Month: March 2021

Best UK streaming and pay-TV services 2021: Sky, Virgin, Netflix and Amazon Prime compared and ranked

Our updated list of the best pay-TV and streaming services in the UK The choice of how you get your TV and movies in the UK has exploded in recent years, with a growing number of premium pay-TV providers and streaming services available at a wide range of prices. Many of them have long contracts, …

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UK regulator to investigate Apple over ‘unfair’ App Store terms

UK watchdog opens inquiry over claims US firm is imposing ‘anti-competitive’ terms on app developers Britain’s competition regulator has opened an investigation into Apple over claims the company is using its control over the App Store to impose “unfair and anti-competitive” terms on app developers. The Competition and Markets Authority announced the investigation on Thursday …

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Naomi Klein: how big tech helps India target climate activists

Companies such as Google and Facebook appear to be aiding and abetting a vicious government campaign against Indian environmental campaigners Republished with permission from The Intercept The bank of cameras camped outside Delhi’s sprawling Tihar jail was the sort of media frenzy you would expect to await a prime minister caught in an embezzlement scandal, …

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Gourmet to go! 17 brilliant, unexpected ways with a microwave – from risotto to profiteroles

Microwaves are not just for poaching eggs. You can make a vast array of gourmet meals in minutes – from steamed fish to vegetarian chilli and sponge puddings They were once regarded as technological miracles – machines that allowed you to travel back in time to a moment when your cup of tea was still …

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‘Facebook has a blind spot’: why Spanish-language misinformation is flourishing

Researchers say Spanish-language content is less often and less quickly moderated for misinformation than English content In the last year, Facebook adjusted some of the most fundamental rules about what gets posted on its platform, halting algorithmic recommendations of political groups, banning lies about vaccines and removing a number of high-profile figures for spreading misinformation …

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Fitbit Sense review: a good smartwatch that fails on sustainability

Feature-packed health and fitness-tracking smartwatch has advanced sensors but failure to address screen and battery repairs is poor Fitbit is attempting to challenge the dominance of the Apple Watch with the Sense: a smartwatch packed with advanced health sensors for stress, heart rate and ECG wrapped up in a neat and tidy package. But be …

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Smile for the camera: dark side of China’s emotion-recognition tech

Xi Jinping wants ‘positive energy’ but critics say the surveillance tools’ racial bias and monitoring for anger or sadness should be banned “Ordinary people here in China aren’t happy about this technology but they have no choice. If the police say there have to be cameras in a community, people will just have to live …

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SoundCloud announces overhaul of royalties model to ‘fan-powered’ system

Streaming company says it will start directing money from subscribers to the artists they actually listen to SoundCloud announced on Tuesday it would become the first streaming service to start directing subscribers’ fees only to the artists they listen to, a move welcomed by musicians campaigning for fairer pay. Current practice for streaming services including …

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Alan Rusbridger says Oversight Board will ask to see Facebook’s algorithm

Former Guardian editor, who is on board, says it intends to broaden its remit and examine network’s AI Facebook’s Oversight Board is trying to gain access to the social network’s curation algorithm to understand how it works, according to Alan Rusbridger, the former editor of the Guardian and a member of the quasi-independent body. Rusbridger, …

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