Meta, Google Hammered in Court in Sign of Rare Left-Right Unity
By , Josh Sisco, and Riley Griffin
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Two tech giants — Meta Platforms Inc. and Alphabet Inc. — were stung hard in antitrust trials in different rooms of the same federal courthouse this week. It's a reflection of rare bipartisan enthusiasm for punishing them, efforts that spanned the Trump and Biden administrations.
In proceedings in Washington, where a federal judge is weighing how to resolve Google's monopoly in search, an executive made a startling admission: that Google pays Samsung an 'enormous sum' to preinstall its Gemini AI app, even though courts have twice found those kinds of deals illegal. The revelation could give the government ammo for devising a penalty that hurts Google's position in artificial intelligence.
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Forbes
an hour ago
- Forbes
Android 16 Could Finally Tame Bright HDR Videos
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Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
YouTube TV Review: The Best Channel Selection You'll Find
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Its cloud DVR is also one of the best, with unlimited storage and pretty much all the capabilities of a hardware DVR. The service also offers a 4K streaming upgrade -- for an additional $10 monthly -- which, importantly, includes unlimited simultaneous streams and downloadable DVR recordings. The big snag is the price, and if you're a cord-cutter, the trimmed-down Sling TV Blue at $46 a month is the best way to save money. At the other end of the spectrum, the $83 Hulu Plus Live TV offers a similar mix of channels, but the addition of the modified Disney Bundle that gives you access to on-demand Hulu, ESPN Plus and Disney Plus, brings some extra value. If you're wanting to stick with a familiar cable tv experience, the myriad of channels and unlimited DVR feature offered by YouTube TV makes the $83 price associated with its base package well worth the money. It's still a good deal for what you're getting. Read more: Best Streaming Devices YouTube TV is different from YouTube, the free video service with more than 2.5 billion users a month. YouTube TV offers an experience similar to cable TV, with live channels and on-demand content available on a variety of devices. It works with Apple TV, Roku, Android TV, Chromecast and Amazon Fire TV, along with numerous smart TVs, phones, tablets, game consoles and web browsers. YouTube TV's channel selection is excellent, with more from CNET's list of 100 top channels than any other competitor (although Hulu isn't too far behind). More channels don't necessarily mean more of what you want. Some services, such as Fubo, lean heavily on sports, while others are increasingly expansive. It's best to check the list at the end of this article, which compares individual channels across services, to ensure you're getting the channels you want. 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The interface includes a 4K button to help find content, but at present, this doesn't constitute enough to stick around for. In addition to a handful of shows, there's Thursday Night Football, "live" Premier League soccer and college football on ESPN. The NCAA adds a bunch of 4K content, but if you want football, 4K or a combination of the two, Fubo offers even more sports for a $90 price tag. The 4K content that is available with the basic subscription, such as the cooking show Make This Tonight or the travel competition show Basic Versus Baller, does look good, with better contrast and color than regular broadcast TV. In context, the top tier of Netflix costs substantially more at $25 per month, but it offers thousands of hours of 4K content alone, plus offline viewing. When it originally appeared for $35, YouTube TV was an exceedingly attractive way to save money over cable. But as the service has piled on more channels, it's added further costs. 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At $83 per month, you'll have to be coming from a relatively expensive cable bill to realize substantial savings with YouTube TV. If price is no object, YouTube TV goes neck and neck with Hulu Plus Live TV as the premier live TV streaming service, with a huge array of entertainment options and one of the best DVR/search combos on the market. It offers more channels than anyone else and its 5.1 surround is great for sports and movie fans. If you don't want to be beholden to a traditional cable company, it's a great alternative. Though $83 a month is a tough expenditure for some people, without a contract to worry about, you're free to jump ship to a better deal at any time. The extra $10 is still too much for so little 4K content, even if unlimited streams and DVR downloads are useful for extended families or travelers. If you want more on-demand content for your buck, then Hulu Plus Live TV's Disney bundle is fairly unbeatable. Lastly, if you're a hard-core cord-cutter and determined to save money, Sling TV Blue offers a compelling alternative, especially when paired with an antenna or an AirTV 2. Below, you'll find a comparison of the top 100 channels offered by a few of YouTube TV's competitors. For more information and comparisons with additional services, check out the full article. Yes = The channel is available on the cheapest pricing tier. No = The channel isn't available at all on that service. $ = The channel is available for an extra fee, either a la carte or as part of a more expensive package or add-on. Not every channel a service carries is listed, just the "top 100" as determined by CNET's editors. Minor channels such as AXS TV, CNBC World, Discovery Life, GSN, POP and Universal Kids didn't make the cut. Regional sports networks -- channels devoted to showing regular-season games of particular pro baseball, basketball and hockey teams -- aren't listed.
New York Post
2 hours ago
- New York Post
Long Island family living in camper after contractor guts home — and then vanishes
A couple on Long Island and their three young children have spent the past month living in a camper behind their home. To see their beautiful house from the outside, the scenario doesn't make sense. But take one step inside, and the situation becomes very clear. The Salientino family lives in Shoreham and hired a contractor—and former friend—to remodel their home this summer. They handed over $96,200 for various appliances and materials, and the contractor immediately got to work gutting the house. But that's seemingly where the work has ended. When local news outlet ABC7 visited the family on their property, they found the inside of the home in shambles—nothing but exposed wiring, plywood floors, and spray-painted directions on where the kitchen appliances should be installed. How to check if your contractor is licensed Checking that your contractor is licensed can be accomplished by looking through online databases, like the Better Business Bureau, your local chamber of commerce, and trade associations. 'Licensed contractors pay into a state fund that reimburses homeowners if the contractor does not complete the job in a satisfactory manner,' Morris Katz, owner of Katz Contracting, tells A couple on Long Island and their three young children have spent the past month living in a camper behind their home. amnaj – It wasn't until well after the damage was done that the family learned their contractor was actually on Suffolk County's Consumer Affairs 'Wall of Shame,' for operating without a valid contractor's license. While licensing rules and regulations vary from state to state, even county to county in some places, it is still ill-advised to hire a contractor without a license regardless of the laws. You also want to make sure that your contractor has insurance. Having an insured contractor means their work is backed by a provider, so if any damage is caused to your home in the process of a renovation, their work is covered. Most states have contractor insurance databases you can access online. What to look for when choosing a contractor After you've tracked down a licensed contractor, your next step would be to check if they're the right team for the job you need. There are, of course, general contractors, but there are also those who specialize in specific fields, such as HVAC, electrical, and plumbing. A simple Google search should clear up any confusion about their expertise. It will also likely turn up any client reviews that have been posted—good and bad. Liz Brumer-Smith, a real estate investor, had a 'nightmare' experience with a contractor who took her money and ran without ever doing a single day's work. Her top advice is to do your due diligence right away. 'A simple search of his company on Google would have revealed several terrible reviews, including other instances where he had stolen money from clients,' she shared. 'After I realized the contractor wasn't coming back, I decided to file a small-claims suit against the firm in the county court. My attorney discovered there were other active suits for this same issue against his company in public records.' When local news outlet ABC7 visited the family on their property, they found the inside of the home in shambles—nothing but exposed wiring, plywood floors, and spray-painted directions on where the kitchen appliances should be installed. Chandra – How much does a contractor cost in 2025? A good rule of thumb is if a contractor gives you an estimate that seems too good to be true—it probably is. Like everything else, the cost of contractor services has risen in recent years, with the average cost of a general contractor landing at $4,000, according to But you could be on the line for as much as $58,000, depending on the level of work you need done. For example, additional charges for building permits, hiring subcontractors, or completing land surveys could drive that number up. A great way to check on prices is to use the renovation calculator. This tool will help you calculate costs and return on investment on various home renovations based on your ZIP code. What to look for when choosing a contractor After you've tracked down a licensed contractor, your next step would be to check if they're the right team for the job you need. There are, of course, general contractors, but there are also those who specialize in specific fields, such as HVAC, electrical, and plumbing. A simple Google search should clear up any confusion about their expertise. It will also likely turn up any client reviews that have been posted—good and bad. Liz Brumer-Smith, a real estate investor, had a 'nightmare' experience with a contractor who took her money and ran without ever doing a single day's work. Her top advice is to do your due diligence right away. 'A simple search of his company on Google would have revealed several terrible reviews, including other instances where he had stolen money from clients,' she shared. 'After I realized the contractor wasn't coming back, I decided to file a small-claims suit against the firm in the county court. My attorney discovered there were other active suits for this same issue against his company in public records.' How much does a contractor cost in 2025? A good rule of thumb is if a contractor gives you an estimate that seems too good to be true—it probably is. Like everything else, the cost of contractor services has risen in recent years, with the average cost of a general contractor landing at $4,000, according to But you could be on the line for as much as $58,000, depending on the level of work you need done. For example, additional charges for building permits, hiring subcontractors, or completing land surveys could drive that number up. A great way to check on prices is to use the renovation calculator. This tool will help you calculate costs and return on investment on various home renovations based on your ZIP code.
