Tech Digest daily roundup: Sharing Netflix password may be illegal, claims UK government
Users of online streaming platforms such as Netflix could be breaking the law by sharing their account with other households, a government agency has said. The Intellectual Property Office (IPO) said password sharing may amount to “secondary copyright infringement”. In guidance published this week, the IPO said: “Pasting internet images into your social media without permission, or accessing films, tv series or live sports events through Kodi boxes, hacked Fire Sticks or apps without paying a subscription is an infringement of copyright and you may be committing a crime.” The guidance had earlier included a reference to password sharing, but the agency quickly removed it. Independent
The Guardian newspaper has come under a suspected ransomware attack. It said there had been a “serious incident” affecting its IT systems in the last 24 hours, with disruption to “behind the scenes services”. The company said it was continuing to publish globally to its website – one of the most visited news sites in the world – and was “confident” it could still print the physical paper. Staff have been told not to go into the office and to work from home. In a statement, the Guardian said: “Our technology teams have been working to deal with all aspects of this incident, with the vast majority of our staff able to work from home as we did during the pandemic. BBC
Even those staunch Android phone users have to admit that Apple TV+ delivers some great content. While you’re unlikely to see someone swap their Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra for an iPhone 14 Pro Max anytime soon, I’m sure they won’t be able to resist adding the Apple TV app, if it comes to Android. According to Twitter tipster ShrimpApplePro, Apple TV from Android is currently in internal Beta testing, so could be landing with us early in 2023. They also suggest an update on the already present Apple Music app is coming too, which has proved a popular transition to Android. T3.com
The Federal Trade Commission isn’t the only body trying to stop the Activision Blizzard acquisition in the US, as gamers file their own lawsuit. If you’re sick of hearing about Microsoft’s attempt to buy Activision Blizzard we’re afraid the issue is not going away and will rumble on for most of next year as well, and perhaps beyond. Most members of the public in the UK…are in favour of the deal but EU and US regulators seem to be much more sceptical, to the point where the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) planned a lawsuit to block it. Now a group of ordinary US citizens are attempting something similar, with a private antitrust action in California that argues that the acquisition will create a monopoly. Metro
Google improved Wear OS immensely when it collaborated with Samsung. It looks like the company wants to improve Wear OS even further. It has acquired KoruLab, a Finland-based company that has expertise in making user interfaces for smartwatches (and low-power devices like wearables and IoTs) that run smoothly even with limited resources and consume extremely low power. Commenting on the matter, the Country Manager of Google Finland, Antti Järvinen, said, “today’s announcement strengthens Google’s commitment to Finland and takes our Wear OS platform forward with the help of Koru’s unique low-power user interface expertise.” Sammobile
Sam Bankman-Fried has been extradited to the US from The Bahamas as he faces criminal charges relating to the collapse of cryptocurrency exchange FTX. Authorities in the Bahamas said the FTX founder had waived his right to challenge the extradition and Bankman-Fried was witnessed leaving a magistrate court in Nasssau in a dark SUV. According to Reuters, a plane carrying the former chief executive departed the Bahamas from a private airfield by Nassau’s airport. Bankman-Fried is due to land at Westchester County Airport in New York and will likely appear in front of a US judge later on Thursday. Sky News
