U.S. tech giant Google has paid Russia more than 32 million roubles ($455,079) in fines for failing to delete content Moscow deems illegal, the company and a Russian lawmaker said after talks on Monday. […] In 2020, Google’s compliance with requests to delete content was 96.2%, Pancini said, and in the first half of this Read more about Google pays fines to Russia over banned content – because fine is paltry[…]
The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has smacked Facebook with a £50m ($68.7m) fine for “deliberately” not giving it the full picture about its ongoing $400m acquisition of gif-slinger Giphy. The move – fingered by the CMA as a “major breach” – comes just weeks after the antisocial network dismissed the UK’s regulator’s initial findings as Read more about Facebook fined GBP 50m by UK for not supplying correct info on giphy takeover[…]
Amazon.com Inc has been repeatedly accused of knocking off products it sells on its website and of exploiting its vast trove of internal data to promote its own merchandise at the expense of other sellers. The company has denied the accusations. But thousands of pages of internal Amazon documents examined by Reuters – including emails, Read more about Amazon copied products and rigged search results, documents show[…]
When asked in July, 2020, by US Representative Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) whether Amazon ever mined data from its third-party vendors to launch competing products, founder and then CEO Jeff Bezos said he couldn’t answer “yes” or “no,” but insisted Amazon had rules disallowing the practice. “What I can tell you is we have a policy Read more about Amazon accused of copying merchant products in India[…]
Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney, whose high-profile antitrust lawsuit against Apple is now under appeal, is today calling out the iPhone maker for giving itself access to an advertising slot its competitors don’t have: the iPhone’s Settings screen. Some iOS 15 users noticed Apple is now advertising its own services at the top of their Read more about Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney calls out Apple for promoting its services in the iPhone Settings screen[…]
Apple’s decision to only allow Apple Pay to access the NFC chip in iPhones could result in the Silicon Valley giant paying hefty anti-monopoly fines in Europe. The EU is set to file anti-competitive charges against Cupertino regarding its tap-to-pay system, Reuters reported, citing sources. Euro antitrust watchdogs are apparently not happy that the NFC Read more about EU to file NFC antitrust charges against Apple Pay[…]
Several world leaders have denied wrongdoing after featuring in a huge leak of financial documents from offshore companies. Dubbed the Pandora Papers, the 12 million files constitute the biggest such leak in history. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Jordan’s King Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein are among some 35 current and former leaders linked to the Read more about Pandora Papers: World leaders deny wrongdoing after leaks[…]
Coinbase, a major U.S.-based bitcoin and cryptocurrency exchange, disclosed today that a hacker was able to bypass the company’s SMS multi-factor authentication mechanism and steal funds from 6,000 users, Bleeping Computer reported. The breach of Coinbase customers’ accounts happened between March and May 20, 2021, in a hacking campaign that combined phishing scams and a Read more about Hackers Rob Thousands Coinbase Customers through SMS MFA Flaw – discloses today, happened around the IPO[…]
Today, Tim Sweeney confirmed on Twitter just how massive of an “L” Epic took in its recent trial against Apple. Apple has effectively “blacklisted” Fortnite from all Apple products until the legal clash between the two massive corporations reaches its conclusion, which could take as long as five years. (It’s even longer in Peely years.) Read more about Apple Confirms Fortnite Won’t Come Back to iPhones Anytime Soon[…]
China’s central bank said on Friday that all cryptocurrency-related transactions are illegal in the country and they must be banned, citing concerns around national security and “safety of people’s assets.” The world’s most populated nation also said that foreign exchanges are banned from providing services to users in the country. In a joint statement, ten Read more about China says all cryptocurrency-related transactions are illegal and must be banned[…]
NEW DELHI, Sept 18 (Reuters) – Google abused the dominant position of its Android operating system in India, using its “huge financial muscle” to illegally hurt competitors, the country’s antitrust authority found in a report on its two-year probe seen by Reuters. Alphabet Inc’s (GOOGL.O) Google reduced “the ability and incentive of device manufacturers to Read more about India antitrust probe finds Google abused Android dominance[…]
Federal Trade Commission chair Lina Khan signaled changes are on the way in how the agency scrutinizes acquisitions after revealing the results of a study of a decade’s worth of Big Tech company deals that weren’t reported to the agency. Why it matters: Tech’s business ecosystem is built on giant companies buying up small startups, Read more about FTC releases findings on how Big Tech eats little tech in deals that fly under the radar[…]
A man who the Department of Justice says unlocked AT&T customers’ phones for a fee was sentenced to 12 years in prison, in what the judge called “a terrible cybercrime over an extended period,” which allegedly continued even after authorities were on to the scheme. According to a news release from the DOJ, in 2012, Read more about Judge in pocket of big business throws book at Man who unlocked nearly 2 million AT&T phones: 12 years in prison[…]
South Korea’s competition regulator on Tuesday announced it will fine Google 207.4 billion Korean won ($176.9 million) for allegedly using its dominant market position in the mobile operating system space to stifle competition. Google’s Android operating system currently holds the lion’s share of the smartphone market, ahead of Apple’s iOS platform. The U.S. tech giant Read more about South Korea’s antitrust regulator fines Google $177 million for stifling innovation and competition[…]
Docker will restrict use of the free version of its Docker Desktop utility to individuals or small businesses, and has introduced a new more expensive subscription, as it searches for a sustainable business model. The company has renamed its Free plan to “Personal” and now requires that businesses with 250 or more employees, or higher Read more about Docker Desktop no longer free for large companies: New ‘Business’ subscription is here[…]
OnlyFans dropped plans to ban pornography from its service, less than a week after the U.K. content-creator subscription site had announced the change citing the need to comply with policies of banking partners. On Wednesday, the company said it “secured assurances necessary to support our diverse creator community,” suggesting that it has new agreements with Read more about OnlyFans Drops Planned Porn Ban, Will Allow Sexually Explicit Content after banks back down after shaming[…]
Epic Games’ objections to Google’s business practices became clearer on Thursday with the release of previously redacted accusations in the gaming giant’s lawsuit against the internet goliath. Those accusations included details of a Google-run operation dubbed Project Hug that aimed to sling hundreds of millions of dollars at developers to get them to remain within Read more about Epic lawsuit’s latest claims: Google slipped tons of cash to game devs, Android makers to cement Play store dominance[…]
[…] display items that come from the same category as the target product, such as a board game matched with other board games, enhance the chances of a target product’s purchase. In contrast, consumers are less likely to buy the target product if it is mismatched with products from different categories, for example, a board Read more about Online product displays can shape your buying behavior[…]
Receiving a publishing deal from an indie publisher can be a turning point for an independent developer. But when one-man team Jakefriend was approached with an offer to invest half a million Canadian dollars into his hand-drawn action-adventure game Scrabdackle, he discovered the contract’s terms could see him signing himself into a lifetime of debt, Read more about Game Dev Turns Down $500k Exploitative Contract, explains why – looks like music industry contracts[…]
Ethereum is making big changes. Perhaps the most important is the jettisoning of the “miners” who track and validate transactions on the world’s most-used blockchain network. Miners are the heart of a system known as proof of work. It was pioneered by Bitcoin and adopted by Ethereum, and has come under increasing criticism for its Read more about Etherium gets rid of miners and electricity costs in 2022 update[…]
The Open App Markets Act, which is being spearheaded by Sens. Richard Blumenthal, and Marsha Blackburn, is designed to crack down on some of the scummiest tactics tech players use to rule their respective app ecosystems, while giving users the power to download the apps they want, from the app stores they want, without retaliation. Read more about Apple App Store, Google Play Store Targeted by Open App Markets Act[…]
Google Pay is an online paying system and digital wallet that makes it easy to buy anything on your mobile device or with your mobile device. But if you’re concerned about what Google is doing with all your data (which you probably should be), Google doesn’t make it easy for Google Pay has some secret Read more about Have you made sure you have changed these Google Pay privacy settings?[…]
Pfizer is raising the price of its covid-19 vaccine in Europe by over 25% under a newly negotiated contract with the European Union, according to a report from the Financial Times. Competitor Moderna is also hiking the price of its vaccine in Europe by roughly 10%. Pfizer’s covid-19 vaccine is already expected to generate the Read more about Pfizer Hikes Price of Covid-19 Vaccine by 25% in Europe[…]
Chinese antitrust watchdog, State Administration of Market Supervision (SAMR), announced Tuesday it has started investigating price gouging in the automotive chip market. The regulatory body promised to strengthen supervision and punish illegal acts such as hoarding, price hikes and collusive price increases. SAMR singled out distributors as the object of its ire. In the early Read more about Chinese regulators go after price gauging in car chip industry[…]
Nvidia’s Shield TVs are some of the best streaming video boxes on the market, but following a recent update to Android TV, Shield TV users are starting to see ads on their home screen and they aren’t happy about it. The latest update to Android TV on Shield TV devices began rolling out earlier this Read more about Shield TV Owners Are Pissed About the Banner Ads in Android TV – wtf are manufacturers doing advertising on products you actually own?[…]