Latest news with #AFPRelaxnews
The Star
6 hours ago
- Entertainment
- The Star
By 2026, US adults will spend even less time watching TV
Television is increasingly losing its place as a favorite in US homes. —/AFP Relaxnews Traditional television is continuing to lose ground in the United States. According to the latest projections, by 2026, American adults will devote only 39% of their daily screen time to linear television. This decline confirms the profound shift in usage, driven by streaming, mobility and people's changing relationship with screens. For decades, traditional television has set the pace for North American evenings. Today, it is slowly slipping into the background. According to Statista, the time US adults spend watching traditional television each day will account for only 39% of their screen use in 2026. This gradual but relentless decline, which began several years ago, shows no signs of slowing. A diversity of screens This decline doesn't mean that Americans are spending less time on screens. Quite the opposite. Smartphones, tablets and computers have taken over, driven by an ever richer, more fluid, and more mobile offering of on-demand content. "Young people around the world have been especially quick to adopt smartphone-based video streaming habits meaning that television screen time will likely fall even further in the future," explains Statista. Whether it's watching a Netflix show on the subway, a TikTok video between meetings or a YouTube documentary in bed, viewing habits have changed. While younger generations are the quickest to abandon conventional linear television, they are no longer alone. Even the over-50s are increasingly turning to streaming services. This transformation is also reflected in subscriptions. In 2019, over 80 million American households still subscribed to a cable or satellite TV service. In 2028, there will be just 40.8 million, Statista estimates – dropping by half in less than 10 years. – AFP Relaxnews
The Star
12 hours ago
- Sport
- The Star
Over 50s are increasingly turning to streaming to watch sports
Sports streaming is increasingly appealing to viewers aged 50 and over. — AFP Relaxnews Often considered diehard fans of linear television, viewers over the age of 50 are quietly but decisively shifting toward streaming. Between 2022 and 2024, their consumption of streaming sports content reportedly increased by 21%, according to Nielsen. This shift is forcing sports and media companies to rethink the digital experience for a wider, more mature, and increasingly online audience. Some stereotypes die hard. People typically assume that young people are addicted to streaming services, while older people are loyal to their TV sets. However, a new study challenges this preconception. According to the "2025 Global Sports Report,' published by Nielsen, streaming consumption of sports content has grown significantly among sports fans aged 50 and over, with a 21% increase recorded between 2022 and 2024. This is significant growth, reflecting a cultural shift. While streaming platforms have long been popular primarily with younger generations, they are now extending their influence to a more mature audience that has historically been loyal to traditional TV channels. "Live sports remain a powerful driver of fan engagement," the report points out. And it is precisely this lever that has prompted platforms to invest heavily in broadcasting rights, thereby attracting a new audience. Recently, YouTube achieved a symbolic milestone by announcing that it would livestream an NFL game for free, a historic first for both the video platform and the sports league. But the Google subsidiary is not alone in investing in sports streaming. Netflix already made a notable foray into the field at the end of 2024 by livestreaming two games, while Amazon Prime Video plans to make a splash with "Thursday Night Football,' scheduled for December 25, 2025. The e-commerce giant is no stranger to this field: it already screens several soccer matches as well as French Open tennis tournament matches. Meanwhile, linear television is trying to reinvent itself to stay relevant. In the United States, the new TGL golf league, which is interactive, high-tech, and tailored for the screen, is a perfect example of this. Since the end of 2024, its fan base has grown by 17%, and each game in its first season attracted an average of 513,000 viewers on ESPN channels, more than college basketball at the same time last year, according to Nielsen. Designed to appeal to young people, the formula appears to be working, since 32% of viewers aged 18 to 34 were not regular PGA Tour viewers. This demonstrates that innovation in formats can revitalize traditional sports... and open them up to new audiences that have previously been largely untapped. – AFP Relaxnews
The Star
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Star
Sending cat GIFs helps build social connections without you even realising
Researchers at Concordia University may have solved the mystery of our addiction to animal content on the Internet. — AFP Relaxnews The photos of clumsy kittens and chubby pandas that flood our news feeds are often dismissed as mere digital distractions. However, a Canadian study, published in the Journal Of Consumer Research , reveals that sharing animal content online goes far beyond simple entertainment. It forges genuine digital affective networks and strengthens our social relationships. Researchers at Concordia University may have solved the mystery of our addiction to animal content on the Internet. According to them, sharing these photos and videos creates what they call "digital affective encounters', moments when your heart melts in front of your screen. More surprisingly, these seemingly innocuous gestures function as markers of affection in our social relationships. It's a bit like penguins offering pebbles as small tokens of affection to potential mates. Except that in this case, the pebble is a GIF of a kitten falling into a box. The scale of this digital trend is surprising. "The creation, consumption and circulation of animal photos has become a social phenomenon," says study coauthor Zeynep Arsel, a professor in the Department of Marketing at the John Molson School of Business, quoted in a news release. "It has gone well beyond animals advertising animal products." In other words, gone are the days when Fido was only good for selling dog food. Today, a cute animal can generate likes, shares, and "awwws' – an emotional currency far more valuable than euros. To understand this mechanism, the researchers analysed user behaviour on Instagram in detail. They interviewed content creators, animal page managers and their followers, while drawing on their own digital behavior toward their four-legged friends. This survey reveals a three-step process that transforms an animal into a social media star. The path to a viral hit The first step is "indexicalisation', which involves transforming your pet into personal content. A cute hashtag, a little costume, or an affectionate caption is enough to imbue the image with emotion. This personalisation breathes life into the owner-pet relationship in its digital representation. Sharing this content with loved ones is effectively a form of "pebbling'. Step two is "re-indexicalisation'. As the content circulates on social media, it takes on new meanings. Friends add their own references, creating a common language that only the group understands. This step forges a parasocial relationship between the viewer and the animal. For example, you might become genuinely attached to your neighbor's cat without ever having seen it in real life. The final step is "decontextualisation'. Content curators remove personal references to reach a wider audience. They replace personal references with universal cultural references, transforming a private photo into a viral meme that speaks to everyone. This mechanism goes far beyond the animal world, points out Zeynep Arsel. Whether with mouthwatering photos of food or cute pictures of children, the principle is the same. "This paper has societal implications in the sense that it explains something that we do very often and usually without question," the researcher says. In other words, our little daily exchanges hide a social mechanism that is more complex than it appears. Every viral cat video reveals our fundamental need to connect and express our emotions. It proves that even when we are immersed in the digital world, we remain deeply social beings – beings who happen to use corgi memes to communicate. – AFP Relaxnews
The Star
13-06-2025
- Business
- The Star
This AI web browser can perform certain tasks for you
Dia is currently only available to a very limited number of testers. — The Browser Company The Browser Company has launched a new web browser in beta for a limited number of users. It is designed around integrated artificial intelligence that can understand context and act on your behalf, like a true online personal assistant. Named Dia, this web browser is currently only available to existing users of Arc, the former alternative browser project from The Browser Company, which has now been suspended. For the time being, Dia is only compatible with macOS and only works on devices equipped with M1 chips or later. This means that this beta version is not yet intended for a wide audience. However, it looks very promising. Dia stands out for its advanced integration of artificial intelligence into the user experience. This beta version is already highly ambitious, as it includes a veritable intelligent assistant, custom-developed by The Browser Company. This assistant can analyze entire web pages and provide contextualized advice and answers based on browsing history and the various tabs that are open. The idea is to be able to handle everything that's available online and in the browser with simple natural language commands. Dia is also capable of automatically performing certain specific tasks for you, based on the intent detected in your queries. The browser has been designed to perform a specific task, whether it's writing an email, comparing items on different shopping sites, answering specific questions about one of them, summarizing the content of a video or article opened in a tab, etc. Dia is therefore reimagining the browser, no longer as a medium for web pages, but as an intelligent assistant designed to facilitate everyday tasks without leaving the browser interface and therefore without necessarily needing to use services like ChatGPT. The icing on the cake is that The Browser Company promises that all personal data analyzed or used by its AI is stored locally and never shared. ChatGPT publisher OpenAI is also reportedly working on a web browser with advanced and intelligent features. – AFP Relaxnews
The Star
13-06-2025
- Health
- The Star
How screen use can be a vicious cycle for some children and adolescents
The study reports that excessive screen use can exacerbate socioemotional problems (anxiety, depression, aggression, hyperactivity, etc) in children... in turn driving them to screens to cope with these issues. — AFP Relaxnews To cope with behavioral problems linked to excessive screen use, such as aggression or anxiety, some children take refuge... in screens. While this vicious circle aspect of the screen phenomenon is not widely discussed, it has been highlighted by a comprehensive Australian study published this week. It has long been known that screens are harmful to children. Excessive exposure (several hours a day) has been linked to cognitive development delays, as well as learning, language, and memory disorders. And in adolescents, excessive screen use may cause manic symptoms, such as mood disorders and sleep disturbances. But a new meta-analysis highlights a lesser-known problem. The study reports that excessive screen use can exacerbate socioemotional problems (anxiety, depression, aggression, hyperactivity, etc) in children... in turn driving them to screens to cope with these issues. This vicious circle mainly affects children aged 6 to 10 and seems to be more prevalent in boys than in girls. Conducted by psychology professors at the University of Queensland (Australia), the research in question examined around 100 studies involving more than 292,000 children from around the world. The findings are published in the journal Psychological Bulletin . Most of the studies included in this research were conducted in the United States (41 studies), Canada (13), Australia (11), Germany and the Netherlands (7 each). The effects of video games The researchers found that video games are associated with higher risks of developing behavioral disorders compared to other screen-based content, including those intended for educational or recreational purposes. "As a kid I loved video games – they give you a challenge and powerful feedback when you're doing a good job. For this reason, games are particularly tempting for children having problems and especially hard to get children away from," says study senior author, associate professor Michael Noetel from UQ's School of Psychology, quoted in a news release. While it's true that some video games have an educational dimension (some of them have even been recognised as a vehicle for mental well-being among teenagers), excessive use can be counterproductive. "Dr Noetel said parents and policymakers have long debated whether screens cause problems, or whether children with problems were simply drawn to screens," the news release notes. "Our review shows it's both," he adds. "If we only address one side of the equation – cutting down on screen time but overlooking anxiety or aggression that leads kids to screens – we risk leaving children stuck in a cycle." However, the researcher tempers this by pointing out that the emotional and behavioral disorders mentioned can also be explained by other factors, such as exposure to alcohol and/or drugs. Follow the 3-6-9-12 rule In France, some health professionals now recommend keeping children under six away from screens entirely, which is three years longer than the current official recommendations (ie, no screens before three). To help parents limit their children's screen time, French pediatrician Serge Tisseron has invented the 3-6-9-12 rule, designed according to children's age and stage of cognitive development. The rules to remember are as follows: no screens before the age of 3, no personal consoles before the age of 6, no Internet before the age of 9, and no Internet without supervision before the age of 12. Other initiatives have recently emerged to encourage children and teenagers to "detox' from digital devices, such as the challenge of spending 10 days without using any screens at all, in favor of activities that promote relaxation and creativity. – AFP Relaxnews
