CMA extends deadline to probe Facebook’s $400m Giphy deal September 10, 2021 The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has today extended the deadline of its investigation into Facebook’s $400m acquisition of Giphy until December 2021, according to the CMA website. The changes to the schedule of the regulator’s investigation follows criticism levelled at it by the social media giant Facebook after the CMA said it may force [...]
Facebook looking to expand into new London office space September 10, 2021 Facebook is readying to grow its London presence with plans to move into a new office block near its current Brock Street base. The tech giant is reportedly looking to move into all of the space at 1 Triton Square, which is owned by British Land. Media company Dentsu Aegis had signed a prelet on [...]
Facebook accused of gender discrimination in job adverts September 9, 2021 Campaign groups have accused Facebook of breaking UK equality laws by allegedly allowing businesses to target job ads based on gender. Campaign group Global Witness submitted complaints to the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) and Information Commissioner, after finding that posts for jobs, traditionally associated with particular genders such as mechanics or psychologists, were [...]
Exclusive: Lawyer warns tech savvy teens could leave Children’s Code efforts futile September 3, 2021 Following a twelve-month grace period, the Age Appropriate Design Code has now come into force. The UK’s new digital privacy regulation will compel social media companies, gaming platforms and video services to protect children’s data online and has been lauded by campaigners as one of the first successful pieces of digital media regulation. The Code’s [...]
Instagram down: Users vent frustration as photo sharing app fails to update September 2, 2021 Photo-sharing app Instagram appears to be down in the UK, with the app unable to update users’ news feeds with a fresh flow of photos. An error message is appearing on people’s app which says that there is an issue with Instagram refreshing It reads: “We’re sorry, but something went wrong. Please try again.” Users [...]
Protesters with inflatable breasts gather outside Facebook’s London office over nipple images September 1, 2021 Protesters with inflatable breasts have gathered outside the London offices of Facebook to voice concerns about how the social network moderates some images containing nipples. The group has said its aim is to enable medical tattoo artists and breast cancer survivors to freely post images of their experience and areola or nipple tattoos, which they [...]
Data watchdog targets social media with new Children’s Code August 25, 2021 The UK data watchdog is setting its sights on social media and gaming companies with new regulations to protect children that come into force next week. The Children’s Code brings in new rules around protecting data for online services such as apps, online games and web and social media sites likely to be accessed by [...]
Facebook secures Afghan accounts as Taliban cements takeover August 20, 2021 Facebook has brought in new safety measures in response to concerns that the Taliban, who have taken over Afghanistan this week, could use social media to target and track individuals, according to reports. The social media giant has temporarily removed the ability for people to see or search the friends lists of accounts based in [...]
SoftBank ramps up exits to fund prolific Vision Fund dealmaking August 18, 2021 The Japanese investment giant sold around $14bn worth of listed stocks last quarter, marking a change in its exit-hesitant strategy in order to fund its Vision Fund’s accelerating investments in tech startups. SoftBank sold an estimated $14bn worth of listed stocks in the last quarter – almost triple that of the previous period, according to [...]
Facebook and Google eye Asia-Pacific markets amid plans for new subsea cable August 16, 2021 Facebook and Google announced today their plans to build a new subsea cable to improve internet connectivity across the Asia-Pacific region. Apricot, the 12,000-kilometre-long subsea cable, will connect Singapore, Japan, Guam, the Philippines, Taiwan and Indonesia. It is expected to be ready for service in 2024, according to Facebook. The US social media group continued [...]