OSLO, Norway (AP) — Norway has suspended use of its smartphone app meant to track and trace coronavirus contagions after a public spat between health authorities and the information watchdog. Geir Bukholm, an official at the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (NIPH), said the decision Monday to delete data and halt any further information gathering […]
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NEW YORK (AP) — State officials in California and Washington are reviewing Amazon’s business practices to determine whether the company is violating any laws with respect to the independent merchants that sell goods on its site, according to published reports. The Wall Street Journal reported Friday that California is examining the retail giant’s business practices, […]
LONDON (AP) — British regulators have opened an investigation into Facebook’s recent purchase of Giphy over concerns that it will stifle competition. The Competition and Markets Authority said Friday it’s examining the deal over concern it will result in “substantial lessening of competition in any market or markets in the United Kingdom.” The social network […]
By YURI KAGEYAMA AP Business Writer TOKYO (AP) — A Japanese high court on Thursday upheld a lower court’s decision that the French head of Mt. Gox, a Tokyo-based bitcoin exchange that went bankrupt after a massive hacking attack, was guilty of manipulating electronic data but not embezzlement. The Tokyo District Court last year sentenced […]
By JOSEPH PISANI and MATT O’BRIEN Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Amazon banned police use of its face recognition technology for a year, making it the latest tech giant to step back from law-enforcement use of systems that have faced criticism for incorrectly identifying people with darker skin. The Seattle-based company did not say […]
By DEE-ANN DURBIN AP Business Writer Two pioneers in restaurant delivery — Just Eat Takeaway.com and Grubhub — are combining in a $7.3 billion deal that will create one of the world’s largest delivery companies. Amsterdam-based Just Eat Takeaway.com said late Wednesday that it was acquiring Chicago-based Grubhub, snatching it away from ride-hailing giant Uber, […]
By MATT O’BRIEN AP Technology Writer IBM is getting out of the facial recognition business, saying it’s concerned about how the technology can be used for mass surveillance and racial profiling. Ongoing protests responding to the death of George Floyd have sparked a broader reckoning over racial injustice and a closer look at the use […]
By TALI ARBEL AP Technology Writer The U.S. communications regulator on Tuesday proposed a $225 million fine, its largest ever, against two health insurance telemarketers for spamming people with 1 billion robocalls using fake phone numbers. The Federal Communications Commission said John Spiller and Jakob Mears made the calls through two businesses. State attorneys general […]
By JOE McDONALD AP Business Writer BEIJING (AP) — As the coronavirus spread, the world’s richest communist dug into his deep pockets. Jack Ma, founder of e-commerce giant Alibaba Group and a member of the ruling Communist Party, helped to pay for 1,000 ventilators delivered to New York in April. Ma’s foundation also is giving […]
By YURI KAGEYAMA AP Business Writer TOKYO (AP) — An autonomous mobility system that works like a wheelchair without anyone pushing it is scuttling around a Tokyo airport to help with social distancing amid the coronavirus pandemic. The personal mobility machine seats one person and runs on its own without crashing, even when people jump […]