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| Here’s a look at today’s Tech briefing. - Meta accused of targeting children under 13 on Instagram and Facebook.
- ByteDance is laying off employees and winding down its gaming brand.
- Black Friday online sales in the U.S. were up 7.5% YoY.
- The EU is expected to approve Amazon's iRobot purchase.
Beth
p/beth-duckett | |
| 1 | | A newly unsealed complaint accuses Meta of knowingly targeting children under 13 and being dishonest about how it handles their accounts and data. The now-redacted complaint is part of a lawsuit brought against Meta by 33 states in October. More: - While Facebook and Instagram have a minimum sign-up age of 13, the complaint argues that Meta is aware that children can easily lie about their age and hasn't taken enough action to combat the issue.
- Despite receiving more than 1.1 million reports of under-13 users on Instagram between 2019 and 2023, Meta only disabled a small portion of these accounts, the complaint says.
- It goes on to argue that the company has consistently collected children's data without parental consent, violating the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 (COPPA).
Zoom out: - Overall, 41 states and the District of Columbia are suing Meta in separate lawsuits, alleging that the company's addictive features on Instagram and Facebook harm children.
- Meta is accused of designing its features to retain young users through tactics like algorithms, constant alerts and notifications, and infinite scrolling.
- Meanwhile, Meta is supporting federal legislation to require parental approval for minors under 16 to download apps from stores like Google and Apple, shifting responsibility to safeguard young users away from the platforms themselves.
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| 2 | | TikTok parent ByteDance is set to wind down its Nuverse gaming brand and exit mainstream video games, according to Reuters. "Hundreds" of jobs are expected to be impacted by the restructuring, sources told the publication. More: - ByteDance plans to tell employees to halt work on any unreleased games by December.
- The company is exploring options to divest from its already-launched titles, which include games like "Marvel Snap" and "One Piece: Blood Routes."
- ByteDance, which acquired Nuverse in 2017, is also in talks to sell mobile gaming studio Moonton, which it purchased in 2021 as part of Nuverse.
- The move will not affect Ohayoo, its gaming brand for Douyin, and TikTok's casual games.
Zoom out: | | | |
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| 3 | | Adobe Analytics reported a 7.5% year-on-year increase in Black Friday online sales in the U.S., which reached a record $9.8B. The figures outpaced Thanksgiving sales and growth rates, with consumers spending $5.6B online last Thursday, a 5.5% increase YoY. More: - On Black Friday, smartphones accounted for $5.3B in sales, a 10.4% increase from 2022.
- Adobe forecasts mobile sales surpassing desktop this holiday season.
- In the week leading up to Black Friday, Adobe reported a 72% increase in BNPL orders compared to the same period last year.
- Adobe expects the "Cyber Week" from Thanksgiving to Cyber Monday to generate $37.2B in U.S. online sales, or around 17% of total holiday sales.
Zoom out: - Similarly, Salesforce said Black Friday online sales surpassed its expectations, reporting $16.4B spent in the U.S. and $70.9B globally.
- A record 79% of browsing and purchasing occurred on mobile handsets.
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| 4 | | iRobot's stock surged on Friday following reports suggesting that EU regulators will sign off on Amazon's $1.4B acquisition of the Roomba maker. The acquisition would be Amazon's fourth-largest, trailing behind its purchases of Whole Foods in 2017, MGM in 2021, and One Medical earlier this year. 
The news: In July, EU officials opened an in-depth investigation into the deal, citing concerns about it limiting competition in the market for robotic vacuum cleaners. According to Reuters, the acqusition is now expected to receive "unconditional EU antitrust approval," with a ruling expected from the European Commission by Feb. 14. The deal was cleared by the U.K.'s Competition and Markets Authority in June. Still: The U.S. Federal Trade Commission is still reviewing the purchase and has made multiple information requests to iRobot, according to regulatory filings. Meanwhile, civil rights groups have written to the FTC, urging the agency to block the deal due to concerns about anticompetitiveness and harm to the consumer tech market. | | | |
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| 5 | | Phone manufacturer Foxconn disclosed plans to invest an additional $1.54B in India as it continues an expansion in the country. Foxconn, the world's largest electronics contract manufacturer, did not reveal details of the construction project but said it's intended to meet its "operational needs." More: - According to a filing, the investment was made through Foxconn's subsidiary, Hon Hai Technology India Mega Development.
- Foxconn, a major Apple supplier, has been diversifying its operations in India, with ongoing projects in Karnataka and Telangana states.
- It follows Foxconn's exit from a $19.5B chipmaking joint venture in India a few months earlier.
Zoom out: - In August, Foxconn started producing the iPhone 15 in India. Foxconn is the leading supplier of the devices, covering around 58% of all orders.
- The investment is in line with a broader trend of Apple suppliers and Taiwanese electronics manufacturers reevaluating their presence in China amid geopolitical tensions.
- Apple wants to shift up to 25% of its production to India, from between 5% and 7% now.
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| 6 | | Microsoft has made Copilot, its AI-powered assistant, available on Windows 10 through a Release Preview build. Microsoft already launched Copilot to all Windows 11 users earlier this year. More: - Windows 10 will offer Copilot capabilities similar to Windows 11, allowing users to ask questions and more via the chatbot.
- However, the Windows 10 version still lacks certain advanced features like customizing settings or opening apps. Microsoft could add these capabilities in future small updates.
- To try out Copilot on Windows 10 Home or Pro, users must be part of the Windows Insider tester program and install the preview build.
- According to Microsoft, it could take time for devices to be confirmed for Copilot, "so it may not show up right away."
Zoom out: - As of August, Windows 10 held a market share of about 72%, making it the most popular Windows desktop operating system.
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| 7 | | Quick Hits: - Competitors are killing your efficiency. Read how Greenhouse gained $85mil in revenue from reps who used Klue over non-Klue users.*
- Tesla filed lawsuits against the Swedish Transport Agency and PostNord due to a workers' strike that halted license plate deliveries for its new vehicles.
- Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo said she quit the X platform, formerly Twitter, denouncing it as a "gigantic global sewer" for promoting abuse and misinformation that harms democracies
- Google will delete "inactive" accounts not used for two years starting Dec. 1. To avoid deletion of their data, users can log in to their main Google account or other service by Friday.
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 | AI and technology writer | | Beth is a contributing editor and writer of Inside's AI and Tech newsletters. With a career in journalism since 2007, she has written for publications including USA Today and the Arizona Business Gazette. As a public policy and investigative reporter at The Arizona Republic, she earned a Pulitzer Prize nomination and a First Amendment Award for co-reporting on pension cost increases. She authored a book on the solar photovoltaic industry in 2016. Reach her at Beth.Duckett@yahoo.com. | | This newsletter was edited by Eduardo Garcia | |
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