WEBVTT - Tech News: Exploring the Amazon (News) 0:00:04.400 --> 0:00:07.800 Welcome to tech Stuff, a production from I Heart Radio. 0:00:12.160 --> 0:00:14.920 Hey there, and welcome to tech Stuff. I'm your host, 0:00:15.000 --> 0:00:18.040 Jonathan Strickland. I'm an executive producer with I Heart Radio. 0:00:18.079 --> 0:00:20.479 And how the tech are Yet, it's time for the 0:00:20.520 --> 0:00:25.480 tech news for Tuesday, April five, twenty twenty two. Let's 0:00:25.600 --> 0:00:28.600 get to it now. A lot has happened over the 0:00:28.680 --> 0:00:31.360 last few days, and some of it was even real. 0:00:32.080 --> 0:00:34.480 I am, of course referencing the fact that between our 0:00:34.600 --> 0:00:38.760 last news episode and this one, we had April Fool's Day, 0:00:39.159 --> 0:00:42.199 a day where in the past we've seen numerous companies 0:00:42.240 --> 0:00:47.040 release joke news items, fake press releases. Some might go 0:00:47.200 --> 0:00:50.880 so far as to describe them as lies, and it's 0:00:50.920 --> 0:00:53.479 hard to argue against that. I think whether or not 0:00:53.520 --> 0:00:56.080 you think of them as lies really depends heavily on 0:00:56.080 --> 0:00:59.800 whether or not you thought the joke was funny. Anyway, 0:01:00.600 --> 0:01:04.720 On top of all that tomfoolery, some important real stuff 0:01:04.760 --> 0:01:08.880 actually happened. For example, Amazon workers at the JFK eight 0:01:09.000 --> 0:01:12.960 warehouse on Staten Island, New York, voted to form an 0:01:12.959 --> 0:01:16.520 employee union. This has been going on for quite some time. 0:01:16.600 --> 0:01:19.640 The votes are in and they've passed. They needed a 0:01:19.680 --> 0:01:22.919 simple majority, and that's what they got with two thousand, 0:01:23.000 --> 0:01:26.160 six hundred fifty four employees voting to form a union 0:01:26.560 --> 0:01:31.160 and two thousand, one thirty one voting against. So now 0:01:31.200 --> 0:01:34.560 the employees there can form an independent union and that 0:01:34.600 --> 0:01:37.479 will get the backing of the National Labor Relations Board 0:01:37.520 --> 0:01:40.560 here in the US. That union will then have the 0:01:40.600 --> 0:01:44.600 authority to negotiate collectively for all the employees that the 0:01:44.720 --> 0:01:48.480 union represents. This is something that Amazon has been fighting 0:01:48.560 --> 0:01:52.080 against for several years now, and we've heard numerous stories 0:01:52.120 --> 0:01:57.040 about the company attempting to dissuade employees from organizing. Meanwhile, 0:01:57.400 --> 0:02:00.720 in Bessemer, Alabama, we're still waiting to find now whether 0:02:00.800 --> 0:02:05.080 Amazon warehouse workers there have voted to unionize. They actually 0:02:05.520 --> 0:02:08.480 held the vote and they counted the vote, and the 0:02:08.560 --> 0:02:13.680 results came in and showed more confirmed votes against unionizing 0:02:13.919 --> 0:02:17.520 than four But there are also more than four hundred 0:02:17.600 --> 0:02:21.760 challenged votes in the balance, and that's actually enough to 0:02:21.840 --> 0:02:26.040 swing the vote in favor of unionizing if enough of 0:02:26.080 --> 0:02:29.519 them come out as being uh in favor of a union. 0:02:30.040 --> 0:02:32.680 So that all has to get resolved before we have 0:02:32.760 --> 0:02:35.560 a firm answer on whether or not a union is 0:02:35.600 --> 0:02:38.959 forming at that warehouse Uh, the matter is going to 0:02:39.040 --> 0:02:42.280 have to go to a judiciary authority to determine the outcome, 0:02:42.480 --> 0:02:44.079 so we'll have to wait a little bit longer to 0:02:44.120 --> 0:02:47.880 hear back on that. Um. This is a dramatic story 0:02:47.919 --> 0:02:50.080 that's been playing out for more than a year now, 0:02:50.760 --> 0:02:52.760 and it's also gonna be interesting to see if the 0:02:52.800 --> 0:02:55.880 Staten Island vote is going to prompt more employees both 0:02:55.919 --> 0:03:00.840 of Amazon and of other companies to consider unionizing. If so, 0:03:01.520 --> 0:03:04.800 we can see some pretty dramatic changes in business in 0:03:04.840 --> 0:03:08.840 general and the tech industry in particular. UM. And those changes, 0:03:09.040 --> 0:03:13.320 you know, it's hard to even understand the consequences of them. Uh. 0:03:13.440 --> 0:03:17.080 It could affect all sorts of things, from the speed 0:03:17.360 --> 0:03:21.519 of products getting rolled out to the price of them. 0:03:22.480 --> 0:03:25.520 But importantly, the thing we should keep in mind is 0:03:26.040 --> 0:03:29.799 the whole purpose of the unions is to guarantee that 0:03:29.840 --> 0:03:37.160 employees have a fair and uh, you know, equitable treatment 0:03:37.600 --> 0:03:41.240 from their employer. That's the important thing to remember. The 0:03:41.280 --> 0:03:45.720 Intercept reports that an Amazon worker chat app that is 0:03:45.840 --> 0:03:50.080 in development currently contains a list of banned words that includes, 0:03:50.200 --> 0:03:53.000 you know, stuff you would expect like profanity and slurs. 0:03:53.040 --> 0:03:55.600 Those are on the no No list and if you 0:03:55.600 --> 0:03:58.080 were to use this app and try to use those words, 0:03:58.120 --> 0:04:02.400 your message would presumably be locked. But that list also 0:04:02.440 --> 0:04:09.320 contains other words like union and ethics and restrooms, which 0:04:09.320 --> 0:04:13.360 should probably raise some red flags. Now, to clarify things 0:04:13.400 --> 0:04:16.839 a little bit, the purpose of this particular app, which 0:04:16.960 --> 0:04:21.120 Amazon officials say it may never be deployed, Like this 0:04:21.200 --> 0:04:23.880 might be a fuss over something that never actually is 0:04:24.040 --> 0:04:27.839 used because it is still in development, But the purpose 0:04:28.440 --> 0:04:30.960 is to let employees give shoutouts to each other. So, 0:04:31.000 --> 0:04:35.000 in other words, it's all about praising other employees so 0:04:35.160 --> 0:04:39.640 that they are recognized for their contributions as such, say 0:04:39.640 --> 0:04:42.440 Amazon reps, the company wants to weed out words and 0:04:42.480 --> 0:04:45.679 phrases that could potentially be a downer or allow someone 0:04:45.720 --> 0:04:50.440 to abuse the app, and you know, might prevent someone 0:04:50.480 --> 0:04:53.320 from saying something like, hey, Bob, you did great work today. 0:04:53.480 --> 0:04:55.360 Sorry you have to pee in a bottle in order 0:04:55.400 --> 0:04:59.680 to make quota. Now, as you imagine, acknowledging reality in 0:04:59.680 --> 0:05:03.159 an Amazon warehouse can really be a drag sometimes and 0:05:03.200 --> 0:05:05.679 I'm being a bit harsh, but then the whole endeavor 0:05:05.760 --> 0:05:09.760 seems insincere to me. Then again, the app still is 0:05:09.800 --> 0:05:13.440 in development. It could change significantly before it's rolled out, 0:05:13.520 --> 0:05:16.960 and again, it may never be rolled out, so I 0:05:17.000 --> 0:05:19.800 really shouldn't rush to judge. I think I just do 0:05:19.920 --> 0:05:24.240 because Amazon has this history of trying to suppress employee organization, 0:05:24.839 --> 0:05:30.599 and so this news story strikes me as a little insidious. Now, 0:05:30.640 --> 0:05:34.679 normally I save space stuff for the end of news episodes, 0:05:34.720 --> 0:05:36.440 and we will have some space stuff at the end 0:05:36.440 --> 0:05:40.039 of this one. But this particular space story relates to Amazon, 0:05:40.360 --> 0:05:42.719 so I thought I would round out the trilogy of 0:05:42.800 --> 0:05:47.600 Amazon news stories. The company has secured eighty three launches 0:05:47.880 --> 0:05:51.960 over the next five years. These launches relate to the 0:05:52.000 --> 0:05:55.800 company's Project Kiper, which is similar to space x is 0:05:56.040 --> 0:06:02.039 starlink product. Amazon plans to launch around three thousand satellites 0:06:02.240 --> 0:06:06.520 into low Earth orbit, and the satellites will provide Internet access. 0:06:07.120 --> 0:06:09.839 So customers on Earth will presumably get some sort of 0:06:10.160 --> 0:06:14.560 like satellite antenna dish kit to set up and that 0:06:14.600 --> 0:06:17.480 will track satellites as they move overhead and the satellites 0:06:17.520 --> 0:06:22.120 will provide Internet connectivity to the customers. Satellite provided internet 0:06:22.160 --> 0:06:25.240 is not a new thing, obviously, but in some regions, 0:06:25.240 --> 0:06:29.400 like a lot of regions, really satellite service can be 0:06:29.440 --> 0:06:33.320 your only real Internet solution for you know, a broadband 0:06:33.360 --> 0:06:37.400 access and they rarely have very many competitors in those spaces. 0:06:38.000 --> 0:06:41.080 UM and satellite connections do have a couple of downsides, 0:06:41.120 --> 0:06:43.680 the main one being that due to the distance between 0:06:43.680 --> 0:06:47.120 your antenna and the satellite and everything else down here 0:06:47.160 --> 0:06:51.320 on Earth, there can be noticeable latency ak a delay 0:06:51.360 --> 0:06:55.000 when you want to do stuff. The bandwidth itself can 0:06:55.040 --> 0:06:57.839 be pretty decent, so once things are initiated, like once 0:06:57.880 --> 0:07:01.159 you start a download the down it can move pretty quickly, 0:07:01.520 --> 0:07:05.440 but there's still a lag between when you command something 0:07:05.480 --> 0:07:07.880 like when you click on a download link and when 0:07:07.880 --> 0:07:11.800 it actually happens because there's all that distance between the 0:07:11.840 --> 0:07:13.960 Earth and the satellite. You know, even at the speed 0:07:13.960 --> 0:07:16.600 of light, it takes a little time for that to 0:07:16.640 --> 0:07:18.200 go through and it can be long enough for you 0:07:18.240 --> 0:07:21.000 to notice it. So that's a bit of a downside. 0:07:21.040 --> 0:07:24.760 It means also that certain things like high end streaming 0:07:24.800 --> 0:07:30.280 gaming is not really viable on a satellite communication. Still, 0:07:30.320 --> 0:07:33.000 for some folks in rural and out of the way locations, 0:07:33.080 --> 0:07:36.920 satellite internet is often the best option for Internet service. UH. 0:07:36.960 --> 0:07:40.400 There are other issues that this raises, like, just like 0:07:40.400 --> 0:07:44.480 with starlink UH, the idea of launching thousands of satellites 0:07:44.480 --> 0:07:48.680 into low Earth orbit concerns scientists on Earth who are 0:07:48.720 --> 0:07:53.840 worried that they will interfere with astronomical observations and such. 0:07:54.520 --> 0:07:57.520 But that's where we are now. Over the next five years, 0:07:57.760 --> 0:08:02.080 Amazon plans on launching the satellites in those three launches, 0:08:02.200 --> 0:08:05.280 so we'll have to see how that develops. Moving on, 0:08:05.760 --> 0:08:09.920 Elon Musk, the you know man famous for companies like 0:08:09.960 --> 0:08:13.240 Tesla and SpaceX, can add yet another title to his 0:08:13.320 --> 0:08:16.560 business card. He is now a member of Twitter's board 0:08:16.600 --> 0:08:20.640 of directors. Musk has accumulated nine point to five per 0:08:20.720 --> 0:08:24.680 cent of Twitter ownership, which makes him the largest shareholder 0:08:24.800 --> 0:08:28.040 in Twitter. He also posted a poll not too long 0:08:28.040 --> 0:08:31.160 ago to his followers asking if they thought Twitter rigorously 0:08:31.240 --> 0:08:35.280 adheres to the ideals of free speech, and a little 0:08:35.280 --> 0:08:38.560 more than two thirds of the respondents, which numbered more 0:08:38.559 --> 0:08:42.840 than two million people, said no. This has naturally led 0:08:42.880 --> 0:08:46.880 some people to worry that Musk might use his position 0:08:46.920 --> 0:08:51.960 on the board to maybe reverse some decisions regarding blocking 0:08:52.040 --> 0:08:55.840 certain accounts that were found to be abusive or responsible 0:08:55.880 --> 0:08:59.280 for spreading misinformation Like there. There's worried that Musk might 0:08:59.360 --> 0:09:02.880 undermine uh certain moves that Twitter has made in order 0:09:02.920 --> 0:09:05.880 to fight back against those things. He also pulled his 0:09:05.960 --> 0:09:09.440 followers asking if they might like an edit button, something 0:09:09.520 --> 0:09:12.520 that long time Twitter users have wanted for years. Um 0:09:12.720 --> 0:09:15.960 Musk spent nearly three billion dollars to acquire his stake 0:09:16.000 --> 0:09:18.760 in Twitter, which seems like a pretty steep price for 0:09:18.840 --> 0:09:21.839 me to buy an edit button, but there you have it. 0:09:23.800 --> 0:09:29.240 BuzzFeed News has an interesting article titled TikTok's parent byte Dance, 0:09:29.400 --> 0:09:33.439 made fake accounts with content scraped from Instagram and Snapchat. 0:09:33.520 --> 0:09:37.719 Former employees say, uh, that's a lengthy title, and it's 0:09:37.720 --> 0:09:40.800 a lengthy article, but it's well worth a read. It's 0:09:41.360 --> 0:09:45.360 also about something that happened around five years ago, so 0:09:45.640 --> 0:09:49.080 it's not like this is, you know, fresh news, but 0:09:49.320 --> 0:09:53.000 it's something that we've gotten details about recently. So five 0:09:53.080 --> 0:09:55.880 years ago is when byte Dance acquired a company called 0:09:56.040 --> 0:10:00.120 flip a Gram. Flip Agram was a photo and video 0:10:00.320 --> 0:10:05.360 sharing service, and according to buzzfeeds sources, byte Dance then 0:10:05.440 --> 0:10:10.160 scraped content off of other services, including Instagram, in order 0:10:10.200 --> 0:10:14.280 to upload that content to flip Agram, and in the 0:10:14.320 --> 0:10:18.200 process also created fake accounts that would host that content, 0:10:18.280 --> 0:10:21.440 so they were taking someone else's videos, creating a fake 0:10:21.480 --> 0:10:25.640 account on Flipogram, and then putting those videos onto that account. 0:10:26.120 --> 0:10:29.360 So why did byte Dance do this, Well, one reason 0:10:29.480 --> 0:10:32.000 might have been to test out what kinds of content 0:10:32.080 --> 0:10:35.760 would perform best on the platform, sort of like industry research, 0:10:36.360 --> 0:10:41.120 and byte Dance was primarily interested in targeting American customers, 0:10:41.200 --> 0:10:44.760 so stealing content from other sources and putting it up 0:10:44.760 --> 0:10:49.040 on Flipogram was a type of research into the American market. 0:10:49.440 --> 0:10:51.440 This would inform the company as to what types of 0:10:51.480 --> 0:10:54.679 content were most likely to draw more people to Flipogram. 0:10:54.720 --> 0:10:57.600 The company could even inflate the view numbers on such content, 0:10:57.760 --> 0:11:02.120 giving those account a boost in an effort to attract 0:11:02.160 --> 0:11:05.240 new users and guide existing once towards the types of 0:11:05.320 --> 0:11:08.520 content that we're performing best on the platform. So, in 0:11:08.559 --> 0:11:11.120 other words, you might look at at something and say, oh, 0:11:11.200 --> 0:11:13.800 this is a thousand likes on it, and it turns 0:11:13.840 --> 0:11:16.520 out that no, maybe it was only like two hundred likes, 0:11:16.520 --> 0:11:20.160 and then the company boosted that. Now. Another reason that 0:11:20.240 --> 0:11:23.840 they were scraping content might have just been to create inventory. 0:11:24.200 --> 0:11:28.800 Social apps gain value from active users and also their 0:11:28.920 --> 0:11:31.600 user generated content. So if you have a social app 0:11:31.679 --> 0:11:33.800 but no one's on it, then it's worthless. Right. The 0:11:33.840 --> 0:11:36.760 social app is only worth anything if there are people 0:11:36.840 --> 0:11:39.760 on it and that they're doing stuff there. So the 0:11:39.800 --> 0:11:42.480 app on its own is just a platform, and empty 0:11:42.480 --> 0:11:45.160 platforms are not very interesting. This is one of the 0:11:45.200 --> 0:11:48.520 big reasons why it's hard for new social networking platforms 0:11:48.520 --> 0:11:52.040 to really make a big impact. The value of Facebook 0:11:52.400 --> 0:11:56.720 to its user base is typically voiced in a way 0:11:56.760 --> 0:11:59.920 that's like, that's where everyone I know happens to be. 0:12:00.240 --> 0:12:02.920 So that's why I'm on Facebook, at least for those 0:12:02.960 --> 0:12:05.240 of us who are in a certain age range, because 0:12:05.280 --> 0:12:08.480 it's well documented that younger people are not flocking to 0:12:08.559 --> 0:12:13.280 Facebook anyway. The practice of scraping is generally looked down upon, 0:12:13.480 --> 0:12:17.599 and sometimes it's litigated, And in this particular case, I 0:12:17.600 --> 0:12:21.240 would argue it's even worse because it involves taking content 0:12:21.320 --> 0:12:25.880 that does not belong to Bite Dance without permission and 0:12:25.920 --> 0:12:29.080 then falsely posting it elsewhere using a fake profile. So 0:12:29.120 --> 0:12:32.120 we've seen companies like Meta come down hard on on 0:12:32.400 --> 0:12:36.440 researchers who are scraping data off public profiles just for 0:12:36.520 --> 0:12:40.720 the purposes of conducting research. Facebook or Meta has said 0:12:40.800 --> 0:12:45.239 that's expressly against company policy, and they've shut down researcher 0:12:45.360 --> 0:12:48.559 profiles for doing that, even if the research itself had 0:12:48.920 --> 0:12:53.440 real scholastic value to it. You can bet that Meta 0:12:53.559 --> 0:12:58.400 really doesn't like it when some other corporation is scraping 0:12:58.440 --> 0:13:01.560 content off of their their services in an effort to 0:13:01.559 --> 0:13:05.840 build competing products. Anyway, the article is a really good read. 0:13:06.160 --> 0:13:08.120 It goes into much more detail on the matter and 0:13:08.160 --> 0:13:11.560 covers other related stuff as well. I recommend you check 0:13:11.600 --> 0:13:14.480 it out. We've got some more news items to cover, 0:13:14.559 --> 0:13:16.640 but before we get to that, let's take a quick break. 0:13:24.600 --> 0:13:27.559 I've talked a lot in recent episodes about how Apple's 0:13:27.640 --> 0:13:31.560 policy of requiring app developers to use Apple's own payment 0:13:31.640 --> 0:13:35.199 processing system is landing the company in hot water around 0:13:35.240 --> 0:13:38.200 the world. You might remember that Dutch authorities have find 0:13:38.240 --> 0:13:43.720 Apple fifty million euro for that and are considering doing more. Well. 0:13:44.000 --> 0:13:48.480 We also have to remember that Google has very similar requirements, 0:13:48.840 --> 0:13:53.160 but until recently, the company wasn't enforcing those requirements with 0:13:53.200 --> 0:13:57.360 any particular fervor. In other words, for a while, companies 0:13:57.400 --> 0:14:00.080 can kind of get away with just ignoring that requirement it, 0:14:00.360 --> 0:14:04.080 but that has changed now. Companies like Amazon and Barnes 0:14:04.160 --> 0:14:06.400 Noble have found themselves at a point where they either 0:14:06.520 --> 0:14:10.960 have to accept Google's policy, which is that all digital 0:14:11.000 --> 0:14:15.520 transactions have to go through Google Plays building system, or 0:14:15.960 --> 0:14:20.960 they can't offer digital transactions through apps. The policy does 0:14:21.000 --> 0:14:24.920 not affect stuff like ordering physical goods. So if you 0:14:24.960 --> 0:14:26.960 know you were using an app in order to order 0:14:27.080 --> 0:14:29.600 a hard copy of a book from Barnes and Noble, 0:14:29.800 --> 0:14:32.480 Barnes and Noble could still use its preferred payment processing 0:14:32.520 --> 0:14:36.360 system for that like that would not be against the 0:14:36.440 --> 0:14:39.520 rules because you're ordering something physical. It's only if it 0:14:39.560 --> 0:14:42.120 were a digital copy of the book that you would 0:14:42.160 --> 0:14:47.080 have to go through Google Plays billing system. So anyway, 0:14:47.120 --> 0:14:52.320 now you can't use the Barnes and Noble Enook Book 0:14:52.360 --> 0:14:55.640 Reader to order new e books. It has just become 0:14:55.640 --> 0:14:59.520 a tablet. It is no longer used to to order 0:14:59.520 --> 0:15:04.680 and down load digital books to your device. In Amazon's case, 0:15:05.160 --> 0:15:08.760 we're mostly talking about stuff like Audible content, so audio 0:15:08.880 --> 0:15:14.000 books and other audio content off of Audible can no 0:15:14.080 --> 0:15:19.960 longer be purchased unless you're going through Google Play. So 0:15:20.440 --> 0:15:24.160 you can still buy credits for Audible through the Audible app, 0:15:24.680 --> 0:15:26.840 but you won't be able to buy titles using a 0:15:26.880 --> 0:15:30.960 credit or debit card. Directly through the app. Audible memberships 0:15:30.960 --> 0:15:34.680 will be handled through Google Play billing. And Google has 0:15:34.720 --> 0:15:39.200 a different arrangement in place for a very small number 0:15:39.360 --> 0:15:43.880 of companies, notably Spotify as one of those where it's 0:15:43.920 --> 0:15:48.920 testing a pilot program, but it has not extended that 0:15:49.040 --> 0:15:52.680 arrangement to companies like Barnes and Noble and Amazon. Now 0:15:53.320 --> 0:15:56.200 I imagine we'll see some legal challenges to Google's policy 0:15:56.280 --> 0:15:58.920 similar to what we're seeing with Apple, and that the 0:15:59.000 --> 0:16:03.080 Spotify arrangement, which is where Google will allow alternate payment 0:16:03.120 --> 0:16:05.520 systems to be included in apps as long as those 0:16:05.560 --> 0:16:09.000 apps also include Google Play, like you have to have 0:16:09.120 --> 0:16:12.040 the official Google building system as an option in there, 0:16:12.880 --> 0:16:16.360 even in this pilot program. But I imagined that is 0:16:16.400 --> 0:16:19.600 what we're going to see become the norm overtime. Like 0:16:19.640 --> 0:16:21.360 it's just I think that's just gonna be the way 0:16:21.400 --> 0:16:24.600 it has to go. Otherwise, Google is going to be 0:16:24.640 --> 0:16:28.520 facing some pretty serious antitrust legislation around the world, just 0:16:28.560 --> 0:16:32.760 as Apple has been. German authorities concluded a month's long 0:16:32.840 --> 0:16:36.920 investigation into a dark web ring by seizing that rings 0:16:37.080 --> 0:16:42.520 server infrastructure within Germany. Those servers powered this ring's dark 0:16:42.600 --> 0:16:46.120 web marketplace, so a black market on the dark web. 0:16:47.240 --> 0:16:49.840 It appeared to be a market that was Russian and 0:16:49.920 --> 0:16:53.440 origin because the primary language in the marketplace was Russian 0:16:53.960 --> 0:16:57.280 and according to the authorities, the market was a popular 0:16:57.360 --> 0:17:01.080 place to deal in such illegal materials as prohibited drugs, 0:17:01.840 --> 0:17:07.840 fraudulent documents, and stolen data, among other illegal things. So 0:17:07.880 --> 0:17:10.600 in addition to shutting down the market, the authorities also 0:17:10.640 --> 0:17:14.600 sees more than twenty five million dollars worth of cryptocurrency. 0:17:14.800 --> 0:17:17.560 Million dollars is a lot of money, but it's loose 0:17:17.680 --> 0:17:19.920 change when you look at how much business passed through 0:17:19.960 --> 0:17:24.639 the market just back in According to prosecutors, that was 0:17:24.680 --> 0:17:31.000 that around one point to three billion euros that year. Yauza. Now, 0:17:31.040 --> 0:17:34.480 typically the shutdown of markets like this one, which the 0:17:34.520 --> 0:17:38.840 authorities called the Hydra market, that usually ends up just 0:17:38.880 --> 0:17:41.880 being a bump in the road for illegal activity and 0:17:41.960 --> 0:17:44.280 black markets in general. It's usually just a matter of 0:17:44.320 --> 0:17:48.160 time before some other market takes its place. We've seen 0:17:48.200 --> 0:17:50.560 that in the past with the famous dark web markets 0:17:50.640 --> 0:17:53.960 like the Silk Road. The United States has formed a 0:17:53.960 --> 0:17:57.680 new department called the Bureau of Cyberspace and Digital Policy 0:17:57.880 --> 0:18:00.920 or c d P. According to the US State Department, 0:18:01.280 --> 0:18:07.600 this organization will quote address the national security challenges, economic opportunities, 0:18:07.800 --> 0:18:13.520 and implications for US values associated with cyberspace, digital technologies, 0:18:13.560 --> 0:18:18.639 and digital policy end quote. It will also include three 0:18:18.760 --> 0:18:22.640 policy units within the bureau. There will be the International 0:18:22.680 --> 0:18:28.800 Information and Communications Policy, the International Cyberspace Security Unit, and 0:18:28.840 --> 0:18:32.480 the Digital Freedom Unit. The U. S. Senate will have 0:18:32.560 --> 0:18:36.320 the responsibility to appoint the head of the bureau, which 0:18:36.320 --> 0:18:39.960 will be known as an ambassador at large. The State 0:18:40.000 --> 0:18:44.399 Department has already transferred about sixty employees to the new bureau, 0:18:44.480 --> 0:18:47.000 and these are employees who are already working in departments 0:18:47.040 --> 0:18:52.760 relating to international communications and cyber coordination projects. The Department 0:18:52.800 --> 0:18:56.120 also plans to fill out another thirty or so positions, 0:18:56.119 --> 0:18:58.520 which will bring up the total staff for this department 0:18:58.560 --> 0:19:03.320 to nearly one. Honestly, when I first read this news item, 0:19:03.359 --> 0:19:07.560 my thought, wait, we didn't already have this, am I 0:19:07.560 --> 0:19:10.160 sure this news item didn't come out like twenty years ago, 0:19:10.680 --> 0:19:13.480 But yeah, this is a new thing, and I think 0:19:13.480 --> 0:19:17.840 it's safe to say it's long past do. My hope 0:19:17.960 --> 0:19:20.320 is that the staff will include experts who can go 0:19:20.359 --> 0:19:24.600 on to provide useful insight into digital matters, because I'm 0:19:24.600 --> 0:19:28.760 sure You've all seen examples of politicians who just they're 0:19:28.880 --> 0:19:33.640 they're in charge of creating legislation that affects the tech sector, 0:19:34.440 --> 0:19:38.560 but they themselves lack any savvy when it comes to technology. 0:19:38.600 --> 0:19:41.040 A lot of times we see that kind of legislation 0:19:41.840 --> 0:19:46.119 not just failed to solve a problem, which frequently is 0:19:46.119 --> 0:19:50.160 the case, sometimes they create new problems or they'll make 0:19:50.200 --> 0:19:54.119 an existing problem a worse one. So my hope is, 0:19:54.640 --> 0:19:56.679 and I realized this is a long shot, but my 0:19:56.760 --> 0:20:00.920 hope is that this bureau will really help be an 0:20:00.920 --> 0:20:04.439 asset so that, uh, when, when, when it comes to 0:20:04.520 --> 0:20:10.000 forming legislation that revolves around the Internet in particular, that 0:20:10.080 --> 0:20:12.680 we have a more informed approach and one that's more 0:20:12.800 --> 0:20:16.680 likely to succeed and to achieve the actual goal of 0:20:16.720 --> 0:20:20.960 the proposed legislation. Uh. That's that's asking a lot, but 0:20:21.560 --> 0:20:25.879 you know, hope. Springs Eternal CNN Business has an interesting 0:20:25.920 --> 0:20:30.840 piece about Axie Infinity and a recent hack that has 0:20:31.320 --> 0:20:35.560 affected that game and the company behind it. The article 0:20:35.680 --> 0:20:40.280 is titled After a six hundred twenty five million dollar hack, 0:20:40.760 --> 0:20:45.200 the party must go on And I think I might 0:20:45.240 --> 0:20:48.320 have to do a full episode on sky Mavis, that's 0:20:48.359 --> 0:20:53.199 the company that developed the game Axi Infinity, and to 0:20:53.359 --> 0:20:56.320 cover that not just that company, but other companies like it, 0:20:56.359 --> 0:20:59.280 because these are businesses that are built on top of 0:20:59.320 --> 0:21:05.520 the cryptome mining industry, and the value proposition of the 0:21:06.080 --> 0:21:11.479 company is that by participating in its products, you end 0:21:11.560 --> 0:21:15.760 up earning cryptocurrency, the idea being that you make money 0:21:15.800 --> 0:21:20.359 by using the thing. So in the case of Axi Infinity, 0:21:20.480 --> 0:21:24.320 that's a game in which players collect digital pets essentially 0:21:24.359 --> 0:21:28.760 called axes. It's in some ways similar to something like Pokemon, 0:21:29.480 --> 0:21:32.560 and in order to play the game, you first have 0:21:32.680 --> 0:21:38.000 to either purchase or rent three axis for yourself. The 0:21:38.040 --> 0:21:40.320 money that you spend in order to enter the game 0:21:40.600 --> 0:21:44.560 essentially goes into a crypto network called the Ronan network, 0:21:45.200 --> 0:21:48.919 and playing the game powers the crypto mining efforts, and 0:21:49.000 --> 0:21:52.560 you earn cryptocurrency through playing. And I really want to 0:21:52.560 --> 0:21:55.440 look into this further because just from a casual glance, 0:21:56.160 --> 0:21:59.120 it comes across to me kind of like a pyramid 0:21:59.200 --> 0:22:02.159 scheme or a an Zi scheme in particular, and that 0:22:02.240 --> 0:22:05.200 in order for this thing to keep moving ahead, you 0:22:05.280 --> 0:22:09.240 constantly need a fresh influx of new players to buy 0:22:09.400 --> 0:22:13.760 into it. Um. But the company, I should stress, has 0:22:13.840 --> 0:22:17.119 dismissed those criticisms and said, no, it's not a Ponzi scheme. 0:22:17.320 --> 0:22:19.919 It's not that, and that the aim is to have 0:22:19.960 --> 0:22:25.320 a self perpetuating system that presumably would not require having 0:22:25.480 --> 0:22:29.200 new people signing on just to keep it going. Anyway, 0:22:29.320 --> 0:22:31.800 That's really just part of the story, that little bit, 0:22:31.960 --> 0:22:34.280 like just the fact that this is a thing that 0:22:34.359 --> 0:22:36.240 I wasn't really aware of. That was part of the 0:22:36.280 --> 0:22:38.919 story for me. But the larger part in the article 0:22:39.440 --> 0:22:42.119 is that the Ronan network was the target of a 0:22:42.200 --> 0:22:45.760 massive hack and as a result, the hackers were able 0:22:45.760 --> 0:22:49.960 to steal about twenty million dollars in USDC and around 0:22:49.960 --> 0:22:54.440 a hundred seventy three thousand ether on the Ethereum blockchain, 0:22:54.720 --> 0:22:57.359 which is a big old yikes now. The news item 0:22:57.400 --> 0:23:00.639 also describes that despite activity across the own a network 0:23:00.720 --> 0:23:04.199 freezing while the company tries to resolve these issues, and 0:23:04.240 --> 0:23:06.199 we don't know yet if they will be able to 0:23:06.240 --> 0:23:09.320 recover any of that stolen money. Hopefully they will, but 0:23:09.359 --> 0:23:11.720 we don't know if that's going to happen or not. Uh. 0:23:11.960 --> 0:23:15.600 We still see enthusiasts supporting the game and the company, 0:23:16.200 --> 0:23:20.480 which is really enthusiastic. Now I've got feelings about that, 0:23:20.760 --> 0:23:24.800 but I haven't played the game. I am also notably 0:23:24.920 --> 0:23:28.600 not a fan of crypto in general, and I definitely 0:23:28.640 --> 0:23:32.800 have a bias against this whole sort of thing, and 0:23:32.840 --> 0:23:35.760 I readily admit that. But I do plan to look 0:23:35.960 --> 0:23:39.120 into these types of games and companies further to get 0:23:39.119 --> 0:23:43.120 a better understanding of them, how they work, how secure 0:23:43.160 --> 0:23:46.240 they are. Uh, and so there will be an episode 0:23:46.320 --> 0:23:51.439 about these in the future. I will definitely do that. Okay, 0:23:51.480 --> 0:23:54.320 we've got a few more stories to cover before we 0:23:54.400 --> 0:24:04.399 get into those. Let's take another quick break. We're back. 0:24:04.960 --> 0:24:09.840 According to stat Counter, which analyzes stuff like web browser 0:24:09.960 --> 0:24:15.600 market share, Microsoft's browser Edge managed to edge out Apple's 0:24:15.760 --> 0:24:19.520 Safari browser to become the second most popular browser on 0:24:19.560 --> 0:24:23.080 the Internet. But we've got a major caveat to talk about. 0:24:23.200 --> 0:24:28.480 We're specifically talking about desktop browsers, so we're not including 0:24:28.880 --> 0:24:32.920 mobile devices at all in this, just browsers that are 0:24:32.960 --> 0:24:37.159 on desktop and laptop computers. Now in the lead with 0:24:37.240 --> 0:24:41.560 a bullet is Google's Chrome browser, that maintains around sixty 0:24:43.040 --> 0:24:46.960 of the market share of all dusktop browsers. Edge is 0:24:47.000 --> 0:24:50.040 at nine point six five, which puts it slightly ahead 0:24:50.040 --> 0:24:53.119 of Safari, which is sitting at seven point five seven 0:24:54.520 --> 0:24:57.879 and again, once you factor in mobile devices, the story 0:24:57.960 --> 0:25:02.840 changes dramatically. At that point, Chrome's share drops slightly to 0:25:02.960 --> 0:25:06.040 sixty four point five percent, Edge goes all the way 0:25:06.040 --> 0:25:08.639 down to four point oh five percent, and so far 0:25:08.720 --> 0:25:11.240 he jumps up to eight team point eight four percent 0:25:11.320 --> 0:25:15.359 thanks to all those iPhones out there. Still, I'm sure 0:25:15.400 --> 0:25:18.359 Microsoft is happy to see the performance climb on desktops, 0:25:18.440 --> 0:25:22.240 which is nearly where all the focus of Microsoft is like, 0:25:23.680 --> 0:25:27.080 that's their bread and butter is the desktop world now. 0:25:27.160 --> 0:25:30.760 Part of the reason for the jump could be because 0:25:31.040 --> 0:25:35.040 of Windows eleven. The adoption rate of Windows eleven hasn't 0:25:35.080 --> 0:25:39.959 been spectacular. It has underperformed and also has shown signs 0:25:40.000 --> 0:25:44.000 of already having plateaued. But those who did purchase new 0:25:44.040 --> 0:25:48.240