Wednesday, January 15, 2025

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Facebook Makes Changes to Address Children’s Safety and Health

In the wake of a reports about how much Facebook’s platforms harm children, the company is making changes in an effort to address concerns.

Whistleblower Frances Haugen came forward to accuse the company of ignoring its own research that demonstrated just how harmful its platforms are to teens. Haugen even managed to copy tens of thousands of pages of Facebook’s research, adding support to her claims.

In an interview with Dana Bash, Nick Clegg, VP for Global Affairs, said the company is making changes.

“We are constantly iterating in order to improve our products,” Clegg told Bash on CNN’s State of the Union. “We cannot, with a wave of the wand, make everyone’s life perfect. What we can do is improve our products, so that our products are as safe and as enjoyable to use.”

It remains to be seen if Facebook’s efforts will be enough to satiate lawmakers…but we wouldn’t be on it.

DirecTV Now Offering PBS

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DirecTV has become the second streaming service to offer PBS and its member stations.

PBS, as well as its member stations, has traditionally been noticeably absent from streaming TV services. Until now, YouTube TV was the only service to offer it, and only since earlier this year.

PBS and DirecTV have reached an agreement for the latter to offer its customers PBS content, beginning later this year.

“Entertainment is personal and should serve every member of the household, which is why we’re partnering with PBS to deliver DIRECTV STREAM customers more choice, more control and a more convenient way to access the content they care about most,” said Rob Thun, Chief Content Officer for DIRECTV. 

“As viewer habits continue to evolve, PBS remains committed to making our award-winning, national and local content available to all Americans across as many platforms as possible. This partnership will allow PBS and our member stations to expand our digital footprint and reach more viewers with content that inspires, educates and entertains,” said Ira Rubenstein, PBS Chief Digital and Marketing Officer.

The agreement was touted as especially benefits for kids, given PBS’ focus on kid-friendly programming.

“At PBS KIDS, making our high-quality content accessible to as many children across the country as possible is integral to our mission,” said Sara DeWitt, Senior Vice President & General Manager of Children’s Media and Education, PBS. “As families continue to look to us for more ways to watch, we’re thrilled we can continue building on our offerings with DIRECTV—both on broadcast and digital—to ensure we’re meeting them where they are.”

Signal and Telegram Big Winners Amid Facebook’s Outage

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Signal and Telegram saw millions of people flock to their platforms, thanks to Facebook’s hours-long outage Monday.

Facebook, Messenger, Instagram and WhatsApp went down late Monday morning, in what is one of the biggest outages the company has ever experienced. Given how much people rely on Messenger and WhatsApp for daily communication — both personal and business — people started looking for alternatives during the outage.

Telegram saw such an influx of users that it experienced some issues of its own. Meanwhile, Signal said it gained millions of new users in a tweet.

Fairphone 4 Has a Five-Year Warranty

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Fairphone has announced its new model, the Fairphone 4, has a five-year warranty.

Fairphone is a unique entry in the smartphone market, a company that is trying to provide an ethically and sustainably sourced smartphone. The company’s goal is to put the planet first, and it designs its phones to last longer, be easily repairable and waste less, compared to traditional smartphones.

In harmony with that goal, the company says its latest model comes with a five-year warranty.

A phone’s biggest environmental impact comes from making the thing in the first place. So the longer you keep it, the more sustainable it becomes. Simple.

We don’t just promise long-term support, software updates and friendly customer service. We have it in writing: A 5-year warranty for every Fairphone 4.

Customers will need to purchase before December 31, 2022 to claim the warranty.

Netflix Sued by S. Korean Broadband Company Over ‘Squid Game’ Traffic

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Netflix is being sued by a South Korean broadband company over a surge in traffic from the streaming giant’s new Squid Game series.

Squid Game is the streaming giant’s latest hit, and has caused a surge in viewers, as well as the corresponding internet usage. SK Broadband is suing over that usage, according to Reuters, wanting Netflix to pay for the increased traffic.

The two companies have a history of legal issues. Although the latest lawsuit has been brought by SK Broadband, Netflix sued last year to avoid paying for network usage. While most other companies, such as Apple, Amazon and Facebook pay such fees, Netflix and YouTube do not — despite being the top two internet traffic generators.

According to Reuters the courts have so far sided with SK Broadband, saying the company provides “a service provided at a cost.” The Seoul Central District Court called it “reasonable” for Netflix to be “obligated to provide something in return for the service,” dealing the company a major blow in its case. While Netflix is appealing its loss, the decision likely encouraged SK Broadband to launch this latest lawsuit.

YouTube TV, NBCUniversal Agree to Short Extension While Talks Continue

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YouTube TV and NBCUniversal have agreed to a “short extension” that will keep more than a dozen channels on the streaming platform while talks continue.

Earlier this week, YouTube said it was on the verge of losing NBCU content over a carriage dispute. The deadline was September 30. The companies are now saying they have agreed to a short extension, one that will keep NBCU’s content on YouTube TV while negations continue.

NBCU gave a statement to Protocol outlining the decision.

Google Officially Ends Support for Android 2.3

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Google has officially ended support for Android 2.3.7 and lower, leaving potentially millions of devices without access to key apps.

Google warned in early August that it would block Android 2.3.7 and older from accessing popular apps and services, such as Gmail, YouTube, Maps and more.

“As part of our ongoing efforts to keep our users safe, Google will no longer allow sign-in on Android devices that run Android 2.3.7 or lower starting September 27, 2021. If you sign into your device after September 27, you may get username or password errors when you try to use Google products and services like Gmail, YouTube, and Maps.”

The cutoff goes into effect today. Although the percentage of devices running the older OS is extremely low, when factoring in the billions of Android devices, it still accounts for potentially millions of impacted users.

Crypto Exchanges Scrambling to Deal With Chinese Ban

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Cryptocurrency exchanges are scrambling to deal with the fallout of China’s recent ban on all crypto transactions and mining.

China stepped up its war against crypto, announcing a near total ban just days ago. With all transactions and mining banned, it creates real problems for the crypto industry since the vast majority of mining occurs within the country.

According to Reuters, crypto exchanges are trying to cut ties with Chinese users, lest they get caught up in China’s campaign.

“On the very day we saw the notice, we started to take corrective measures,” Du Jun, Huobi Group co-founder told Reuters.

It remains to be seen how widespread the fallout will be, but the action being taken by the exchanges would seem to indicate it could be significant.

YouTube TV On the Verge of Losing NBCUniversal Channels

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YouTube TV, one of the biggest streaming TV platforms, is on the verge of losing NBCUniversal programming if a deal isn’t reached.

It’s not uncommon for streaming platforms to lose channels over disputes with the networks. The networks raise prices, or want streaming platforms to carry certain bundles, and negotiations often reach the breaking point.

According to DigitalTrends, YouTube TV could lose NBC, Bravo, CNBC, E!, Golf Channel, MSNBC, Oxygen, SYFY, Telemundo, The Olympic Channel, Universal Kids, Universo and USA Network if a deal isn’t reached by September 30.

YouTube says it is trying to reach an equitable agreement, but recommended users turn to NBC’s Peacock should the deal fall through.

If NBCU offers us equitable terms, we’ll renew our agreement with them. However, if we are unable to reach a deal by Thursday, the NBCU lineup of channels will no longer be available on YouTube TV and we will decrease our monthly price by $10, from $64.99 to $54.99 (while this content remains off our platform). You can sign up for NBC’s own direct-to-consumer streaming service, Peacock, which they offer for $4.99/month to continue watching NBCU content, such as Sunday Night Football.

Broken iPhone 13 Screen Must be Fixed by Apple for Face ID to Work

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In a major blow to the right to repair movement, users will need to have Apple repair an iPhone 13 broken screen if they want Face ID to work.

Right to repair is gaining significant momentum, with the New York Senate passing right to repair legislation, Congressman Joe Morelle introducing such a bill in the US House and the FTC embracing right to repair.

In view of the changing climate, it’s somewhat surprising that Apple is locking down one of the most critical features of an iPhone, namely Face ID. Spotted by Mashable, Phone Repair Guru has posted a video showing that if anyone other than Apple replaces an iPhone 13 screen, Face ID will stop working.

Phone Repair Guru says there are steps that could be taken to mitigate the problem, but those steps are far too technical for the majority of repair shops.

The news is sure to fuel further calls for substantial right to repair legislation.

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