Daily Crunch: Disney+ launches in seven European countries
Disney+ launches in seven European countries, Microsoft admits to a "critical" Windows security flaw and we review the new iPad Pro. Here's your Daily Crunch for March 24, 2020.
As expected, Disney announced that it is officially launching its streaming service across seven markets in Europe - but doing so using reduced bandwidth given the strain on broadband networks as more people are staying home because of the coronavirus pandemic.
So starting today, Disney+ will be live in the U.K., Ireland, Germany, Italy, Spain, Austria and Switzerland; Disney also confirmed a delayed debut in France on April 7. This is the largest multi-country launch for the service so far.
2. Microsoft says hackers are attacking Windows users with a new unpatched bug
The security flaw, which Microsoft deems "critical" - its highest severity rating - is found in how Windows handles and renders fonts, according to the advisory posted Monday. The bug can be exploited by tricking a victim into opening a malicious document. Once the document is opened - or viewed in Windows Preview - an attacker can remotely run malware, such as ransomware, on a vulnerable device.
3. Review: 100,000 miles and one week with an iPad Pro
Matthew Panzarino has been using an iPad Pro as his main portable work machine for the past 18 months. This week, he tried out the latest version of the device, concluding that it offers an attractive refresh for new buyers - but not for owners of the 2018 model.
4. Ford, 3M, GE and the UAW to build respirators, ventilators and faceshields for coronavirus fight
Ford has announced the details of its current manufacturing efforts around building much-needed medical supplies for frontline healthcare workers and COVID-19 patients. Its efforts include building Powered Air-Purifying Respirators with partner 3M.
5. Where top VCs are investing in D2C
The TechCrunch team was curious -especially in the wake of the troubled Casper IPO - about how investor sentiment might have shifted and what venture capitalists are looking for in the category, so we asked some smart investors. (Extra Crunch membership required.)
6. Revolut launches its neobank in the US
Starting today, anybody in the U.S. can sign up and get a Revolut debit card. For this launch, Revolut has partnered with Metropolitan Commercial Bank for the banking infrastructure - deposits are FDIC-insured up to $250,000.
7. Mozilla expands its partnership with ad-free subscription service Scroll
Firefox Better Web with Scroll combines the tracking protection built into Mozilla's Firefox browser with the ad-free browsing experience offered by Scroll. Anyone in the United States who's interested in trying this out can sign up for a Firefox account and install the Better Web with Scroll extension.
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