President Biden’s second State of the Union speech Tuesday night included calls for stronger consumer privacy protections and tougher antitrust laws in direct challenge to what many perceive as the unchecked power of Big Tech. “Pass bipartisan legislation to strengthen antitrust enforcement and prevent big online platforms from giving their own products an unfair advantage,” Biden stated, urging Congress to “stop Big Tech from collecting personal data on kids and teenagers online, ban targeted advertising to children, and impose stricter limits on the personal data these companies collect on all of us.” Continue reading Biden Challenges Big Tech, Calls for Children’s Online Safety

TikTok toured journalists through its new Transparency and Accountability Center last week. Located in Culver City, the facility features monitors displaying infographics that show how TikTok’s recommendation engine and content moderation affect the short-form videos that are the basis of its viral app. Computer workstations running a “code simulator” were made available so visitors could explore firsthand how the app’s algorithms influence video propagation. TikTok COO Vanessa Pappas told attendees that the new center, in development since 2020, aims to give lawmakers and others a more personal experience than the virtual tours previously offered. Continue reading TikTok Ups Transparency Efforts as Government Heat Builds

Apple’s three-year streak of record-setting sales and profit came to an end with the company’s fiscal first quarter for 2023. The three-month period ending December 31, 2022 produced revenue of $117.2 billion, down 5 percent year-over-year. Apple said the results capped an earnings season “in which the world’s biggest technology companies mostly struggled to shake off a postpandemic hangover.” It was the Cupertino-based company’s first quarterly revenue decline in almost four years, attributable largely to supply chain disruptions in China causing a holiday sales season shortage of the high-end iPhone 14 Pro and 14 Pro Max. Continue reading Apple Hardware Sales Decline, Services Remain Bright Spot

Memory chip prices have plummeted this past year, with continued declines expected through Q2. The painful supply chain shortages of 2020 have been replaced, in many instances, by inventory gluts, with some chipmakers talking about scaling back expansion plans. The average price for memory chips used in consumer electronics — from TV sets to smartphones and personal computers — are expected to dip by double-digits in Q1, analysts say. In 2022, prices declined by 20 percent starting in Q2. TrendForce predicts inflation and high interest rates will continue to suppress corporate and consumer spending on electronic devices, including data servers. Continue reading Manufacturers Are Impacted by Sagging Memory Chip Prices

TikTok is taking a proactive stance to quash U.S. government concerns that user data might be collected and exploited by China, where the viral video platform’s parent, ByteDance, is based. TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew made the rounds in Washington last week, sharing with think tanks and public interest groups his plan to prevent data on Americans from being transmitted out of the country. The strategy marks a shift for TikTok, which kept a low profile during attacks by the Trump administration and continuing pressure under President Biden. Chew is now scheduled to testify before the House Energy and Commerce Committee about security and privacy. Continue reading TikTok On the Offense in Battle to Protect Its U.S. Operations

In a move to heighten transparency, TikTok will begin using its “state-controlled media” label in more than 40 new territories, including China and the U.S. Launched as a pilot program last year, the program identifies videos produced under government influence. Conceding there is no one-size-fits-all definition, TikTok says it considers media “state-controlled” when “there is evidence of clear editorial control and decision-making by members of the state.” The label was launched after Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, flagging state-controlled media in those countries and Belarus. Russian outlets TASS, Sputnik and the English-language RT are among those labeled. Continue reading China and U.S. to Carry TikTok State-Controlled Media Labels

Activision Blizzard’s Blizzard Entertainment has hit an impasse with licensee NetEase and will as of next week be suspending “most Blizzard game services in mainland China due to the expiration” of current agreements. The arrangement encompasses popular titles such as “World of Warcraft,” “Hearthstone” and “Diablo III.” Blizzard has worked with Chinese video game publisher NetEase since 2008. “The two parties have not reached a deal to renew the agreements that is consistent with Blizzard’s operating principles and commitments to players and employees,” Blizzard said in a statement. Continue reading Blizzard Entertainment to Suspend Game Access for NetEase

TikTok is in discussions with U.S. lawmakers about a $1.5 billion plan to reorganize its operations in order to provide more transparency and allay fears of Chinese spying and data manipulation. The talks have become more urgent in recent months as regulators at the federal and state level are threatening to ban the short-form video app on government-issued devices. TikTok parent ByteDance been negotiating with CFIUS, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. since 2019, when an investigation was opened following the Beijing-based media firm’s acquisition of Musical.ly, which it merged into TikTok. Continue reading TikTok Considers $1.5 Billion Plan to Quell Security Concerns

Consumer Technology Association (CTA) vice president of regulatory affairs J. David Grossman introduced U.S. Assistant Secretary of Commerce Alan Davidson, NTIA administrator, who addressed the CES audience on federal plans to expand broadband access in 2023. “As you all know, the Internet today is the essential tool in our modern world,” he said. “Yet, in 2023, millions of people in this country don’t have the access or skills they need to take advantage of the Internet.” After 20 years of talk, he added, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will now provide over $65 billion to invest in that mission. Continue reading CES: Government Plans to Address the Digital Divide in 2023

Senator Jacky Rosen (D-Nevada), a former computer programmer, brought Senator Mark Warner (D-Virginia) and Ben Ray Luján (D-New Mexico) to the CES stage to talk about their top technology interests in the new year. All of them serve on committees with core interests in the future of technology. In addition to serving on six committees, Rosen is on the subcommittee on cybersecurity; Warner is chair of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence among other committee assignments; and Luján is a member of the Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation among others. Continue reading CES: Federal Tech and Innovation Priorities for the New Year

Japan, once the world’s top producer of computer chips, is seeking to regain its foothold in the manufacture of leading-edge semiconductors. Last month, a consortium of eight Japanese companies formed Rapidus, a foundry the Japanese government hopes will help get the nation on track for advanced chip manufacturing. IBM Research is joining forces with Rapidus, with plans to manufacture IBM’s 2nm technology in fabs that Rapidus is building in Japan, with output expected to commence in the latter half of the decade. Continue reading IBM Teams Up with Rapidus Foundry on Chip Manufacturing

Amazon is introducing Inspire, a feature that lets customers shop from a custom feed of videos and photos. Drawing comparisons to TikTok, Inspire is currently available to select U.S. users, with plans for a national rollout in the coming months. Inspire takes Amazon further into social shopping territory, where competitors Meta Platforms and Alphabet have followed TikTok and its parent ByteDance into the short-video shopping format. While the U.S. and Europe have failed to duplicate the astounding volume of China’s social shopping, Amazon — with a customer base in the hundreds of millions — could jump-start it. Continue reading Amazon Pushes into Social Shopping with Its Inspire Feature

The European Council (EU’s governing body) has adopted a position on the Artificial Intelligence Act, which aims to ensure that AI systems used or marketed in the European Union are safe and respect existing laws on fundamental rights. In addition to defining artificial intelligence, the European Council’s general approach specifies prohibited AI practices, calls for risk level allocation, and stipulates ways to deal with those risks. The Council — comprised of EU heads of state — becomes the first co-legislate to complete this initial step, with the European Parliament expected to offer its version of the AIA in the first half of 2023. Continue reading European Council Weighs in on the Artificial Intelligence Act

Apple is adding a new end-to-end encryption option for iCloud data that will further protect backups, photos and notes. Called Advanced Data Protection, it will shield even Apple from seeing some of the most sensitive data users store on its servers. The change reportedly makes it impossible for Apple to provide law enforcement with the contents of encrypted files. The company says the security enhancements will help protect its customers from the most sophisticated hackers. The feature rolls out this week for those participating in Apple’s Beta Software Program. Continue reading Apple Introduces New iCloud Encryption to Prevent Hacking

South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem’s executive order banning TikTok from state agencies has added further fuel to Washington’s calls for an outright ban on the Chinese-owned short-form video platform. The South Dakota tourism department deleted its account and 60,000 followers, and the state’s public broadcasting service and six public universities are planning how to move forward. Nebraska in 2020 became the first U.S. state to implement a government agency TikTok ban. Now a movement seems to be gaining momentum, with South Carolina, Arkansas and Maryland at various stages of action in dealing with the perceived national security threat. Continue reading U.S. States Rise Up Against TikTok Over Security Concerns