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An "eraser button"? Focused ideas could help bridle Big Tech

Break up Big Tech? How about shrinking the tech companies’ shield against liability in cases where the content they push to users causes harm? Or creating a new regulator to strictly oversee the industry? Those ideas have captured official attention in the U.S., Europe, U.K. and Australia as controversy has enveloped Facebook — which on […]

China tightens control over company data with transfer rules

Companies in China would need government approval to transfer important data abroad under proposed rules announced Friday that would tighten Beijing’s control over information and might disrupt operations for international corporations. The measure is needed to protect the Chinese public and “safeguard national security,” the Cyberspace Administration of China said. President Xi Jinping’s government sees […]

Facebook grilled by UK lawmakers making online safety rules

British lawmakers grilled Facebook on Thursday over how it handles online safety as European countries move to rein in the power of social media companies. Facebook’s head of safety said the tech giant supports regulation and has no business interest in providing people with an “unsafe experience.” Representatives from Google, Twitter and TikTok also answered […]

U.S. Senate reinforces restrictions on Chinese tech firms

On Thursday, the U.S. Senate voted unanimously on legislative approval to halt Huawei and ZTE’s plans from obtaining additional equipment licenses from watchdogs. Chinese tech firms Huawei Technologies Co Ltd and ZTE Corp took their latest punch from regulatory authorities in a supplementary attempt to impose harsher legislation on Chinese operations in the U.S., under […]

Ford, GM profits fall as sales drop due to chip shortage

The global computer chip shortage cut into third-quarter profits at both Ford and crosstown rival General Motors, with both companies having to temporarily close factories, pinching supplies on dealer lots. Ford’s net income of $1.83 billion fell 23% from a year ago, while GM’s profit dropped 40% to $2.4 billion. High prices, mainly for the […]

Zuckerberg fires back against claims of profit over people

Mark Zuckerberg on Wednesday addressed during Facebook’s third-quarter earnings call the escalated allegations, as the CEO attempted to drift recently surfaced claims from his social networking platform. According to the Big Tech platform’s CEO, the storm hitting his company arising a wave of bad press was led by “a coordinated effort to selectively use leaked […]

Microsoft profit up 24% in quarter, driven by cloud growth

Growth in Microsoft’s cloud computing business helped push its profit up 24% in the July-September quarter over the same time last year. The Redmond, Washington-based tech company on Tuesday reported quarterly profit of $17.2 billion, or $2.27 per share, beating Wall Street expectations of $2.08 per share. Microsoft profits have soared throughout the pandemic thanks […]

People or profit? Facebook papers show deep conflict within

Facebook the company is losing control of Facebook the product — not to mention the last shreds of its carefully crafted, decade-old image as a benevolent company just wanting to connect the world. Thousands of pages of internal documents provided to Congress by a former employee depict an internally conflicted company where data on the […]

Tesla's market value tops $1T after Hertz orders 100K cars

Hertz announced Monday that it will buy 100,000 electric vehicles from Tesla, one of the largest purchases of battery-powered cars in history and the latest evidence of the nation’s increasing commitment to EV technology. The news of the deal triggered a rally in Tesla’s stock, driving the carmaker’s market value over the $1 trillion mark […]

Facebook dithered in curbing divisive user content in India

Facebook in India has been selective in curbing hate speech, misinformation and inflammatory posts, particularly anti-Muslim content, according to leaked documents obtained by The Associated Press, even as the internet giant’s own employees cast doubt over its motivations and interests. Based on research produced as recently as March of this year to company memos that […]