the week in social: Facebook's dedication to moderation, app safety, and sport

New Facebook acquisition proof of the platform’s dedication to moderation

Facebook recently announced its acquisition of London-based artificial intelligence firm, Bloomsbury AI, which specializes in natural language processing. The announcement was posted on the official Facebook Academics page and stated that Bloomsbury’s “expertise will strengthen Facebook’s efforts in natural language processing research, and help us further understand natural language and its applications.” The move looks to be Facebook’s attempt at creating stronger, smarter, and more diligent AI to moderate its platforms.

Read more at Facebook Academics

Facebook is shutting down its Hello, Moves, and tbh apps

Facebook has announced that it (and we) will be saying goodbye to three of its apps after they failed to gather numbers since being acquired. Hello, Moves, and anonymous teen app tbh will all be closed within the coming weeks, and user data from the three apps will be deleted within 90 days. In a statement, Facebook had this to say: “We regularly review our apps to assess which ones people value most. Sometimes this means closing an app and its accompanying APIs. We know some people are still using these apps and will be disappointed – and we’d like to take this opportunity to thank them for their support. But we need to prioritize our work so we don’t spread ourselves too thin. And it’s only by trial and error that we create great social experiences for people.”

Read more at TechCrunch

AR glasses may be coming to shake up the workplace as we know it

If you have a thing for unconventional work methods and dodging the flailing arms of colleagues (who doesn’t?), your future is looking bright! Thanks to a new AR productivity solution being developed by two interns (who put all other interns to shame) at Greenhouse Group in the Netherlands, gamification could be making its way into the everyday. The duo are working on bringing office and computer interactions into the AR space with something as seemingly simple as a pair of glasses. Don’t get rid of your laptop just yet though – the concept isn’t quite ready for us mere mortals, but this is definitely an exciting peek into the next generation of workplaces. Sigh…  from type writers to this. It’s all happening!

Read more at VentureBeat

Facebook updates its app development platform

In a step toward a safer online experience for its users (and their information), Facebook this week announced a new list of updates to its app development platform to prevent outside sources creating apps that exploit user data. The changes mean that apps will now undergo a new review process before gaining access to the Facebook’s Marketing API – the tool that allows developers to build ad functionality and automation into their apps. As well as these changes, the company has audited more than 1000 apps on the platform, suspending 200 of them along the way.

Read more at Marketing Land

Facebook is kicking goals in the sports broadcasting space

In more (yet decidedly different) Facebook news, the company continues its move into the sports realm, signing a £200 million broadcast deal with the Premier League. And so, from the 2019/2020 season, Facebook will have live broadcast rights to show all 380 league games in Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos – all of which have huge British football followings. While the platform has previously livestreamed MLS and La Liga matches, the new deal represents its biggest push yet into top level sport.

Read more at engadget