Report from The Times In Brief – Meta has announced that it will offer ad-free versions of Facebook and Instagram by subscription in Great Britain. The move follows settlement of a privacy lawsuit brought by digital accountability advocate Tanya O’Connell and...
EU May Block Digital Gatekeepers from New Consumer Finance Data Regime
Report from the Financial Times In Brief – The European Union appears set to prevent the largest US tech giants from participating in a new system of consumer financial data sharing. The EU’s Financial Data Access (FiDA) regulation is intended to give consumers the...
Roblox Sued by Kentucky for Harming Teens
Report from AP News In Brief – The Attorney General of Kentucky has filed a lawsuit against Roblox, a vast platform of user-generated games and interactive experiences, accusing the company of failing to protect children and that the platform is a “playground for...
EU Investigating How Four More Large Platforms Protect Minors
Report from Courthouse News In Brief – The European Commission has asked Snapchat, YouTube, Apple’s App Store and Google Play how they protect children on their platforms, including how they attempt to verify users’ ages and prevent minors from accessing harmful...
California Joins Social Media Warning Label Movement
Report from Politico In Brief – California has enacted legislation requiring social media platforms to display warning labels to users unless the platform has “reasonably determined” that they are over age 17. The required warning label reads, “The Surgeon General has...
Google Makes Another Vertical Search Offer to Comply with the EU DMA
Report from Reuters In Brief – Google has proposed more changes to its search results page to improve the visibility of “vertical” search competitors, such as those specializing in hotels, airfares, or local services, to resolve the European Commission’s preliminary...
Key US House Chairman Questions Who Will Control the US TikTok Algorithm
Report from Reuters In Brief – House Select Committee on China Chair John Moolenaar (R-MI) remains concerned that the deal to transfer control of TikTok’s US assets to US buyers could be problematic if the US platform licenses the content algorithm from China-based...
Italian Publishers File a DSA Complaint About Google AI Overviews
Report from The Guardian In Brief – FIEG, the Italian federation of newspaper publishers, has announced that it has submitted a formal complaint to Agcom, Italy’s communications watchdog, calling for an investigation into Google’s AI Overviews, arguing that the search...
Klarna Sues Google to Win Billions Over Shopping Site Discrimination
Report from Courthouse News In Brief – A Swedish court has begun hearing arguments in a lawsuit brought by Pricerunner, a shopping comparison site owned by Swedish fintech giant Klarna, against Google. The civil lawsuit is one of many being pursued by European...
Apple and Google Mobile Ecosystems Designated with UK Strategic Market Status
Report from TechCrunch In Brief – The UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has designated both the Apple and Google mobile ecosystems as having “strategic market status” (SMS) under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumer’s Act (DMCC). The CMA found that...
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4chan Fined by UK Ofcom for Failing to Protect Children From Pornography
Report from Sky News In Brief – Ofcom, the UK online safety regulator, has fined 4chan £450,000 for failing to prevent children from accessing pornography. The regulator also ordered the platform to introduce effective age checks by April 2 or face additional fines of...
Trump WH Unveils National AI Policy Framework to Limit State Power
Report from CNBC In Brief – The Trump Administration has unveiled a legislative framework to establish a national AI policy to set consistent national safety and security standards and preempt state-level AI regulation. The six-part proposal outlines measures spanning...
EU Businesses Warn Brussels of Risks of Digital Sovereignty Mandates
Report from the Financial Times In Brief – Influential European businesses are warning that an overzealous push for “tech sovereignty” by European policymakers trying to reduce dependence on major US tech companies could harm the profitability and competitiveness of...
Federal Court of Appeals Issues Mixed Ruling on California Design Code
Report from MediaPost In Brief – A three-judge panel of the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued a mixed ruling in the long-running litigation battle over the California Age-Appropriate Design Code, keeping some parts of the law blocked while allowing...
Amazon Wins Preliminary Injunction Over Perplexity’s Shopping Assistant
Report from Courthouse News In Brief – US District Judge Maxine Chesney has granted Amazon a preliminary injunction blocking the use of an AI-powered shopping assistant created by Perplexity AI on Amazon’s website. Chesney determined that Amazon is likely to succeed...
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