Google Play Music now offers free, ad supported service in Canada

Google Play Music offers Canadians access to 35 million songs now free but supported by ads

By Gadjo Cardenas Sevilla

Google Play Music just announced that they will now be offering a free, advertising supported option for their music streaming service starting today and will also discontinue Songza, a music service which Google acquired and will now be integrated into Google Play Music.

The music streaming industry is really becoming more competitive. RDIO filed for bankruptcy a week ago and its technology was bought by Pandora. Apple shut down Beats Music two days ago, maybe to ensure it doesn't cannibalize its Apple Music service. Google Play Music follows suit by making the service more accessible while ending Songza, which it bought last year for $15 million.

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Review: iPad Pro

By Gadjo Cardenas Sevilla

The iPad Pro shines as a large, powerful tablet that’s designed primarily for content creation, but which also delivers an unparalleled way to read content and watch videos and photos.

Easily one of the most anticipated products to come from Apple, the iPad Pro is clearly aimed to create a new niche for powerful iOS-enabled tablets that extend the initial focus on entertainment, content consumption and multi-touch, to a more creative and productivity focused place.

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VTech breach is largest hack targeting children

Hong Kong based tech toymaker VTech was hit by a massive breach which exposed data on 6.4 million children and their parents. VTech said in a statement on its website that the children's profiles included only name, gender and birth date. Stolen data on their parents included name, mailing address, email address, secret question and answer for password retrieval, IP address, mailing address, download history and encrypted passwords. The hackers also stole photos and chat logs from VTech's Kid Connect service, which allows adults to use their smartphones to chat with kids using VTech tablet. 

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Facebook's Zuckerberg and wife Priscilla Chan to donate $45 billion to charity

Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan have made a number of big announcements. The couple has formed Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, an organization with the mission to advance human potential and promote equality.

The Initiative's areas of focus will include personalized learning, curing disease, connecting people and building strong communities. The bigger announcement was that Priscilla and Mark are contributing 99% of their Facebook shares -- currently worth about $45 billion as of today -- during their lives to advance the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative mission. Last but not the least, the couple also announced the birth of their daughter, Max Chan Zuckerberg, who was born Thanksgiving Week and is the inspiration for their charity.