The Drum’s top 10 tech disruptions of the week - Apple Pay in the UK, Twitter makes video easier & Land Rover maps roads
It’s been a busy week in technology. Here The Drum has rounded up 10 of the top tech innovations that have been touted this week as capable of disrupting the world as we know it.
1. A number of high profile brands including the Post Office, Costa, and Wagamama have jumped aboard for the UK launch of NFC mobile payment system, Apple Pay. The feature ought to be implemented in the UK in the coming weeks.
2. Apple accidentally leaked news that it is looking to include extensions in its Safari web browser enabling iOS users to block ads. The updated web browser includes developer support to make cookies, images, scripts which will as a result make online adverts disappear.
3. Jaguar Land Rover is set to map the state of UK roads with its ‘Pothole Alert’ technology. Working in partnership with Coventry City Council, the vehicle brand will share road damage data scanned by the Range Rover Evoque with other road users.
4. Twitter has rolled out new video shooting and editing features in-app to streamline the process of getting multimedia content on-site. Twitter simply said: “Now it’s simple to shoot clips, make cuts, and share your world in vivid, moving detail.”
5. Mastercard is undergoing a 'mobile transformation' looking at a number of opportunities in the wider mobile sector including connected cars, wearables and the Internet of Things (IoT). the aspiration was revealed at the Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) London Forum.
6. Vodafone has launched Vodafone Connect, a bundled package of broadband and home phone services offered to existing customers. The move makes the UK carrier a player in the home broadband market just in time for rivals EE binding with BT and O2 partnering with Three.
7. Pizza Hut has unveiled a new pizza box which doubles as a projector as part of a new marketing stunt which grants foodies a free movie download on mobile. The box projects smartphone displays to perfectly replicate a night at the movies.Each box was fitted with a QR code which enabled the download of a video.
8. Tesco and Unilever have come together to offer iBeacon discounts on Magnum products. 270 Tesco Express stores across the UK will send exclusive discounts for discounted Pink and Black Magnums – if they have the Mpulse app on their phone. It will be one of the largest roll-outs of the technology to date.
9. Reddit, the so-called 'front page of the internet', has announced that it will start shutting sub-reddits which break its anti-harassment rules. CEO Ellen Pao and other execs said that they “will ban subreddits that allow their communities to use the subreddit as a platform to harass individuals when moderators don’t take action. We’re banning behavior, not ideas.”
10. Scientists at Arizona State University are in the process of developing flexi-batteries. The fully malleable devices can be stretched, twisted and folded without compromising performance, a perfect fit for the next generation of smartwatches.