Leaked internal Facebook documents reportedly suggest that the company initiated secretive worldwide lobbying efforts to gain influence from hundreds of regulators and legislators across nations including Argentina, Brazil, Canada, India, Malaysia, all 28 member states of the European Union, the United States and United Kingdom. Reports indicate the social giant promised investments and incentives to politicians in hopes of getting their support for Facebook’s opposition to data privacy legislation. Continue reading Facebook Pushed for Global Support Against Privacy Laws

At MWC Barcelona (formerly Mobile World Congress), Sony introduced its flagship smartphone, the Xperia 1, with a notably tall display and ‘CinemaWide’ 21:9 aspect ratio, shared by the lower cost new Xperia 10 and 10 Plus. The Xperia 1 is the successor to Sony’s Xperia XZ3 released last fall. The Xperia 1’s display is a 4K HDR OLED panel measuring 6.5-inches diagonally. With a bezel on top, it is 6.57-inches tall, almost an inch taller than an iPhone XS. Sony positions the new form factor as ideal for videos, games and multitasking. Continue reading Sony Unveils Three Phones with CinemaWide Aspect Ratio

When Disney opens Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge (which will debut this summer at Disneyland in California and this fall at Disney World in Florida), visitors will discover a multi-faceted, immersive experience that lets them build a droid, learn how to construct a lightsaber, and use their phones to hack data ports. All the while, they will also engage in a struggle for control of the fictional town of Black Spire Outpost. Walt Disney Imagineering exec Scott Trowbridge noted that visitors now want to be more of a participant than a spectator in experiences. Continue reading Disney Brings Immersive ‘Star Wars’ Experience to its Parks

The Federal Trade Commission just inked a settlement with video social network TikTok (which merged with Musical.ly last year) over the charge that its app illegally collected children’s personal information. A large percent of users are under 13, and the personal information collected — without asking for parental permission — included email addresses, names and schools. The site refused to delete video and other data when requested by some parents. The FTC said the $5.7 million settlement is a record for a child privacy violation. Continue reading TikTok to Pay Record Fine After Violating Children’s Privacy

After major brands including AT&T, Disney, Epic Games and Nestlé suspended their regular ad spending on YouTube, the popular video platform has made a move to temporarily disable comment sections on most video channels that feature children 13 and younger as well as teenagers that may risk “attracting predatory behavior.” The concern was that advertising was sometimes positioned along videos with minors that included predatory remarks in the comments sections. A few select channels will have comment sections that remain enabled, but will require monitoring for safety. Continue reading YouTube Disables Comments For Videos That Include Kids

Facebook debuted Facebook Showcase, a premium video-ad program to let buyers for online video/TV ads nail down guaranteed rates and impressions up to one year in advance. With the program, Facebook makes a more aggressive move into upfront buys for its content; its previous program only let advertisers buy video ads one quarter in advance. The Showcase program, which is now only available for ad campaigns aimed at U.S. audiences, coincides with the company’s increase in original content for its Watch video service. Continue reading Facebook Debuts Showcase Upfront-Style Advertising Sales

The Department of Justice will soon ask for public input on the status of two legal agreements that have been the foundation of music licensing since 1941, said sources. Advocates of overhauling the rules said that artists are harmed, earning less in the digital age. Those who believe the regulations should stay in place counter that the rules have created a stable marketplace. The review of these music licensing rules comes as the DOJ revisits consent decrees written decades ago for several different industries. Continue reading Department of Justice Revisits 1941 Music-Licensing Rules

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will create a task force to take a broad look at potential antitrust violations in the tech industry, including re-examining already-approved mergers — possibly undoing deals deemed to have an anti-competitive impact today. At the same time, the FTC brought its first case against using fake ads to sell online products, settling with the New York City-based Cure Encapsulations and its owner for paying for fake ads about a weight loss product to be posted as Amazon reviews. Continue reading FTC Targets Anti-Competitive Violations, Fake Amazon Posts

A study by CordCutting.com suggests that up to 20 percent of consumers are using another person’s account information to stream video from Netflix, Hulu or Amazon. “Netflix tends to be pirated for the longest period — 26 months, compared with 16 months for Amazon Prime Video or 11 months for Hulu,” reports TechCrunch. “That could be because Netflix freeloaders often mooch off their family instead of a friend — 48 percent use their parents’ login, while another 14 percent use their sister or brother’s credentials.” The reports estimates monthly revenue losses at $192 million for Netflix, $45 million for Amazon, and $40 million for Hulu. Continue reading Study Indicates Streaming Services Losing Revenue to Piracy

Sprint and T-Mobile plan to launch commercial 5G networks this year. In May, Sprint’s 5G will debut in Chicago, where it is being beta-tested; and parts of Atlanta, Dallas and Kansas City. The next month, Sprint plans to add 5G service in parts of Houston, Los Angeles, New York City, Phoenix and Washington, D.C. None of the launches will be city-wide. T-Mobile, which is merging with Sprint, said it would launch 600MHz 5G services in the second half of 2019, as it awaits the arrival of compatible devices. Continue reading Sprint, T-Mobile Detail Plans for 5G Network Debuts in 2019

At MWC Barcelona (formerly Mobile World Congress), Microsoft introduced HoloLens 2, a new version of its four-year-old HoloLens headset, which is aimed at the enterprise use cases such as job training. Because the company is not targeting entertainment uses, HoloLens has maintained a low profile, focused on its corporate customers such as Bentley and Japan Airlines. Chief executive Satya Nadella stated his belief that “the next big tech breakthrough” will come from retail, healthcare or car manufacturing. Continue reading Microsoft HoloLens 2 Offers AI Processor, Cloud Connection

The FIDO Alliance, a consortium for open source authentication standards, is trying to make passwords obsolete, expanding its secure login protocols. Its efforts were boosted by Google’s announcement that it added certified support for the FIDO2 standard, impacting the vast majority of devices running Android 7 or later. That means owners of these Android 7-based devices should be able to log in seamlessly without passwords on mobile browsers such as Chrome. Websites can now be designed to interact with FIDO2 management. Continue reading Google Adopts Open-Source, Secure Password-Less Logins

To better combat online trolls who have recently been waging campaigns to affect audience ratings for certain movies, Fandango-owned Rotten Tomatoes is making a significant change to its review submission model. Since the influential website relies upon credible ratings, “review bombing” that adversely impacts audience ratings is seen as a major issue. In order to minimize such a potential flood of negative reviews, users will no longer be permitted to post any audience reviews until the film in question appears in theaters. Continue reading Rotten Tomatoes Adjusts Its Review Model to Combat Trolls

Shortly after Samsung revealed its Galaxy Fold, a foldable smartphone, Huawei Technologies introduced its competing device, Mate X, at MWC Barcelona (Mobile World Congress). Huawei’s foldable phone features one wide screen that folds in half. Similar to Samsung’s Galaxy Fold, Mate X will function both folded and unfolded, run multiple apps simultaneously and be compatible with 5G networks. It also features a high price point: €2,299, or about $2,600, which is more than one-third higher than the $1,980 Galaxy Fold. Continue reading Huawei Introduces its Mate X Single-Screen Foldable Phone

Neuroscientist and Intel’s chief technology officer of AI Amir Khosrowshahi revealed that he is remaining at Intel with a team of researchers building an innovative integrated circuit (IC). The IC under development will feature transistors that will, hope the researchers, function at voltages as low as 100 millivolts, a step towards matching voltage of communication in the brain. The existence of such an IC would unleash power-hungry AI applications targeting climate change, waste management and other global problems. Continue reading Intel Team Focuses on Low Voltage Transistor to Power AI