Daily Tech Headlines – March 19, 2018
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| Daily Tech Headlines – March 19, 2018 | |
| Number | 461 |
| Broadcast Date | MARCH 19, 2018 |
| Episode Length | 3:54 |
| Hosts | Tom Merritt |
Facebook suspends data analytics company, Apple may be making its own displays, HTC releases new version of Vive VR headset.
Headlines
- Friday, Facebook announced it had suspended the account of Strategic Communication Laboratories and its data analytics firm Cambridge Analytica for violating Facebook's policies on data collection. Cambridge University professor Aleksandr Kogan created an app called "thisisyourdigitallife" on Facebook in 2015 and requested access to information about the users and their friends which was done in accordance with Facebook's rules at the time. Kogan violated Facebook's rules by passing that information to a third party - SCL. Facebook learned of the violation in 2015 and ordered the data destroyed but found out this week that despite certifications from SCL, it had not been destroyed. Cambridge Analytica ran data operations for President Trump's campaign, but the company and Facebook claim none of this data was used in that campaign. Multiple outlets in the US and EU are calling for an investigation of Facebook.
- Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports his sources say Apple is designing and producing its own displays for testing purposes in a facility in Santa Clara, California, 15 minutes from Apple's headquarters. Particularly, Apple is supposedly experimenting with MicroLED screens that are slimmer and more power efficient than OLED. The technology is about 3-5 years away from being used in phones. The idea seems to be to make the technology available first in the Apple Watch.
- HTC has opened preorders for the Vive Pro, a 1400 x 1600 pixels per eye headset for $799 shipping April 5. The Vive Pro will not include the Lighthouse tracking beacons that come with the original Vive. Users can use the sensors they may already have or buy them separately. The original HTC Vive has been reduced by $100 to $499.
- LG has released WebOS Open Source Edition under the Apache License. WebOS was previously open sourced by HP in 2011. LG would like to see the OS used beyond it's own TVs and appliances, and is working with Korea's National IT Industry Promotion Agency (NIPA) to find business proposals.
- Longbow research analyst Shawn Harrison wrote Sunday that his sources in the supply chain said they expected higher iPhone X orders in the holiday season, reviving concerns about iPhone sales. Nomura analysts Anne Lee and Jeffery Kvaal wrote Monday that their analysis indicates iPhone X sales are flagging. Apple has reported strong sales for the iPhone division which includes all models, not just the iPhone X.
- Multiplayer battle arena Paragon will shut down April 26, but Epic Games has released 20 of the game's characters and more than 1500 environment assets on the Unreal Engine Marketplace for free. Epic plans to release more in the future.
- Zimbabwe will be using fingerprint identification technology for its upcoming 2018 general elections
- The government of Zimbabwe announced it has awarded Ipsidy a contract to operate an Automated Fingerprint Identification System in the 2018 election. Ipsidy will provide automated voter roll publication and deduplication.
- Facebook released its Games SDK for PC for all developers to allow streaming from games to Facebook Live. Facebook has been testing the system with some publishers like Blizzard. The system will let streamers reward fans with in-game items and bonuses.
- Drivers from Uber and Ola went on strike in India Monday demanding extra pay. The strike is centered in Mumbai and called for by the transport union of one of India's political parties. Drivers in other cities will also take part.
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| Preceded by: "Daily Tech Headlines – March 16, 2018" |
Daily Tech Headlines – March 19, 2018 |
Followed by: "Daily Tech Headlines – March 20, 2018" |