Techmeme
August 25, 2021, 2:15 PM

Top News

Insider:
In an abrupt reversal, OnlyFans suspends its October 1 policy change banning porn after securing “assurances” and aims to provide “a home for all creators”  —  - OnlyFans is reversing its recent decision to ban porn.  — It had planned to prohibit sexually explicit …
Patricia Nilsson / Financial Times:
Jay Peters / The Verge:
Fitbit announces Charge 5 with a rounded design, a larger and brighter color AMOLED display, GPS, and more, arriving in the fall for $179.95  —  It costs $179.95 and will be out this fall  —  Following a couple of big leaks, Fitbit is officially announcing the Charge 5 …
Kurt Wagner / Bloomberg:
Facebook's David Marcus says Novi digital wallet is “ready now”, but will wait for the Diem currency, and it is “definitely looking at” building NFT features  —  Social network is ‘definitely looking’ at digital assets as part of push into financial products, executive says
The Markup:
How Fannie and Freddie requiring mortgage lenders use its credit scoring algorithm leads to a disproportionately high number of Black applicants being rejected  —  These two people applied for loans in Chicago, Ill., in 2019.  —  They both earned $350K-$400K  —  and their debt level was healthy.
Washington Post:
A look at Vaccine Talk, a tightly moderated Facebook group for vaccine skeptics with ~70K members that aims to change their minds with evidence-based info  —  As social media giants struggle to crack down on false claims about covid, ordinary users are finding ways to reach vaccine skeptics — and win them over.
Matthew Ball / MatthewBall.vc:
A deep look at why expanding into gaming is so important to Netflix, the competition it faces from games like Fortnite, and what its current strategy looks like  —  In 2018, I released the third entry in my “Netflix Misunderstandings” series: “Netflix Isn't Being Reckless, It's Just Playing a Game No One Else Dares.”
Joshua Benton / Nieman Lab:
Facebook's most-viewed story in Q1, from Chicago Tribune linking a doctor's death to COVID vaccines, shows why publishers should consider how content is shared  —  On Friday, The New York Times had a scoop.  Facebook — that known vector for the spread of kid photos, neighborhood goings-on …
Sean Lyngaas / CyberScoop:
Interview with CISA Director Jen Easterly on attack prevention, hiring new staff, improving CISA's ability to scan federal networks for malicious code, and more  —  U.S. cybersecurity officials have scrambled to respond to one major hacking incident after another over the past nine months …
Richard Milne / Financial Times:
Klarna says losses in Q2 soared to $111M, up from $10M in Q2 2020, as credit defaults doubled, driven by an expansion in new markets  —  Swedish ‘buy now, pay later’ start-up continues rapid expansion in new markets  —  Klarna's losses increased significantly in the second quarter …
Source: KlarnaMore: Dow Jones Newswires
Mary Ann Azevedo / TechCrunch:
Knoetic, which builds software for HR departments, comes out of stealth with $18M Series A led by Accel  —  Knoetic, a startup that has built a software analytics platform for chief people officers, emerged from stealth today with $18 million in Series A funding.
Ryan Browne / CNBC:
Microsoft says that Xbox Cloud Gaming will expand beyond PC and mobile to its Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and Xbox One consoles this holiday season  —  - Microsoft said its Xbox Cloud Gaming service will arrive on console this holiday.  — Cloud gaming lets people stream games over the internet rather than install them locally.
Axios:
California expands lawsuit against Activision Blizzard to include temp workers and says the game maker interfered with investigation by shredding pertinent docs  —  California has expanded its anti-discrimination lawsuit against Activision Blizzard, adding temporary workers to the female full …
Mary Ann Azevedo / TechCrunch:
Balance, which offers a B2B checkout service for merchants and marketplaces, raises $25M Series A led by Ribbit Capital  —  Balance, a payments platform aimed at B2B merchants and marketplaces, has raised $25 million in a Series A funding round led by Ribbit Capital.
More: CTech and FinLedger

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Will Knight / Wired:
Tom Warren / The Verge:
Michael Finnegan / Los Angeles Times:
Jessica Guynn / USA Today:
Erin Woo / New York Times:
Ashley Carman / The Verge:
Charles Riley / CNN: