Technology

U.S. Senators bill fixates on Apple’s App Store

U.S. Senate introduced on Wednesday its latest bill directed at tech powerhouses Google and Apple to restrain their app stores’ influence on the market. The “Open App Market Act,” initiated and sponsored by senators Richard Blumenthal, Amy Klobuchar, and Marsha Blackburn would play a restrictive role in some of the largest app marketplaces, which according […]

Lee freed on parole, showing Samsung's might in South Korea

Samsung leader Lee Jae-yong walked out of prison Friday a year early in a parole decision demonstrating the conglomerate’s outsized influence in South Korea as well as continuing leniency for bosses who commit corporate corruption. Wearing a gray suit and a mask, Lee stepped out of the gates at the prison near Seoul and bowed […]

Vodafone Idea bankruptcy to hit 2G users hard

Indian telecom operator Vodafone Idea (Vi) 2G subscribers would be the most affected if the company’s financial state remains unsolved, a source close to the matter told ET Telecom.   In this case, Vi’s local rivals Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel will have to facilitate alternative options for Vi’s 2G customers.  Experts highlighted that these solutions include providing low-end 4G smartphones or 4G feature phones to Vodafone Idea’s low-end 2G customers.  […]

UK’s watchdog interrupts Facebook’s deal to acquire Giphy

The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) ruled that Facebook owning popular short video animations company Giphy might be detrimental to other platforms since the app is vastly popular amongst the social network’s competitors. As one of the most favored GIF sites, the animations platform provides Facebook, and it’s ecosystem of apps — Facebook Messenger, Instagram, and WhatsApp  — with […]

Zambia kills off the internet amid presidential elections

For authoritarianism to survive, it must learn to adapt.   While governments have been utilizing the latest tech to communicate with their people and understand their sentiment, the same tools are being used in a pervasive, yet subtle manner, in a bid to enforce repression among the public and remain in power.  An example of this could be seen as WhatsApp and other social media platforms are now being blocked in Zambia […]

UK watchdog: Facebook's ownership of Giphy hurts competition

Facebook’s ownership of Giphy will hurt competition for animated images, U.K. regulators said Thursday, meaning the social network could ultimately be forced to unwind the deal if the provisional findings are confirmed. The Competition and Markets Authority said its investigation found the acquisition would hurt competition among social media platforms because there’s only one other […]

Samsung slashes prices in bid to boost foldable phone sales

Samsung is hoping cheaper but more durable versions of its foldable phones will broaden the appeal of a high-concept design that’s so far fizzled with consumers. The electronics giant on Wednesday launched its effort to turn things around with two new products designed to function as both a phone and, when unfolded outward on a […]

China dismisses Canadian protests over cases tied to Huawei

China on Thursday dismissed Canada’s protests of harsh sentences handed down by Chinese courts to Canadians whose cases are seen as linked to the arrest in Vancouver of a top executive at Chinese tech giant Huawei. The Foreign Ministry and the Chinese Embassy in Canada accused Ottawa of making unwarranted, groundless accusations that “grossly interfered […]

PUBG maker share prices drop 20% on IPO debut

South Korean developer of Player Unknown’s Battlegrounds’ (PUBG), Krafton, initial public offering recorded a 20 percent drop on Tuesday following a crackdown due to a state-led media attack on the gaming industry.   This is considered the biggest initial decline of a South Korean IPO after LG Philips LCD collapse in the same market 17 years ago. Krafton’s loss came after it reduced its IPO target by more than 10 percent last month following regulatory demands […]

King of the hill: TikTok is officially the most downloaded app in 2020

Step aside Facebook, as TikTok just got crowned the most downloaded social media app in the world as of 2020, according to survey conducted by digital analytics company App Annie.  Launched in 2016, The Chinese video-sharing platform has since overtaken Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, and Facebook Messenger, all of which make up Facebook’s ecosystem. This isn’t a milestone to overlook, as Facebook-owned apps have held the top spot since the survey began in […]