YouTube is strengthening its Community Guidelines around online gambling and graphic violence in gaming. Starting November 17, existing rules prohibiting content linking to online gambling sites or applications that are not certified by Google will also include links to sites involving digital goods with “monetary value,” including video game skins, cosmetics and NFTs. “Our policies are designed to evolve alongside the digital world,” Google says, explaining that the changes “keep pace with new trends, like gambling with digital goods, and to more closely align our guidelines for mature content with industry standards.” Continue reading Google Expands YouTube Rules Limiting Violence, Gambling

California has become the first state in the nation to enact an AI safety law. The Transparency in Frontier Artificial Intelligence Act requires major AI firms to regularly report safety information, keeping government apprised of the guardrails imposed when building models as well as ongoing risks presented. California is home to leading AI companies including OpenAI, Alphabet, Anthropic, Meta Platforms, Nvidia and xAI, which means the law will be something of a national standard, as the rules imposed on those companies will have follow-through effects in all states. The law also bolsters whistle-blower protections for employees of the affected firms. Continue reading California Enacts an AI Law Focused on Frontier Model Safety

New York State Attorney General Letitia James has released proposed rules that would restrict minors from exposure to addictive features on social media pursuant to the Stop Addictive Feeds Exploitation (SAFE) for Kids Act, signed into state law last year to “protect the mental health of children.” The law, which is expected to take effect sometime next year, requires social media companies that supply addictive content to use an age verification system with results “certified by a verified third-party.” Absent parental consent, platform operators must restrict users under 18 from receiving addictive or algorithmically personalized feeds and nighttime notifications. Continue reading SAFE for Kids Act: NY State Attorney Opens Comment Period

The European Union has published a General Purpose AI (GPAI) Code of Practice designed to help companies comply with the AI Act, which includes copyright protections and transparency requirements for advanced models. The Code of Practice bans training models on unauthorized materials and says companies must comply with copyright-holder requests to omit work from datasets. Developers are required to provide documentation describing the features of their AI models. The AI Act began taking effect in August 2024 and is being implemented gradually, with key transparency, governance and privacy provisions coming into force next month. Continue reading EU Releases AI Practices Code to Help with Legal Compliance

Apple has changed its European App Store policies in response to the Digital Markets Act, in hopes the move will help ward off a potential fine of up to $585 million for violating the 2022 law in the way it charges commissions from third-party developers selling apps through links in the App Store. The European Union threatens fines of up to $60 million per day for DMA violations. A European Commission spokesperson said the body is assessing whether Apple’s new terms bring the company into compliance. The Commission is requiring the company “to make a series of additional changes to the App Store,” explains Apple, adding that “we disagree with this outcome and plan to appeal.” Continue reading Apple Introduces More App Store Changes to Avoid EU Fines

Texas has codified a new law that requires the Apple and Google app stores to verify users’ ages for downloads, providing parents and guardians more control over children’s downloads. California and Illinois are considering similar measures, but so far Texas is the largest among 20 states that have evaluated similar smartphone laws aimed at child safety. In March, Utah became the first state to establish such regulation. As part of a broader national push Congress this month reintroduced the bipartisan Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) requiring social media platforms to police harmful content. Continue reading Texas Enacts App Store Accountability Act to Protect Children

The U.S. Copyright Office has released Part 2 of its report on artificial intelligence, dealing with the legal and policy issues pertaining to copyright and generative AI. The two main takeaways are that legal questions concerning copyrightability and AI can be settled using existing federal law, requiring no legislative change. Also, “where AI ‘merely assists’ an author in the creative process, it does not change the copyrightability of the output.” Additionally, it reaffirms that any work created entirely by prompts (content “entirely generated by AI”) cannot be protected by copyright. Continue reading Copyright Office Says AI ‘Assisted’ Content Can Be Protected

OpenAI has launched ChatGPT Pro, a $200 per month subscription plan that provides unlimited access to the full version of o1, its new large reasoning model, and all other OpenAI models. The toolkit includes o1-mini, GPT-4o and Advanced Voice. It also includes the new o1 pro mode, “a version of o1 that uses more compute to think harder and provide even better answers to the hardest problems,” OpenAI explains, describing the high-end subscription plan as a path to “research-grade intelligence” for a way for scientists, engineers, enterprise, academics and others who use AI to accelerate productivity. Continue reading OpenAI Announces $200 Monthly Subscription for ChatGPT Pro

The Federal Trade Commission has implemented a consumer “click-to-cancel” rule that requires sellers to make it as simple to cancel subscriptions or memberships as it was to sign up. The FTC vote was 3 to 2, along party lines, in favor of implementing the rule, which makes it easier to divest of unwanted, recurring bills. “Too often, businesses make people jump through endless hoops just to cancel a subscription,” said FTC Chair Lina Khan. “The FTC’s rule will end these tricks and traps, saving Americans time and money. Nobody should be stuck paying for a service they no longer want.” Continue reading FTC Adds Click-to-Cancel Provision to Negative Option Rule

Acting in advance of a California law that goes into effect on January 1, cloud gaming platform Steam has begun posting a notice that its customers are purchasing a license, not a product. The language that appears in the Steam shopping cart now includes the advisory that “purchase of a digital product grants a license for the product on Steam.” Signed into law last month, California’s AB 2426 is categorized a consumer protection law against false advertising for digital goods. Specifically, it requires online sellers provide a “conspicuous” advisory that licenses are limited in duration and can be revoked. Continue reading Steam Preemptively Adds License-Only Terms to Online Store

California’s “click to cancel” bill has become law, making it easier for consumers to cancel subscriptions. Companies that offer online or in-app sign-ups will now have to make canceling or unsubscribing available online or in-app as well. Assembly Bill 2863 was signed into law this week by Governor Gavin Newsom, though companies have until the middle of next year to comply. Consumers have long complained about companies making it easy to sign up but difficult to cancel services. This law ensures consumers can easily exit from services “without being trapped by confusing processes or hidden fees.” Continue reading California Enacts Laws for Sub Canceling, Digital Downloads

Two landmark bills designed to bolster online safety for children — the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) and the Children and Teens’ Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA 2.0) — were overwhelmingly approved by the U.S. Senate on Tuesday in bipartisan 91-3 votes. If approved by the House, the legislation would introduce new rules regarding what tech companies can offer to minors and how those firms use and share children’s data. The three senators who voted against the bills cited concerns that the regulations could stifle free speech, open the door to government censorship, and fail to adequately address the greatest threats to children online. Continue reading Senate Passes Two Bills to Strengthen Children’s Online Safety

The European Commission is expanding its investigation of Apple based on preliminary findings of anticompetitive breach of the new Digital Markets Act (DMA). The Commission has found the App Store engages in “anti-steering” by preventing app purveyors from offering consumers “alternative channels for offers and content.” The Commission also opened a new investigation into App Store developer contracts, citing  the “core technology fee” implemented in January in what was perceived as a workaround to the new European Union rules, saying such policies “fall short of ensuring effective compliance with Apple’s obligations under the DMA.” Continue reading Apple in EU Crosshairs for Anticompetitive Action Under DMA

China’s ByteDance has come out swinging in petition for review against the United States government over the law that would force it to sell TikTok by January 19 or see the app banned in U.S. app stores. The petition challenges the constitutionality of the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act that President Biden signed into law on April 24, calling it in the brief “a radical departure from this country’s tradition of championing an open Internet, and sets a dangerous precedent allowing the political branches to target a disfavored speech platform.” Oral argument is scheduled for September 14. Continue reading ByteDance Opening Brief Claims U.S. Ban is Unconstitutional

The New York legislature passed a bill prohibiting social media companies from providing children with so-called “addictive feeds” without parental consent. The Stop Addictive Feeds Exploitation (SAFE) for Kids Act specifies addictive feeds as those that prioritize exposure to content (using a recommendation engine, or other means) based on information collected about the user or device. “Non-addictive feeds,” in which the algorithm serves content in chronological order, are still permitted under the bill, which New York Governor Kathy Hochul has vowed to sign into law. Continue reading New York Lawmakers Aim to Make Social Feeds Safe for Kids