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The EU may give citizens more control of their facial recognition data
The EU may impose strict limits on the use of facial recognition technology. According to Financial Times, the European Commission is working on laws that would give citizens explicit rights over their facial recognition data, like the right to know when it's used. The regulations would apply to both businesses and police or security forces.
Facebook’s Libra Association is being investigated by EU antitrust regulators
Facebook's Libra cryptocurrency project is being probed again, this time by European Union antitrust regulators. The European Commission said it is "currently investigating potential anti-competitive behavior," related to the Libra Association, Bloomberg reports. In a questionnaire sent out this month, the EU authority expressed concerns that Libra would unfairly shut out rivals.
Google faces (yet another) antitrust complaint, this time over job search
Google is in hot water once again over antitrust issues. Reuters reports that 23 job search websites will send a letter to the European Commission asserting that the search giant abuses its market dominance to promote its own job search service.
Google temporarily stops Assistant audio transcriptions in the EU
Google has halted the transcribing of recordings from its voice assistant in the EU. The company faced backlash last month after 1,000 private conversations recorded on its Google Assistant product were leaked to the Belgian news outlet VRT NWS. The tech giant is now voluntarily suspending the practice and assessing how it conducts audio reviews, reported CNBC.
Qualcomm fined €242 million in European antitrust case
Fresh off its high-profile feud with Apple, Qualcomm is suffering more legal woes. An investigation by the European Commission has found Qualcomm abused its market dominance in the manufacture of 3G baseband chipsets and will have to pay a steep €242 million ($271 million) fine.
EU opens Amazon probe to see if it used merchant data to gain an advantage
On the same day that Amazon announced plans to overhaul its business terms for its third-party sellers, the European Commission (EC) has opened a formal antitrust investigation into the retailer, designed to assess whether its use of sensitive merchant data is in breach of EU competition rules.
Facebook tweaks terms of service to better explain user rights
Facebook's terms of service agreement is infamous for being lengthy and hard to decipher -- and it appears that the company has gone back to the drawing board. The social media giant has unveiled an update to its user agreement that it thinks will better explain how it makes money and what happens when it removes content. The changes aren't entirely self-directed: Back in April the European Commission forced the social media giant to spell out that it makes money by selling targeted ads based off of user data. As a result, the company agreed to revise its terms publicly by the end of June.
Google appeals $1.7 billion EU fine over restrictive ad contracts
As was expected, Google is appealing a €1.49 billion ($1.7 billion) fine laid against it by the European Commission related to its AdSense advertising business. Antitrust officials found that, in contracts with major sites between 2006 and 2016, Google included restrictive contracts that could be seen as it trying to muscle rivals out of the market.
Hyperloop TT outlines how it should be regulated in Europe
The European Commission is reviewing what could become the first set of industry-wide hyperloop guidelines. Today, Hyperloop Transportation Technologies (HTT) and TÜV SÜD presented the EU with generic guidelines for hyperloop design, operation and certification. In a press release, HTT said the recommendations could inform future regulation.
EU set to investigate Apple over Spotify's competition claims
The European Union might just believe that Spotify's complaint against Apple has some merit. Financial Times sources have claimed that EU competition commissioners have decided to launch an antitrust investigation into allegations that Apple unfairly hinders Spotify and other rivals to Apple Music through App Store policies. The investigation would start in the "next few weeks," according to the outlet.
AI-analyzed tweets could help Europe track floods
The European Commission's Joint Research Center is working on a tool that could use tweets and artificial intelligence to collect real-time data on floods. In a paper released on Arvix.org, EU scientists explain how their Social Media for Flood Risk (SMFR) prototype could help emergency responders better understand what's happening on the ground in flooded areas and determine what trouble spots might need immediate attention.
EU law could fine sites for not removing terrorist content within an hour
The European Union has been clear on its stance that terrorist content is most harmful in the first hour it appears online. Yesterday, the European Parliament voted in favor of a new rule that could require internet companies to remove terrorist content within one hour after receiving an order from authorities. Companies that repeatedly fail to abide by the law could be fined up to four percent of their global revenue.
The EU releases guidelines to encourage ethical AI development
No technology raises ethical concerns (and outright fear) quite like artificial intelligence. And it's not just individual citizens who are worried. Facebook, Google and Stanford University have invested in AI ethics research centers. Late last year, Canada and France teamed up to create an international panel to discuss AI's "responsible adoption." Today, the European Commission released its own guidelines calling for "trustworthy AI."
EU charges Valve and five publishers with geo-blocking games
Two years after the EU began investigating whether Valve uses regional pricing and geo-blocking practices in its Steam store, the European Commission has formally charged the distributor and five game publishers. The Commission released its "preliminary view" that Valve, Bandai Namco, Capcom, Focus Home, Koch Media and ZeniMax prevented consumers from purchasing videogames cross-border from some Member States. That's considered geo-blocking, and it violates EU competition rules.
EU believes BMW, Daimler and VW colluded over clean emissions tech
The European Commission believes BMW, Daimler and Volkswagen worked together to delay clean emissions technology. Last fall, the EU Commission launched a formal investigation to determine if the automakers breached EU antitrust rules by restricting competition on the development of emissions-reducing technology. Now, in a Statement of Objections, the Commission has informed BMW, Daimler and VW of its "preliminary view" that they did in fact violate antitrust rules -- meaning they also led to higher emissions and denied consumers the opportunity to buy less polluting cars.
Amazon finally starts paying proper taxes in European countries
For many years, Amazon has sent a huge percentage of its European revenues over to Luxembourg. The tiny country levies a much smaller rate of tax than most of the countries in which the retailer operates, allowing it to keep a larger share of sales. With the European Commission breathing down its neck over claims it had agreed an illegal tax deal with Luxembourg, Amazon has quietly begun booking sales in some of its biggest European markets. According to the Wall Street Journal, the company began paying direct taxes on sales in the UK, Germany, Italy and Spain from May 1st.
Shutting down piracy sites is like playing Whac-A-Mole, says EU
The European Commission (EC) has finally confirmed what we've all known for years: if you shut down one online piracy site, another will simply take its place. A report published by the EC's Joint Research Center found that the closure of Kino.to, a popular unlicensed streaming site in Germany, had little impact on national online piracy. The team analysed the web activity of 5,000 German citizens, and found that while there was a sharp decline in June 2011, when the site was pulled offline by officials, average piracy levels quickly returned to normal. In addition, researchers concluded that Kino.to's demise did little to encourage licensed alternatives. Instead, a group of new illegal streaming sites rose to prominence -- kinox.to, mega-stream.to, video2k.tv and streams.to, among others.
The EU is investigating Amazon for a potentially illegal tax deal
After setting Apple firmly in its crosshairs, the European Commission is now targeting retail giant Amazon's tax dealings. In a press release this morning, the Commission announced it's opened an "in-depth investigation" into the company's tax status in the tiny country of Luxembourg -- home to Amazon's European subsidiary. Since 2003, Amazon has recorded the majority of its regional profits in the country, but those profits are not taxed there. As with the aforementioned Apple probe, the Commission believes that the favorable tax deal is tantamount to illegal state aid, and will now investigate Amazon and Luxembourg in an attempt to prove that. So far, Luxembourg has failed to fully comply with requests for further information, but with the Commission turning up the heat, it's unlikely that either party will be able to hide from the investigation.
Google won't call games with in-app purchases 'free' anymore
In an era where video games can be sold as "free-to-pay" and/or "freemium" products, it's important to know what "free" really means. A "free" game might actually cost you nothing and generate revenue purely through in-game advertising, or it might be free to download, but in-game purchases can set you back quite the hefty sum. As they say, freedom isn't free. Thankfully, Google is here to help clarify the distinction. Engadget reports that after the European Commission requested Google change the way it markets the apps shown on digital storefronts such as its Google Play market, the company responded that it would take several initiatives to keep consumers informed, including no longer allowing apps with in-app purchases to label themselves as "free." Google said it would also implement guidelines for games and developers so that children would not be encouraged to buy items once in-game. Kind of makes you long for the days when kids would sneak some cash out of the parental stash to buy a phosphate from the drug store soda jerk, huh? [Image: Google]
Europe wants better safeguards on in-app iOS purchases
It appears the European Commission isn't thrilled with Apple's slow movement to provide more safeguards from accidental in-app purchases made on its devices. The administration issued a press release today discussing joint action from the firm and member states to enforce better protection for consumers in regards to incidental purchases, praising Google's proposed solutions to the issue. "Although, regrettably, no concrete and immediate solutions have been made by Apple to date to address the concerns linked in particular to payment authorisation," the European Commission wrote, noting that Apple said it will address the issues in due time, though it did not provide a time-frame for the changes. An Apple spokesman told Reuters that "over the last year we made sure any app which enables customers to make in-app purchases is clearly marked," and that it will "continue to work with the EC member states to respond to their concerns."