WEBVTT - Tech News: Supreme Court to Weigh In on Section 230 0:00:04.400 --> 0:00:07.800 Welcome to Tech Stuff, a production from I Heart Radio. 0:00:11.800 --> 0:00:14.440 Hey there, and welcome to tech Stuff. I'm your host 0:00:14.520 --> 0:00:18.280 Jonathan Strickland, Diamond Executive producer with I Heart Radio and 0:00:18.360 --> 0:00:21.160 how the tech are you. It's time for the tech 0:00:21.200 --> 0:00:27.200 news for Tuesday, October four, two thousand twenty two. Now, 0:00:27.240 --> 0:00:30.520 earlier this year, I did an episode about a part 0:00:30.560 --> 0:00:35.960 of the ninety nineties six Communications Decency Act called Section 0:00:36.080 --> 0:00:38.959 to thirty. It's been in the news a lot over 0:00:39.000 --> 0:00:43.040 the last couple of years, particularly in US politics. Now, 0:00:43.080 --> 0:00:47.440 this section says, quote no provider or user of an 0:00:47.440 --> 0:00:51.680 interactive computer service shall be treated as the publisher or 0:00:51.840 --> 0:00:57.120 speaker of any information provided by another information content provider 0:00:57.760 --> 0:01:04.759 end quote. Okay. Essentially, what this section says is that, say, 0:01:04.880 --> 0:01:08.800 a web platform like a social media site cannot be 0:01:08.880 --> 0:01:13.160 treated as if it were the responsible party for the 0:01:13.240 --> 0:01:18.280 stuff that its users post to that platform. So if 0:01:18.319 --> 0:01:23.040 I jumped onto a social media site to docks someone, 0:01:23.440 --> 0:01:27.720 or to spread lies about someone or something, or attempt 0:01:27.840 --> 0:01:33.440 to incite violence, the platform would not be held accountable 0:01:33.480 --> 0:01:36.680 for my actions. My platform. I really just I mean 0:01:36.760 --> 0:01:40.240 lots of stuff, not just social media sites and internet 0:01:40.280 --> 0:01:43.040 service provider could be an example, an I s P. 0:01:43.760 --> 0:01:46.440 I s P s give us the connections that we 0:01:46.520 --> 0:01:49.840 need in order to interact online. If they were to 0:01:49.880 --> 0:01:53.120 be held responsible for the stuff that people do when 0:01:53.120 --> 0:01:56.280 they're online, well then the whole system would come crashing 0:01:56.280 --> 0:01:58.920 down pretty quickly. If you could sue an I s 0:01:58.960 --> 0:02:03.400 P because someone using that I s P posted something 0:02:03.440 --> 0:02:06.960 that was harmful to you, it doesn't take long for 0:02:06.960 --> 0:02:10.440 you to imagine a situation where everybody is suing everyone 0:02:10.520 --> 0:02:14.160 for everything. Section to thirty allows for a couple of 0:02:14.200 --> 0:02:17.399 other things as well, such as protecting platforms for when 0:02:17.400 --> 0:02:22.760 they remove, van or block posts that violate the platform's rules. 0:02:22.800 --> 0:02:25.480 So if I were to post something on Facebook that 0:02:25.560 --> 0:02:30.080 was in violation of Facebook's terms of service, Facebook could 0:02:30.120 --> 0:02:33.560 totally remove my post and Facebook would not be legally 0:02:33.639 --> 0:02:36.960 liable for that. I would have no case if I 0:02:37.000 --> 0:02:40.120 sued the company. I mean, I could sue Facebook, but 0:02:40.280 --> 0:02:42.600 they could cite Section to thirty in a court would 0:02:42.639 --> 0:02:46.480 find that my lawsuit has no merit because Facebook is 0:02:46.520 --> 0:02:50.519 allowed to do that. The reason I say that is 0:02:50.680 --> 0:02:53.520 now the U. S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear 0:02:53.560 --> 0:02:57.600 a case that involves Section to thirty, and it's a 0:02:57.639 --> 0:02:59.960 case that has a tragedy at the heart of it, 0:03:00.040 --> 0:03:05.080 which always makes these issues more difficult to navigate because 0:03:05.120 --> 0:03:08.600 you want to be respectful of the people who are 0:03:08.639 --> 0:03:13.880 affected by said tragedy. So in a U. S citizen 0:03:14.120 --> 0:03:19.000 named No. M. A. Gonzalez was killed in Paris during 0:03:19.040 --> 0:03:24.919 an Islamic State group attack. Her family sued Google. Uh really, 0:03:25.360 --> 0:03:28.720 you know YouTube's arm of Google or YouTube's arm of Alphabet, 0:03:29.480 --> 0:03:34.040 and they were arguing that the company holds partial responsibility 0:03:34.320 --> 0:03:40.360 for Gonzalez's death due to YouTube's recommendation algorithm. The family's 0:03:40.440 --> 0:03:44.280 argument is that YouTube's algorithm promoted videos the aim to 0:03:44.320 --> 0:03:49.000 push people to extremist perspectives and that as such, YouTube 0:03:49.320 --> 0:03:53.800 and by extension, Alphabet should be held accountable for being 0:03:53.880 --> 0:03:59.640 part of what amounts to overall recruitment strategy. The case 0:03:59.640 --> 0:04:01.440 went up to the US Court of Appeals for the 0:04:01.560 --> 0:04:04.720 Ninth Circuit and they found that Section to thirty provides 0:04:04.760 --> 0:04:09.160 protection to YouTube against the charges. So the family has 0:04:09.200 --> 0:04:12.360 then pushed the matter up to the Supreme Court, which 0:04:12.400 --> 0:04:15.240 did decide to hear the case. You know, Supreme Court 0:04:15.320 --> 0:04:20.479 is not required to hear cases. It gets submissions and 0:04:20.520 --> 0:04:24.599 then decides which ones it will actually listen to. So 0:04:25.160 --> 0:04:28.400 this potentially means that the Supreme Court could determine if 0:04:28.440 --> 0:04:34.280 Section to thirty is constitutional or if it's unconstitutional. So 0:04:35.080 --> 0:04:40.520 potentially the Court could strike down Section to thirty UH, 0:04:40.680 --> 0:04:42.760 and if it does, it's not hard to imagine the 0:04:42.800 --> 0:04:45.920 flurry of court cases that would originate from all sides 0:04:46.000 --> 0:04:51.280 because this is section is one of those policies that 0:04:51.440 --> 0:04:55.040 gets a lot of flak both from Democrats and Republicans, 0:04:55.640 --> 0:04:58.400 though for very different reasons. And I'm not saying that 0:04:58.440 --> 0:05:03.040 the reasons are valid or not valid, but rather that 0:05:03.160 --> 0:05:05.880 it's it's coming from a different point of view as 0:05:05.920 --> 0:05:11.720 to why Section two thirty UH is dangerous. Both sides 0:05:11.800 --> 0:05:15.400 feel this way, but the people who created Section to 0:05:15.560 --> 0:05:20.040 thirty did so knowing that without it, internet companies would 0:05:20.080 --> 0:05:24.720 have no reason to even innovate or create any presence 0:05:24.800 --> 0:05:27.600 on the Internet because if they could be held liable 0:05:27.760 --> 0:05:33.800 for what someone else posted to that platform, then you know, 0:05:33.839 --> 0:05:35.839 there'd be too much risk because you can't control what 0:05:35.880 --> 0:05:43.159 other people do, right, So it could change everything. In fact, 0:05:43.160 --> 0:05:46.240 I'm not even sure what it would change into. A 0:05:46.320 --> 0:05:50.279 lot of the Internet would just not work with Section 0:05:50.320 --> 0:05:53.320 two thirty removed or at least it would be bogged 0:05:53.320 --> 0:05:56.800 down by lawsuits all over the place. However, I have 0:05:56.880 --> 0:06:02.000 to stress that's just one potential outcome. The Supreme Court 0:06:02.120 --> 0:06:05.600 might find that Section to thirty needs to be more 0:06:06.279 --> 0:06:10.480 tightly defined, maybe it needs to have its own limitations. 0:06:10.960 --> 0:06:14.360 Maybe it just finds its section to thirty is perfectly cromulent. 0:06:14.960 --> 0:06:20.680 And ultimately this case gets dismissed and we're back to 0:06:20.680 --> 0:06:23.440 where we are already. We don't know, but I will 0:06:23.720 --> 0:06:26.840 keep following up on it. In a pretty rare move, 0:06:27.000 --> 0:06:31.119 the United States Federal Communications Commission has brought the hammer 0:06:31.240 --> 0:06:35.000 down on some telecommunications companies. Now. This has to do 0:06:35.080 --> 0:06:38.520 with the anti robo call initiative that launched back in 0:06:38.560 --> 0:06:43.400 twenty so. The FCC required all telecommunications companies in the 0:06:43.480 --> 0:06:48.400 US to comply with anti robo call proto calls called 0:06:48.640 --> 0:06:53.640 stir and shaken. The largest telecommunications companies had a tighter 0:06:53.720 --> 0:06:56.719 deadline to comply with these rules. They had to do 0:06:56.760 --> 0:07:00.000 it within a year uh and the smaller regional company 0:07:00.000 --> 0:07:02.040 these were given a little bit more time to get 0:07:02.160 --> 0:07:05.920 up to speed. Well. Now, the FCC has identified seven 0:07:06.160 --> 0:07:09.600 voice service carriers in the US that have failed to 0:07:09.640 --> 0:07:14.120 meet the requirements of this set of protocols, and the 0:07:14.240 --> 0:07:18.880 FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosen Worseel says that those companies will 0:07:18.880 --> 0:07:22.120 have two weeks to fix this or else the f 0:07:22.280 --> 0:07:26.160 c C is going to exclude those voice carriers from 0:07:26.200 --> 0:07:30.840 America's phone networks. Now that means is the the FCC 0:07:30.960 --> 0:07:34.680 is gonna issue a ban that all other sell or 0:07:34.760 --> 0:07:37.680 telecommunications providers are going to have to follow, where they 0:07:37.720 --> 0:07:42.040 will have to block any call originating from within those 0:07:42.120 --> 0:07:45.200 seven networks. So if you are a customer of any 0:07:45.240 --> 0:07:47.280 of those networks and you try to make a call 0:07:47.360 --> 0:07:49.760 to anyone else in the US, your call will not 0:07:49.800 --> 0:07:53.400 go through because it will be blocked, assuming that they're 0:07:53.440 --> 0:07:55.480 not on the same network you're on, in which case 0:07:56.160 --> 0:07:58.120 you know you might be able to have calls within 0:07:58.280 --> 0:08:01.600 your network, but not outside of it. The networks include 0:08:01.880 --> 0:08:05.560 a CABUS that's a k A B I S cloud 0:08:05.680 --> 0:08:11.480 for global you see Horizon Technology Group, Morse Communications, Sharon 0:08:11.640 --> 0:08:17.360 Telephone Company, and Southwest Arkansas Telecommunications and Technology. The clock 0:08:17.600 --> 0:08:19.880 is ticking for these companies to get up to speed, 0:08:19.920 --> 0:08:22.880 and hopefully at the end of all this, Americans will 0:08:22.920 --> 0:08:28.240 experience a significant decrease in robo calls. Another US agency 0:08:28.280 --> 0:08:30.560 that's gearing up to make an impact is the f 0:08:30.800 --> 0:08:35.439 TC or Federal Trade Commission. It announced an upcoming event 0:08:35.559 --> 0:08:39.480 on October nineteenth that will include experts in several fields, 0:08:39.480 --> 0:08:44.960 including marketing, psychology, and child development to determine quote what 0:08:45.240 --> 0:08:49.719 measures should be implemented to protect children from manipulative advertising 0:08:49.800 --> 0:08:53.160 end quote. So this isn't to try and find out 0:08:53.240 --> 0:08:58.240 if advertising is manipulative. It's already taken that as a given, 0:08:58.400 --> 0:09:01.520 which makes sense because it's like we have any lack 0:09:01.559 --> 0:09:05.800 of evidence on this. They're saying no advertising is manipulative. 0:09:05.840 --> 0:09:08.320 In fact, it's kind of its purpose sys to manipulate 0:09:08.440 --> 0:09:12.120 you into buying something, or convincing your parents in the 0:09:12.120 --> 0:09:17.079 case of children, to buy something. So the process they're 0:09:17.120 --> 0:09:20.920 gonna follow could include things like examining advertising that could 0:09:20.920 --> 0:09:23.280 be thought of as crossing the boundary to pass itself 0:09:23.320 --> 0:09:26.600 off as entertainment. So to a child, it might be 0:09:26.640 --> 0:09:29.199 as if they're watching a show, but that show itself 0:09:29.320 --> 0:09:32.320 is really a commercial. Honestly, if you were to ask 0:09:32.360 --> 0:09:34.680 me about my favorite shows as a kid, all of 0:09:34.720 --> 0:09:39.559 them were effectively just commercials for toys. Like all the 0:09:39.640 --> 0:09:42.800 shows I loved as a kid were really the thinnest 0:09:43.200 --> 0:09:46.560 of excuses to show off a bunch of characters and 0:09:46.720 --> 0:09:49.960 vehicles and sets that would ultimately be sold as play 0:09:49.960 --> 0:09:54.320 sets and and action figures and stuff. So I kind 0:09:54.320 --> 0:09:57.080 of I'm on board with this because I've definitely been 0:09:57.120 --> 0:09:59.480 the target of this sort of marketing in my own past, 0:09:59.480 --> 0:10:01.000 and I'm sure all of you out there have to 0:10:01.160 --> 0:10:04.320 at some extent. So the FCC is also involved with 0:10:04.360 --> 0:10:06.800 this particular process. The f c C is giving the 0:10:06.880 --> 0:10:09.760 public the opportunity to comment on issues that are brought 0:10:09.840 --> 0:10:13.320 up during this October nineteenth event. So after the event 0:10:13.880 --> 0:10:17.720 and until November eight, the general public will be allowed 0:10:17.760 --> 0:10:20.360 to make comments on a on the matter on a 0:10:20.400 --> 0:10:24.360 dedicated website. There's been a steadily growing push in the 0:10:24.440 --> 0:10:28.439 United States to establish more defined and firm privacy protections 0:10:28.480 --> 0:10:33.319 for U S citizens, particularly for children, which is nice. Uh, 0:10:33.640 --> 0:10:36.640 they have been so lax for so long that it's 0:10:36.760 --> 0:10:39.240 really an uphill battle at this point, because you know, 0:10:39.280 --> 0:10:43.960 we've kind of we kind of settled into complacency when 0:10:44.040 --> 0:10:48.160 it came to protecting our own privacy, and as a result, 0:10:48.240 --> 0:10:51.600 we have all these different systems in place that really 0:10:52.000 --> 0:10:56.760 prey upon our private information or have convinced us to 0:10:57.160 --> 0:11:01.880 essentially hand over that private information um and so correcting 0:11:01.880 --> 0:11:05.000 that now is is a lot harder than building in 0:11:05.000 --> 0:11:09.240 those protections from the beginning, but still better late than never. 0:11:09.679 --> 0:11:13.840 I guess okay, I've got a bunch more stories to 0:11:13.880 --> 0:11:15.640 go through, But before we get to any of those, 0:11:15.720 --> 0:11:28.440 let's take a quick break. We're back. Regular listeners of 0:11:28.520 --> 0:11:31.760 this show likely already know that I am something of 0:11:31.800 --> 0:11:36.120 a metaverse skeptic. I have not kept my opinions about 0:11:36.120 --> 0:11:40.680 the metaverse very you know, private, But in an interview 0:11:40.760 --> 0:11:45.439 with a Dutch publication called Bright Apple, CEO Tim Cook 0:11:45.640 --> 0:11:51.520 also expressed some skepticism and criticism about the whole metaverse craze. 0:11:52.400 --> 0:11:55.800 One of Cooke's arguments is that the metaverse really isn't 0:11:55.840 --> 0:12:00.760 a thing yet, and no one really has a firm 0:12:00.840 --> 0:12:04.120 definition of it. There are a lot of different visions, 0:12:04.960 --> 0:12:07.320 some of which have very little overlap with each other, 0:12:07.400 --> 0:12:10.240 that everyone is calling a metaverse. There's a lot of 0:12:10.360 --> 0:12:15.480 speculation around it, there are a lot of questionable businesses 0:12:15.520 --> 0:12:18.240 popping up around it, and really you've got dozens or 0:12:18.280 --> 0:12:21.720 even hundreds of different concepts about what the metaverse even 0:12:21.920 --> 0:12:25.520 is or will be. Then Tim Cook also argues that 0:12:25.559 --> 0:12:29.280 technologies like VR are not likely to pull us into 0:12:29.440 --> 0:12:34.840 using them extensively as the new way to interact online. 0:12:35.320 --> 0:12:38.920 We might use them on occasion for specific tasks, maybe 0:12:38.960 --> 0:12:43.319 like playing a VR game, or maybe watching some entertainment, 0:12:43.720 --> 0:12:47.600 or perhaps you know, if you're working in architecture, maybe 0:12:47.600 --> 0:12:51.240 you're using VR to you know, move around a virtual 0:12:51.320 --> 0:12:56.400 model or something. But Cook does not anticipate VR replacing 0:12:56.440 --> 0:13:00.400 how we currently interact with the online world, and I'm 0:13:00.480 --> 0:13:04.839 tempted to decide with Cook on this. However, I also 0:13:04.880 --> 0:13:09.040 admit I am getting older and I am more likely 0:13:09.120 --> 0:13:13.560 to resist some ideas as I get older. So it's 0:13:13.559 --> 0:13:17.680 also possible that old folks like myself are just way 0:13:17.720 --> 0:13:21.600 off base that you know, we don't see this as 0:13:21.640 --> 0:13:24.560 the future because we're too mired in the past. That 0:13:24.760 --> 0:13:29.400 is possible. However, right now, I see the metaverse as 0:13:29.600 --> 0:13:33.000 mostly a buzzword that is covering up a flurry of 0:13:33.040 --> 0:13:37.160 activity that's really geared to cash in on any sort 0:13:37.240 --> 0:13:41.640 of excitement about the idea of a metaverse, and I 0:13:41.679 --> 0:13:44.640 include stuff like an f t S and that again 0:13:44.679 --> 0:13:46.560 not to say that n f t S won't have 0:13:46.800 --> 0:13:52.439 a valid place, but they were really treated as speculative 0:13:52.520 --> 0:13:57.120 commodities early on, and that damaged the image of n 0:13:57.120 --> 0:14:01.200 f T s moving forward. Also Web three concepts, I 0:14:01.280 --> 0:14:04.240 find those to be pretty questionable in a lot of cases, 0:14:04.640 --> 0:14:08.440 and obviously there are more examples than just that. And 0:14:08.559 --> 0:14:12.199 I should also acknowledge that I Heart Radio has gotten 0:14:12.200 --> 0:14:17.280 into the metaverse playing ground on platforms like Roadblocks and Fortnite. 0:14:17.840 --> 0:14:20.840 I Heart Radio has created virtual spaces for folks to 0:14:20.880 --> 0:14:24.520 gather at within these games and these platforms where they 0:14:24.560 --> 0:14:28.480 can do stuff like do little virtual activities and even 0:14:28.680 --> 0:14:33.680 attend virtual concerts. Now, I admit I just don't get 0:14:33.720 --> 0:14:35.640 the appeal. I mean, I get the appeal of the 0:14:35.720 --> 0:14:39.560 gaming material, like the stuff that is kind of light, 0:14:39.920 --> 0:14:42.520 almost like it reminds me kind of a mobile games, 0:14:42.560 --> 0:14:45.520 Like it's that kind of level of game engagement. I 0:14:45.560 --> 0:14:48.520 get the appeal of that. I mean, these games exist 0:14:48.680 --> 0:14:52.760 because they tap into something that's very human. But I 0:14:52.800 --> 0:14:57.760 do not get the appeal of going to a virtual concert. Um. 0:14:57.800 --> 0:15:00.480 I did spend some time in the Roadblocks I Art area. 0:15:00.560 --> 0:15:03.600 I played around a bit, but you know, beyond some 0:15:04.320 --> 0:15:08.760 pretty simple game mechanics, it just wasn't my thing. So 0:15:08.840 --> 0:15:11.760 I kind of bounced from it. But again I have 0:15:11.920 --> 0:15:16.560 to admit, you know, I'm I'm descending into grumpy old 0:15:16.600 --> 0:15:20.480 man territory and that may just be the reason why 0:15:20.680 --> 0:15:24.760 I didn't get the appeal. Uh Also, I should add 0:15:24.800 --> 0:15:27.400 that I didn't recognize any of the music acts that 0:15:27.440 --> 0:15:31.520 we had, you know, upcoming concerts, because the stuff I 0:15:31.560 --> 0:15:34.960 listened to comes from a different era. And uh so, yeah, 0:15:34.960 --> 0:15:37.160 I look at the names of the artists who are 0:15:37.160 --> 0:15:41.040 having these virtual concerts and I don't recognize any of them. 0:15:41.040 --> 0:15:44.480 So I'm way out of the loop. And again I 0:15:44.480 --> 0:15:48.160 think that's cause I'm getting old. But yeah, I'm curious 0:15:48.240 --> 0:15:52.240 if any of you out there attending any virtual concerts, 0:15:52.960 --> 0:15:59.560 what did you think was it appealing? Was the experience compelling? Mike? 0:15:59.600 --> 0:16:03.160 What made it different from say, watching a video of 0:16:03.200 --> 0:16:07.240 a band play doesn't compare at all with being in 0:16:07.320 --> 0:16:10.520 a physical venue and watching a band play. I honestly 0:16:10.560 --> 0:16:12.960 don't know, because I have not experienced it yet, and 0:16:13.120 --> 0:16:15.200 if you have, I'm really curious to hear about it. 0:16:16.680 --> 0:16:20.200 Moving on, Google has steadily been winding down its products 0:16:20.200 --> 0:16:23.520 and services in China over the last several years, and 0:16:23.600 --> 0:16:28.520 this week Google shut down its Google Translates service within China, 0:16:28.720 --> 0:16:32.400 citing low usage as the reason behind this decision, which 0:16:32.520 --> 0:16:35.080 you know is pretty much the same reason Google chose 0:16:35.120 --> 0:16:39.000 to shut down the Stadia service in general. Now, in 0:16:39.080 --> 0:16:43.960 other cases with Google's products in China, Google either shut 0:16:44.000 --> 0:16:48.920 down services because of government interference, so you know, there's 0:16:48.960 --> 0:16:52.560 a lot of censorship issues that just made it untenable 0:16:52.680 --> 0:16:56.760 to continue operating those services in China, or it didn't 0:16:56.800 --> 0:16:59.000 really have a choice. The Chinese government just came in 0:16:59.080 --> 0:17:03.720 and started blocking different Google services like Google Maps and 0:17:03.760 --> 0:17:06.760 things like that. And I feel like the last decade 0:17:06.840 --> 0:17:10.000 or so has been one in which companies have realized 0:17:10.040 --> 0:17:13.840 there's a hefty cost to attempting to access the huge 0:17:13.960 --> 0:17:17.760 market of China. Anyway, Google still has a couple of 0:17:17.800 --> 0:17:21.480 products that are active in China, but it remains to 0:17:21.520 --> 0:17:23.919 be seen if those stick around for very long or 0:17:24.040 --> 0:17:29.400 if China just leans heavily on uh the native companies 0:17:29.440 --> 0:17:33.400 within the country to provide the services that Google would 0:17:33.480 --> 0:17:39.480 otherwise be involved with. Okay, let's talk about YouTube some more. 0:17:39.800 --> 0:17:43.080 We mentioned it previously in the Supreme Court case that 0:17:43.480 --> 0:17:48.399 is coming up, but now it's a totally different story. 0:17:48.640 --> 0:17:52.760 Whenever it comes to ads on YouTube, I actually have 0:17:52.840 --> 0:17:55.600 to read up on articles about it, because, as I 0:17:55.640 --> 0:17:59.720 mentioned in yesterday's episode, I'm actually subscribed to YouTube Premium, 0:17:59.760 --> 0:18:02.480 and has to be clear that's not how I started out. 0:18:02.520 --> 0:18:04.679 I didn't start out subscribe to that. I was actually 0:18:04.680 --> 0:18:08.920 subscribed to a totally different service that ultimately got folded 0:18:08.960 --> 0:18:11.880 into YouTube Premium, and my subscription just kind of rolled 0:18:11.920 --> 0:18:16.000 over and I kept it. Anyway, This means that when 0:18:16.040 --> 0:18:18.840 I go on YouTube, I don't actually experience ads on 0:18:18.880 --> 0:18:23.879 the site. So I didn't notice any ad creep or 0:18:24.080 --> 0:18:28.760 changes in ad placement because I've never seen them, which 0:18:28.800 --> 0:18:31.080 means that when I read about it, it really shocks me. 0:18:31.960 --> 0:18:36.520 So for example, in August, YouTube was reportedly testing out 0:18:37.960 --> 0:18:41.520 a different ad approach and sometimes had as many as 0:18:41.800 --> 0:18:45.359 ten unskippable ads before a video. For a lot of you, 0:18:45.440 --> 0:18:47.959 this probably isn't news. It was totally news to me 0:18:48.440 --> 0:18:52.000 and shocking. I could not believe that they would put 0:18:52.119 --> 0:18:55.919 up to ten unskippable ads before a video plays. That's 0:18:56.000 --> 0:19:00.159 just way too much, particularly as YouTube is starting to 0:19:00.480 --> 0:19:05.320 shift it's preferences once again. So by that, I mean 0:19:05.359 --> 0:19:10.120 for a very long time, YouTube prioritized short form videos. 0:19:10.400 --> 0:19:13.280 In fact, the site had a strict limit on how 0:19:13.320 --> 0:19:16.320 long videos could be. You know, you could only upload 0:19:16.400 --> 0:19:19.240 videos of up to ten minutes in length for the 0:19:19.280 --> 0:19:24.360 longest time, and then gradually YouTube relax that, and then 0:19:24.480 --> 0:19:30.000 YouTube's algorithms started to prioritize longer form content, probably because 0:19:30.000 --> 0:19:33.040 it would keep people on the platform longer, you know, 0:19:33.160 --> 0:19:36.200 they would stick to watch an entire video, so a 0:19:36.240 --> 0:19:41.160 long video was prioritized by the algorithm. But now we're 0:19:41.160 --> 0:19:44.600 starting to see a shift again more back to short 0:19:44.680 --> 0:19:46.879 form as YouTube tries to deal with the eight hundred 0:19:46.920 --> 0:19:50.920 pound gorilla in the room, which is TikTok. TikTok threatens 0:19:51.000 --> 0:19:54.840 all social video platforms out there, so Google, like a 0:19:54.880 --> 0:19:57.919 lot of them, are trying to kind of cater to 0:19:58.040 --> 0:20:03.639 that short form ex experience two maybe tempt some of 0:20:03.720 --> 0:20:08.159 TikTok's audience away to join the platform. Well, now Google 0:20:08.200 --> 0:20:10.680 appears to be testing out a new way to urge 0:20:10.680 --> 0:20:13.919 folks to subscribe to YouTube Premium by restricting four K 0:20:14.119 --> 0:20:18.760 resolution content to YouTube Premium subscribers. Uh caud rate nes 0:20:18.840 --> 0:20:21.640 store and I apologize for the butchering of that name 0:20:22.280 --> 0:20:26.320 from the site. Notebook Check wrote about this, saying that 0:20:26.560 --> 0:20:31.439 YouTube hasn't commented on anything related to this allegation, but 0:20:31.560 --> 0:20:35.760 that some users online in things like Reddit groups have 0:20:36.119 --> 0:20:40.119 claimed to encounter videos that offer a higher resolution version 0:20:40.240 --> 0:20:44.200 of that video, but with the message tap to upgrade, 0:20:44.520 --> 0:20:47.800 meaning you would only get access to that high resolution 0:20:48.040 --> 0:20:53.000 version if you upgraded to a YouTube premium account. This 0:20:53.320 --> 0:20:57.760 or was actually unable to replicate this issue themselves because 0:20:58.480 --> 0:21:01.160 they are in Romania and apparent only it's not being 0:21:01.200 --> 0:21:04.159 tested there. So this does look like if it is 0:21:04.200 --> 0:21:07.080 a thing, it's a limited test, and it's possible that 0:21:07.119 --> 0:21:09.800 it never goes anywhere else. It may be that they 0:21:09.840 --> 0:21:12.239 test it, they decided against it, and we never hear 0:21:12.240 --> 0:21:16.120 about it again. Or it could mean that the higher 0:21:16.160 --> 0:21:19.800 resolution versions of videos are going to be locked behind 0:21:19.840 --> 0:21:23.840 a subscription paywall in the future. Okay, I've got a 0:21:23.840 --> 0:21:26.160 few more stories I want to cover. Before I get 0:21:26.160 --> 0:21:37.960 to those, let's take another quick break for this next story, 0:21:37.960 --> 0:21:39.920 We're going back to China. There's a lot of flip 0:21:39.920 --> 0:21:42.840 flopping around here. It was hard to organize this episode 0:21:42.880 --> 0:21:45.719 because a lot of the stories had kind of a 0:21:45.720 --> 0:21:49.520 common thread to them, But ultimately, you know, you just 0:21:49.600 --> 0:21:52.480 do what you can do. So the U S. White 0:21:52.520 --> 0:21:55.600 House is soon going to release some more restrictions regarding 0:21:56.040 --> 0:22:01.200 what kind of U S tech can be sold in China. 0:22:01.400 --> 0:22:04.400 And this is all about a concern that the Chinese 0:22:04.480 --> 0:22:11.160 could use US produced technologies for Chinese military applications, and 0:22:11.200 --> 0:22:17.080 considering the United States is relationship with China, that stands 0:22:17.119 --> 0:22:22.359 as a potential problem. So the rumored list of restrictions 0:22:22.600 --> 0:22:27.320 includes expanding the type that we're placed on Huawei, which 0:22:27.320 --> 0:22:32.159 is a Chinese telecommunications company. So we're probably going to 0:22:32.240 --> 0:22:36.880 see some similar restrictions that will cover entities like Chinese 0:22:36.920 --> 0:22:42.520 government research laboratories, UM semiconductor companies in China, as well 0:22:42.560 --> 0:22:46.480 as academic institutions in the country. The move might also 0:22:46.560 --> 0:22:51.080 shift China's positions in various tech fields, like it's not 0:22:51.240 --> 0:22:57.160 just to prevent China from incorporating these US created technologies 0:22:57.160 --> 0:23:02.919 into Chinese military applications, but also to shift the balance 0:23:03.520 --> 0:23:09.359 of technological superiority in specific areas of tech like super 0:23:09.400 --> 0:23:14.080 computing or AI. You've probably heard about how AI is 0:23:14.760 --> 0:23:19.480 like the next UH weapons race and that China is 0:23:19.520 --> 0:23:22.280 a leader in the field. So you could also think 0:23:22.280 --> 0:23:26.000 of this as firing shots in the war of establishing 0:23:26.040 --> 0:23:31.760 technological superiority. Fun stuff, not long ago I talked about 0:23:31.800 --> 0:23:34.919 a proposed law in the EU that would require all 0:23:34.960 --> 0:23:40.560 smartphone manufacturers to adopt the USBC standard for charging. The 0:23:40.600 --> 0:23:43.960 same rule applies to devices like cameras and tablets and 0:23:44.000 --> 0:23:49.240 will eventually apply to laptops. So this law passed with 0:23:49.440 --> 0:23:54.639 overwhelming support. More than six representatives voted in favor, only 0:23:54.760 --> 0:23:59.760 thirteen voted against it. It's definitely something that has some 0:24:00.000 --> 0:24:04.800 EGG advantages. So for consumers, this means that their cables 0:24:04.880 --> 0:24:09.239 will fit all these basic devices interchangeably. Right, as long 0:24:09.280 --> 0:24:12.479 as you have USBC cables, you're good to go. It 0:24:12.520 --> 0:24:14.639 doesn't matter what device you have, it doesn't matter what 0:24:14.800 --> 0:24:18.280 manufacturer created it. Your cable is going to fit that device, 0:24:18.480 --> 0:24:20.159 so you don't have to sort through a mass of 0:24:20.280 --> 0:24:23.760 tangled wires trying to find the one that works with 0:24:23.800 --> 0:24:27.320 a specific gadget. This also can cut back on e 0:24:27.520 --> 0:24:31.919 waste because you don't need charging cables for each and 0:24:32.000 --> 0:24:35.199 everything because you're not gonna be charging everything all the 0:24:35.240 --> 0:24:39.680 time at the same time. You can use the same 0:24:39.720 --> 0:24:43.520 cable to charge multiple different devices over time. Uh really, 0:24:43.560 --> 0:24:44.760 you just have to buy a new one if an 0:24:44.800 --> 0:24:47.080 old one wears out or stops working, or if you 0:24:47.160 --> 0:24:49.520 do need to have an extra one because you've got 0:24:49.520 --> 0:24:52.480 a couple of devices that you use frequently enough that 0:24:52.600 --> 0:24:55.080 it would be inconvenient otherwise. But it does cut way 0:24:55.119 --> 0:24:58.679 back on e waste. However, for companies like Apple, it 0:24:58.720 --> 0:25:01.199 becomes a big headache and is having to accommodate the 0:25:01.320 --> 0:25:05.439 USBC standard and considering the form factor of products like 0:25:05.480 --> 0:25:10.320 the iPhone, that pretty much means abandoning the proprietary lightning 0:25:10.359 --> 0:25:13.800 port and switching to USBC, you know, as opposed to 0:25:13.800 --> 0:25:17.240 say supporting both at the same time. A lot of 0:25:17.320 --> 0:25:20.159 people claim that this is just long overdue and that 0:25:20.320 --> 0:25:23.400 this should have been done years ago. Honestly, I would 0:25:23.440 --> 0:25:26.120 like to see something like this pushed in America because 0:25:26.160 --> 0:25:28.840 it gets really frustrating when you try to track down 0:25:28.920 --> 0:25:32.840 a specific cable for a specific device. And while I've 0:25:32.840 --> 0:25:36.399 singled out Apple in this news item, in my own experience, 0:25:36.440 --> 0:25:40.240 the company that did this the most was Sony. Like 0:25:40.280 --> 0:25:43.199 I would get a Sony gadget and it would have 0:25:43.400 --> 0:25:46.240 its own onboard battery that you would charge by plugging 0:25:46.280 --> 0:25:50.800 in a you know, plug into the wall and attached 0:25:50.840 --> 0:25:53.240 the cable to the device. But it was always a 0:25:53.240 --> 0:25:57.280 proprietary cable that you know, you couldn't just get a 0:25:57.400 --> 0:26:00.280 USB cable. Those wouldn't work, It wouldn't fit the part. 0:26:01.119 --> 0:26:05.000 And yeah, Sony was really bad about that. So I 0:26:05.040 --> 0:26:06.639 would love to see this in America. It may not 0:26:06.800 --> 0:26:11.720 matter because companies may just switch worldwide to more of 0:26:11.760 --> 0:26:14.800 a universal support of USBC, because if you have to 0:26:14.800 --> 0:26:16.760 do it in Europe, you might as well do it everywhere, right, 0:26:17.080 --> 0:26:23.240 that's a possibility anyway. Starting in late all smartphones, tablets, 0:26:23.240 --> 0:26:26.760 and cameras sold in the EU must be USBC compatible. 0:26:27.080 --> 0:26:29.800 Laptop manufacturers will have a little more time to comply 0:26:29.920 --> 0:26:32.879