Taylor Swift now holds Spotify's single-day album stream record for 'Midnights'

With Taylor Swift's latest album, Midnights, officially in the hands of fans and streaming services, the singer has broken a Spotify record again. Spotify revealed that Midnights is now the most-streamed album in a single day in the service's history. The company didn't immediately release the official streaming numbers, but she beat out Bad Bunny's previously held record after Un Verano Sin Ti got 183 million streams in May. (Drake was the previous record holder for Certified Lover Boy with 176.8 million streams.) The announcement came hours after reports on Twitter claimed that Spotify briefly crashed on Thursday night as fans wanted to listen to the record when it came out.

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Microsoft's PC Manager is built to boost performance

Source: The Verge

Microsoft is developing a PC Manager that's expected to help boost your computer's performance. This beta version of the app resembles CCleaner with features like storage management, the option to end tasks quickly, and control of which apps start up with Windows. You can already do most of this on Windows, but this app will centralize it.

There's also a browser protection section to make it easier to change default browsers. You can also manage apps and remove the rarely used ones. It offers a full cleanup scan, and its process management feature is a simplified version of Task Manager to kill processes eating up your RAM. There is a "boost" button that can clear temporary files and free up memory. The app shows up on Microsoft's official site, but it is in Chinese, hinting at this feature being designed for specific regions.

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Goldfish Mega Bites debuts metaverse experience

Many of us have been raised played video games (and continue to) and the latest to join the metaverse is the snack brand Goldfish --  the latest brand tapping into the new space as another way to reach its online audience. Like Burger King's Glitched Menu or Tim Horton’s Speed Run, Goldfish is making a splash in the metaverse by delivering benefits to consumers IRL. To celebrate the launch of Goldfish Mega Bites debuts a metaverse experience where consumers can turn digital crackers into a free bag of Goldfish Mega Bites.

The interactive experience allows Goldfish Mega Bites to reach their audience by offering real-world benefits and reminding users of their youth, relaxing with fun video games. The nostalgia, coupled with a new online experience has led to an increasing number of brands flocking to web 3 to reach their audiences.

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Microsoft is looking to develop an Xbox-branded mobile game store

Microsoft is hoping to carve its own space in the mobile gaming space. The company's filing with the UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) reveals its plans to build a "next generation" Xbox store focusing on mobile devices. And its proposed Activision Blizzard merger is a big part of this plan, with Call of Duty Mobile and King's more casual games serving as a draw for gamers to flock to this new platform.

According to the company, the acquisition would boost its mobile gaming and ad revenue and offer "much needed expertise" in developing and marketing these titles. But it acknowledges it'll need a "major shift" in consumer habits to pull consumers away from the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. It plans to apply an open app store philosophy to this mobile shop with equal treatment for third-party apps and choices for in-app payments.

The CMA is investigating Microsoft's acquisition due to concerns that it might hurt competition. The strategy behind the filing isn't subtle. The company wants to convince UK regulators that its Activision Blizzard deal would preserve or improve competition, and the prospect of an Xbox mobile store could theoretically help. But we don't know yet if regulators will see it that way. Microsoft might also have a difficult time getting a third-party app store on iOS, so if this ever gets released, it might be an Android version.

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