messages

Twitter Creates New Inbox For Direct Messages From Strangers

Twitter Creates New Inbox For Direct Messages From Strangers

Twitter has long allowed users to contact each other privately through Direct Messages, but usually only if the two accounts are following each other. That’s about to change. [More]

Tom Raftery

Twitter Looking Into Rash Of High-Profile Hackings

Days after the king of the modern internet — Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg — found several of his social media accounts in the hands of hackers, similar attacks have befallen the NFL and other high-profile Twitter accounts, leading the social network to investigate.  [More]

YouTube Adding A Messaging Tool To Its Mobile Apps

YouTube Adding A Messaging Tool To Its Mobile Apps

If you’re the kind of person who can’t help but send your friends the latest and greatest cat videos when you’re deep in a YouTube hole, you could cut some steps from your sharing process if the video service’s new messaging function becomes a permanent feature. [More]

WhatsApp Launches Desktop App For Mac OS, Windows Users

WhatsApp Launches Desktop App For Mac OS, Windows Users

WhatsApp’s billion or so users now have another way to call and text their friends, with a new desktop app the company launched this week for Windows and Mac. [More]

Tom Raftery

Twitter CEO: 140-Character Limit Too Iconic To Expand

All our hopes and dreams of expressing ourselves with more than 140-character snippets on Twitter have been dashed: the social media company has decided not to give the message limit the boot.  [More]

Twitter May Finally Be Getting Rid Of 140-Character Limit On Tweets

Twitter May Finally Be Getting Rid Of 140-Character Limit On Tweets

Even if you’re not a Twitter user, you’re likely familiar with the restriction that limits the expression of every thought, comment, and desire to a mere 140 characters. But once again Twitter is mulling over the idea of making Tweets a lot longer — though your actual feed wouldn’t look much different.
[More]

Report: Twitter Considering Allowing Tweets Longer Than 140 Characters

Report: Twitter Considering Allowing Tweets Longer Than 140 Characters

Since it launched in 2006, Twitter has been known for allowing users to express their every desire and thought using just 140 characters. That’s could be about to change, as the social media company is reportedly working on a new product that exceeds the current word limit. [More]

Snapchat Now Lets Users Pay For The Ability To Replay Those Self-Destructing Messages

Snapchat Now Lets Users Pay For The Ability To Replay Those Self-Destructing Messages

Snapchat, built on the premise that photos and videos sent between users would self-destruct in a matter of seconds, has allowed users the ability to replay one passage per day for nearly two years. Now, the social network is expanding that option, letting users replay as many messages as they want — so long as they’re willing to pay for it. [More]

Vincent Lee

Forget Listening To That Voicemail, Soon Siri Might Transcribe It For You

In an age of instant messaging and e-mail, some people still prefer to pick up a phone and leave a voicemail. But for the growing number of consumers who are voicemail-averse, Apple is testing out a new voice-text hybrid. [More]

(frankieleon)

Don’t Leave A Message: JPMorgan Chase Scraps Voicemail For 65% Of Workers

When looking to trim billions of dollars from the budget, companies often look at eliminating wasteful spending, reducing workforce and automating some services. While those are all efforts undertaken by JPMorgan Chase, the financial institution also found a surprising amount of savings by cutting the cord on employees’ voicemail. [More]

(NatalieProcter)

Mark Zuckerberg Explains Why Facebook Forced Everyone To Download A Separate Messaging App

Whether you were dragged, kicking and screaming into downloading Facebook’s standalone messaging app when the time came, went quietly or straight up refused to do it at all (take that, The Man!), no one was really quite sure why Facebook was so into the mandatory move. Until now [cue suspenseful music]… [More]

(afagen)

The Time Has Come: Facebook Forcing Smartphone Users To Download Separate Messaging App

Have the urge to send a Facebook message to your ex at goodness knows what time in the morning saying Zeus only knows what? If you want to make that mistake on your phone, soon you’ll have to download the social network’s entirely separate Messenger app, or forever keep your peace. Until the next time you hang out with your pal tequila, at least. [More]

Debt Collection Company Sued Over Racist Voicemails, Must Pay $1.5 Million

Debt Collection Company Sued Over Racist Voicemails, Must Pay $1.5 Million

Advanced Call Center Technologies tried to collect $200 on a disputed debt from Allen Jones a few years ago. Part of the company’s advanced technology is its innovative voicemail strategy, where its employees leave wildly offensive, racist messages for people. Jones sued the company, and last week the jury awarded him $50k for mental anguish and $1.5 million in punitive damages. [More]

Weird Auto-Dialer Scam Curses At You If No Operators Are Available

Weird Auto-Dialer Scam Curses At You If No Operators Are Available

There’s a strange auto-dialer message going around right now that asks you to call back for important info. When you call back, you might end up being offered lower interest rates on your credit card… or you might get a voicemail inbox where a man yells at you, “You stupid f***ing b*tch!” [More]

../..//2007/10/24/watch-your-cellphone-bill/

Watch your cellphone bill for sneaky “premium text message” charges, which sometimes get applied to your account when you sign up for services through your phone or respond to unknown text messages, but sometimes simply appear even if you’ve done nothing at all. A Verizon spokeswoman is on record as saying, “If you’re getting unwanted (text messages), we want to hear from you and we’ll credit you.” [SeattlePI.com]

Cingular Foils Reader’s Attempt To Break Contract

Cingular Foils Reader’s Attempt To Break Contract

Reader Corey wants to break out of his Cingular cellphone contract without fee, but is having trouble.