European governments have been bringing the hammer down on tech in recent months, slapping record fines and stiff regulations on the largest imports out of Silicon Valley. Despite pleas from the world’s leading companies and Europe’s eroding trust in government, European citizens’ staunch support for regulation of new technologies points to an operating environment that […]
View More Tech regulation in Europe will only get tougherCategory: regulation
Apple addresses Spotify’s claims, but not its demands
Two days after Spotify announced that it had filed a suit against Apple with the European Commission over anticompetitive practices, Apple today issued its own response of sorts. In a lengthy statement on its site called “Addressing Spotify’s Claims”, Apple walks through and dismantles some of the key parts of Spotify’s accusations about how the App Store […]
View More Apple addresses Spotify’s claims, but not its demandsInstagram founders say losing autonomy at Facebook meant “winning”
Rather than be sore about losing independence within Facebook, Instagram co-founder Kevin Systrom told me it was an inevitable sign of his app’s triumph. Today at South By South West, Systrom and fellow co-founder Mike Krieger sat down for their first on-stage talk together since leaving Facebook in September. They discussed their super hero origin […]
View More Instagram founders say losing autonomy at Facebook meant “winning”Uber pays $2.6M to settle historical charges it violated Dutch taxi laws
Another fine for Uber’s historical playbook: The ride-hailing giant has agreed to pay around $2.6 million (€2.3M) to settle charges in the Netherlands related to violations of local taxi law, dating back to when it was operating a peer-to-peer ride-hailing service in contravention of local transport laws. Uber offered its UberPop service in the Netherlands […]
View More Uber pays $2.6M to settle historical charges it violated Dutch taxi lawsCabify returns to Barcelona with a workaround for ride-hailing wait limits
Well that didn’t take long. Despite warning loudly and publicly that incoming changes to private hire vehicle rules in Catalonia would drive it out of Barcelona for good, and force it to fire thousands of drivers, Spanish ride-hailing firm Cabify has announced it’s back operating in the city from today — a month after it […]
View More Cabify returns to Barcelona with a workaround for ride-hailing wait limitsDating apps face questions over age checks after report exposes child abuse
The UK government has said it could legislate to require age verification checks on users of dating apps, following an investigation into underage use of dating apps published by the Sunday Times yesterday. The newspaper found more than 30 cases of child rape have been investigated by police related to use of dating apps including Grindr and Tinder […]
View More Dating apps face questions over age checks after report exposes child abuseUber driven out of Barcelona again
Uber is suspending its professional taxi service in Barcelona from tomorrow almost a year after it re-entered the Catalan capital. The move follows the regional government agreeing new regulations for the vehicle for hire (VTC) sector aimed at making sure they do not compete directly with taxis. “The new restrictions approved by the Catalan Government […]
View More Uber driven out of Barcelona againRules to rein in ride-hailing apps coming to Barcelona
Catalonia’s regional government in Spain has agreed new rules to regulate the vehicle for hire (VTCs) sector that will require ride-hailing companies such as Uber and Cabify to substantially change how they operate in Barcelona and other local cities as soon as this week. The changes have been agreed by decree, ahead of a planned […]
View More Rules to rein in ride-hailing apps coming to BarcelonaUsing Facebook’s latest privacy stumble, lawmakers push for strong FTC oversight
Lawmakers are again unhappy with Facebook after the latest big story again portraying Facebook’s failure to protect the private data of its users. Yesterday, the New York Times reported that the company had special relationships with a handful of major tech companies, including Amazon, Microsoft and Spotify. The report alleges that Facebook allowed those partners forms […]
View More Using Facebook’s latest privacy stumble, lawmakers push for strong FTC oversightWhy you need a supercomputer to build a house
When the hell did building a house become so complicated? Don’t let the folks on HGTV fool you. The process of building a home nowadays is incredibly painful. Just applying for the necessary permits can be a soul-crushing undertaking that’ll have you running around the city, filling out useless forms, and waiting in motionless lines […]
View More Why you need a supercomputer to build a houseApple’s Tim Cook warns regulation is coming for the tech industry
This year has been horrendous for Silicon Valley’s public image.
With a litany of issues like data misuse and political interference laid bare within the last 12 months, Apple CEO Tim Cook told Axios on HBO that government regulation of the tech indu…
Facebook hack could hasten regulation as Sen. Warner says Congress must “step up”
Senator Mark Warner has issued a stern reprimand to Facebook over today’s revelation that 50 million users had their access token stolen by a hacker. “This is another sobering indicator that Congress needs to step up and take action to protect the privacy and security of social media users” Warner writes. As I’ve said before […]
View More Facebook hack could hasten regulation as Sen. Warner says Congress must “step up”