Technology News

Budget 2021: Incorporation of OPCs to Be Incentivised to Boost Startups Budget 2021 saw the government on Monday propose to incentivise incorporation of one person companies (OPCs), a move that will benefit startups and innovators.

As Google Eyes Australia Exit, Microsoft Talks Bing With PM Australian PM Scott Morrison says Microsoft is confident that its search engine Bing can fill the gap in Australia if Google pulls its search over required payments to media outlets for their content.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg Reached Out to Australian Lawmakers Over New Media Rules Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg reached out to Australian lawmakers to discuss rules that would make internet giants pay news outlets for content but failed to persuade them to change policy, said the country's Treasurer.

The Family Man, Pitta Kathalu, and More: February Guide to Netflix, Prime Video, and Disney+ Hotstar The Family Man season 2, Pitta Kathalu, Tom & Jerry, To All the Boys: Always and Forever, The Girl on the Train, I Care a Lot, Malcolm & Marie — the biggest movies and TV series on Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+ Hotstar, Apple TV+, Colors Infinity, and Mubi in February 2021.

Netflix February 2021 Releases: To All the Boys 3, The Girl on the Train, and More To All the Boys: Always and Forever, The Girl on the Train, Pitta Kathalu, News of the World, Jurassic World, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, The Big Day Netflix, Malcolm & Marie, I Care a Lot, Bear Grylls’ Animals on the Loose: A You vs. Wild Movie, Eeb Allay Ooo! — the biggest movies and TV shows coming to Netflix India in February 2021.

Future Group CEO Kishore Biyani Likens Amazon's Bid to Stall Retail Deal to 'Ruthless' Alexander the Great Amazon's bid to stall Future Group's $3.4-billion (roughly Rs. 24,790 crore) retail assets sale is similar to Alexander the Great's "ruthless ambition to scorch the earth," the group's CEO Kishore Biyani said in an internal staff memo.

Government Plans to Ban ‘Private Cryptocurrencies’ in India, Create Official Digital Currency The government has queued a bill for its ongoing Budget session that will prohibit “all private cryptocurrencies” in India and provide a framework for creation of an official digital currency to be issued by the Reserve Bank of India.

Your Data for Cash: Indian Lending Apps Force Tough Choice Digital lending platforms in India have come under greater scrutiny recently for their methods, including the collection and alleged misuse of borrowers' data, underlining the risks to driving financial inclusion with newer technologies.

Facebook to Develop ‘Topic Exclusion Controls’ for Advertisers to Tackle Harmful Content Facebook said it would soon start developing "topic exclusion controls" on its platform to give advertisers greater ability to weed out certain types of content from appearing alongside their advertisements.

US Lobby Group Urges India Not to Tighten Foreign Investment Rules for E-Commerce A US lobby group that represents firms including Amazon and Walmart has urged India not to tighten foreign investment rules for e-commerce companies again.

GameStop's Reddit Rally Puts Scrutiny on Social Media Forums Social media services including Facebook and Reddit restrict discussions about weapons, drugs, and other illegal activity, but their rules do not specifically mention another lucrative regulated good: stocks.

Xiaomi Files Legal Complaint Against US Defence, Treasury Ban Xiaomi filed a complaint in a Washington district court against the US defence and treasury departments, seeking to remove the Chinese smartphone maker from an official list of companies with ties to China's military.

Personal Data of ‘Thousands’ Stolen from Dutch Coronavirus Track-and-Trace Programme in Two Separate Leaks Dutch health authorities (GGD) said on Friday that personal information of a large number of people — perhaps in "thousands" — who participated in the Netherlands' coronavirus track-and-trace programme has been stolen in two separate leaks.

Tenet Now Available on Apple TV and Google Play in India Tenet is now available for download on Apple TV and Google Play in India in English, Hindi, Tamil, and Telugu. Christopher Nolan’s time-bending movie costs Rs. 690 / Rs. 820 in India.

Spotify May Soon Recommend Music Based on Your Emotional State, Surroundings, Patent Tips Spotify has been granted a patent for tech that can suggest songs to users based on an analysis of their voice data, background noise, and more.

Bitcoin Price Soars 14 Percent After Elon Musk Namecheck on Twitter Bitcoin jumped 14 percent to a two-week high on Friday after Tesla CEO Elon Musk tagged the cryptocurrency in his Twitter biography. Bitcoin price was up to $36,901.

WandaVision Episode 4 Recap: It’s All Wanda WandaVision episode 4 review: Marvel reveals the other side of the story as Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris), Jimmy Woo (Randall Park), and Darcy Lewis (Kat Dennings) investigate the mysterious town of Westview, New Jersey — a sitcom fantasy fashioned by Wanda (Elizabeth Olsen).

Google Chrome Getting Tab Groups, Grid View for Android: Reports Google Chrome is rolling out grid view along with tab groups for Android, according to reports. Users can reportedly drag and drop one tab on another on Google Chrome to form groups. The Google Chrome grid view and tab group features started rolling out for some users with the Google Chrome 88 update.

Walmart Plans Big Push to Challenge Amazon on Advertising, Shares Shopper Data With Brands Walmart plans to expand its advertising business, adding space for advertisements at its US stores and sharing its vast trove of shopper data with brands, it said, looking to challenge rival Amazon as a media powerhouse.

Facebook, Google, Microsoft, Twitter Asked by EU to Extend Fake News Watch With COVID-19 in Focus The European Commission has told Google, Facebook, Twitter, and Microsoft to continue monthly reports on their efforts to tackle fake news, especially on COVID-19, for another six months.

Beyond Reddit, Day Traders Turning Social Media Platforms Into Squawk Boxes Social media chatrooms are beginning to resemble the squawk boxes on old-fashioned trading floors, as a new generation of retail traders continues to gain influence over the stock market.

Google Search Bombards Australian Users as PR Campaign Intensifies Against News Payment Rule US tech giant Google stepped up its public relations campaign against Australian regulation, presenting all search users in the country with a "proposal" to water down planned rules.

United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres Calls for Regulating Social Media Companies United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres called Thursday for global rules to regulate powerful social media companies like Twitter and Facebook.

Facebook Oversight Board Overturns Four Content Takedowns in First Ruling Facebook’s quasi-independent oversight board issued its first rulings, overturning four out of five decisions by the social network to take down questionable content.

Elon Musk's Cyberpunk 2077-Approving Tweets Helps Boost Developer CD Projekt Elon Musk gave shares in Polish games producer CD Projekt a further boost the company's update of its flagship game prompted short sellers to close positions earlier in the week.

Apple CEO Tim Cook Escalates Battle With Facebook Over Online Privacy Apple CEO Tim Cook fired off a series of thinly veiled shots at Facebook and other social media companies, escalating an online privacy battle pitting the iPhone maker against digital services that depend on tracking people to help sell advertisements.

Facebook Out to Loosen Apple's Grip on App Store, Prepares Antitrust Lawsuit: Report Facebook is readying a lawsuit aimed at loosening Apple's grip on the App Store that serves as an exclusive gateway onto iPhone platform, according to a report.

Reddit Users Say GameStop Rocket Is Revenge of the Masses For some Reddit users, GameStop's dizzying rocket ride on Wall Street is a case of the masses rebelling against one-percenters hoarding the world's wealth.

Facebook Shuts Popular Trading Group Robinhood Stock Traders Amid GameStop Frenzy Facebook took down a popular Wall Street discussion group, Robinhood Stock Traders, in a move that its founder described as backlash for conversations buoying shares of GameStop and other companies this week.

Vivaldi 3.6 Brings Unique Two-Level Tab Stacking for Easy Management Vivaldi has announced the new Two-Level Tab Stacks feature that gets activated after you download the latest version 3.6. This feature allows users to expand their tab stacks in a new line, below the main tab bar. This can be done by simply just clicking on a stack. The new line allows for having full-size tabs allowing users to access them like any other tab, using t...

Facebook-Giphy Deal Faces Probe From UK Competition Watchdog UK's competition watchdog launched its initial investigation into Facebook's completed acquisition of GIF website Giphy, at a time when the social media network is under global regulatory scrutiny over antitrust concerns.

Qualcomm Loses Fight Against EU Antitrust Regulators' Data Demand Qualcomm lost its fight against a data demand from EU antitrust regulators after Europe's top court reaffirmed the regulators' right to see it, in a case that has already landed the company a fine of EUR 242 million (roughly Rs. 2,140 crores).

Amazon, Facebook, Google, More Big Tech’s Digital Taxation Debate Heating Up on Global Stage An international debate over how countries tax big US technology companies such as Google, Amazon, and Facebook is heating up, presenting a challenge for US President Joe Biden's new administration.

Supercomputer HPE-Cray EX to Rank Among World’s Fastest; Will Help Study Climate Change, Wildfires, More A new supercomputer in Wyoming, US, will rank among the world's fastest and help study phenomena including climate change, severe weather, wildfires, and solar flares.

Google, More Big Tech Firms Face Challenge From Australian Regulator Over Advertising Dominance An Australian regulator is considering letting Internet users choose what personal data companies like Google share with advertisers, as part of the country's attempts to shatter the dominance of tech titans.

Joe Biden Administration Vows to Protect US Telecoms Network From Huawei Security Threat The Joe Biden administration will work to safeguard American telecoms networks from "untrusted vendors" like Huawei that threaten national security, the White House said, offering some insight into its plans for China's top telecoms equipment company, long in Washington's crosshairs.

Google Opens Dublin Hub to Tackle Harmful Online Content Google opened a centre to tackle harmful online content, in a move also designed to ease regulatory concerns about how the company and other tech giants police a growing problem on the Internet.

WallStreetBets Reddit Group Briefly Shuts Doors, Puts a Dent on Gamestop and Other Retail Companies A slugfest between Wall Street and Main Street took an unexpected turn late on Wednesday after moderators of the WallStreetBets stock trading forum that has helped fuel massive rallies in the shares of GameStop temporarily closed its doors.

Discord Bans WallStreetBets Investor Coalition for Allowing Hateful Speech WallStreetBets, the investor coalition that gained fame for boosting stocks from its perch on Reddit, was banned by the communications platform Discord for not doing enough to stem hateful speech.

Apple Becomes World's Biggest Smartphone Seller With Record Shipments: IDC Apple cornered nearly a quarter of the global smartphone market in the fourth quarter, making it the world's biggest seller, while shipments for Huawei plunged as US sanctions against it took effect.

Bridgerton Is Netflix’s Biggest Series Ever, as 82 Million Members Tune In Bridgerton is now Netflix’s biggest series of all time. Over 82 million households watched Bridgerton in the first 28 days, with the show hitting number one on Netflix’s daily “Top 10” lists in 83 markets, including India, the US, and the UK.

YouTube Suspends Donald Trump Indefinitely, Stops Rudy Giuliani Monetising Clips YouTube has suspended Donald Trump indefinitely from the platform and said it will also prevent the former president's lawyer Rudy Giuliani from being able to monetize his clips, US media reported.

Facebook to Stop Recommending Political Groups to Users Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg said the social network will no longer recommend

Game of Thrones HBO Max Animated Series in Early Development: Reports Game of Thrones is going animated for HBO Max. Multiple reports claim that an adult animated Game of Thrones spin-off is in the “very early” stages of development.

Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg Hits Apple Over Privacy as the Social Media Company’s Quarterly Results Soar Facebook capped a tumultuous 2020 with soaring earnings in the final quarter, but the company forecast challenges in 2021 that include a coming privacy update by Apple that could limit the social network's advertisement targeting capabilities.

Amazon Set to Launch in Poland for Local Shoppers to Switch Over From German Site Amazon is preparing to set up a Polish based website so local shoppers will no longer have to order via its German site, the company said.

Mozilla Firefox 85 Ends Support for Adobe Flash Player, Cracks Down on Supercookies Mozilla has released Firefox 85, that does not have Adobe Flash support. Firefox 85 also aims to protect users from supercookies, which are trackers that can stay hidden in the browser and track you online even after you clear cookies.

Twitter Suspends Over 550 Accounts After Violence During Farmers' Republic Day Tractor Rally Twitter suspended over 550 accounts from its platform in connection with the violence during the farmers' tractor rally in the national capital on Republic Day.

TikTok, 58 More Apps Ban by India Violates World Trade Organization Rules: China China said that the Indian government's decision to keep a ban on 59 Chinese apps was a violation of the World Trade Organization's fair rules of business and would hurt Chinese firms.

The Disciple, Chaitanya Tamhane’s Venice Winner, Heads to Netflix The Disciple — Court director Chaitanya Tamhane’s next movie — is headed to Netflix, as the streaming platform has snapped up global rights for the film that won the award for best screenplay at the 2020 Venice International Film Festival. Oscar-winning filmmaker Alfonso Cuarón served as the executive producer.

Clubhouse, the Invite-Only Social Media App, Is Slowly Getting Pried Open When Clubhouse, a private social app, debuted in March of last year, it was hard for most people to score an invitation. Over the summer, its limited rollout fuelled intrigue and chatter, especially as big names in music, entertainment and tech created accounts. Even Oprah made an appearance.

Eros Now Unveils ‘First Day, First Show’ Offering, to Stream Hollywood Movies for Rs. 149 Eros Now has announced “First Day, First Show” that will offer Hollywood movies directly on its online platform in India at Rs. 149 per film. Eros Now’s “First Day, First Show” is the second major Indian pay-per-view offering after Zee Plex on Zee5.

Huawei to Open French Plant, Its First Outside China, in 2023 Chinese telecoms giant Huawei, under pressure from Western governments suspicious it presents a security risk, is to open its first mobile network plant outside China in 2023 in eastern France, a director said.

Google Said to Revive Australia News Platform Launch Amid Content Payment Fight Google is reviving plans to launch its own news website in Australia within weeks, according to a local media outlet contracted to provide articles for the venture, as the search giant fights world-first proposed laws on content payments.

Amazon to Expand Tech Hub in Boston With 3,000 New Jobs Amazon announced plans to expand its technology hub in the Boston area, creating some 3,000 jobs in the next few years.

YouTube Shorts Eyes TikTok Competition With 3.5 Billion Daily Views in India YouTube Shorts – the video-sharing website's quick clips meant to compete with TikTok – are racking up 3.5 billion views a day during beta testing in India, the platform's head Susan Wojcikci said.

TikTok Parent ByteDance Says Reducing India Workforce, Unsure of Comeback China's ByteDance has decided to reduce the size of its India team and is unsure when the company will make a comeback in India, it said in an internal memo to employee.

GameStop Rides Elon Musk Tweet to See 50 Percent Surge in Extended Trade GameStop skyrocketed for a fourth straight day, thanks in part to Elon Musk. Musk tweeted "Gamestonk!!", along with a link to Reddit's Wallstreetbets stock trading discussion group, where supporters affectionately refer to the Tesla CEO as "Papa Musk." "Stonks" is a tongue-in-cheek term for stocks widely used on social media.

Twitter Acquires Newsletter Startup Revue, Will Eliminate Some of Its Fees to Encourage Users Twitter has acquired the newsletter publishing company Revue for an undisclosed sum, part of an effort to expand its business and give writers who distribute their work on Twitter.

Raya and the Last Dragon Trailer: Disney Promises a Fantastical Southeast Asia Adventure Raya and the Last Dragon trailer is here. Kelly Marie Tran, Awkwafina, Gemma Chan, Daniel Dae Kim, Sandra Oh, and Benedict Wong are part of Raya and the Last Dragon cast. Raya and the Last Dragon release date is March 5 in Indian cinemas and on Disney+ Premier Access.

Godzilla vs. Kong HBO Max Release Date Moved to March 31 Godzilla vs. Kong HBO Max release date delayed to March 31. Godzilla vs. Kong to premiere March 26 in India and internationally elsewhere.

Twitter Permanently Suspends My Pillow CEO Mike Lindell for US Presidential Election Misinformation Twitter has permanently suspended the account of My Pillow chief Mike Lindell for repeated violations of the company's policy on election misinformation, the social media firm said.

Microsoft Azure Cloud Computing Grows 50 Percent, Xbox Sales Sees Boost During Pandemic Microsoft reported its Azure cloud computing services grew 50 percent, the second quarter of acceleration in a business that had begun to slow as the global pandemic benefited the software maker's investment on working and learning from home.

Facebook News Launched in UK; to Feature Content From Daily Mail, Financial Times, and More Facebook News launched in Britain, delivering users of the world's leading social network-curated news content bought from traditional publishers that have struggled financially.

Twitter Launches Birdwatch Trial Programme to Let Users Fact Check Misinformation Twitter said it launched a pilot programme that lets users flag tweets that they believe are misleading and write notes to provide context.

Microsoft Is Making It Easier to Transfer Files From Outlook to Teams With Drag and Drop Microsoft has added the capability to drag and drop files from Outlook to Teams. With this feature, users can move attachments between the two apps easily. Until now, users had to first drag the files onto a location like the desktop, and drag them from there to the files tab in Teams.

WhatsApp Treating Indian Users Differently from Europeans Matter of Concern: Government Tells Delhi High Court WhatsApp users in India being treated differently from Europeans over opting out of its new privacy policy is a matter of concern, the central government told the Delhi High Court on Monday.

Google to Open US Offices as COVID-19 Vaccination Centres, Spend $150 Million on Vaccine Awareness: CEO Sundar Pichai Google CEO Sundar Pichai has announced via a blog post that the company’s offices in the US will be used as COVID-19 vaccination centres. Google has also pledged $150 million (roughly Rs. 1,090 crores) for programmes to promote vaccine education.

Tata Sky, Croma Site Vulnerabilities Exposed Sensitive Customer Data of Millions of Customers; Fixed Now Tata Sky and Croma, the entities owned by Tata Group, have fixed the vulnerabilities that exposed the data of millions of their customers, according to a cybersecurity researcher. The exposed data included full names, phone numbers, addresses, date of birth, and email IDs of Tata Sky and Croma customers.

Google Paying for News is ‘Inevitable’, says Australia Google and other tech behemoths will have to eventually pay for using media content, Australia has said. Responding to the Internet giant’s threat to disable its search engine in the country if it’s forced to pay local publishers for news, Australia’s Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said that paying for new was “inevitable”.

Tesla Sues Former Employee for Allegedly Stealing 26,000 Confidential Files Tesla has filed a case against a former employee, Alex Khatilov, who the company says stole 26,000 confidential files within three days of being hired, according to a court filing.

Twitter Bans Suspected Iran Account After Post Threatens Donald Trump Twitter said it has permanently banned an account that some in Iran believe is linked to the office of the country’s supreme leader after a posting that seemed to threaten former President Donald Trump.

High-Speed Internet Ban in Jammu and Kashmir Extended Till February 6 The Jammu and Kashmir administration has extended the ban on high-speed mobile data services across the Union Territory, except Ganderbal and Udhampur, till February 6

Google Search on Mobile to Get Redesign With More Focus on Important Information, Rounded Overall Aesthetic Google Search on mobile is being redesigned to make it easier for users to find what they are looking for. The redesign will roll out in the coming days.

Amazon Great Republic Day Sale Ends Tonight: Best Deals on Mobile Phones, Electronics Available Today Amazon Great Republic Day 2021 sale is set to end at midnight tonight. We've handpicked the best deals and offers available on mobile phones and electronics on January 23, the last day of the sale.

IBM Hit by Rare Sales Decline in Software Units, Posts Disappointing Quarterly Revenue IBM missed Wall Street estimates for quarterly revenue, hurt by a rare sales decline in its software unit as clients shied away from longer-term deals due to pandemic-induced economic uncertainty.

Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Google CEOs Invited to EU Hearing on Big Tech on February 1 EU lawmakers have invited the chief executives of Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, and Facebook to a February 1 hearing in Brussels as they try to crack down on the powers of US tech giants.

TikTok Asked to Block Users With Unverified Age in Italy Following Death of 10-Year-Old Girl The Italian data privacy watchdog ordered video app TikTok to block the accounts of any users in Italy whose age it could not verify following the death of a 10-year-old girl who had been using the Chinese-owned app.

Government Assured Strict Changes in Foreign Investment Rules for E-Commerce, Trader Group Says A trader group representing millions of brick-and-mortar retailers said it has received government assurances that stringent changes will be made to foreign investment rules for e-commerce, a move that could hit Amazon.

US President Joe Biden Enlists ‘World Class’ Cyber-Security Team Following SolarWinds Hack US President Joe Biden is hiring a group of national security veterans with deep cyber expertise, drawing praise from former defence officials and investigators as the US government works to recover from one of the biggest hacks of its agencies attributed to Russian spies.

YouTube Rolls Out Hashtag Landing Pages That Offer a New Way to Discover Videos YouTube has completed the roll out for its hashtag landing pages that will help users discover videos through hashtags. This feature is available on its Android and iOS apps as well as the desktop version.

WandaVision Episode 3 Recap: Double Delight in the 1970s WandaVision episode 3 review: Wanda (Elizabeth Olsen) gives birth to twins (is this our first look at Young Avengers?) in the 1970s in an episode that offers more clues to what’s up with Westview.

Microsoft Edge Gets New Themes, Features to Boost Productivity and Browser Performance Microsoft Edge has got several upgrades as a part of its first anniversary. The browser now allows users to choose from 24 new themes, the sidebar search is now generally available in the browser, and users can see emails right in the browser through a deeper Microsoft Outlook integration.

Resident Evil Village Release Date Set for May 7, PS4 and Xbox One Support Announced Resident Evil Village release date is May 7, Capcom has announced. The game will also be available on PS4 and Xbox One. A PS5-exclusive demo called Resident Evil Village Maiden is out now. Online multiplayer mode Resident Evil Re:Verse available for free with game.

Godzilla vs. Kong Trailer Release Set for Sunday Godzilla vs. Kong trailer release date is Sunday, January 24, Warner Bros. has announced. Godzilla vs. Kong trailer also coming in Hindi, Tamil, and Telugu. Godzilla vs. Kong release date is March 26.

Google Suspends Second AI Ethics Researcher, Union Says Google has suspended an artificial intelligence (AI) ethics researcher weeks after dismissing another member of the team, Timnit Gebru, a recently formed union said.

BuyUcoin Cryptocurrency User Data Allegedly Affecting Lakhs of People Leaked on the Dark Web Sensitive details of individuals available on Indian cryptocurrency exchange and wallet platform BuyUcoin have been leaked on the dark Web, according to a security researcher. The surfaced details are said to include the names, email addresses, mobile numbers, order information, and deposit history of users, as well as their bank account information, along with PAN an...

Facebook, Google Grants Australian Local Government PR Website News Provider Status Google and Facebook have granted an Australian local government news provider status, drawing questions about the internet giants' efforts to curate news media.

Elon Musk to Offer $100-Million Prize for 'Best' Carbon Capture Technology Tesla chief and billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk took to Twitter to promise a $100-million (roughly Rs. 730 crores) prize for development of the "best" technology to capture carbon dioxide emissions.

Facebook Hands Decision on Former US President Donald Trump Ban to Its Oversight Board Facebook said it was referring its decision to indefinitely suspend the accounts of former US President Donald Trump to its independent oversight board.

Bitcoin Extends Slide, Heads for Worst Week Since March 2020 Bitcoin fell heavily on Friday and was heading toward its sharpest weekly drop since last March, as worries over its technology and regulation extended a pullback from recent record highs.

Alphabet Shutting Down Loon, Its Balloon-Based Internet Alternative to Cell Towers Alphabet is shutting down its Internet balloon business, Loon, that aimed to provide a less expensive alternative to cell towers, saying that "the road to commercial viability has proven much longer and riskier than hoped."

Google Says It Will Shut Search Engine in Australia if Forced to Pay for News Google said it would block its search engine in Australia if the government proceeds with a new code that would force it and Facebook to pay media companies for the right to use their content.

Parler Loses Bid to Require Amazon to Restore Service Following US Capital Violence A US judge rejected Parler's demand that Amazon restore web hosting services for the social media platform, that Amazon had cut off following the January 6 storming of the US Capitol.

Mozilla Firefox 85 to Allow Easy Installation of Supported Extensions for Android Users Firefox 85 includes an update that will make it easier for Android users to add supported extensions. Mozilla announced in a blog post that users will now be able to install supported recommended extensions directly from the addons.mozilla.org (AMO) page. The update will release on January 25.

Bitcoin Slumps 10 Percent as Pullback From Record High Gathers Pace Bitcoin slumped 10 percent on Thursday to a 10-day low, retreating further from record highs, with traders citing fears of tighter US regulation.

Twitter to Restart Verified Blue Ticks from Friday: Everything You Need to Know Twitter is restarting its official verification policy. It had stopped accepting applications for blue ticks in 2017, but from January 22, 2021, it’s starting again and here’s what you should know about it.

Google Signs Deal on Copyright Payments to French Press Google and French newspapers said they had signed an agreement aimed at opening the path to digital copyright payments from the online giant after months of heated negotiations.

Facebook Said to Be Questioned on WhatsApp’s Privacy Terms by Parliamentary Panel Facebook executives will field questions from a parliamentary panel about the changes to WhatsApp's privacy, a source said, days after the messaging platform was asked by the country's technology ministry to withdraw them.

Facebook Said to Be Questioned on WhatsApp’s Privacy Terms by Parliamentary Panel Facebook executives will field questions from a parliamentary panel about the changes to WhatsApp's privacy, a source said, days after the messaging platform was asked by the country's technology ministry to withdraw them.

Lucknow Police Deploying AI Cameras to Recognise Facial Expressions of Women in Distress and Alert Officers The Lucknow police is deploying facial recognition technology backed by artificial intelligence-enabled security cameras that will read expressions of women in distress and alert their nearest police station.

US President Joe Biden Calls for Coders in Hidden Message on White House Website The recently updated website for US President Joe Biden's White House carried an invitation for tech specialists savvy enough to find it.

The Boys Season 3 Episode 6 to Adapt ‘Herogasm,’ Creator Eric Kripke Reveals The Boys season 3 episode 6 “Herogasm” will adapt the comics spin-off “The Boys: Herogasm”, creator Eric Kripke has announced. Jessica Chou will write The Boys season 3 episode 6.

Departing US FCC Chairman Ajit Pai Warns of Espionage Threats to Telecoms From China Outgoing US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) chairman Ajit Pai said potential Chinese espionage and threats to US telecommunications networks and internet freedom are the biggest national security issue that regulators will face in the next four years.

Google Asks US Judge to Move States' Antitrust Lawsuit to California Google has asked a US judge in Texas to transfer an antitrust lawsuit filed by 10 states in December to a court in California, a state that has more relevant witnesses and documents needed by the company, it said.

Amazon Offers to Help US With COVID-19 Vaccine Efforts in Letter to President Joe Biden Amazon offered to help with the United States' efforts involving the COVID-19 vaccine, according to a letter addressed to President Joe Biden.

Twitter Locks China's US Embassy Account Over Xinjiang Policy-Related Tweet Twitter has locked the account of China's US embassy, @ChineseEmbinUS, for a tweet that defended China's policies in the Xinjiang region, that the US social media platform said violated the firm's policy against dehumanisation.

Xbox Game Pass January 2021 Games: Yakuza 3, 4 and 5 Remastered, Desperados III, and More Xbox Game Pass January 2021 games list includes Yakuza 3, 4, and 5, Control, Desperados III, The Medium, and Outer Wilds. Three months of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate is available for Rs. 50 until January 25.

Google Investigates Another Ethical AI Team Member Over Handling of Sensitive Data Following Timbit Gebru Exit Google is investigating a member of its ethical AI team and has locked the corporate account linked to that person after finding that thousands of files were retrieved from its server and shared with external accounts, the company said.

Facebook Improves Automatic Alt Text for Visually Impaired Users, Now Recognises Over 1,200 Concepts Facebook has announced improvements for its Automatic Alt Text (AAT) system. It will now be able to identify activities, landmarks, types of animals, and more. The tech giant said in a blog post that the improved AAT recognises over 1,200 concepts, that is 10 times more than what it could identify when it was launched in 2016.

Brave Becomes First Browser to Integrate Native Peer-to-Peer IPFS Protocol After updating to the latest browser version, Brave users can access decentralised Web content by entering an URL in the form of ipfs://{content_hash_ID}. The update brings native support for IPFS, and no extension will be required to access URLs that start with ipfs:// moving forward.

India National Cricket Team Test Series Victory Against Australia Celebrated With Virtual Fireworks on Google Google will show virtual fireworks once you type India National Cricket Team in the search query box. The celebratory move comes in response to India’s success in the Border-Gavaskar Test series.

Microsoft Lists App Now Available on iOS, Android Version Coming 'Later This Year' Microsoft Lists app is now available for iOS and its Android version will be coming soon. The app allows users to create lists as well as manage and organise work.

World Wide Web Inventor Tim Berners-Lee Opposes Australia's News Payment Plan World Wide Web inventor Tim Berners-Lee says Australia's plan to force digital giants to pay media outlets for news content is "unworkable" and undermines a "fundamental principle" of the Internet.

General Motors Teams Up With Microsoft to Accelerate Rollout of Electric, Self-Driving Cars General Motors is teaming up with Microsoft to accelerate its rollout of electric, self-driving cars. In the partnership announced Tuesday, the companies said Microsoft’s Azure cloud and edge computing platform would be used to “commercialise its unique autonomous vehicle solutions at scale.”

Alibaba's Jack Ma Makes First Public Appearance Since October in Online Meeting, State Media Reports Alibaba founder Jack Ma met with 100 rural teachers in China via a video meeting on Wednesday, local government media reported, making the businessman's first appearance in public since October.

Twitter to Reset @POTUS Account Today Following Joe Biden’s Inauguration Twitter is set to reset the official presidential accounts – @POTUS, @WhiteHouse, @FLOTUS, and @VP – as Joe Biden and Kamala Harris will be inaugurated as the next US President and Vice President, respectively.

Dunzo Raises $40 Million in Funds From Google, More Investors as It Rides Pandemic-Induced Surge Dunzo has raised $40 million (roughly Rs. 290 crores) from existing investor Google and others after seeing a surge in usage during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Amazon Could Be Hit as India Is Said to Plan Foreign Investment Rule Changes India is considering revising its foreign investment rules for e-commerce in a move that could compel players including Amazon to restructure their ties with some major sellers.

YouTube Extends Ban on Donald Trump’s Channel Ahead of US Presidential Inauguration YouTube confirmed it extended a ban on new video being added to US President Donald Trump's channel due to the potential for inciting violence.

PhonePe Surpasses Google Pay to Become Leading UPI App in December, NPCI Data Reveals PhonePe has surpassed Google Pay and become the top unified payments interface (UPI) app in December. It processed 902.03 million transactions accounting for Rs. 1,82,126.88 crores in total, according to the latest data released by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).

TikTok Parent ByteDance Launches Douyin Pay Mobile Payment Service in China ByteDance launched its third-party payment service for the Chinese version of its hit short video app TikTok, Douyin Pay, as it presses to expand into the e-commerce business in China.

WhatsApp Asked to Withdraw Changes to Privacy Policy by MeitY The Indian government has asked WhatsApp to withdraw the recent changes in the privacy policy of the messaging app, saying unilateral changes are not fair and acceptable.

How to Switch Off Your ‘Off-Facebook Activity’ Tracking From Website and App Here’s a step-by-step guide to turn off the ‘off-Facebook activity’ tracking. Facebook wants to show you personalised and targeted ads. But for that, it not just takes your data from its social networking site or app — alongside its subsidiaries including Instagram and WhatsApp — but also from various third parties. For this, you can check out the ‘off-Fac...

Twitter, Periscope, Pinterest Face Advertising Ban in Turkey Turkey's Information and Communication Technologies Authority has imposed advertising bans on Twitter, Periscope, and Pinterest under a new social media law, according to decisions published in the country's Official Gazette.

Amazon Great Republic Day Sale Kicks Off for Prime Members: Best Offers on Smartphones and Electronics Amazon Great Republic Day sale is now live for the company's Prime members. The sale includes deals and offers on a wide range of mobile phones and electronics. We've handpicked the best deals Prime members can grab today.

Facebook to Use AI in Predicting if COVID-19 Patients Need Better Healthcare Facebook is publishing a research conducted by its artificial intelligence (AI) unit in an effort to help healthcare providers predict in advance if a COVID-19 patient may need more intensive care solutions and adjust resources accordingly.

Salesforce Leads $15-Million Investment in Indian HR Tech Platform Darwinbox Salesforce is making its first investment in an Indian company, a developer of human resources software that serves several of Asia’s largest tech startups.