Techmeme
June 14, 2023, 11:00 AM

Top News

Jon Porter / The Verge:
The European Commission issues a preliminary antitrust complaint against Google over its ad business, suggesting breaking up the unit; Google can now reply  —  The European Commission has made a formal antitrust complaint against Google and its ad business, saying that its preliminary view is that …
Jay Peters / The Verge:
As over 8,000 subreddits go dark, Google's results, which often improve when adding “reddit” to the search, have suffered  —  Over 8,000 subreddits have gone dark to protest Reddit's upcoming API changes, and it's shown me just how much I rely on Reddit to find useful, human-sounding information in my Google search results.
The Verge:
Staff memo: Reddit's CEO says “like all blowups on Reddit, this one will pass”, new moderation tools are vital, wearing Reddit gear in public is risky, and more  —  In an internal memo sent Monday afternoon to Reddit staff, CEO Steve Huffman addressed the recent blowback directed at the company …
Jay Peters / The Verge:
The Verge:
Adam Satariano / New York Times:
The European Parliament passes the AI Act, which would curtail facial recognition, mandate data disclosures, and more; a final version should pass later in 2023  —  A draft law in the European Parliament has become the world's most far-reaching attempt to address the potentially harmful effects of artificial intelligence.
BBC:
Margrethe Vestager says discrimination, not extinction, is a more pressing concern for AI due to training models and “guardrails” are needed to counter bias  —  Discrimination is a more pressing concern from advancing artificial intelligence than human extinction, says the EU's competition chief.
Hassan Mujtaba / Wccftech:
Kyle Wiggers / TechCrunch:
OpenAI releases new GPT-3.5-turbo and GPT-4 versions that include a new “function calling” feature, and reduces the pricing of the original GPT-3.5-turbo by 25%  —  As the competition in the generative AI space grows fiercer, OpenAI is upgrading its text-generating models while reducing pricing.
New York Times:
A US federal judge asks the SEC and Binance to strike a compromise over the Binance.US asset freeze, while criticizing the SEC's use of its enforcement powers  —  A judge urged the Securities and Exchange Commission to reach a compromise with Binance that would allow the world's largest …
Ashley Carman / Bloomberg:
Spotify shifts its podcast strategy from being a sort of HBO by releasing exclusive shows to providing tools for podcast creators, similar to YouTube's model  —  Over the past four years, Spotify Technology SA has announced a succession of splashy deals showing off how much money it's willing …
Jay Peters / The Verge:
A US court issues a temporary restraining order preventing Microsoft's Activision Blizzard acquisition and sets an evidentiary hearing for June 22 and 23, 2023  —  A federal court has issued a temporary restraining order that will prevent Microsoft from closing its $68.7 billion deal to acquire Activision Blizzard — at least for now.
Nicole Carpenter / Polygon:
Swedish gaming conglomerate Embracer Group plans to close multiple studios, cancel games, and cut staff, after a $2B deal unexpectedly fell through  —  Embracer Group has close to 17,000 employees over more than 100 studios, many of which were acquired over the past few years
Thomas Seal / Bloomberg:
Vodafone and Three agree to combine to create the UK's largest mobile network, pending regulatory approval, and will take on £6B in debt; Vodafone will own 51%  —  Vodafone Group Plc and CK Hutchison Holdings Ltd. agreed to combine their UK mobile businesses in a deal that will create …
Nic Newman / Reuters Institute:
Reuters' 2023 Digital News Report: despite social media fragmentation, users' dependence on platforms for news keeps growing; Facebook drops and TikTok grows  —  This year's report comes against the backdrop of a global cost-of-living crisis, a continuing war in the heart of Europe, and further climate instability across the world.
James Cirrone / Blockworks:
After Apple threatened App Store delisting, Nostr-based social media app Damus must remove bitcoin tipping on posts but can keep the button on profiles  —  Damus creator William Casarin told his followers on the app that Apple would allow zaps, just with a slight tweak

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