Tag: google

Google handed setback as EU court upholds record fine

Luxembourg, Luxembourg (AFP) — The European Union’s second-highest court on Wednesday overwhelmingly upheld the EU’s record fine against Google over its Android operating system for mobile phones, slightly reducing the fee for technical reasons. In a statement, the EU’s General court said it “largely confirms the commission’s decision that Google imposed unlawful restrictions on manufacturers of Android mobile devices” in order to benefit its search engine. The court, however, said the fine should be slightly […]

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Google’s immersive Street View could be glimpse of metaverse

MOUNTAIN VIEW, United States (AFP) – Fifteen years after its launch, a Google Maps feature that lets people explore faraway places as though standing right there is providing a glimpse of the metaverse being heralded as the future of the internet. There was not yet talk of online life moving to virtual worlds when a “far-fetched” musing by Google co-founder Larry Page prompted Street View, which lets users of the company’s free navigation service see […]

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Google outage reported by tens of thousands of users

  SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) — Tens of thousands of users reported being unable to access various Google services on Monday night, according to outage monitor Downdetector. “User reports indicate Google Maps is having problems since 9:36 PM EDT (0136 GMT),” Downdetector tweeted. More than 40,000 users, including in New York City and Denver, Colorado, reported disruptions when trying to use Google’s services, particularly the maps and search engine. After around two hours, reports […]

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Google agrees UK competition, privacy pledge on online ads

  LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Britain on Friday said it had accepted changes proposed by US tech giant Google to address competition and customer privacy concerns linked to online advertising. “The commitments we have obtained from Google will promote competition, help to protect the ability of online publishers to raise money through advertising and safeguard users’ privacy,” the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) regulator said in a statement. Google separately said it would “apply […]

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Google to halt election ads ahead of 2022 Philippines vote

  MANILA, Philippines (AFP) — Google will stop carrying election ads in the Philippines ahead of the May 2022 presidential vote, the internet giant said Wednesday, similar to action it has taken in the United States. Alarm has been raised in recent years by governments and election watchdogs over the use of targeted political advertising, especially disinformation campaigns to sway voters. The updated policy goes into effect on February 8, covering ads on Google, YouTube […]

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Cheap, abundant renewable energy powers cluster of Quebec data centres

by Anne-Sophie THILL Agence France-Presse BEAUHARNOIS, Canada (AFP) – With vast amounts of cheap and renewable electricity mostly generated from hydro dams, Quebec is seeing more and more tech giants setting up power-hungry data centres in the Canadian province. Demand for cloud services has sent the number of data centres soaring worldwide, and in Quebec alone fifty now operate where just 39 existed two years ago. Many are owned by multinationals such as Amazon Web […]

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Google cuts its commission on app subscriptions

SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) — Google announced Thursday it will lower a fee in its app store as pressure mounts on tech giants to loosen their grip over their online marketplaces. The commission on subscriptions taken by Google Play will be lopped in half to 15 percent starting in January, vice president of product management Sameer Samat said in a blog post. Currently Google gets a 30 percent cut for the first year of […]

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Conservation meet mulls moratorium on deep sea mining

by Laure FILLON Agence France-Presse MARSEILLE, France (AFP) – The world’s top conservation forum will vote this week on whether to recommend a moratorium on deep sea mining, with scientists warning that ecosystems degraded while dredging the ocean floor 5,000 metres below the waves could take decades or longer to heal. The proposed ban is among a score of measures deemed too controversial to be decided remotely ahead of the International Union for the Conservation […]

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YouTube suspends Sky News Australia channel

YouTube said Sunday it had barred Sky News Australia from uploading new content for one week, citing concerns about Covid-19 misinformation. The move comes after a review of posts uploaded by the Rupert Murdoch-owned TV channel, which has a substantial online presence. “We have clear and established Covid-19 medical misinformation policies… to prevent the spread of Covid-19 misinformation that could cause real-world harm,” a YouTube statement said. With 1.86 million YouTube subscribers, the channel — […]

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US states accuse Google of app store monopoly

by Glenn CHAPMAN Agence France Presse SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) — Dozens of US states joined forces in a lawsuit filed Wednesday accusing Google of abusing its power when it comes to getting apps for Android-powered mobile devices. The litigation aimed at the Play Store online shop for apps and other digital content for Android smartphones comes as the power of Big Tech firms is facing increasing pressure from regulators and lawsuits. “We are […]

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Facebook restores news for Australian users after media bargaining deal

SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — Facebook on Friday restored access to news for its Australian users after reaching agreement with the government on a landmark law requiring it and other tech firms to pay for journalistic content. The Facebook pages of Australian news outlets were able to update from early Friday morning for the first time in a week, since the social media slapped a ban on news content being seen Down Under in a dispute […]

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Australia passes landmark law requiring tech firms to pay for news

  by Andrew BEATTY Agence France Presse SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — Facebook and Google will be forced to pay for Australian news under legislation passed Thursday that is being closely watched globally for precedents in the battle between Big Tech and media companies. The world-first law passed easily after the Australian government agreed to water down elements most fiercely opposed by the tech giants, in return for both agreeing to negotiate paid deals with local […]

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