a smart home is a big challenge because the more devices interconnected at home, the bigger the attack surface becomes. In 2021, a bug was found in Google Home that allowed hackers to remotely control the smart speaker, executing commands such as unlocking doors. As if that’s not scary enough, one compromised Google Home could have allowed an attacker to escalate and get hold of more devices in the network. In 2021, a bug was found in Google Home that allowed hackers to remotely control the smart speaker, executing commands such as unlocking doors. In 2021, a bug was found in Google Home that allowed hackers to remotely control the smart speaker, executing commands such as unlocking doors. While the tech giants can only provide patches for bugs on individual devices, the inefficiency is similar to a whack-a-mole approach, telcos can provide network-level security to manage the big attack surface of smart homes. This helps to contain the cyber threat and prevent escalation and lateral movement within the network. Some solutions include network-level threat detection and prevention as well as network segmentation for smart home devices, where devices are placed on a separate, isolated network so the smart doorbell can’t talk to the laptops. Comcast’s xFi Advanced Security, which comes with the xFi Gateway, for example, blocks remote access to smart home devices from known dangerous sources and helps monitor suspicious activity across all devices in the network. Comcast’s xFi Advanced Security, which comes with the xFi Gateway, for example, blocks remote access to smart home devices from known dangerous sources and helps monitor suspicious activity across all devices in the network. Comcast’s xFi Advanced Security, which comes with the xFi Gateway, for example, blocks remote access to smart home devices from known dangerous sources and helps monitor suspicious activity across all devices in the network. Third, smart homes nowadays consist of devices from many different brands, which results in interoperability issues where the devices don’t play nicely together. Big Tech is often only equipped to resolve issues of their own products and lacks expertise in other brands’ products, resulting in their challenge to help customers connect devices across brands. Telcos, however, can easily solve interoperability problems because they provide the foundation of an open ecosystem. The smart-home optimized broadband and smart hub solutions welcome different brands, allowing users to mix and match smart home devices to their liking. Some forward-looking telcos such as Verizon, Deutsche Telekom, and Orange have joined the Matter Initiative to collaborate with different smart home developers such as Apple, Amazon, and Google to build an open standard for smart home technology to ensure devices work reliably together. Matter Initiative Matter Initiative Lastly, customers struggle with installation and in-life issues that Big Tech’s DIY approach fails to support. Turns out, smart home devices that need to connect to other devices in the same network are not so plug-and-play after all. Some may even require professional installation services for safety reasons, such as hard wiring a smart doorbell. The Googles and Amazons may give customers a 2-day delivery, but the package will surely not include a licensed electrician. With fleets of vans that do regular on-site visits to help customers resolve connectivity issues, telcos have the engineers ready to help customers in person. They can easily help customers set up new smart home devices as well as fix lagging devices, so customers aren’t stuck with the DIY manuals and troubleshooting videos. Armed with solutions to these four customer problems unsolved by Big Tech, telcos have the “what” and now need to figure out the “how” of entering the smart home market. Should their go-to-market strategy be direct competition or partnership with the Big Leagues? Both direct competitions and partnerships in the smart home space are seen in the telco industry. Deutsche Telekom took a vertical approach by developing its own smart home platforms and devices. its own smart home platforms and devices EE, on the other hand, has taken a horizontal approach by partnering with Big Tech and retailing third-party devices. These telcos’ performances in the smart home market demonstrate that while the vertical model offers more control, it limits scale. The horizontal model has scaled faster and enabled more integrations. partnering with Big Tech and retailing third-party devices For telcos entering now or pivoting their smart home strategy, partnership is definitely the way to go, as they are ten years late to the game, and 77.6% of household penetration has already been reached. 77.6% of household penetration Google agrees, explaining that “with the shift from early adoption to the mainstream underway, the window of opportunity for businesses to be innovation leaders [in the smart home market] is getting smaller.” Partnership as the go-to-market strategy has already been observed by Omdia, a telco consultancy firm, reporting that telcos’ strategies have shifted from launching their own-branded smart home products to partnering with third-party providers. “with the shift from early adoption to the mainstream underway, the window of opportunity for businesses to be innovation leaders [in the smart home market] is getting smaller.” “with the shift from early adoption to the mainstream underway, the window of opportunity for businesses to be innovation leaders [in the smart home market] is getting smaller.” telcos’ strategies have shifted from launching their own-branded smart home products to partnering with third-party providers telcos’ strategies have shifted from launching their own-branded smart home products to partnering with third-party providers Critics may argue that telcos could still develop their own suite of smart home products that promise seamless connectivity, cybersecurity, interoperability, and end-to-end support. However, take a lesson from Apple’s mistake: Apple struggled in the smart home market because it focused on making premium products that work only in a closed ecosystem. Apple struggled in the smart home market because it focused on making premium products that work only in a closed ecosystem. Apple struggled in the smart home market because it focused on making premium products that work only in a closed ecosystem. Customers don’t want a walled garden when it comes to smart homes; they want to pick and choose from different brands. That’s why partnering with existing powerhouses of smart home products to solve those four problems is the innovation that the smart home market needs, not a new suite of products that try to reinvent the wheel. Furthermore, with the growing demand for voice assistants in smart homes, it’s highly unlikely telcos can develop voice assistants that can beat the industry leaders, Alexa, Google, and Siri. growing demand for voice assistants in smart homes growing demand for voice assistants in smart homes It’s not too late for telcos to grab a bigger slice of the smart home pie. They have the superpower of network ownership and can empower the household favorite Nest Hubs and Ring Doorbells by resolving customer problems of connectivity, cybersecurity, interoperability, and installation. With Big Tech dependent on them for smart home success, can they leverage this power to their advantage?

The Future of Telcos in the Smart Home

Picture this: It’s 7:30 AM on a chaotic Tuesday. While you’re scrambling to get the kids ready for school, your AI assistant quietly reorders your coffee supply, snags a discounted Air Fryer from a lightning deal, and books a table at that impossible to get into sushi spot for date night; all without you lifting a finger. This isn’t sci-fi. Meet Amazon Nova Act[1], the AI agent that actually acts. Revealed this week by Amazon’s secretive AGI Labs, Nova Act doesn’t just talk - it does. And it might just make today’s chatbots look like dial-up internet in a 5G world. From "Type This" to "Do That" Most AI tools stop at generating text or answering questions. Nova Act goes nuclear: Automates weekly Sweetgreen orders (no more sad desk salads)
Files expense reports while you sleep
Hunts down price drops like a bargain-obsessed bloodhound
Even handles password-protected tasks (RIP, "Forgot Password?" clicks) The magic? A new developer toolkit that transforms simple commands like “book,” “track,” or “compare” into multi-step actions. Want to plan a work offsite? Nova Act could theoretically: Scout Airbnb locations within budget
Compare flight prices for the team
Block calendars across time zones
Email the final itinerary All while you focus on actual work. Why This Isn’t Just Another "AI Assistant" Sure, we’ve seen attempts at action-oriented AI (cough ChatGPT Plugins cough). But Amazon claims Nova Act solves the #1 problem with automation tools: reliability. During demos, Nova Act nailed tasks competitors flubbed: ✅ 94% success rate interacting with finicky calendar widgets ✅ 91% accuracy parsing dense restaurant menus ✅ Zero accidental purchases of extended warranties (take notes, humans) “If you’re still proofreading your AI’s work, you’ve got a fancy typewriter—not an assistant,” joked Vishal Vora, an Amazon engineer, as Nova Act flawlessly scheduled his team’s PTO requests during a live demo[2]. Real World, Real Impact For individuals: Auto-negotiate Comcast bills (goodbye, hold music)


Reschedule missed doctor appointments


Batch-cancel unused subscriptions For businesses: Auto-fix common IT tickets (“Have you tried turning it off and on again?”) Monitor supply chain inventory in real-time
Scrape competitor pricing without spreadsheets Even bigger? This is Amazon’s first public step toward artificial general intelligence (AGI)—AI that can learn any task, not just preset ones. Their secret sauce? Training models across 100+ domains (travel, finance, healthcare) instead of specializing. The Catch(es) Before you quit your job to let AI run your life: Complex tasks still need training wheels - Planning a wedding? Nova Act might book the venue but forget the vegan meal options. Human oversight isn’t dead yet.
Ethical landmines - Should AI negotiate salaries? Handle medical data? Amazon’s SDK includes guardrails, but the debate’s just starting.
The “Creep Factor” - Letting AI access your bank account and email requires Olympic-level trust. Amazon assures end-to-end encryption, but skeptics will need convincing. The AI Agent Arms Race Amazon isn’t alone: OpenAI’s “Operator”: Can draft emails but struggles with actual sending
Anthropic’s Agent: Great at research, shaky at transactions
China’s $199/month “Manus”: Allegedly buys real estate (we’re skeptical) What makes Nova Act different? Scale. With Alexa in 500M+ devices, Amazon could deploy this everywhere from Echo speakers to Ring cameras. The Bottom Line Nova Act isn’t about replacing humans—it’s about eliminating the administrative sludge that consumes 60% of our workdays. The real question isn’t “Will this work?” but “What will we do with our time when it does?” As Rohit Prasad (Amazon’s AGI lead) put it: “We’re not building a better chatbot. We’re building a better day.” “What would you automate first?” References - [1] https://labs.amazon.science/blog/nova-act [2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65giTqW0vC8&t=1s&themeRefresh=1 Picture this: It’s 7:30 AM on a chaotic Tuesday. While you’re scrambling to get the kids ready for school, your AI assistant quietly reorders your coffee supply, snags a discounted Air Fryer from a lightning deal, and books a table at that impossible to get into sushi spot for date night; all without you lifting a finger. This isn’t sci-fi. Meet Amazon Nova Act[1], the AI agent that actually acts. Revealed this week by Amazon’s secretive AGI Labs, Nova Act doesn’t just talk - it does. And it might just make today’s chatbots look like dial-up internet in a 5G world. From "Type This" to "Do That" Most AI tools stop at generating text or answering questions. Nova Act goes nuclear: Automates weekly Sweetgreen orders (no more sad desk salads) Files expense reports while you sleep Hunts down price drops like a bargain-obsessed bloodhound Even handles password-protected tasks (RIP, "Forgot Password?" clicks) Automates weekly Sweetgreen orders (no more sad desk salads) Files expense reports while you sleep Hunts down price drops like a bargain-obsessed bloodhound Even handles password-protected tasks (RIP, "Forgot Password?" clicks) The magic? A new developer toolkit that transforms simple commands like “book,” “track,” or “compare” into multi-step actions. Want to plan a work offsite? Nova Act could theoretically: Scout Airbnb locations within budget Compare flight prices for the team Block calendars across time zones Email the final itinerary Scout Airbnb locations within budget Compare flight prices for the team Block calendars across time zones Email the final itinerary All while you focus on actual work. Why This Isn’t Just Another "AI Assistant" Sure, we’ve seen attempts at action-oriented AI (cough ChatGPT Plugins cough). But Amazon claims Nova Act solves the #1 problem with automation tools: reliability. During demos, Nova Act nailed tasks competitors flubbed: ✅ 94% success rate interacting with finicky calendar widgets ✅ 91% accuracy parsing dense restaurant menus ✅ Zero accidental purchases of extended warranties (take notes, humans) “If you’re still proofreading your AI’s work, you’ve got a fancy typewriter—not an assistant,” joked Vishal Vora, an Amazon engineer, as Nova Act flawlessly scheduled his team’s PTO requests during a live demo[2]. Real World, Real Impact For individuals: For individuals: Auto-negotiate Comcast bills (goodbye, hold music) Reschedule missed doctor appointments Batch-cancel unused subscriptions Auto-negotiate Comcast bills (goodbye, hold music) Auto-negotiate Comcast bills (goodbye, hold music) Reschedule missed doctor appointments Reschedule missed doctor appointments Batch-cancel unused subscriptions Batch-cancel unused subscriptions For businesses: For businesses: Auto-fix common IT tickets (“Have you tried turning it off and on again?”) Monitor supply chain inventory in real-time Scrape competitor pricing without spreadsheets Monitor supply chain inventory in real-time Scrape competitor pricing without spreadsheets Even bigger? This is Amazon’s first public step toward artificial general intelligence (AGI)—AI that can learn any task, not just preset ones. Their secret sauce? Training models across 100+ domains (travel, finance, healthcare) instead of specializing. The Catch(es) Before you quit your job to let AI run your life: Complex tasks still need training wheels - Planning a wedding? Nova Act might book the venue but forget the vegan meal options. Human oversight isn’t dead yet. Ethical landmines - Should AI negotiate salaries? Handle medical data? Amazon’s SDK includes guardrails, but the debate’s just starting. The “Creep Factor” - Letting AI access your bank account and email requires Olympic-level trust. Amazon assures end-to-end encryption, but skeptics will need convincing. Complex tasks still need training wheels - Planning a wedding? Nova Act might book the venue but forget the vegan meal options. Human oversight isn’t dead yet. Complex tasks still need training wheels Ethical landmines - Should AI negotiate salaries? Handle medical data? Amazon’s SDK includes guardrails, but the debate’s just starting. Ethical landmines The “Creep Factor” - Letting AI access your bank account and email requires Olympic-level trust. Amazon assures end-to-end encryption, but skeptics will need convincing. The “Creep Factor” The AI Agent Arms Race Amazon isn’t alone: OpenAI’s “Operator”: Can draft emails but struggles with actual sending Anthropic’s Agent: Great at research, shaky at transactions China’s $199/month “Manus”: Allegedly buys real estate (we’re skeptical) OpenAI’s “Operator”: Can draft emails but struggles with actual sending OpenAI’s “Operator”: Anthropic’s Agent: Great at research, shaky at transactions Anthropic’s Agent: China’s $199/month “Manus”: Allegedly buys real estate (we’re skeptical) China’s $199/month “Manus”: What makes Nova Act different? Scale. With Alexa in 500M+ devices, Amazon could deploy this everywhere from Echo speakers to Ring cameras. The Bottom Line Nova Act isn’t about replacing humans—it’s about eliminating the administrative sludge that consumes 60% of our workdays. The real question isn’t “Will this work?” but “What will we do with our time when it does?” As Rohit Prasad (Amazon’s AGI lead) put it: “We’re not building a better chatbot. We’re building a better day.” “What would you automate first?” References - [1] https://labs.amazon.science/blog/nova-act https://labs.amazon.science/blog/nova-act https://labs.amazon.science/blog/nova-act [2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65giTqW0vC8&t=1s&themeRefresh=1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65giTqW0vC8&t=1s&themeRefresh=1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65giTqW0vC8&t=1s&themeRefresh=1

Forget Chatbots, Meet Actionbots: Why Amazon's Nova Act Could Reshape Web Interaction

Xatırladaq ki, “Amazon”ın “Nova Act”ı web interaksiyasını dəyişdirə bilər.

Olvide los chatbots, conozca a los bots de acción: por qué la Ley Nova de Amazon podría remodelar la interacción web

चैटबॉट्स भूल जाओ, एक्शनबॉट्स से मिलें: क्यों अमेज़ॅन का नोवा अधिनियम वेब बातचीत को फिर से आकार दे सकता है

Ouvri Chatbots, Rencontre Actionbots: Poukisa Lwa Nova nan Amazon ta ka Reshape Interaction Web

Գիտեք Chatbots, Meet Actionbots: Ինչու Amazon- ի Nova Act- ը կարող է վերլուծել Web Interaction- ը

Dimenticate i chatbots, incontrate gli actionbots: perché la legge Nova di Amazon potrebbe ricostruire l'interazione web

チャットボットを忘れ、アクションボットに出会う:なぜアマゾンのノバ法がウェブインタラクションを再構築するのか

Осылайша Франклин өз беделін қайтадан қайтарып, саяси аренаға қайта

Harrojeni Chatbots, takoni Actionbots: Pse Akti Nova i Amazon-it Mund të Rishikojë Ndërveprimin në Web

I-Forget Chatbots, Meet Actionbots: Bakit ang Amazon's Nova Act ay maaaring Reshape Web Interaction

Ukukhangisa i-Chatbots, Ukukhangisa i-Actionbots: Kutheni I-Nova Act ye-Amazon ingathuthukisa ukuxhumana kwebhizinisi

Humans have always had the desire to be free and control their fate. This drive for autonomy— to be seen, heard, and included in decision-making—has fueled democracy, taking it from a mere idea in ancient Greece into the most practiced form of government today. And when the internet was invented, everyone thought it would be a tool for freedom and connection. Instead, it's been hijacked. Today, only a measly 17% of Internet users worldwide enjoy total freedom (Statista, 2024). Tech giants silence voices they don’t like. Governments cut off access when it suits them. This is nothing like the freedom the internet was supposed to give. Statista, But a shift is coming. The Decentralized Internet is about to break that monopoly, handing power back to users. This article looks at how a decentralized internet will level the playing field and what its future holds. What Is Decentralized Internet? The decentralized internet is an internet infrastructure that operates on peer-to-peer (P2P) networks rather than centralized servers. peer-to-peer (P2P) networks Let’s break things down. For instance, under the traditional structure, internet service providers like AT&T and Comcast allow you to access the internet. Companies like Google and Amazon operate data centers that store and process your data. And of course, government agencies and social media giants enforce regulations and control content algorithms. In contrast, with a decentralized internet, it's not just companies providing the services—everyone is involved in the process. For example, instead of depending on centralized providers like Amazon Web Services (AWS) or Google Cloud, individual users or small groups could run independent data centers or participate in a distributed network. Simon St. Laurent (Content Manager at LinkedIn Learning) puts it this way: Simon St. Laurent A Decentralized Web is a network of resources in which no one player can control the conversation or spin it to [his or her] exclusive advantage. A Decentralized Web is a network of resources in which no one player can control the conversation or spin it to [his or her] exclusive advantage. A Decentralized Web is a network of resources in which no one player can control the conversation or spin it to [his or her] exclusive advantage. In a decentralized internet, independent computers and privately owned networks work together to provide internet services, without relying on corporate-controlled infrastructure. However, beyond this shift from corporate-controlled networks to a decentralized model, the big question is: Does it really matter much if the Internet is centralized or decentralized? Are there any real-world benefits for the average Joey if the internet is decentralized? Let’s break down the key advantages of a decentralized Internet. really Beyond Big Tech: 5 Real Benefits of a Decentralized Internet Beyond Big Tech: 5 Real Benefits of a Decentralized Internet ‘ 1. Data Privacy 1. Data Privacy If there is one thing that has been misused so much under a centralized internet system, it is users' data. For instance, Google’s location tracking scandal revealed that Google still tracks users' location even when they turn off their "location tracking feature" on their mobile devices. Imagine someone spying on you everywhere you go, every minute. Google’s location tracking scandal With a decentralized internet, this is less likely to happen because users are in complete control of their data. The rules and permissions are handled via transparent smart contracts on the Blockchain. This means no one can redefine privacy settings behind the scenes. smart contracts on the Blockchain 2. Resistance to Censorship In 1996, the Chinese government created the Great Firewall, an internet censorship system that allows citizens to access only a heavily filtered version of the internet. This means that people in China cannot access global websites like Google, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and even certain news outlets like BBC and The New York Times. Great Firewall And in 2025, that initiative is still in place. That’s nearly three decades of being shut off from the rest of the world. However, the Chinese government is not the only one that tampers with its citizens’ digital freedom. There have also been several countries that shut down the internet completely on several occasions. countries that shut down the internet With a decentralized internet, it becomes hard for censorship to happen since the infrastructure is now owned and controlled by different people in different places. For instance, one of the methods the Chinese government uses for the firewall program is controlling Internet service providers. And that was easy to do because only a few corporations were involved. If it were under a decentralized structure, getting everyone involved to agree would be difficult. 3. No Single Point of Failure Under a centralized internet, if you have a situation where there is a failure of a single component it can cause the entire system to stop working. A good example of this is the Rogers Telecom Outage. Rogers Telecom Outage. On July 8, 2022, Rogers Communications, one of Canada's largest telecom providers, suffered a massive nationwide outage that left 12 million Canadians stranded. People couldn't call 911, pay for goods, or access online banking. And what was the cause? Well, Rogers runs a centralized infrastructure and was trying to do some upgrades. That was it. Just one error leading to total blackout. That’s one of the many dangers of centralization. In a decentralized network, data is routed through many independent nodes, not one giant backbone. So, if one provider or server fails, others take over automatically. 4. More Efficient Content Delivery In a centralized internet, most websites and services rely on central servers or cloud data centers to store and deliver content. This means all users must connect to the same few locations to access a site or stream media. But what happens when those servers are overloaded or far from the user? The users will experience slow loading times, and sometimes it leads to a complete outage. loading times In a decentralized internet, the content is stored across many distributed nodes and delivered from the closest or fastest available source, rather than a single fixed server. This means the user will enjoy a great experience even when there is high traffic. 5. Open and Transparent Governance Presently, the average user has no say in what happens on the internet. Tech giants just decide at will to make changes without even considering the impact it may have on users. For example, Facebook’s algorithm changes have destroyed entire businesses overnight, with no warning and no recourse. In contrast, Decentralized networks are often governed through community-driven protocols and on-chain governance, where users vote on key changes. Decisions are made by stakeholders and not just CEOs. And this is not just some big idea. Projects like Ethereum, ENS (Ethereum Name Service), and Mastodon are already showing that decentralized communities can run complex systems fairly and openly. What Does the Future Hold? What Does the Future Hold? While the decentralized internet is still in the developmental stage, one thing is clear: it is a shift that will forever change our lives. Oke Umurhohwo (Head of Global Marketing, Zap Africa) says: Oke Umurhohwo The decentralized internet represents a seismic shift in the way we think about online interactions, one that prioritizes community, security, and transparency over centralized control. The decentralized internet represents a seismic shift in the way we think about online interactions, one that prioritizes community, security, and transparency over centralized control. Already, we have started seeing promising implementations of the decentralized internet. Projects like Filecoin are creating decentralized storage networks. Brave Browser is redefining how we interact with content online. And initiatives like Spacecoin are taking decentralization beyond Earth's surface with satellite-based internet nodes. With the Spacecoin project, internet accessibility will greatly improve even in remote areas where traditional internet infrastructure is lacking. However, despite this progress, there are still some challenges plaguing the decentralized internet, with user adoption being one of the major problems. To many people, the idea of a decentralized internet still sounds abstract. But it is only a matter of time before the gospel of a decentralized internet becomes mainstream. The benefits are just too much to be ignored. Decentralization is our only chance of restoring the internet to what it should be: a tool of freedom. And we all should start embracing it, not tomorrow but today!

The Internet Is Rigged, Only Decentralization Can Fix It

The Alarming Surge Of Lateral Phishing – Are We All Just Sitting Ducks?

If you ever wondered how to add your company’s logo to your emails, this article is for you. Today, Selzy covers everything about email avatars and their impact on business. What Is an Email Avatar, and Why Do You Need It? You might not know what email avatar is, but you’ve definitely seen one in your inbox. An email avatar is a small circle with an image that appears next to the sender’s name and address, helping recipients identify senders. It can also be called an email profile picture or an email profile logo. By default, mailbox providers assign generic nondescript avatars to new users. Usually, it’s the first letter of the sender’s name. Unlike on social media in emails, profile pictures don’t seem to be a must: even service emails from Google or Yahoo don’t have an avatar. That’s why emails that have an avatar tend to stand out more. Look at the screenshot below: Which messages did you look at first? The chances are that emails from Morning Brew and Mike Allen immediately grabbed your attention. And only then, you scanned the other two, with L and A letters instead of pictures. Email avatars aren’t just visually striking, they also bring tangible value. According to the 2023 Consumer Email Tracker report by DMA, 61% of people decide to open the email because they recognize the brand, and 39% do so because they recognize the brand logo. For senders, it means that an email avatar, especially a branded one, will likely increase open rates. Different Avatar Types Automatically Generated Avatar That’s the default option. Usually, a mailbox provider assigns a logo with the first letter of your or your brand’s name. Instead of a letter, it can be a human silhouette, but still just as nondescript. Company Logo Company logos as avatars are a solid option to promote brand recall and stand out among competitors in an inbox. This helps recipients quickly identify marketing messages from their favorite brands in a cluttered inbox. Custom Images Custom images — usually photos — help subscribers recognize you faster. An example: journalist Mike Allen uses a photo in his Axios newsletter. Interestingly, emails from Axios as a company don’t have a logo. How to Add Email Avatars for Different Mailbox Providers Adding an email avatar is a simple process, similar for different mailbox providers: go to account settings, click the email avatar, and upload or choose the picture to replace the auto-generated one. The tricky part is that avatars don’t get displayed across different mailbox providers. If you send from Outlook to Gmail, Gmail recipients won’t see an avatar you set in Outlook. If you want to send bulk emails with an ESP and have your profile picture displayed in any inbox, create a corporate email domain, and link it to each mailbox provider. Then, set a profile picture for this domain in each mailbox provider separately. Let’s explore how to add profile logos across different mailbox providers and what nuance you might need to take into account. Gmail Go to Google Workspace account settings, choose an image from your computer, and crop it. Gmail doesn’t have any requirements for image size or format. Google Workspace allows users with different addresses belonging to the same email domain to have unique profile pictures. It’s useful when you send multiple newsletters and want each newsletter to have its unique email avatar. On mobile devices, you can see email avatars in the Gmail app right in the inbox; they also appear in push notifications. On the desktop, they appear only inside opened emails. Outlook On the Outlook home page, click on the avatar at the top of the page, choose Edit profile, and add or change the profile picture in the settings. It will only show up in the mobile apps and inside opened emails on the desktop. Although Outlook is a big email provider, not many seem to use it to the fullest. The same brands and newsletters we covered earlier in the article don’t have a profile picture in Outlook. Then again, even Outlook’s support team doesn’t have one. Go to Yahoo’s main page and, depending on the platform (desktop, web app, or mobile), change the profile picture to your liking. Default Yahoo avatars are stylized letters of the sender’s name, but you can always replace them with a profile picture. Once you set a profile picture, you can’t remove it and revert to stylized letters — you can only replace it with a new one. Your email avatar will be displayed in all Yahoo services — for example, in Yahoo! News comment section. Some users can choose to not see senders’ profile pictures in their inboxes and have the profile pictures replaced with checkboxes for a more minimalistic look. Apple Mail Having your brand’s logo displayed in Apple Mail is not possible unless subscribers decide to assign it by themselves. They have to create a new contact from the email address, and then choose to add a photo to get to set up an avatar — which can be any picture. The senders won’t see them. Avatar vs BIMI One more way to add an email avatar is BIMI or Brand Indicators for Message Identification. The result will be the same —  your email profile picture will be in place — however, with BIMI, you get logos and better protection for your recipients from phishing attacks. BIMI is a method of email authentication, in addition to DKIM, DMARC, and SPF. “In addition” is the keyword — to get BIMI, you need to set up the DMARC authentication first. From that perspective, getting BIMI sounds like a good thing to do, but there’s a “but” — it costs at least $1,299 per year. That’s because you have to buy a digital certificate that proves you own your logo as a trademark. That’s a bummer for businesses that don’t have twelve hundred bucks to spend on a 32 KB image. Moreover, BIMI is not universally supported yet. As of May 2024, Microsoft doesn’t even plan to implement it, and some email clients like Yahoo! Japan, Seznam.cz, Comcast, and Qualitia are only considering it. So, if the majority of your audience is not in the US, getting BIMI might simply be not worth it. Email Avatar vs Gravatar Gravatar occasionally pops up in conversations about email avatars. However, you can’t set an avatar for a mailbox provider (Gmail or Yahoo) with Gravatar because it is meant for a different use. Gravatar is a service that helps you automatically set profile pictures, contact details, and even a short bio for websites on WordPress and a handful of services that are heavily used in the work setting, like Atlassian products, Slack, and GitHub. Gravatar is especially useful with WordPress websites since it saves you from the trouble of uploading a profile picture each time you want to leave a comment on a new WordPress website. Here’s what the setup process looks like: Sign up on Gravatar with your email address.


Upload an image or a photo you like.


Going forward, you’ll have your profile picture displayed on every WordPress website or supported service, provided you sign up with the same email address as on Gravatar. Key Takeaways Avatars help emails stand out and impact the open rate. Unique logos look more pronounced than generic ones, recipients also trust them more. You can add company logos or your photos for email avatars. Your company will stand out in subscribers’ inboxes while a photo helps subscribers immediately recognize who sent the email. Email avatars are only seen within the same mailbox provider. Create a corporate account in each mailbox provider and set an avatar. Otherwise, if you only have Gmail with a logo, your Outlook subscribers won’t see it. Use BIMI to add logos and improve security but be ready to pay. BIMI gives you a trademark logo and protection from phishing attacks. It costs at least $1,299 a year while avatars without BIMI are free. If you ever wondered how to add your company’s logo to your emails, this article is for you. Today, Selzy covers everything about email avatars and their impact on business. Selzy What Is an Email Avatar, and Why Do You Need It? What Is an Email Avatar, and Why Do You Need It? You might not know what email avatar is, but you’ve definitely seen one in your inbox. An email avatar is a small circle with an image that appears next to the sender’s name and address, helping recipients identify senders. It can also be called an email profile picture or an email profile logo. By default, mailbox providers assign generic nondescript avatars to new users. Usually, it’s the first letter of the sender’s name. Unlike on social media in emails, profile pictures don’t seem to be a must: even service emails from Google or Yahoo don’t have an avatar. That’s why emails that have an avatar tend to stand out more. Look at the screenshot below: Which messages did you look at first? The chances are that emails from Morning Brew and Mike Allen immediately grabbed your attention. And only then, you scanned the other two, with L and A letters instead of pictures. L A Email avatars aren’t just visually striking, they also bring tangible value. According to the 2023 Consumer Email Tracker report by DMA, 61% of people decide to open the email because they recognize the brand, and 39% do so because they recognize the brand logo. For senders, it means that an email avatar, especially a branded one, will likely increase open rates. According to the 2023 Consumer Email Tracker report by DMA, 61% of people decide to open the email because they recognize the brand, and 39% do so because they recognize the brand logo. Consumer Email Tracker Consumer Email Tracker Different Avatar Types Different Avatar Types Automatically Generated Avatar Automatically Generated Avatar That’s the default option. Usually, a mailbox provider assigns a logo with the first letter of your or your brand’s name. Instead of a letter, it can be a human silhouette, but still just as nondescript. Company Logo Company Logo Company logos as avatars are a solid option to promote brand recall and stand out among competitors in an inbox. This helps recipients quickly identify marketing messages from their favorite brands in a cluttered inbox. Custom Images Custom Images Custom images — usually photos — help subscribers recognize you faster. An example: journalist Mike Allen uses a photo in his Axios newsletter. Interestingly, emails from Axios as a company don’t have a logo. How to Add Email Avatars for Different Mailbox Providers How to Add Email Avatars for Different Mailbox Providers Adding an email avatar is a simple process, similar for different mailbox providers: go to account settings, click the email avatar, and upload or choose the picture to replace the auto-generated one. The tricky part is that avatars don’t get displayed across different mailbox providers. If you send from Outlook to Gmail, Gmail recipients won’t see an avatar you set in Outlook. If you want to send bulk emails with an ESP and have your profile picture displayed in any inbox, create a corporate email domain, and link it to each mailbox provider. Then, set a profile picture for this domain in each mailbox provider separately. bulk emails with an ESP bulk emails with an ESP Let’s explore how to add profile logos across different mailbox providers and what nuance you might need to take into account. Gmail Gmail Go to Google Workspace account settings , choose an image from your computer, and crop it. Gmail doesn’t have any requirements for image size or format. Google Workspace account settings Google Workspace account settings Google Workspace allows users with different addresses belonging to the same email domain to have unique profile pictures. It’s useful when you send multiple newsletters and want each newsletter to have its unique email avatar. On mobile devices, you can see email avatars in the Gmail app right in the inbox; they also appear in push notifications. On the desktop, they appear only inside opened emails. Outlook Outlook On the Outlook home page, click on the avatar at the top of the page, choose Edit profile, and add or change the profile picture in the settings. It will only show up in the mobile apps and inside opened emails on the desktop. change the profile picture change the profile picture Although Outlook is a big email provider, not many seem to use it to the fullest. The same brands and newsletters we covered earlier in the article don’t have a profile picture in Outlook. Then again, even Outlook’s support team doesn’t have one. Go to Yahoo’s main page and, depending on the platform (desktop, web app, or mobile), change the profile picture to your liking. Default Yahoo avatars are stylized letters of the sender’s name, but you can always replace them with a profile picture. depending on the platform depending on the platform Once you set a profile picture, you can’t remove it and revert to stylized letters — you can only replace it with a new one. Your email avatar will be displayed in all Yahoo services — for example, in Yahoo! News comment section. Some users can choose to not see senders’ profile pictures in their inboxes and have the profile pictures replaced with checkboxes for a more minimalistic look. checkboxes checkboxes Apple Mail Apple Mail Having your brand’s logo displayed in Apple Mail is not possible unless subscribers decide to assign it by themselves. They have to create a new contact from the email address, and then choose to add a photo to get to set up an avatar — which can be any picture. The senders won’t see them. Avatar vs BIMI Avatar vs BIMI One more way to add an email avatar is BIMI or Brand Indicators for Message Identification. The result will be the same —  your email profile picture will be in place — however, with BIMI, you get logos and better protection for your recipients from phishing attacks. BIMI BIMI and BIMI is a method of email authentication, in addition to DKIM, DMARC, and SPF. “In addition” is the keyword — to get BIMI, you need to set up the DMARC authentication first. From that perspective, getting BIMI sounds like a good thing to do, but there’s a “but” — it costs at least $1,299 per year . That’s because you have to buy a digital certificate that proves you own your logo as a trademark. That’s a bummer for businesses that don’t have twelve hundred bucks to spend on a 32 KB image. $1,299 per year $1,299 per year Moreover, BIMI is not universally supported yet. As of May 2024 , Microsoft doesn’t even plan to implement it, and some email clients like Yahoo! Japan, Seznam.cz, Comcast, and Qualitia are only considering it. So, if the majority of your audience is not in the US, getting BIMI might simply be not worth it. As of May 2024 As of May 2024 Email Avatar vs Gravatar Email Avatar vs Gravatar Gravatar occasionally pops up in conversations about email avatars. However, you can’t set an avatar for a mailbox provider (Gmail or Yahoo) with Gravatar because it is meant for a different use. Gravatar Gravatar Gravatar is a service that helps you automatically set profile pictures, contact details, and even a short bio for websites on WordPress and a handful of services that are heavily used in the work setting, like Atlassian products, Slack, and GitHub. Gravatar is especially useful with WordPress websites since it saves you from the trouble of uploading a profile picture each time you want to leave a comment on a new WordPress website. Here’s what the setup process looks like: Sign up on Gravatar with your email address. Upload an image or a photo you like. Going forward, you’ll have your profile picture displayed on every WordPress website or supported service, provided you sign up with the same email address as on Gravatar. Sign up on Gravatar with your email address. Sign up on Gravatar with your email address. Upload an image or a photo you like. Upload an image or a photo you like. Going forward, you’ll have your profile picture displayed on every WordPress website or supported service, provided you sign up with the same email address as on Gravatar. Going forward, you’ll have your profile picture displayed on every WordPress website or supported service, provided you sign up with the same email address as on Gravatar. Key Takeaways Key Takeaways Avatars help emails stand out and impact the open rate. Unique logos look more pronounced than generic ones, recipients also trust them more. Avatars help emails stand out and impact the open rate. Unique logos look more pronounced than generic ones, recipients also trust them more. Avatars help emails stand out and impact the open rate. You can add company logos or your photos for email avatars. Your company will stand out in subscribers’ inboxes while a photo helps subscribers immediately recognize who sent the email. You can add company logos or your photos for email avatars. Your company will stand out in subscribers’ inboxes while a photo helps subscribers immediately recognize who sent the email. You can add company logos or your photos for email avatars. Email avatars are only seen within the same mailbox provider. Create a corporate account in each mailbox provider and set an avatar. Otherwise, if you only have Gmail with a logo, your Outlook subscribers won’t see it. Email avatars are only seen within the same mailbox provider. Create a corporate account in each mailbox provider and set an avatar. Otherwise, if you only have Gmail with a logo, your Outlook subscribers won’t see it. Email avatars are only seen within the same mailbox provider. Use BIMI to add logos and improve security but be ready to pay. BIMI gives you a trademark logo and protection from phishing attacks. It costs at least $1,299 a year while avatars without BIMI are free. Use BIMI to add logos and improve security but be ready to pay. BIMI gives you a trademark logo and protection from phishing attacks. It costs at least $1,299 a year while avatars without BIMI are free. Use BIMI to add logos and improve security but be ready to pay.

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