Latest news with #ZiffDavis
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Get laid, not played: These are the best hookup apps of 2025
Editors and writers independently select products unless marked Sponsored or Promoted. Sponsored content is a paid ad, while content marked Promoted is chosen by Ziff Davis leadership. We may earn an affiliate commission if you buy through our links. Promoted cards do not include input from individual authors. In the age of on-demand everything, hookup apps are the go-to for casual dating. After all, if we can stream movies (thank you, Netflix) and order takeout (hello, DoorDash) with a few taps, one can't help but wonder, why can't we find a potential partner the same way? (Go ahead, imagine Carrie Bradshaw narrating that.) SEE ALSO: 'Dying for Sex' review: Michelle Williams' horny miniseries will break your heart Honestly, there's no single "best" app that works for everyone. What your friends are swiping right on might totally miss the mark for you. We recommend downloading a handful of apps (niche dating apps, too!) and experimenting a little to see what feels right. Build your profile, check out the features, and follow your gut instinct. When you're scrolling through options, you'll probably want to skip the apps that scream "romance" (we're looking at you, eharmony). Instead, redirect your energy to apps where the people are upfront and ready for action. "Hookup apps help prevent situations where people are on mainstream dating sites with the intention of having a casual hookup but are unclear about these intentions," Suzannah Weiss, resident sexologist for Biird and author of Subjectified: Becoming a Sexual Subject, tells Mashable. "They also give women a space to be openly sexual creatures without judgment." SEE ALSO: The hidden consequences of being banned from dating apps Luckily, in 2025, your choices aren't as limited as you might think. Because of all the feature-copying happening lately, most major apps now have special features to let others know you're looking for a fling or keeping things casual. What else separates the great from the meh? The best hookup apps make chatting quick and easy (messaging and maybe options for video or audio calls) and include safety features like profile verification. You should expect to see this even on the free versions. 'I think the free tonight section on Tinder makes it really easy to find a hookup,' says Alexander Liebisch, the CEO and founder of 'After talking to 90 of our users at we found that people who sent their first message in the free tonight section after 10 p.m. on a weekend had a 45 percent higher success rate for hookups than people who swiped earlier in the day on the general section on a weekday and tried to plan out a date.' SEE ALSO: Is Tinder Platinum worth it? I tried it for 3 months to find out. You don't have to pay for a premium membership to get results, though the option's always there if you want the extra perks. Our take? Start out on the free versions. Tinder, Grindr, and Hinge are all good contenders to kick things off. These popular dating apps usually pack enough functionality right out of the gate to let you scout, match, and connect with potential partners for casual encounters (or whatever else you happen to be looking for). Think of it as a "try before you buy" — you can often achieve your goal without spending a dime. "Of the free apps out there, OKCupid is probably the least suited for finding casual sex; it's more relationship-oriented," says Weiss. Whether you want a one-night stand, to swap nudes with strangers, or a friends-with-benefits arrangement, we've rounded up the most reliable hookup apps for every situation. Download them from Google Play or the App Store and start swiping in minutes. Feeld (removed August 2024): Following its December 2023 rebrand, Feeld became buggy and had location-related safety concerns. We decided Feeld no longer met our standards for reliability and removed it until we have more information. Plenty of Fish (removed January 2025): After its recent rebrand, testing revealed key features, like free messaging for non-matches, were removed. We also noticed issues with repeat profiles. Overall, it doesn't bring anything unique to the dating app table that other apps aren't already doing better, meaning we no longer recommend it as a hookup app.
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Stop texting, start sexting: The best apps for NSFW chats
Editors and writers independently select products unless marked Sponsored or Promoted. Sponsored content is a paid ad, while content marked Promoted is chosen by Ziff Davis leadership. We may earn an affiliate commission if you buy through our links. Promoted cards do not include input from individual authors. Sexting (aka dirty talk, swapping nudes, raunchy audio messages, etc.) is finally getting the recognition it deserves as a beneficial way to connect with your partner(s) on a deeper level, especially when you're not physically together. And it's not just a feeling — recent studies are showing the tangible benefits of sexting. One March 2025 review (which looked at 70 scientific papers on the benefits of sexting) found that the perks of consensual sexting generally fall into three categories: individual benefits from the act itself (like exploring your desires, safe experimentation, and both sexual and non-sexual pleasure), individual benefits from your partner's reaction (think validation, feeling better about your body/self, and owning your sexual agency), and relational benefits (like feeling way more connected emotionally and sexually, or even using it to bridge gaps when apart). SEE ALSO: A beginner's guide to sexting If you're unfamiliar with the term, that's OK! Sexting is basically 'sex' and 'texting' mashed together. It could mean sending sexy snaps, video or audio clips, or even just writing out a steamy message. A long time ago, sexting was something you'd only hear about when someone was having an affair or a celebrity's nudes were leaked. But nowadays, it's the norm for plenty of couples and single people alike. Whether you're in a committed relationship, single and swiping, looking for a regular sexting buddy, or wanting to amp up your solo sesh with steamy instructions from an AI companion, sexting offers a healthy way to explore your sexuality and often leads to a more fulfilling physical and emotional experience. SEE ALSO: The cherry emoji and 14 other emoji you can use to sext Based on our real-world use (yep, we actually signed up and used 'em!), these are the top contenders for safe, fun, and effective sexting in 2025. You might even recognize some from our guides to the best dating apps and hookup apps. Good news: You definitely don't need to be partnered up to find someone to sext with. There are plenty of apps (and websites) out there designed to connect you with people looking for some digital heat, often pretty quickly. Just be sure to keep an eye out for sketchy platforms, bots, and catfishing scams. Finding safe, reliable, and genuinely fun options is exactly why curated recommendations (like the ones in this guide!) are so helpful. To get the lowdown on sexting safely, we talked to Gary Orenstein, Chief Customer Officer at Bitwarden (an open-source password manager). "If an app is being used to share intimate content, privacy features cannot be optional — they're essential," he tells Mashable. What tops his list? "First and foremost, end-to-end encryption is critical," so only you and your partner see the messages, not even the app company itself. Orenstein also recommends looking for apps with "built-in controls, such as disappearing messages and self-destructing media [which] help minimize long-term exposure of shared materials" and features like "screenshot detection or alerts [that] can discourage unauthorized saving," though these aren't always foolproof. "The most overlooked risk is the assumption that encryption alone guarantees privacy," Orenstein adds. "Even with end-to-end encryption, apps cannot prevent screenshots, screen recordings, or physical access to an unlocked device." He stresses that basic device-level safeguards, such as strong passcodes, biometric locks, and up-to-date software, are essential. And ultimately, "Privacy depends not only on technical safeguards, but also on the trustworthiness of the recipient."
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Pride is coming! Here are the best dating apps for lesbians
Editors and writers independently select products unless marked Sponsored or Promoted. Sponsored content is a paid ad, while content marked Promoted is chosen by Ziff Davis leadership. We may earn an affiliate commission if you buy through our links. Promoted cards do not include input from individual authors. Online dating as a lesbian can be a joyous experience, but it can also involve having your space invaded by straight people or seeing your ex-girlfriends (and your ex-girlfriends' ex-girlfriends) show up in your feed over and over. Back in quarantine days, the heteronormative weirdness on the apps got so alienating that many lesbians turned to TikTok as a means of meeting other single lesbians (and it worked). Unfortunately, it's just not realistic to expect a social media app to work like a dating app for everyone. Lesbians who have exhausted their local romantic options are still going to want to meet new women in time for cuffing season (or Pride). And while it's still all too common to match with a woman just to be hit with the classic, "My boyfriend and I are looking for a threesome," dating apps have been making strides against unicorn hunting. Our favorite apps now give queer women a safe space to meet and date other women and non-binary folks. A Pew Research Center survey from 2023 found that 61 percent of LGBTQ users have positive experiences with online dating. That's not to say it's always easy, though. The same survey showed that we're more likely to experience unwanted advances and even the occasional scammer. But with a bit of caution and the right app, online dating can be a great way to connect with other queer women. So, what are the best dating apps for lesbians? We tested the most popular sites and apps and sought insight from our Dating and Relationships writers to find out. Niche lesbian dating apps aren't your only option for finding love. Credit: Stacey Zhu / Mashable Mainstream dating apps attract the most users, including LGBTQ users. That means niche lesbian dating apps aren't your only options for finding love. These days, Hinge, Bumble, OkCupid, and even eharmony all have clear filters to help you match with people of the same gender (or any gender at all), as well as filters that acknowledge the existence of non-traditional relationships. Especially if you don't live in a densely populated area, going for the more popular dating apps over lesbian dating sites can often lead to better results. That said, there is one dating app lesbian women should try. HER is an app by and for queer women, and it's grown to have a strong user base. According to its website, the app has more than 15 million registered users worldwide. The app also emphasizes finding community and making friends in addition to dating, giving you plenty of ways to find a connection with other queer women and non-binary users. Check out our guide below for the full rundown of our recommendations and dating app reviews.
CNET
19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- CNET
We're All Copyright Owners. Why You Need to Care About AI and Copyright
Most of us don't think about copyright very often in our daily lives. But in the age of generative AI, it has quickly become one of the most important issues in the development and outputs of chatbots and image and video generators. It's something that affects all of us because we're all copyright owners and authors. Sadly, copyright and AI are something of a mess. The race to develop the most advanced AI models shows no sign of slowing anytime soon. In order to create those next-gen models, tech companies are looking for lots of high-quality, human-generated content. They need these works to make their AI models better, whether that's giving a chatbot a more lifelike personality or an image generator more artistic styles to reference. On the flip side, AI enthusiasts might be wondering if it's possible to receive copyright protection for AI-enabled creative works. Most AI companies have been very vague about what content they use, which has led to more than 30-plus lawsuits winding their way through US courts. You might have heard of some of the most notable, like the New York Times v. OpenAI, in which the publisher alleges that ChatGPT used reporters' stories verbatim without proper attribution or permission. (Disclosure: Ziff Davis, CNET's parent company, in April filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.) Meta's also been in hot water recently, as The Atlantic reported and published a searchable database of all the copyrighted and potentially pirated books the company allegedly used without permission to train its AI. I spend a lot of time thinking about copyright and AI in my work reporting on AI creative services. I've interviewed intellectual property lawyers, spoken with lots of concerned creators and spent way too much time breaking down legalese from government agencies. I've used that experience to make this guide on what you need to know about copyright in the age of AI, which we'll keep it updated as things change. What is copyright? Copyright is a set of expressed rights that protect "original works of authorship fixed in any tangible medium of expression, now known or later developed, from which they can be perceived, reproduced or otherwise communicated," according to the Copyright Act of 1976. In other words, copyright is a legal protection that gives original authors the rights to and control over their original works. Copyright protection can apply to books, art, music, movies, computer programs, blogs, architectural designs, plays, choreography and more. We're all copyright owners. As the US Copyright Office puts it: "Once you create an original work and fix it, like taking a photograph, writing a poem or blog or recording a new song, you are the author and the owner." There are a couple of ways copyright intersects with AI. On the output side, people who use AI services like chatbots and image generators want to know whether their AI-enabled work is eligible for copyright protection. On the development side, there are a lot of concerns about AI companies using copyrighted material illegally. Here's what we know so far. Can I copyright an image or text I generated with AI? As with many legal questions, the answer is: It depends. Our guidance on this question comes primarily from the US Copyright Office, the federal agency in charge of administering copyrights. The Office has released a series of reports on AI and copyright with its latest guidance. In the second report, the Office maintained its position that images and videos that are entirely generated by AI are not eligible for copyright protection. However, there are a number of generative AI editing tools now available. These tools aren't used for wholesale creation, but they use gen AI to do things like add or remove objects, de-age actors or refine audio and video. You can still register and potentially receive copyright protection for AI-edited content, but you have to disclose your AI use. In the public record portal, you can see in the notes how people used AI in the creation of their copyrighted work. Can copyrighted content be used to train AI? The basic premise in copyright law is that the rights holder -- usually the original creator, sometimes in other cases it can be a person's employer -- can decide how they want their works used. In many cases, owners choose to license their content; this lets people use copyrighted work, for a fee, with proper attribution. So if a copyright owner wants to give an AI company permission to use their content to train AI models, there's nothing wrong or illegal about that. Many publishers, including the Financial Times and Axel Springer brands, have struck multimillion-dollar deals with AI companies to do just that. Issues arise when AI companies potentially use copyrighted content without first receiving permission from the copyright holders. And that's what creators are alleging happened in many lawsuits, including a class action lawsuit led by concept artist Karla Ortiz against Stability AI. There are currently more than 30 active lawsuits between AI companies and creators over copyright concerns. Decades of copyright law precedent say that such a use, without permission, is not allowed. Some of the creators are alleging that the tech companies infringed on their copyrights. Infringement occurs when a copyrighted work is "reproduced, distributed, performed, publicly displayed, or made into a derivative work" without the permission of the copyright holder, as the Copyright Office defines it. It will be up to the courts to decide whether the use of copyrighted material in AI development reaches the threshold of infringement. In the meantime, many tech companies are trying to pursue an alternate solution: A fair use exception. How I'm Fighting Customer Service Chatbots. Also: Escaping Into Spacetop Glasses | Tech Therapy How I'm Fighting Customer Service Chatbots. Also: Escaping Into Spacetop Glasses | Tech Therapy Click to unmute Video Player is loading. Play Video Pause Skip Backward Skip Forward Next playlist item Unmute Current Time 0:21 / Duration 0:30 Loaded : 100.00% 0:21 Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:09 Share Fullscreen This is a modal window. The video connection was lost, please confirm you are connected to the internet Error Code: MEDIA_ERR_NETWORK HLS playlist request error at URL: Technical details : Session ID: 2025-05-19:8b5e7e4b6b141104970d9ced Player Element ID: vjs_video_3 OK Close Modal Dialog Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Text Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Caption Area Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Opacity Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Drop shadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Close Modal Dialog This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button. Close Modal Dialog This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button. How I'm Fighting Customer Service Chatbots. Also: Escaping Into Spacetop Glasses | Tech Therapy What is fair use, and what does it have to do with AI? The fair use doctrine is a fundamental part of copyright law, part of the Copyright Act of 1976. Fair use lets people use copyrighted content without the holder's express permission for specific purposes. In the pre-AI era, fair-use cases included a teacher using a copyrighted book for educational purposes or a reporter referencing copyrighted work in news coverage. There are four factors that help determine whether someone's use can qualify as a fair use, including: The purpose of the use: How would the person using copyrighted material be using it? Commercial interests -- whether someone can make money off the use -- are important here. The nature of the copyrighted work: What is the actual format of the disputed work -- is it factual like a newspaper article or highly creative like artwork? The amount and substantiality of the use: How much of a copyrighted work does someone want to use? Even if it's only a little bit, if it's the "heart of the work," that might not be eligible for a fair use defense. The effect on the market: By using a copyrighted work in a proposed way, is that going to be competing with the original author? And what effect will that have on the greater market? There are questions about every factor when it comes to fair use and AI, Christian Mammen, an intellectual property lawyer and managing partner at Womble, Bond and Dickinson law firm, told me in an interview. There's also a debate about whether the fair use factors apply to the AI input, output or both. "Does that apply on the input side, where you take the whole work in this training data, or does it apply on the output side, where there may be an unrecognizable, tiny bit of influence by any particular work in the output?" Mammen said. Tech companies are pushing hard for a fair use exception because it would allow them to use copyrighted content without contacting every rights holder and paying licensing fees. For companies like OpenAI and Google, which have already spent billions of dollars on development, a fair use exception would save considerable time and money. Google said that fair use would allow it to continue innovating quickly; OpenAI took a parallel approach and said that unimpeded AI innovation is a matter of national security. Giving tech companies carte blanche to run amok with copyrighted content isn't something creators are excited about. In March, over 400 writers, actors and directors signed an open letter asking the Trump administration not to give OpenAI and Google a fair use exception. They wrote that Google and OpenAI "are arguing for a special government exemption so they can freely exploit America's creative and knowledge industries, despite their substantial revenues and available funds. There is no reason to weaken or eliminate the copyright protections that have helped America flourish." The Copyright Office essentially punted on the issue of fair use, saying in its third report that there could be cases where a fair-use case could be made, but there are times when it wouldn't meet the necessary criteria. Without federal legislation, it's likely we'll have to wait for some or all of these court decisions to set new legal precedent for copyright and fair use in the age of AI. Jeffrey Hazelwood/CNET What does all of this mean for the future? Copyright owners are in a bit of a holding pattern for now. But beyond the legal and ethical implications, copyright in the age of AI raises important questions about the value of creative work, the cost of innovation and the ways in which we need or ought to have government intervention and protections. There are two distinct ways to view the US's intellectual property laws, Mammen said. The first is that these laws were enacted to encourage and reward human flourishing. The other is more economically focused; the things that we're creating have value, and we want our economy to be able to recognize that value accordingly. "For most of our history, the humanistic approach and the industrial policy approach have been fairly well aligned," Mammen said. But generative AI has highlighted the different approaches to copyright and IP. "Do these laws exist primarily as an issue of industrial economic policy, or do they exist as part of a humanistic approach that values and encourages human flourishing by rewarding human creators?" Mammen asked. "At the highest, most abstract level, I'd say that is one of the questions that's being forced by these debates."
CNET
16-05-2025
- Business
- CNET
Xfinity Speed Test Results: How Does Comcast's Broadband Service Measure Up?
Your internet connection is more important than ever. Whether you're working remotely , taking online classes, streaming your favorite shows or running a smart home , your internet service provider plays a key role in keeping everything running smoothly. In fact, it's become as essential as your other utilities like gas, water and electricity. One of the simplest ways to ensure you're getting the service you're paying for is to run a speed test . It gives you a quick look at the download and upload speeds your provider is delivering in megabits per second. Several reliable speed tests are available online. However, this page focuses on results from a widely used platform created by Ookla. (Ookla is owned by the same parent company as CNET, Ziff Davis.) Those reports are based on millions of tests run by internet users across the country. Where did Xfinity place among the top US internet providers? For the most recent data (July to December 2024), Xfinity found itself in third place -- behind AT&T Fiber and Verizon Fios -- among the country's biggest ISPs. It had a Speed Score (which Ookla defines as a combination of download and upload performance) of just over 251. Fastest fixed internet providers in the US To qualify as one of the country's top internet providers, an ISP must appear in 3% or more of the total test data taken during the six-month period. For example, Ziply Fiber, a provider that services the Northwest, boasts the country's fastest residential internet plan at 50 gigabits per second. But because it's only available in that portion of the country, it won't show up on the national list (although it certainly registered as the fastest provider in the state of Washington). Also of note is that the 3% threshold is based on the data taken from tests run by customers across the country, not simply whether a provider covers 3% of the country. T-Mobile 5G Home Internet , for example, is now available to 70% of the country, according to the Federal Communications Commission's National Broadband Map. However, its customer base, which has grown to nearly 7 million subscribers, was not quite large enough for it to crack into consideration on the top list. Ookla speed test info doesn't use its dataset's average (or mean) but the median, aiming to better represent the typical customer's experience. Does every Xfinity customer get 251Mbps? Although Xfinity speed test results with Ookla garnered a Speed Score of 251, that doesn't equate to every Xfinity subscriber getting at least 251Mbps. However, it does show that most Xfinity customers will have a consistent internet experience. Ookla has a "Consistency" ranking -- which shows the percentage of results registered above broadband speed (based on the FCC's old 25Mbps download and 3Mbps upload, not the more recent designation of 100/20) -- and Xfinity landed in third place, with a 92.4% rating. That can also be combined with the FCC's findings that more than 90% of participants experienced actual median download speeds of at least 95% of the ISP's advertised download speed . That's certainly another good way to determine consistency for the customer. But what are the advertised speeds offered by Xfinity? Available Xfinity internet speeds Most ISPs offer three or four speed tiers but Xfinity is unique because it boasts sixn internet speed options. That's quite a bit more choice for customers than one usually encounters. Xfinity speed tiers Plan Monthly price Max speeds Fees and service details Connect More $40 ($83 after 12 months) 400Mbps download, 150Mbps upload Equipment and unlimited data free for 1 year; $15 gateway rental after 12 months Fast $45 ($98 after 12 months) 600Mbps download, 150Mbps upload Equipment and unlimited data free for 1 year; $15 gateway rental after 12 months Gigabit $50 ($108 after 12 months) 1,100Mbps download, 300Mbps upload Equipment and unlimited data free for 1 year; $15 gateway rental after 12 months Gigabit Extra $70 ($113 after 12 months) 1,300Mbps download, 300Mbps upload Equipment and unlimited data free for 1 year; $15 gateway rental after 12 months Gigabit X2 $90 ($116 after 12 months) 2,000Mbps download, 300Mbps upload Equipment and unlimited data free for 1 year; $15 gateway rental after 12 months Source: CNET analysis of provider data. For Xfinity, all plans are a hybrid fiber-coaxial cable connection so customers' download speeds will be much faster than their upload speeds. The one exception is the Gigabit Pro plan, which is a 100% fiber connection. While it's theoretically available throughout Xfinity's national footprint, FCC numbers indicate it's only available to approximately 4% of Xfinity's customer base. US states where Xfinity was the top ISP Comcast's Xfinity internet service is available in 39 states, giving it a decent chance at grabbing the top spot in several areas. It grabbed the crown for five regions, second only to AT&T Fiber at 18. US cities where Xfinity was the top ISP The Ookla data only considers the country's top 100 most populous cities for city speeds. On that list, Xfinity was the fastest provider in eight towns, second again only to AT&T Fiber, which grabbed the top spot in 17 US cities. Final thoughts on Xfinity's speed test results If you've read any of CNET's home internet coverage, you've heard us say that fiber internet trumps cable internet in almost every way. That's undoubtedly true. But most fiber ISPs with a large national footprint -- AT&T, Frontier , Optimum and Verizon -- don't offer fiber internet plans exclusively. Their coverage areas include a mix of slower connection types, like digital subscriber line . The speed test results in those areas will be significantly lower than the fiber numbers, thus making the providers' total numbers lower. But Xfinity and other cable internet providers that don't have to deal with DSL dragging down their numbers will see a much more consistent performance across the country. In that way, cable trumps the fiber-DSL combo. Xfinity speed test FAQs
