Silicon Beach Report May 11: SpaceX Launches Block 5 on Second Try

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SpaceX launches Block 5 after aborting Thursday; Millenials have strong feelings over Snapchat redesign; Overwatch Finals moved to Brooklyn.

SpaceX Launches Block 5 on Second Try

SpaceX successfully launched the Block 5 on May 11 at 4:14 p.m. ET from Florida’s Kennedy Space Center. The rocket is carrying Bangabandhu satellite-1, the first satellite for Bangladesh.

The day before, SpaceX called off the launch of its newest Falcon rocket after receiving an abort message one minute prior to liftoff, CNN Money reported. SpaceX provided the following explanation directly through its social media account: “Standing down today due to a standard ground system auto abort at T-1 min. Rocket and payload are in good health—teams are working towards tomorrow’s backup launch opportunity at 4:14 p.m. EDT, or 20:14 UTC.”

Millennials Have Strong Feelings About Snapchat Redesign

According to a poll from YouGov BrandIndex, user satisfaction for Snapchat among 18- to-34-year-olds fell by 73 percent, Recode reports. The change measured sentiment following the January redesign. More than a million people signed a Change.org petition asking the company to restore the old app. In response Snap Inc. said it is tweaking the redesign but doubled down on the overall change.

Overwatch Finals Moved to Brooklyn

Activision Blizzard Inc., the Santa Monica-based entertainment company that developed Overwatch, is moving the championship of its e-sports playoffs to Brooklyn, Techcrunch reports. The playoffs itself will still take place in Burbank at “Blizzard Arena Los Angeles.” The prize pool is $1.4 million.

Technology reporter Eli Horowitz can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @coachhorowitz13 for the latest in L.A. tech news.

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