Hi there, hope your week has been wonderful so far. We’ve got five things from the tech world we’d love to chat with you about this morning.
1. Formal warning for Kayo over gambling rules breach
The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) yesterday said it found sports streaming service Kayo contravened gambling advertising rules by showing gambling advertisements during the May 2022 Fremantle V Collingwood AFL match. Gambling ads must not be streamed during live sport events between 5 am and 8:30 pm, including the five minutes before and after the event. The ACMA investigation found gambling promotions were streamed on the Kayo service within 5 minutes before play commenced and during scheduled breaks. Kayo walked away with a formal warning for contravening the gambling advertising rules.
2. And one for Telstra, too
The ACMA was busy yesterday, issuing Telstra with a warning, too. The telco got a slap on the wrist for breaching consumer protections of more than 5,400 customers before restricting or suspending services. Between May and July 2022, the ACMA claims that Telstra limited customers’ services due to outstanding bills, without providing a minimum of five working days’ notice, as required under the Telecommunications Consumer Protections Code.
3. Snapchat gets more features, including an AR mirror
While we were sleeping, Snap, the company behind Snapchat, announced a trove of new features. These included updates to its subscription, Snapchat+, 3D renders of its Map and Bitmojis, an “After Dark” feature that allows you to wake up and get FOMO from what happened without you and custom AR experiences to festivals. But the best one was under its AR Enterprise Services (ARES) banner. ARES uses Snap’s AR tech and in its first product, ‘Shopping Suite’, you will be able to “try on” clothes. But, there’s also AR Mirrors, which brings the tech for shopping to physical screens, allowing you to see yourself try-on and interact with a product in real-time.
Together with @MensWearhouse, we’re helping Snapchatters suit up for every special occasion. Powered by Snapchat’s innovative AR Mirror, customers can ditch the dressing room and virtually try on their favorite suits and accessories. #SnapPartnerSummit pic.twitter.com/8zLEW9ewbF
— Snapchat for Business (@SnapForBusiness) April 19, 2023
4. Google wants copyright laws relaxed
Over to The Guardian and the publication is reporting that Google and other tech giants have called on the Australian government to relax copyright laws to allow artificial intelligence to mine websites for information across the internet. In a submission to the government’s review of copyright enforcement, Google argued the government needs to consider whether copyright law has “the necessary flexibilities” to support the development of AI. Per the report, it’s understood Google has called for the introduction of a fair dealing exception for text and data mining for AI. Read more here.
5. Google’s expensive Pixel Tablet Dock leaks on Amazon
Staying on Google for a minute and Pixel news is leaking left and right as Google’s developer conference fast approaches. Yesterday, we learned about the Pixel Fold and its apparent arrival date. Today, the delayed Pixel Tablet’s charging dock popped up on Amazon, complete with pricing and release date info. 9to5Google reports it spotted an Amazon listing for a “Pixel Tablet Standalone Charging Dock” earlier today. The Amazon store description says the “unique Pixel Tablet Charging Speaker Dock keeps your tablet charged and ready 24/7″ and that “it’s easy to dock and undock.” The listing also metioned the steep price for the dock: $US130 (which would be in excess of $200).
BONUS ITEM: It’s total solar eclipse day. Pity Sydney currently looks like the apocalypse is coming….
See you tomorrow.