Techmeme
April 20, 2022, 10:10 PM

Top News

Logan Plant / IGN:
Report: Sony is working on a PlayStation program to let select partners insert ads within free-to-play games, similar to a reported Microsoft effort for Xbox  —  Sony is reportedly planning its own program to insert ads into games.  —  After last week's report that Xbox is looking to include …
MacKenzie Sigalos / CNBC:
The US Treasury sanctions Russian bitcoin miners, including BitRiver; Cambridge University: Russia is the world's third-biggest destination for bitcoin mining  —  - For the first time ever, the U.S. Department of the Treasury is taking aim at bitcoin miners operating in Russia, as Putin's war on Ukraine approaches its third month.
Aisha Malik / TechCrunch:
Instagram plans to tweak its ranking algorithm to highlight original content more, recommending accounts that aggregate and reshare other users' content less  —  Instagram head Adam Mosseri announced today that the company is going to tweak its ranking algorithm to highlight original content more on its platform.
Yogita Khatri / The Block:
Coinbase launches its NFT marketplace in beta with Ethereum-based NFTs and ETH payments; 1.5M+ joined the waitlist after the service's unveiling in October 2021  —  Quick Take Coinbase NFT has gone live in beta form.  It currently supports Ethereum-based NFTs and payments in ETH.
New York Times:
70% of employees at an Atlanta Apple Store agree to hold a union election, making the Apple Store the first to file for a union election with the CWA  —  The petition for a union vote continues a trend of organizing at service-sector employers like Starbucks and Amazon.
Sergiu Gatlan / BleepingComputer:
Cybersecurity authorities of Five Eyes countries warn of Russia-backed hacking groups targeting critical infrastructure organizations in and outside Ukraine  —  Today, Five Eyes cybersecurity authorities warned critical infrastructure network defenders of an increased risk that Russia-backed hacking groups …
Alex Hern / The Guardian:
Apple to debut an opt-in child safety feature for iPhones in the UK that scans messages for nudity, but drops some controversial aspects, like notifying parents  —  Feature that searches messages will go ahead after delays over privacy and safety concerns  —  A safety feature that uses AI technology …
Natasha Lomas / TechCrunch:
The European Parliament's consumer protection committee votes 43 to 2 for a USB-C consumer electronics charging standard, ahead of a full parliament vote in May  —  European Union lawmakers have taken a step closer to agreeing rules to standardize how a range of mobile gadgetry is charged.
Alex Weprin / Hollywood Reporter:
Netflix's Q1 earnings show that Disney, Paramount, and other companies that reorganized around streaming video must deal with consistent subscriber volatility  —  The entire entertainment industry is watching to see what happens as the streaming giant throws everything it has at the wall.
New York Times:
A decade-long timeline of investors warning of a tech startup bubble that never burst; instead of collapsing, more money poured in, and things got bubblier  —  The venture capitalists are sounding the alarm.  At posh conferences, they buzz about falling valuations for start-ups.
Joseph Menn / Washington Post:
A look at Russian tech's downfall amid Vladimir Putin's crackdown; Yandex is trying to sell its news unit, Group-IB's founder was arrested for treason, and more  —  Yandex, VKontakte and Kaspersky all ran afoul of the Kremlin's need to control Internet access, despite the efforts of their founders
Bloomberg:
Google and Meta restrict the accounts of Hong Kong's sole chief executive candidate, John Lee, citing US sanctions from 2020 for quashing pro-democracy protests  —  Google and Meta Platforms Inc. moved on Wednesday to curtail the social media presence of Hong Kong's sole chief executive candidate …
Ivan Levingston / Bloomberg:
Just Eat Takeaway says it is exploring a partial or full sale of Grubhub, after completing its $7.3B acquisition of the company in June 2021  —  Just Eat Takeaway.com NV said it's considering a partial or full sale of its Grubhub unit less than a year after buying it for $7.3 billion …
Emily McCormick / Yahoo Finance:
Netflix reports losing 200K net subscribers in Q1, vs. an estimated 2.5M net additions, and $7.87B revenue, vs. $7.95B est.; Netflix stock closes down 35%+  —  Netflix (NFLX) reported an unexpected decline in first-quarter net subscribers as the company navigated an exit from Russia and an increasingly saturated North American market.

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Canalys:
David Pierce / The Verge:
Lauren Hirsch / New York Times: