Techmeme
March 3, 2021, 8:50 AM

Top News

Zack Whittaker / TechCrunch:
Microsoft warns users a new Chinese state-sponsored threat actor is exploiting four previously undisclosed zero days in Exchange Server; patches are available  —  Microsoft is warning customers that a new China state-sponsored threat actor is exploiting four previously undisclosed security flaws …
Tom Warren / The Verge:
Microsoft unveils Microsoft Mesh, a mixed-reality platform on Azure, and demos a meeting service to let users join virtual rooms using devices like HoloLens 2  —  Mesh is Microsoft's vision for the future of mixed reality  —  Last week, Microsoft's Alex Kipman, the inventor of Kinect and HoloLens …
Frederic Lardinois / TechCrunch:
Mary Jo Foley / ZDNet:
Frederic Lardinois / TechCrunch:
Todd Spangler / Variety:
Sony says the PlayStation Store will stop offering movie and TV show purchases and rentals on Aug. 31, citing users' preference for video streaming services  —  As of Aug. 31, 2021, the PlayStation Store will stop offering movie and TV show purchases and rentals.
New York Times:
Colleges requiring virus-screening tech, from virus symptom-checking apps to temperature check stations and wearables, have not rigorously studied if it works  —  Many schools that use fever scanners and symptom checkers have not rigorously studied if the technology has slowed the spread of Covid-19 on campuses.
Bloomberg:
Intel ordered to pay $2.18B after a federal court jury in TX found it infringed two patents once owned by NXP Semiconductors and now owned by VLSI Technology  —  - Intel had claimed royalty demands of VLSI were ‘outrageous’  — NXP would get a share of any damage award, Intel lawyer said
Dell Cameron / Gizmodo:
Facebook Oversight Board member told UK Parliament that the panel feels constrained when reviewing decisions on a case-by-case basis, may seek algorithm access  —  Facebook's so-called “Supreme Court” is reportedly seeking the company's permission to examine the underlying machine-learning models …
Chaim Gartenberg / The Verge:
Amazon quietly updated its app icon, changing the appearance of the ripped packaging tape after some drew comparisons of it to Adolf Hitler's mustache  —  The company's icon gets a less problematic new look  —  Amazon has quietly rolled out a slight update to its new app icon that it debuted …
Ian Allison / CoinDesk:
Sources: PayPal is in talks to buy New York-based Curv, which facilitates secure storage of cryptocurrency  —  One source tells CoinDesk that Curv could be sold for as much as $500 million.  —  PayPal is said to be in the process of buying Curv, a technology firm that powers the secure storage …
Sarah Perez / TechCrunch:
eMarketer: Spotify is on track to reach US monthly podcast listenership of 28.2M by the end of this year and surpass Apple's Podcasts for the first time  —  Investors have been waiting for Spotify's multimillion-dollar bet on podcasting to pay off, in terms of increased paid subscriptions or improved revenues.
Russell Brandom / The Verge:
Parler drops its antitrust lawsuit against Amazon, ending its two-month effort to force the company to reinstate its AWS hosting account  —  The service sued to force Amazon Web Services to restore its account  —  Parler has withdrawn its antitrust lawsuit against Amazon …
More: Insider
Kim Lyons / The Verge:
Twitter users on Android can now join and talk in its Clubhouse-like live audio Spaces and will be able to create their own Spaces in an upcoming update  —  The platform introduced its audio chat rooms for iOS in December  —  Twitter has opened its audio chat room, Spaces, to Android users, the company tweeted Tuesday.
Cecilia D'Anastasio / Wired:
In its first transparency report, Twitch says it saw a 40% rise in the number of channels in 2020, a 70% drop in reports of harassment via Twitch DMs, and more  —  The decade-old streaming platform has for the first time detailed its efforts to safeguard its user base in one place.
LPE Project:
How a SCOTUS decision from 1946 can be used to ensure that users on platforms like Facebook enjoy basic due process protections against removal/deplatforming  —  Genevieve Lakier (@glakier) is Assistant Professor of Law, Herbert and Marjorie Fried Teaching Scholar at the University of Chicago Law School
Dave Gershgorn / OneZero :
A look at “Sharp Eyes”, a computerized video surveillance program that aims to surveil 100% of Chinese public spaces and relies largely on reports from citizens  —  The program turns neighbors into agents of the surveillance state  —  One of China's largest …

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Vjeran Pavic / The Verge:
CNBC:
Natasha Lomas / TechCrunch:
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