Platform Executive

The full version of the article, along with thousands like it, can be found here: UK regulator shows assertive posture in blocking Facebook purchase of Giphy The UK's move to block Facebook-owner Meta Platform Inc's acquisition of Giphy signalled a new determination to scrutinise digital deals. Meta on Thursday appealed the ruling by the Competition and Markets Authority, which said the 2020 deal must be unwound and Giphy sold as a going concern. The November decision was the first time the regulator had blocked an acquisition by a major tech company. Under the leadership of CEO Andrea Coscelli, the CMA has stepped up its scrutiny of "big tech," and in particular Facebook and Google , which dominate digital advertising. Coscelli has set up a digital markets unit, and he wants it to be backed up by new legislation. Competition lawyer Peter Broadhurst, partner at Crowell & Moring, said Coscelli thought there had been historic under-enforcement in digital mar...

The full version of the article, along with thousands like it, can be found here: Facebook appeals UK ruling that it must sell Giphy Facebook-owner Meta is appealing the UK's ruling that it must sell animated images platform Giphy, saying the evidence does not support the finding that the deal is a threat to its rivals or could impact competition in display advertising. Britain's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) ordered Meta to sell Giphy , which it acquired for a reported $400 million in May 2020, last month after it decided the remedies offered by the US company did not answer its concerns. It was the first time the British regulator had blocked a major digital acquisition, and it signalled a step change in its scrutiny of "big tech" companies. "We are appealing the CMA's Giphy decision and will seek a stay of the CMA's order to divest," a Meta spokesperson said on Thursday. "The decision to block the deal is wrong on the law an...

The full version of the article, along with thousands like it, can be found here: China targets online platforms in quest to ‘clean up’ internet China will scrutinise online platforms such as social media networks and video-sharing sites to clamp down on fake accounts and information as part of its drive to "clean up" the internet, the country's cyber regulator has said. The Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) said it would launch a two-month special operation to target deceptive online behaviours, ranging from boosting engagement figures to paying for fake fans and reviews. The investigation comes against the backdrop of a wide-ranging crackdown by regulators on several sectors, with officials tightening oversight of companies in technology, real estate, gaming, education, cryptocurrencies and finance. The CAC held a video conference on Wednesday attended by its provincial and municipal bodies from across the country, according to a statement posted on its web...

The full version of the article, along with thousands like it, can be found here: Tencent hands shareholders $16.4 billion windfall in the form of JD.com stake Chinese gaming and social media company Tencent will pay out a $16.4 billion dividend by distributing most of its JD.com stake, weakening its ties to the e-commerce firm and raising questions about its plans for other holdings. The move comes as Beijing leads a broad regulatory crackdown on technology firms, taking aim at their overseas growth ambitions and domestic concentration of market power. Tencent said on Thursday it will transfer HK$127.69 billion (approximately $16.37 billion) worth of its JD.com stake to shareholders, slashing its holding in China's second-biggest e-commerce company to 2.3% from around 17% now and losing its spot as JD.com's biggest shareholder to Walmart. The owner of WeChat, which first invested in JD.com in 2014, said it was the right time for the divestment, given the e-commerce firm...

The full version of the article, along with thousands like it, can be found here: Russia fines Twitter for not deleting banned content, says court A Moscow court has said it had fined Twitter 3 million roubles (approximately $40,920) for failing to delete content Russia deems illegal, the latest in a string of penalties against foreign technology firms. Moscow has increased pressure on Big Tech this year in a campaign that critics characterise as an attempt by the Russian authorities to exert tighter control over the internet, something they say threatens to stifle individual and corporate freedom. Twitter has denied allowing its platform to be used to promote illegal behaviour. Twitter did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Moscow's Tagansky District Court said Twitter had been fined 3 million roubles for failing to delete banned content. The court later said software development website GitHub , which Microsoft purchased, had been fined 1 million roubles fo...

The full version of the article, along with thousands like it, can be found here: Intel apologises in China over Xinjiang supplier statement US chip maker Intel apologised in China after its letter telling suppliers not to source products or labour from the Xinjiang region triggered a backlash, making it the latest western firm to be tripped up over rights issues in the country. Intel recently published what it described as an annual letter to suppliers, dated December, that it had been "required to ensure that its supply chain does not use any labour or source goods or services from the Xinjiang region", following restrictions imposed by "multiple governments". The United States has accused China of widespread human rights abuses in Xinjiang, home to the country's predominantly Muslim Uyghurs, including forced labour. Beijing has repeatedly denied the claims. Intel's letter, on the company's website and in several languages, sparked criticism in C...

The full version of the article, along with thousands like it, can be found here: Big Tech critics ask Raimondo for meeting after critique of European proposals Critics of tech giants like Google pressed Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo for a January meeting after she expressed concern about proposed legislation in Europe aimed at reining in the US platforms. Yelp, the News Media Alliance, REX and others signed a letter dated Tuesday which asked for a meeting the week of January 10-14 after Raimondo said in early December that the administration was closely watching the Digital Services Act and the Digital Markets Act being considered by Europe. "We have serious concerns that these proposals will disproportionately impact US-based tech firms and their ability to adequately serve EU customers and uphold security and privacy standards," she said. The DSA would force Google, Amazon, Apple and Meta to do more to tackle illegal content on their platforms or risk fines up to...

The full version of the article, along with thousands like it, can be found here: US SEC rejects Apple bid to block shareholder proposal on forced labour The US Securities and Exchange Commission has declined an effort by Apple Inc to skip a shareholder proposal asking tech titan to provide greater transparency in its efforts to keep forced labour out of its supply chain. A group of shareholders earlier this year asked Apple's board to prepare a report on how the company protects workers in its supply chain from forced labour. The request for information covered the extent to which Apple has identified suppliers and sub-suppliers that are a risk for forced labour, and how many suppliers Apple has taken action against. In a letter from the SEC reviewed by journalists at our partner news agency Reuters on Wednesday, regulators denied Apple's move to block the proposal, saying that "it does not appear that the essential objectives of the proposal have been implemented...

The full version of the article, along with thousands like it, can be found here: Moody’s gives Apple top ‘AAA’ credit rating on growth promise Ratings agency Moody's has upgraded Apple Inc's long-term credit rating to 'AAA' with a stable outlook, citing the iPhone maker's "exceptional liquidity" and robust earnings. With this, Apple joins an elite club of companies including Microsoft and Johnson & Johnson that have been given Moody's highest rating. "Apple's very strong business profile reflects its substantial operating scale, a large installed base of products and users of its services, strong customer loyalty, and premium brand positioning," Moody's analyst Raj Joshi said in a note. Apple's fiscal 2021 earnings surged about 65%, while revenue rose 33% on strong demand for its products and services during the pandemic. Its stock has surged nearly 30% this year, bringing the iPhone maker within spitting distance of ...

The full version of the article, along with thousands like it, can be found here: Twitter, Meta, Pinterest drop CES plans over COVID-19 concerns Meta Platforms, Twitter and Pinterest have separately said they will not send teams to the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas next month as concerns grow about the Omicron variant of the coronavirus. The companies had not planned large in-person gatherings at the show. “Out of an abundance of caution and care for our employees, we won’t be attending CES in-person due to the evolving public health concerns related to COVID-19," Meta said. Twitter had planned to have some employees attend to participate on panels, but said it has cancelled its in-person presence and is exploring what virtual opportunities are possible. Pinterest, which had already been planning a scaled-down meeting area for its sales and partner teams from years past, said it had made a final decision to cancel. CES in the past has attracted over 180,000 ...

The full version of the article, along with thousands like it, can be found here: Microsoft’s $16 billion Nuance bid gets EU antitrust approval The European Commission has granted Microsoft unconditional antitrust approval for its $16 billion bid for artificial intelligence and speech technology company Nuance Communications . The deal is Microsoft's second biggest after its $26.2 billion LinkedIn purchase in 2016, and would boost its presence in cloud services for healthcare. It has already regulatory approval in the United States and Australia, and as we reported earlier this month it was set to receive EU approval. The Commission said its investigation into the deal had concluded that it would not significantly reduce competition in markets for transcription software, cloud services, enterprise communication services, PC operating systems and other products. "The proposed transaction would raise no competition concerns on any of the markets examined in the European ...

The full version of the article, along with thousands like it, can be found here: ‘Has anyone seen Web3?’ Musk, Dorsey mock tech’s latest buzzword Billionaires Elon Musk and Jack Dorsey dismissed the so-called Web3 and criticized the involvement of venture capital firms such as Andreessen Horowitz in building out what some have called the next phase of the internet. Web3, a vague term for a utopian version of the internet that is decentralized, is based on digital record-keeping technology blockchain, which also drives the platforms running cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin and ether. Tesla Inc CEO Musk on Tuesday tweeted, "Has anyone seen web3? I can't find it." To this, former Twitter top boss Dorsey replied, "It's somewhere between a and z." Mr Dorsey did not elaborate on the tweet. Venture capital firms such as a16z, founded by Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz, have heavily backed blockchain, crypto and Web3. Andreessen Horowitz was not immediate...

The full version of the article, along with thousands like it, can be found here: BlackBerry revenue beats estimates as cybersecurity demand stays strong BlackBerry Ltd has beaten Wall Street estimates for third-quarter revenue, helped by sustained demand for its cybersecurity and IoT products. Demand for cybersecurity software has been robust as more businesses and government organizations migrate to cloud-based solutions to support remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic. BlackBerry posted third-quarter cybersecurity revenue of $128 million and forecast that to be between $125 million and $135 million in the fourth quarter, below an estimate of $143 million by one analyst, according to Refinitiv data. US shares of the company fell 1.2% to $9.14 in extended trading. CEO John Chen said on a conference call that BlackBerry expects automotive supply chain issues to ease in the fourth quarter and help boost demand for its QNX car software, used by automakers including Volkswagen ...

The full version of the article, along with thousands like it, can be found here: US consumer bureau orders fintech firm LendUp to halt new loans, pay penalty The US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ordered LendUp Loans to pay a $100,000 penalty, stop issuing new loans and halt collecting on certain outstanding ones after repeated deceptive marketing and other fair-lending violations, the agency said on Tuesday. The Oakland, California-based lender, which offers funding to online consumers who traditionally have been overlooked by banks because they are considered too risky, agreed to the order, the CFPB said. "We are shuttering the lending operations of this fintech for repeatedly lying and illegally cheating its customers," said CFPB Director Rohit Chopra. LendUp, which had attracted attention from prominent Silicon Valley investors, expects to complete a wind-down of its operations in early 2020, a spokesman told journalists at our partner news agency Reut...

The full version of the article, along with thousands like it, can be found here: Russian cenbank official: We see no room for cryptocurrencies Bank of Russia Deputy Governor Vladimir Chistyukhin has hinted that privately run cryptocurrencies may soon no longer be used in the country's financial markets, TASS news agency reported. The central bank is working on a report elaborating on proposals to limit the use of such currencies in Russia, TASS cited Chistyukhin as saying. While it plans to issue its own digital rouble, Russia has opposed private cryptocurrencies for years, saying they could be used in money laundering or to finance terrorism. But it has recently ratcheted up its campaign. "I'll give you a hint: We do not see room for cryptocurrency on the Russian financial market," TASS quoted Chistyukhin as saying. Last week, Reuters cited sources as saying the central bank sees risks to financial stability from the rising number of crypto transactions and a...

The full version of the article, along with thousands like it, can be found here: Controversial social media app Parler plans to expand into NFTs Social media platform Parler has said it will expand its business into non-fungible tokens (NFT), in a move that underpins the rapid growth of the digital asset in recent months. An NFT, which is a digital asset usually bought with cryptocurrencies or in dollars, encompasses everything from images, videos to text. The ownership record is tracked on the blockchain, which serves as a public ledger allowing anyone to verify the NFT's authenticity. Traded since around 2017, NFTs initially gained popularity in early 2021 and then around August. Last week, former US first lady Melania Trump launched an NFT and blockchain technology venture, which was spearheaded by Parler. "Parler will continue building its digital offering with an NFT pipeline that builds communities and fosters creativity while furthering its commitment to free sp...

The full version of the article, along with thousands like it, can be found here: Taiwan govt OKs Taiwan Semiconductor’s new chip plant in Japan Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co has received approval to set up a chip plant in Japan, Taiwan's investment commission of the ministry of economic affairs, which approved the investment, said in a statement. The worlds leading contract chipmaker TSMC said last month it would build a $7 billion chip plant in Japan with Sony Group . "The technology that will be used in TSMC's new plant in Japan is lagging behind what has been applied in Taiwan for at least one generation or more. There should be no doubts about high-end technology outflow," said the investment commission in the statement. Tech powerhouse Taiwan, home to chip makers like TSMC , has become front and centre of efforts to resolve a shortage of chips that has shut some auto production lines and impacted consumer electronics makers around the world. TSMC,...

The full version of the article, along with thousands like it, can be found here: New tech buzzwords: From metaverse to DAOs This year, tech CEOs drew inspiration from a 1990s sci-fi novel, Reddit investors' lexicon seeped into the mainstream as "diamond hands" and "apes" shook Wall Street, and something called a DAO tried to buy a rare copy of the US Constitution. If you're still drawing a blank as 2021 wraps up, here's a short glossary: METAVERSE The metaverse broadly refers to shared, immersive digital environments which people can move between and may access via virtual reality or augmented reality headsets or computer screens. Some tech CEOs are betting it will be the successor to the mobile internet. The term was coined in the dystopian novel "Snow Crash" three decades ago. This year CEOs of tech companies from Microsoft to Match Group have discussed their roles in building the metaverse. In October, Facebook renamed itself Meta t...