Your Tech Story

Athulya

Being a cinephile with a love for all things outdoorsy, Athulya never misses a chance to chase inspiring stories or poke fun at things, even when the subject is herself. Currently pursuing a degree in mechanical engineering, she is someone innately interested in technical and scientific research. Music reviews and op-eds define her as they allow her to explore different perspectives. Though sometimes she thinks she makes more sense playing the guitar than she does while writing.

Fake News

The EU Asks Facebook, Google, and Twitter to Do More to Combat Fake News

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The coronavirus pandemic has been a rather unfortunate event that has shaken the world vigorously. However, one of the gravest aftermaths of it has been the large-scale sharing of fake news. Around the world, governments are doing all they can to hold tech giants more accountable for their actions. As a result of combined efforts, tech giants, such as Google, Facebook, and Twitter had agreed to accept a self-regulatory code in a bid to combat fake news two years ago. However, the European Commission has now urged these companies to do more to prevent the spread of disinformation. Here’s a look at what the EU is asking of these companies, and how they have reacted in the past.

Proactive Approach

The COVID-19 situation has made governments more active with regards to stopping the spread of misinformation. As a result, social media is now being asked to take a more proactive approach when it comes to combating fake news. The tech giants mentioned above, along with companies like Mozilla and advertising bodies have been asked to do more. All these companies had signed a more lenient deal in 2018 that aimed to prevent more heavy-handed regulations against hate speech. Later on, TikTok and Microsoft also joined these companies in promising to stop the spread of fake news. 

Shortcomings in the Code

However, following an assessment last year, experts concluded that the Code contained several shortcomings. As per a study done by Reuters, the Code allowed for its incomplete and inconsistent application. Furthermore, the report stated that there was a lack of uniform definitions, which allowed for different platforms to interpret the laws differently. Also, there were a lot of gaps in the commitments stated in the Code. The Code also featured limitations that were intrinsic to the very nature of the self-regulatory Code. Vera Jourova, who serves as the Vice President of the European Commission, therefore, called for greater transparency.

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Image Source: digitalinformationworld.com

Flexibility in the Digital Rule Book

Jourova also stated that the world is now witnessing new threats, making new measures extremely essential. Furthermore, Jourova said that these social media platforms need to be held accountable and that they should become more transparent. They also need to provide better access to their data to make the internet a safer place. As a result, the Commission is working on an Action Plan which will help the E.U. become more resilient towards digital threats. The E.U. Commission will soon propose a Digital Services Act by the end of 2020 to increase the responsibilities and liabilities of such platforms.

Requirement for Better Laws

The new Act aims to bring more rules that will restrict the freedom of platforms, products, and services. As a result, the move has set ablaze a fear within the tech industry as they will now face more heavy-handed opposition from governments. A joint statement regarding the inefficiencies of the older plan and the need for a new one came out on Tuesday. The announcement was made by Vera Jourova, who is the EU Commissioner, Security Chief Julian King, and Mariya Gabriel, who serves as the Digital Commissioner. The statement also noted that the old laws allowed for the large-scale spread of propaganda and disinformation which needs to be stopped. As a result, the EU Commission said that the tech giants need to work together and cooperate with governmental and independent bodies.

Trouble Brewing

In recent years, both Facebook and Twitter, with the former in particular have come under scrutiny in the US and Europe. One of the main talking points in such debates has been the Russian influence on the 2016 American election and the Brexit vote that occurred in the UK. The fears of such an influence led to the EU, asking for a better framework to moderate and regulate the spread of information by such platforms. The EU also stepped in requesting American tech companies to provide monthly reports with data on how they are fighting fake news regarding COVID-19 in June. With the US Presidential Election set to take place next year, the pressure is mounting to build such a framework as soon as possible. The rise in the number of manipulated videos and audios by using Deep-Fake technology has also become a popular talking point. Facebook’s refusal to fact-check posts have also drawn fire from lawmakers in the US, and employees within the company. Hence, it will be interesting to see how the companies handle this new law, and whether it will be successful in changing the way social

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Daimler CEO Ola Kallenius Expects Daimler to Export Mercedes-Benz Cars from India

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India has a large and growing automobile manufacturing industry, which has in recent years showed much promise. The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a decline in sales for large manufacturers. However, the industry is looking for ways to grow past this slight hiccup. It might have received such an invite through the Daimler CEO’s recent statement. As per CEO Ola Kallenius’s interview with the Times of India, the auto giant is looking to source specific components exclusively from India. Here’s a look at the major highlights of the interview, and how Daimler has positioned itself as an automotive ally in the last few years.

Validation for India

India’s the automobile and manufacturing industries have grown exponentially in recent years. This move by Daimler serves as a significant validation for its growth and reliability. As per the interview, the Daimler CEO has stated that the company would use India as an exclusive base for global sourcing of specific important components and software. Furthermore, he also said that Daimler was considering plans to export cars from India on a large-scale. However, the final plans regarding these projects will depend on their economic feasibility and financial viability.

More Praise for India

Ola Kallenius also had a lot of praise and good faith for India, expressing how he was an “Indian fan”. He also described how the movement of the manufacturing of individual parts to India permanently had been a good move. As a result, the company would remain focused on making more such engineering efforts to better their production, and ally with India strategically. However, the CEO was unclear to what extent such a partnership or alliance would grow as that depends on several factors. The CEO was in Germany, unveiling a new S-Class limo while making these statements.

Ola Kallenius
Image Source: ttnews.com

Furthermore, he was also clear about how the growth of software development in India also poses favorable conditions for the expansion of such alliances. He also made it clear that expansion in India could be for more than bare vehicle engineering, but also the IT side of things. He was also quick to point out that India has been a “solid pillar of their house” for several years.

Presence in India

Daimler has two active and functioning factories in India. Their factory in Pune houses and creates Mercedes-Benz cars, while the one in Chennai churns out their Bharat Benz range of trucks. Furthermore, the company also has a large Research and Development centre based in Bangalore, which focuses on global R&D. Kallenius also stated that the export of Mercedes-Benz cars from India would serve as a purely economic decision. As a result, the project depends heavily on the economic feasibility and viability of the decision. However, Kallenius also stated that such a case had never come up till now and that he isn’t sure when such an opportunity would arise. He also reiterated that if and when they do have to make such a decision, it would rely heavily on the financial aspect of things.

Previous Plans for the Future

The German auto legend set up the factory in Chennai, which produces trucks and buses to help with serving its Latin American market from 2022.  Earlier reports had stated that shipments would start going out to Brazil, Chile, and Mexico between 2021 and 2022. The reports for the same had come in September of last year, following the Indian government’s move towards BSVI technology. Around that time, the company also stated that globally it had sold over 1.4 million vehicles which are Euro-VI, or BS-VI equivalent compliant. The company has also invested about INR 500 crores in India to localize, test, and improve its Euro-VI technology.

Two years ago, Daimler exported the GLC SUV, which is an Indian-made vehicle to the US. The company went on to mention that their Indian plant was a back-up set up to help deal with a rise in global demand for their vehicles. Furthermore, on being asked about the low sales of luxury vehicles in India, the Daimler CEO said that numbers did not do any justice to the true size of India, it’s economy and the population. He concluded by stating they had a fair market position but just had to work some things out. The analogy he employed included shaking a good ketchup bottle but having difficulty with bringing out the ketchup. It will be interesting to see whether the deal goes through after financial analysis, as it could breathe some much-needed life into India’s automobile manufacturing industry.

PUBG Mobile

Indian Government Bans Another 118 Apps Including PUBG

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The Indian government took a big decision on Wednesday by deciding to ban an additional 118 or so mobile applications, including the uber-popular video game PUBG. The move follows in the heels of an earlier decision to ban 59 Chinese applications earlier this year. All of these bans were a result of rising tensions between the two superpowers. India cited security reasons and data privacy concerns as the primary cause of the ban. Here’s a look at the impact the move will have, and what led to the government taking such drastic measures.

India Making Big Moves

Tensions had been high ever since the India-China scuffle at the Ladakh border a few months ago. These border skirmishes, coupled with the world’s resentment towards China for its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, has snowballed into trade embargos and political battles around the world. Following India’s model, the US too recently banned the usage of a sleuth of Chinese applications citing security concerns. The Ministry of Information and Technology released an official statement yesterday, wherein it said that 118 apps have now been banned in India. The reason being cited that these apps were prejudicial to the integrity, security, sovereignty, and defence of the nation. As per the statement put out by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, the ban falls under the purview of Section 69A of the Indian IT Act.

Major Apps to Leave India

Some of the biggest names in the list of apps now banned in India are Baidu, FaceU, WeChat, and PUBG Mobile. Several reports state that PUBG has over 33 million active users in India, meaning that this move will have a significant impact on the game. In fact, most reports state that PUBG is one of the most popular applications in India, with over 13 million users signing in every day. The Ministry noted that it frequently received complaints regarding people misusing these applications in various ways. Some of the complaints referred to the stealing or personal and private data and then selling such data to servers located outside India. The fact that such data could be mined, processed, and analyzed to harm the sovereignty of the country is what led to such drastic steps as per the statement from the Ministry. 

PUBG Mobile
Image Source: businessinsider.in

Further Notices and Suggestions

Furthermore, the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre, which works under the Ministry of Home Affairs also released a statement of recommendations regarding how to block these apps. In the public domain as well, people had been asking the government to take more stringent actions to protect the private data of Indian users. Such a targeted move will therefore help put to rest worries that a large part of the demographic had regarding the safety and security of the Indian cyberspace. The government has decided to retaliate at the best time, as global superpowers unite to protect their data and frameworks from foreign assaults and attacks.

Earlier Steps

Just a few months back, in June, the Centre had banned another 59 applications, with most of them being Chinese-based on similar grounds. This list included popular apps like UC Browser and TikTok. The recent ban on an additional 118 apps will see PUBG Mobile leaving India for an indefinite period. The wildly popular shooter videogame ranks within the world’s top five most popular smartphone games and boasts of over 734 million downloads. The game, which comes under Tencent Holdings Limited’s videogame department also has a loyal fan following in India, leading to social media being flooded with memes on the ban. The Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi himself had referenced the game last year during a talk on exam stress. This interview after it went live led to the creation of the “Yeh PUBG-wala hai kya?” meme, which roughly translated to the PM asking a worried mother whether her son was a PUBG player.

It is quite evident that the ban on apps has a clear political agenda behind it. The very fact that the ban came after the Indian government accused China of using troops provocatively along the Pangong Lake in Ladakh is proof enough of this. As the Chinese troops had made a similar move on August 31st, the government was left seething at this provocation. However, the Indian army was able to successfully thwart both actions, preventing any damage or loss for the Indians. Recent months have witnessed several clashes and showdowns, with over 20 soldiers being martyred in the Galwan Valley in June. Political or not, there is no doubt that the banning of these apps will have a ripple in our cyberspace. It will be interesting to see whether China will retaliate in any way to these bans, as TikTok gears up to fight the US government through a civil lawsuit. 

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Facebook Takes the Battle to the Government by Planning to Block Australian Publishers from Sharing Articles

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Facebook in a new statement has announced that it will block publishers and users from Australia from sharing news pieces and articles. However, this move will serve as a significant pushback against a newly proposed law that will force Facebook to pay media companies for their articles and content. Furthermore, this new announcement will also escalate tensions between the tech giant and the Australian government. Both parties have been caught in a bitter antitrust battle, with the government holding Google and Facebook responsible for paying publishers for the content they provide these platforms. Here’s a look at how the battle came to heads and what this move could mean to users and publishers.

New Law In-Play

The Australian government is yet to approve and ass the new legislation. However, an arbitration panel tasked with working out the by-laws and clauses has proposed that tech companies must pay their content publishers if the two sides cannot agree. Facebook hit back through a blog post yesterday, claiming that such a proposal was hugely unfair. The social media giant also stated that such a law would allow content creators and publishers to charge any amount they wanted. Furthermore, the company said that if the law did come through, it would be forced to prevent Australians from sharing any media on Facebook and Instagram. 

Facebook Takes A Stand

Facebook’s VP of Global News, Campbell Brown, said that this decision was hard to take for the company. However, he reiterated that it was the only way to protect Facebook against a move that would hurt them and Australia’s media outlets. She went ahead to state that the social media giant was still working on a full-proof method to block Australian media from sharing articles. Following this announcement, Josh Frydenberg, who serves as Australia’s Treasurer, said that these were nothing but heavy-handed threats.

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Instead, he stated that such a law would help make the media landscape more sustainable as digital platforms would have to pay for the content they put out. Rod Sims, who serves as Australia’s competition regulator, also said that such threats were misconceived and ill-timed. He went on to say that the newly proposed law would go a long way in ensuring that the media remains fair and transparent.

Google Follows Suit

Since the Australian legislation will also affect the Alphabet’s Google, the tech giant has also been vocal about its displeasure regarding such a law. They too raised alarms and said that such a measure would force them to put out much less efficient versions of Google Search and YouTube. As a result, such a move, Google Australia and New Zealand MD, Mel Silva, said would critically damage the use of free internet services, like Google in Australia. 

Fighting for Transparency

The Aussie government claims it is only trying to make things more fair and transparent for its media bodies. Furthermore, it states that such a law would help level the playing field and give local media a chance against large tech companies. For instance, the local media is struggling as a result of the free sharing of news by such tech giants with News Corp, a media agency owned by Rupert Murdoch planning to cut jobs in Australia.

Murdoch’s decision will result in the closing down of over 100 regional and local newspapers in Australia, putting these media persons at risk. Murdoch has long asked Facebook and Google to pay for the articles, news pieces and content that appear on their platforms. Hence, it was obvious that New Corp would laud the government’s efforts to make this a reality. Michael Miller, who serves as the executive chairman of News Corp, stated that such a move would put an end to the tech giant’s free-riding on the content created by others. Since such companies derive a lot of benefit from such content, it is only fair that they pay the people making such content out of their own pockets.

Impact and After-Effect

However, if Facebook does follow through with its plans as per the announcement, publishers would no longer have access to a broad audience. Facebook claims that in just the first five months of this year, it sent over 2.3 billion clicks to news websites based in Australia from its News Feed. As a result, blocking such news from their feed could result in a massive loss of audience for news channels, while also limiting the appeal the platform enjoys in Australia. Australia’s new rules come as a part of a global push to make tech giants more accountable and regulated.

France came out with a statement asking Google to pay media companies for the articles it shares in April. Two months later, Google said it would start paying for certain news services in Brazil and Germany. Facebook came out with its separate News Feed last October and pays certain publishers for stories. The tech giant is also in plans to extend this News tab on a global basis but will block the sharing of news if governments try to intervene in its efforts. It will be interesting to see whether the social media giant is capable of halting this global push for more regulation and whether that would be a wise choice for the consumers.

Google

US Government Accuses Google of Tying Products and Blocking Competitors.

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The recent weeks have seen a rise in political unrest and the issuing of executive orders from the United States of America. The BLM protests have also set alight discussions and debates regarding news, biases on social media, and the freedom of speech. Meanwhile, the American government officials have been building a case against Google with regards to antitrust issues. The government is trying to prove that the search engine is bundling products together, and helping certain players have a competitive advantage over the others. The charges also claim that Google blocks out competitors using such strategies, making the market place unfair and uncompetitive. Here’s a look at what the case claims, and how it could impact the functioning of Google.

Case Builds Momentum

The Justice Department, in coercion with State attorneys, have asked executives from various firms to testify regarding how such practices have impacted them. They have also asked these firms regarding the operations of the Network Division, run by Google. The Network Division sells various services that concern itself with everything from brand strategy to advertisement publishing. These inquiries also focus on discounts, coupons, and features that Google offers advertisers using its products. Regulators are also asking how Google’s search business interferes with the Network Division and the way it sends out targeted ads. However, these executives have asked agencies not to mention their names and designations as they wish such information to remain private. 

Tying Products

Tying certain products together makes the sale of one conditional depending on the purchase of another. While this process isn’t illegal, using it to establish market dominance could be considered a breach of law. As per Gene Kimmelman, who serves as a senior adviser for the Public Knowledge Think Tank believes that using tools to maintain or create a monopoly by restricting entry of new players and blocking rivals could result in antitrust violations. As a result, American regulators are looking to file a lawsuit regarding competition against Google in the weeks to come. Once filed, this lawsuit will become the most massive monopoly suit since the American government sued Microsoft in 1998. That case as well focused on the tying of products that Microsoft made use of to promote Windows systems. 

Google in Similar Trouble

Google is now being asked the same questions, about two decades later. The interviewing of rivals started in July, and each round of questioning has become more detailed and distinct. Reports claim that several respondents used whiteboards to explain the more complicated processes regarding the ad tech market. However, Julie McAlister, who serves as the spokeswoman for Google, stated that Google’s digital ad tech service works across several crowded industries. As a result, these ads compete with thousands of rivals, leading to heavy competition and subsequent lowering of prices and the availability of improved choices for consumers. 

Google

Major Business

The Network Division is a highly successful service for Google, bringing in over $21 billion as revenue last year. However, the growth enjoyed by the same has been on the slower side, when compared to Google’s other ventures and services. Google always frames the Network Division as an aid to publishers who depend on Google for their digital ads. However, critics are quick to point out that Google owns and exploits much of the market. As a result, most advertisers end up being forced to use more Google products, rather than competing or rival products. The regulators are looking at sell-side, buy-side, and exchange-side software, all of which help the ad tech market in pushing out ads. Interestingly, Google offers and owns tools that help with all of these services and processes.

Problem Statement

According to Pramila Jayapal, who serves as a Democratic Representative, the major problem here is that Google controls all these entities. She also mentioned that this makes the ad tech sector sound like the stock market, without any regulation to ensure transparency and fair competition. Hence, to ensure the same, the government regulators are now asking Google about how it waives fees to publishers who use its tools and auction space on Google’s exchange software. They have also questioned the search engine’s decision to limit ad space buying on YouTube via its tool DV360 in 2015. Most rivals have stated that this move led to them losing out on a lot of video ad inventory. Google countered that most social media sites work similarly and that rival Amazon had found a way to grow even without accessing YouTube. 

Insider Trading Issues

Competitors also claim that Google utilizes its search engine to display ads unfairly. Such leveraging of their search business has helped Google account for a whopping 10% of the total publisher revenue on the internet. Rival firms also complained that this forced them to pay for Google’s ad exchange software because the search engine has made itself the most prime real estate for ads. Complaints also focused on how Google passes information between its arms, leading to customer targeting and insider trading. The same complaint was raised by the UK Market Authority’s report on Google’s conflict of interest published last year.

In July, CEO Sundar Pichai dodged several of Jayapal’s major questions regarding Google’s market share. Rather, he focused on how Google shares its revenue with other websites, making it a low-margin business for them. The hearing also brought out several internal emails from Google that proved claims regarding insider information trading. It will be interesting to see what more information future hearings will unearth. Also, we will have to wait to see how the hearings might level the playing field by restricting Google’s access and control over the ad tech market.

whatsapp

Whatsapp Aims to Improve Its Interface with New Beta Version for Android

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Whatsapp is coming out with a new beta version for Android that has some new updates and features. The latest update which came out today features a new group call ringtone and also has new sticker animation features. Furthermore, the update, which is Version v2.20.198.11 is a significant sign that the messaging app is working on improving its intuitiveness and interface with regards to calling. Here’s a look at the significant additions and updates that the beta version brings with it.

New Update of Whatsapp

If anything, this new version is proof that the voice, video and text messaging application is looking to improve user experience. The beta version also tests out a new Call UI which will feature all buttons at the screen’s bottom. Moreover, WhatsApp’s beta version has some significant tweaks for animated stickers. While animations of shorter duration will now loop for a maximum of eight times, longer animations will have shorter loop cycles or iterations. Since the animation feature is a recent roll-out by Whatsapp, the new update will try to make the experience smoother for users. The recently launched animated stickers have been quite a hit with users, and the update will only help them grow in popularity. Hence, sticker users will laud the update for making their experience better. The same change will feature in WhatsApp v2.20.198.11 beta, and experts expect these versions to become stable in the coming weeks.

Better UI for Calls

Furthermore, v2.20.198.11 beta also features new ringtones for group calls and will help differentiate between private, and group calls on WhatsApp. All these new changes will go a long way in assisting WhatsApp to improve its user interface for calls. The shifting of buttons to the bottom of the screen will make it easier for users to control the application while on a call. Screenshots released by beta testers show the screen having five buttons at the bottom. The five buttons displayed include information, audio, video, messaging and camera switch buttons. However, since this feature is still in development, it is not a part of the newest beta released by WhatsApp. 

Disappearing Texts

WABetaInfo, a website that follows feature updates for WhatsApp, also reported that the new update features the ability to disappear texts after a preset time. This new feature has been much talked about by fans, as it resembles a texting option that Instagram offers. As per their reports, the new feature will allow users to send text messages that disappear after a while. However, they also state that users have not received any information regarding this feature, making a few believe that it will not be a part of the new update.

Further Changes

Also, the new update sees WhatsApp making the camera shortcut available to users. The messaging application has brought the camera icon in place of the Rooms shortcut, helping make it easier to access. As a result, the new update will feature Camera, Audio, Contacts, Gallery, Audio, Room, Location and Document shortcuts. Such an update follows WhatsApp’s advanced search characteristic. The new search feature makes it easier for people to search for items within the app by filtering various kinds of media. It also allows users to search for documents and links. However, users must note that all these features are a part of the beta version of the application. The company will continue to work on them and refine them before they make them a part of the actual app. While experts expect the stable version to drop within a few weeks, some of these features might not make it in time for the launch. In such cases, we will have to wait for the next update to use them.

WhatsApp keeps releasing beta versions to test new features and improve user experience. Over the years, they have rolled out several important updates that added a sleuth of new features to the application. The messaging application, therefore, takes an active effort to provide users with a seamless and well-integrated user experience. Also, since the company has not officially released a statement regarding the features to expect, it is safe to assume that a few are still under development. While official reports have not hit the news yet, experts do believe that most of these features will find a place for themselves in the new update. The advanced search option, new ringtone and animation features along with a better UI for calls will ensure that users stay satisfied with their experience using the application.