Thursday, July 21, 2016

Are the French overreacting or merely the first to react?
Windows 10 personal data collection is excessive, French privacy watchdog warns
Windows 10 breaches French law by collecting too much personal information from users and failing to secure it adequately, according to the French National Data Protection Commission (CNIL).
Some of the privacy failings identified can be remedied by users willing to delve deep into the Windows 10 settings, but one of the commission's gripes is that better privacy should be the default setting, not one users must fight for.
CNIL served Microsoft with a formal notice on June 30, giving it three months to comply with the law, but only made it public on Wednesday.


The next Kim Dotcom?
   The 30-year-old Artem Vaulin, from Ukraine, was arrested today in Poland from where the United States has requested his extradition.
In a criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Chicago, the alleged owner is charged with conspiracy to commit criminal copyright infringement, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and two counts of criminal copyright infringement.
   The complaint further reveals that the feds posed as an advertiser, which revealed a bank account associated with the site.
It also shows that Apple handed over personal details of Vaulin after the investigator cross-referenced an IP-address used for an iTunes transaction with an IP-address that was used to login to KAT’s Facebook account.
   Commenting on the announcement, Assistant Attorney General Caldwell said that KickassTorrents helped to distribute over $1 billion in pirated files.


Perspective.  Isn’t it bad enough that we have to sort through the tweets of twits to find anything useful on the Internet?  Now my students can create hours and hours of video of paint drying?  And they can comment on it while it does! 
Facebook users can now live stream for up to 4 hours


Perspective.  It seems strange that a business model that started in the mid 1400’s with Thurn and Taxis has suddenly met its end with an App. 
Uber dominates Q2 business travel as taxis see 51% decline in past 2 years
Uber continues to be viewed favorably by U.S. business travelers in Q2 2016, according to a new study released by online travel and expense management service provider Certify.  Overall, ride-hailing services are becoming the preferred ground transportation method, a further signal that incumbent options like taxis are no longer getting the job done.  In fact, taxi ridership has gone down 51 percent nationwide since 2014.
Analyzing more than 10 million business travel receipts and expenses, Certify also sees that not only are taxis being displaced, but car rentals are, as well.  Travelers perhaps feel it’s less economical and more burdensome to wait in line to rent a car than to summon an ad hoc personal driver right on their mobile device and never have to worry about parking, filling up on gas, or buying insurance.


Perspective.  A rising tide lifts all boats?  Sometimes it’s good just to take your commission. 
Forget Nintendo, 'Pokémon Go' could be worth billions of dollars to Apple
We already know that Pokémon Go has caught the attention of the business world, with the value of Nintendo more than doubling thanks to its interest in the game. 
It doesn't stop there.
The app could be worth a Wailord-sized $3 billion in revenue to Apple, thanks to the cut of any money the company takes from companies that operate in its app store.
   Apple takes a 30 percent cut of money spent on apps through its iOS devices.  That's proving to be a lucrative deal, with Apple enjoying growth in China and emerging markets — which could push revenue from iOS past $100 billion by 2020.


How crazy is the craze?
   Given that Apple’s total App Store revenue last year was $20B, suggesting that it may see $3B from a single game – even over a two-year period – seems a little out there.  But with in-app purchases reaching as high as $150, who knows how many people out there have completely lost their minds – and TNW has collated plenty of evidence.
In New York, a 28-year-old man crashed into a tree playing the game, while two others fell 50ft off a cliff in San Diego.  Across the pond in the UK, four teenagers had to be rescued from a mine after getting lost in the complex for more than five hours.  Police in Northern Ireland had to explicitly tell players, ‘But there’s a Zubat in there’ is NOT an excuse for breaking into someone’s house.
Distracted drivers are crashing into Police cars:
And making emergency calls to Police to report stolen Pokémon.  Oh, and players in Bosnia had to be told not to wander into minefields …

(Related) Congress is always crazy.  Is this their only concern?  Do they play while wandering around Washington DC?
Lawmakers question Pokemon Go's impact on data usage
Lawmakers on Wednesday asked the company that makes hit game "Pokemon Go" what they were doing to make sure players don’t run up high mobile data charges using the application.
The letter to Niantic CEO John Hanke was signed by the top Democrat on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, Rep. Frank Pallone Jr. (N.J.), as well as Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.) and Rep. Diana DeGette (D-Colo.).
"In addition to issues related to the game being played inappropriate locations, safety, and privacy, recent reports suggest that playing Pokemon Go could exhaust a consumer’s available monthly mobile data,” they wrote.
   The letter comes despite the fact that some have argued the program does not use up particularly large amounts of wireless data.  Certain mobile apps are already considered data-intensive, including social media apps and streaming music products.


My Data Management students had a hard time figuring out why they bought them.  Perhaps this article will help.
Unilever's CEO on why he bought Dollar Shave Club for a reported $1 billion


Free?  I like Free.

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