Links 25/07/2024: Tesla's 45% Profit Drop, Humble Games Employees All Laid Off
Contents
- Leftovers
- Science
- Education
- Hardware
- Health/Nutrition/Agriculture
- Proprietary/Artificial Intelligence (AI)
- Security
- Defence/Aggression
- Environment
- Finance
- AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics
- Censorship/Free Speech
- Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press
- Civil Rights/Policing
- Internet Policy/Net Neutrality Monopolies/Monopsonies
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Leftovers
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France24 ☛ Paris 2024: Mathieu Forget makes photography an Olympic art (2/5)
For the Paris 2024 Olympics, dancer, choreographer and photographer Mathieu Forget invited athletes to dance with him for a series of jaw-dropping photographs in iconic cultural spots around France. Through these gravity-defying photos with athletes, the Frenchman has succeeded in making photography an Olympic art. In part two of our arts24 Olympic shows, Mathieu Forget speaks to Eve Jackson about working with fencing double world champion Enzo Lefort in Paris's Petit Palais, playing handball in the Paris Modern Art Museum and the common values shared between sport and the arts.
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Hackaday ☛ Keebin’ With Kristina: The One With The Key Cap Map
So, [zyumbik]’s trademark seems to be sexing things up, and the Artsey layout did not escape their gaze. This is the Sexy Artsey. Let’s back up a bit.
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Science
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Science Alert ☛ The Higgs Boson Might Not Be The Portal to New Physics After All
Now what do we do?
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Science Alert ☛ Sex And Gender Show Distinct Variations in Brain Connectivity [Ed: Sex and gender is the same; this is political nonsense.]
"They should have been studied separately."
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Science Alert ☛ Meditation And Mindfulness Have a Dark Side That We Don't Talk About
Adverse effects are not rare.
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Education
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Latvia ☛ Latvia has 3% teacher shortage, says minister
Latvia currently has a shortage of around 3% of teachers, with the largest shortage in Rīga, as stated by the Minister of Education and Science Anda Čakša (New Unity") in the Latvian Television program "Morning panorama" on July 23.
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Hardware
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Ruben Schade ☛ The 1983 JVC A-K100 stereo amplifier
Clara and I are now the proud owners of this cute JVC A-K100, pictured in the middle of our robot media cabinet below. We bought it for $70 [sic!] from a gentleman in Melbourne, and we love it!
The JVC A-K100 is a simple stereo amplifier manufactured in Japan in 1983. The branding mentions its High Fidelity Gm Circuit in several places, which Peter Vis describes as a noise-reduction system. Cool!
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Hackaday ☛ You Can Use LEDs As Sensors, Too
LEDs are a wonderful technology. You put in a little bit of power, and you get out a wonderful amount of light. They’re efficient, cheap, and plentiful. We use them for so much!
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Hackaday ☛ Could Carbon Fiber Be The New Asbestos?
Could carbon fiber inflict the same kind of damage on the human body as asbestos? That’s the question which [Nathan] found himself struggling with after taking a look at carbon fiber-reinforced filament under a microscope, revealing a sight that brings to mind fibrous asbestos samples. Considering the absolutely horrifying impact that asbestos exposure can have, this is a totally pertinent question to ask. Fortunately, scientific studies have already been performed on this topic.
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Hackaday ☛ 2024 Tiny Games Challenge: Improving Reaction Time
What lies at the heart of many games? In a sense, it’s your response time, which is a function of hand-eye coordination. Although the 2024 Business Card Challenge has come to a close, [gokux] tends to go small anyway, and has taken their miniature approach to the Tiny Games Challenge with this awesome little reaction time game.
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Hackaday ☛ Automatic Garbage Can Keeps Cooking Cleaner
Over the last decade or so, we’ve been inundated with appliances with wireless or “smart” technology that is often of dubious utility. No one really needs a tablet in their refrigerator or Wi-Fi on their coffee maker. A less glamorous kitchen appliance that actually might benefit from some automation and connectivity is the garbage can, or “bin” for those speaking the Queen’s English, and [Mellow_Labs] is here to show off just how to get that done with this automatic garbage can lid.
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Hackaday ☛ Workholding Options For The Beginner CNC Operator
Designing a file to cut on a CNC is only part of the process. You also have to keep it in place while the machine does its work. [Garrett Fromme] walks us through five different work holding techniques.
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Tom's Hardware ☛ Chinese cloud giant releases homegrown operating system for Chinese server CPUs — TencentOS Server V3 supports Huawei Kunpeng, Sugon Hygon, and Phytium FeiTeng chips
Tencent Cloud introduces an operating system that supports CPUs from Huawei, Phytium, and Sugon.
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Russell Coker ☛ Russell Coker: More About Kogan 5120*2160 Monitor
On the 18th of May I blogged about my new 5120*2160 monitor [1]. One thing I noted was that one DRM spreader Netflix movie had run in an aspect ratio that used all space on the monitor. I still don’t know if the movie in question was cropped in a letterbox manner but other DRM spreader Netflix shows in “full screen” mode don’t extend to both edges. Also one movie I downloaded as in 3840*1608 resolution which is almost exactly the same aspect ratio as my monitor.
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Nvidia-backed AI startup Cohere layoffs 5% of its employees
Generative AI startup Cohere, co-founded by ex-Google researchers, is reportedly gearing up for job cuts following raising $500 million in new cash from investors including Cisco, AMD, Fujitsu, Salesforce, Oracle, and Nvidia.
Fortune reported that the AI start-up Cohere has slashed its workforce by 5%. However, it is not clear who will be impacted due to the impending layoff at the company. The company currently deploys 400 employees.
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Tom's Hardware ☛ Unreal Engine supervisor at ModelFarm blasts 50% failure rate with defective chip maker Intel chips — company switching to AMD's Ryzen 9 9950X, praises single-threaded performance
Dylan Browne, an Unreal Engine Supervisor and Feature Film VFX at the ModelFarm visual effects studio, posted on X that his company is experiencing a 50% failure rate for systems powered by Intel's Core i9-13900K and 14900K computers.
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Health/Nutrition/Agriculture
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Science Alert ☛ 'Cocaine Sharks' Discovered in Brazil Raise Alarm Over Ocean Pollution
This is no B grade movie.
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Science Alert ☛ 5-Minute Quiz Could Reveal Whether You're at Risk of a Heart Attack
No scan needed.
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Latvia ☛ Emergency team chief: Drug overdose numbers rise every year
The situation with drug overdose among young people is getting worse every year, said Liene Cipule, the head of the Emergency Medical Service (NMPD), in the Latvian Television program "Morning panorāma" on July 23.
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Latvia ☛ Room for improvement in Latvia's cancer screening statistics
Data published by Eurostat July 23 suggests Latvia's cancer screening efforts still have some way to go to match average European levels of coverage.
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Reason ☛ New Analysis Finds Lasting Impact for Students Affected by COVID School Lockdowns
According to a new report, the average eighth-grader needs over nine months of extra school time to catch up with pre-COVID achievement levels.
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TwinCities Pioneer Press ☛ Defendant admits scheme to bribe juror in Feeding Our Future fraud case
he bribe attempt surrounded the trial of seven defendants in one of the country’s largest COVID-19-related fraud cases.
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Latvia ☛ Upward trend of Covid case numbers in Latvia
In Latvia, there has been a marked increase in the proportion of positive samples for Covid-19 since the beginning of July, the Disease Prevention and Control Center (SPKC) said.
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Proprietary/Artificial Intelligence (AI)
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Silicon Angle ☛ Researchers develop new technique for squeezing full-fat Hey Hi (AI) models into PCs and smartphones
Artificial intelligence researchers from Yandex LLC and NeuralMagic Inc. said today they have made significant progress in their efforts to compress powerful large language models such as Meta Platforms Inc.’s Llama 2, so they can be deployed on everyday devices such as smartphones and smart speakers. -
Silicon Angle ☛ Wiz reportedly ends $23B acquisition talks with Google
Wiz Inc. has reportedly ended discussions with Surveillance Giant Google LLC about an acquisition that could have valued the cybersecurity startup at $23 billion. The Wall Street Journal and CNBC reported the development today, citing an internal Wiz memo.
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New York Times ☛ Google’s Plan to Buy Wiz for $23 Billion Falls Apart
Wiz’s chief executive said the company walked away from a “humbling offer” and would pursue an initial public offering instead.
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Tech Times ☛ Google-Parent Alphabet Fails to Acquire Cybersecurity Startup Wiz
The action is being taken as Alphabet works feverishly to increase its presence in the fiercely competitive cloud services sector, which is presently controlled by Amazon.com Inc. and Microsoft Corp.
Even with the generous offer, Wiz is focused on hitting new benchmarks, such as $1 billion in recurring income annually. Wiz has demonstrated its dedication to its growth trajectory and faith in the abilities of its staff by turning down Alphabet's significant offer.
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Publisher Humble Games Hit With Layoffs - News
Publisher Humble Games has announced the company has been hit with layoffs stating this is due to the economy.
"In these challenging economic times for indie game publishing, Humble Games has made the difficult but necessary decision to restructure our operations," said a Humble Games representative. "This decision was not made lightly; it involved much deliberation and careful thought, with the goal of ensuring the stability and support of our developers and ongoing projects. Additionally, the restructuring of operations at Humble Games will have no impact on operations at Humble Bundle.
"We are acutely aware of the profound impact this decision has on our team members at Humble Games and deeply empathize with everyone affected. Our team’s contributions have been world-class and invaluable, supporting the launch of our games since we started publishing in 2017. We are committed to navigating this transition with as much empathy and understanding as possible.
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All Humble Games employees have been laid off. “Billionaires and CEOs are making record profits at the expense of workers”
It seemed that the issue of layoffs in the video game industry had calmed down after the bloodbath of Microsoft, Take-Two and Avalanche Studios, one of the many companies that has increased the alarming number of layoffs in 2024. Now it is the turn of Humble Games And this case is particularly shocking: all of its employees have been fired, and in a bad way.
Humble Games, Humble Bundle’s internal division responsible for publishing independent games such as Signalis, Forager and Unpacking, has laid off its 36 employees. Their social media posts showed not only sadness, but also anger at the current state of the gaming industry. Emilee Keifeer, senior QA at the studio, had this to say in her LinkedIn statement...
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New York Times ☛ Artificial Intelligence Has a Math Problem
A.I.’s math problem reflects how much the new technology is a break with computing’s past.
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Security
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Integrity/Availability/Authenticity
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Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Hong Kong police arrest 5 on suspicion of selling fake tickets to Cantopop star Sammi Cheng’s concerts
Hong Kong police have arrested five men on suspicion of selling fake tickets to Cantopop star Sammi Cheng’s sought-after concerts.
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Privacy/Surveillance
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RFA ☛ Myanmar junta restricts more mobile apps, residents say
Users report bans on Signal, Surveillance Giant Google apps
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Don Marti ☛ Don Marti: surveillance licensing in practice
I wrote about how states should avoid free speech questions around Big Tech by establishing a licensing system for surveillance, and got some questions about how that would work.
The problem to watch out for is that state privacy regulators tend to be diligent high achiever types who aren’t afraid of doing a bunch of extra work. But what we want here is for most of the work of the licensing system to be done on the surveillance company side. The people who are getting paid by the taxpayers should spend as little time on it as possible. So here’s a possible way to do it.
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Reason ☛ What James C. Scott Taught Us About Liberty, Authority, Surveillance, and Resistance
Scott wrote about the ways people resist authority—and the unmapped territories where much of that resistance takes place.
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Silicon Angle ☛ FTC will launch a probe into surveillance pricing
The Federal Trade Commission today announced that it is seeking information from eight companies that use artificial intelligence to set prices based on customers’ behavior and characteristics. Known as “surveillance pricing”, the companies’ third-party Hey Hi (AI) systems leverage mountains of personal data to effectively ascertain a person’s ability to pay for something.
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Silicon Angle ☛ FTC will launch probe into AI-driven surveillance pricing
The Federal Trade Commission today announced it’s seeking information from eight companies that use artificial intelligence to set prices based on customers’ behavior and characteristics. It’s known as “surveillance pricing,” in which the companies’ third-party Hey Hi (AI) systems leverage mountains of personal data to effectively ascertain a person’s ability to pay for something.
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Silicon Angle ☛ Alphabet beats the Street but slowing ad growth drags on stock price
Google LLC reported a slowdown in advertising sales growth in the second quarter, triggering an after-hours selloff of its shares of about 1.5%. Parent Alphabet Inc. said Surveillance Giant Google generated $64.6 billion in ad sales in the quarter, up 11.1% from $58.14 billion in the same period last year. -
New York Times ☛ Alphabet Reports 29% Jump in Profit as Hey Hi (AI) Efforts Begin to Pay Off
Google’s parent company narrowly topped revenue and profit expectations, driven by its search engine and cloud unit, and it said Hey Hi (AI) investments were “driving new growth.”
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Mobile Systems/Mobile Applications
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Deccan Chronicle ☛ Mobile Phones to get cheaper, as FM Nirmala Sitharaman reduces basic customs duty to 15%
Sitharaman said, "With a threefold increase in domestic production and almost a 100-fold jump in exports of mobile phones over the last 6 years, the Indian mobile industry has matured. In the interest of consumers I now propose to reduce the Basic Customs Duty (BCD) on mobile phones, mobile Printed Circuit Board Assembly (PCBA) and mobile charger to 15 per cent."
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CNN ☛ Russian lawmakers seek to punish troops using smartphones on Ukraine battlefields
The law would also prohibit the use of other electronic devices meant for “household purposes” which allow for video and audio recording and the transmission of geolocation data.
Both Russian and Ukrainian militaries have reportedly used enemy cell phones to identify targets during the war, scraping data from photos and messages to track coordinates and launch attacks.
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Defence/Aggression
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The Straits Times ☛ Trash balloons from North Korea hit South's presidential compound
This is the tenth time the North has sent the balloons across the border in 2024.
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The Straits Times ☛ North Korean trash balloons land near South Korea's presidential complex
SEOUL - North Korean balloons carrying trash have landed near South Korea's presidential office, the Presidential Security Service said on Wednesday.
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RFA ☛ North Korea brushes off any hope of better U.S. ties under Trump
The former president’s series of meetings with the North’s Kim brought no concrete improvement: state media.
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ADF ☛ Experts: Ambitious Plan for West Africa Security Force Faces Challenges
In a region facing terrorism, coups and transnational organized crime, leaders of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have long sought to build a standby force to bolster security.
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New York Times ☛ Hamas and Fatah Signed a Statement of Unity in China, but Skepticism is High
A joint statement supports the formation of a government of national consensus. But for many Palestinians, the gathering in the Chinese capital was nothing more than a performance bound for failure.
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New York Times ☛ Fatah and Hamas Sign Unity Deal in China, but Deep Divisions Remain
In a move brokered by China, Fatah and Hamas endorsed a unified government for the West Bank and Gaza, but Palestinians are skeptical that the two parties can put aside their differences.
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JURIST ☛ Palestinian factions Fatah and Hamas sign unity declaration in Beijing
Senior leaders from the Palestinian political groups Fatah and Hamas signed a joint statement known as “Beijing Declaration to End the Division and Strengthen Palestinian National Unity” in Beijing on Tuesday, signalling an effort to bridge longstanding divisions. This agreement was brokered by China, aiming to enhance its position as a global mediator.
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France24 ☛ From Gaza to China: Where Kamala Harris stands on foreign policy issues
US Vice President Kamala Harris has supported President Joe Biden, a seasoned politician with decades of foreign policy experience, on key international issues. With the former California attorney general and senator set to clinch the Democratic presidential nomination, it’s time for Harris to set her agenda on vital issues concerning the international community.
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New York Times ☛ Democrats Deserved a Contest, Not a Coronation
The party will pay the price for anointing Kamala Harris.
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New York Times ☛ Harris Rallies Democrats in Milwaukee: ‘The Baton Is in Our Hands’
Vice President Kamala Harris gave her first speech as the de facto Democratic nominee to a deafening crowd, keeping up her offensive against Donald Trump.
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JURIST ☛ Syria government sued over alleged unlawful detention and killing of Syrian-American psychotherapist
The family members of Syrian-American Majd Kamalmaz filed a civil lawsuit against the Syrian government on Monday, seeking damages of at least $70 million for the unlawful detention, torture and killing of Kamalmaz.
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Hong Kong Free Press ☛ Top Chinese and US diplomats to meet at Southeast Asia foreign minister talks
By Stuart Graham Southeast Asian foreign ministers gather in Laos this week for talks on the disputed South China Sea and the conflict in Myanmar, with top diplomats from China and the United States slated to meet on the sidelines.
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CS Monitor ☛ On remote island, Chinese patrols disrupt Filipino livelihoods – and gender roles
In the South China Sea, Chinese patrols are disrupting the livelihoods of Filipino fishing communities – and pushing more women into the workforce.
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France24 ☛ Sirens sound, people flee as Taiwan simulates Chinese missile attack
Sirens rang out across Taiwan’s capital Taipei Tuesday, July 23, while streets emptied and people hurried to take shelter as part of civil defence drills designed to simulate a Chinese missile attack. It comes amid growing fears of a conflict with China and at the same time that Taiwan holds annual military exercises to test the country’s readiness for a Chinese assault.
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ADF ☛ Terror Attacks Increase in Togo as Sahel Extremists Encroach
Violent extremist organizations from northern Benin and Burkina Faso are increasingly targeting northern Togo as conflicts from the Sahel spill into coastal countries. Four people on a tricycle in the north-central town of Bonzougou were killed June 18 after riding over an improvised explosive device (IED).
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ADF ☛ Warring Sides in Sudan Use Access to Food as a Weapon
Of all the weapons at their disposal, Sudan’s two warring generals have turned in recent months to one that is cheap, familiar and devastating: starvation.
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ADF ☛ RSF Conquest in Sennar Opens Path to Key Territories in Eastern Sudan
Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have added Sennar state, a key agricultural region, to their zone of control as they sweep through the southern parts of the country with little resistance from the rival Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF).
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ADF ☛ C-130 Hercules Aircraft to Enhance Botswana’s Peacekeeping Capabilities
The Botswana Defence Force took possession of a C-130 Hercules cargo aircraft provided by the U.S. in a transfer ceremony during the African Chiefs of Defense Conference in Gaborone.
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ADF ☛ U.S. Troops Ahead of Schedule in Niger Withdrawal
Nigerien Chief of Staff of the Army Col. Maj. Mamane Sani Kiaou has worked closely with the United States military in recent months to arrange for the phased withdrawal of U.S. troops from the West African country.
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RFA ☛ Gunshot victims fill Bangladesh hospital’s morgue; internet shutdown eased
Authorities arrest more than 1,000 people they say were involved in violence during week of unrest
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France24 ☛ Thousands of protesters arrested in Bangladesh amid deadly unrest
More than 2,500 people have been arrested in Bangladesh amid ongoing violence triggered by protests over employment quotas, according to an AFP tally on Tuesday. At least 174 people, including several police officers, have died in the unrest, which led to a curfew, military deployment and a nationwide internet blackout.
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Digital Music News ☛ Chris Brown, Live Nation Face $50 Million Lawsuit Over Backstage Beatdown
Chris Brown, Yella Breezy, and Live Nation face a $50 million lawsuit over an alleged assault during the 11:11 tour stop in Fort Worth.
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France24 ☛ French security forces intercept six drones a day near Olympics sites, PM says
The ban on drones flying in the airspace around Paris is being strictly enforced during the 2024 Summer Olympics, with security personnel armed with drone-disabling equipment policing Paris skies. French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal said an average of six drones a day are being intercepted,
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The Strategist ☛ Whole-of-nation readiness demands whole-of-nation exercises
Australia must develop robust, interdepartmental and whole–of–nation exercises based on potential conflict scenarios or it risks discovering when lives are at stake that it’s ill–prepared.
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Defence Web ☛ ActionSA calls for Mchunu to use thousands of reservists in anti-crime efforts
After new Police Minister Senzo Mchunu’s commitment to enhance police capacity by expanding the workforce to bolster their fight against crime, ActionSA has called on him to ensure that thousands of side-lined police reservists are fully integrated into South African Police Service (SAPS) crime-fighting efforts.
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The Strategist ☛ South Korea’s technological prowess could greatly strengthen AUKUS
The members of AUKUS should expand the security pact to include South Korea. If they do, they will deepen and strengthen the partnership, enhance its technological capabilities and make the Indo-Pacific region more secure.
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Russia, Belarus, and War in Ukraine
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RFERL ☛ Moscow Court Fines In Absentia Chief Of International Anti-Corruption Foundation
A Moscow court on July 23 ordered the self-exiled chief of the International Anti-Corruption Foundation, Maria Pevchikh, to pay a 30,000-ruble ($340) fine for failing to fulfill the duties of a "foreign agent."
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RFERL ☛ New Trials, Sentences In Belarus Amid Ongoing Crackdown On Dissent
Belarusian activists continue to face trials and prison sentences amid an ongoing crackdown on dissent by the government of the authoritarian ruler Alyaksandr Lukashenka.
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RFERL ☛ Belarusian Foreign Minister Arrives In North Korea Amid Warming Ties
Belarusian Foreign Minister Maksim Ryzhankou arrived in North Korea on July 23 following a visit to Beijing earlier this week, according to the Belarusian Foreign Ministry.
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RFERL ☛ Belarusian Athlete Who Fled 2021 Olympics Disavows Former Team As She Prepares To Compete For Poland
Former Belarusian sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya, who escaped being forced to return to Minsk prematurely from the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 after she criticized her coaches, says she wants nothing to do with Belarusian athletes set to compete at the Paris Olympics.
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JURIST ☛ Belarus releases banned opposition party leader after 30 months
Mikalai Kazlou, former head of the banned Belarusian opposition United Civic Party, was released from prison on Monday, according to human rights group Viasna. Kazlou previously served 30 months in prison before his release.
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Meduza ☛ Invisible barriers Do Russian politicians really want to ban abortion? — Meduza
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Meduza ☛ Moscow residents to receive one-time payment equivalent to nearly $22,000 for joining the Russian army — Meduza
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ADF ☛ China Becomes Africa’s Top Weapons Supplier, But Motive and Quality Stir Debate
China has eclipsed Russia as the largest exporter of arms to Sub-Saharan Africa. These weapons — including drones, rockets, artillery, armored vehicles, aircraft, firearms, ammunition, missiles, space systems, radar and electronic warfare systems — are flowing into conflict zones in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, South Sudan, Sudan...
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RFERL ☛ Woman Dies From Injuries After Explosion Levels Russian Shopping Center
Emergency officials in Russia's southwestern Krasnodar region said on July 23 that a woman who was injured in a suspected gas explosion that completely leveled a shopping center in the city of Apsheronsk a day earlier had died in the hospital.
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RFERL ☛ 8 People In Russia's Kabardino-Balkaria Fined For 'Disrespecting' National Anthem
Officials in Russia's North Caucasus region of Kabardino-Balkaria said on July 22 that eight local residents have each been ordered to pay a 3,000 ruble ($34) fine for "violating regulations on the use of Russia's national anthem."
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RFERL ☛ Russia Accuses Detained Russian-German Lawyer Of Treason
Russia has accused a dual Russian-German national and lawyer, German Moyzhes, of treason, the TASS news agency reported, citing law enforcement agencies.
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RFERL ☛ Russian Lawmakers Approve Bills On Labeling Any Foreign Organization 'Undesirable'
The Russian parliament's lower chamber, the State Duma, on July 23 approved in the second and third readings bills that would allow any foreign entities, including those established by state organs of third countries, to be declared "undesirable."
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RFERL ☛ Russia Adds 15 More British Citizens To Its Sanctions List
Russia's Foreign Ministry said on July 23 it had added to its sanctions list another 15 British nationals.
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RFERL ☛ Russian Internet Pioneer Handed 2-Year Prison Sentence
One of Russia's Internet pioneers has been sentenced to two years in prison on charges of abuse of office that he has rejected.
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RFERL ☛ Russia Using Disinformation To Undermine Moldova's Upcoming Elections, Officials Tell U.S. Panels
Russian disinformation threatens to interfere with Moldovan elections later this year just as the country begins to make significant progress on reforms under pro-Western President Maia Sandu, U.S. and Moldovan officials said at separate events in Washington on July 23.
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ADF ☛ Experts Warn of AI-Powered Disinformation
Information warfare has become a ubiquitous threat in nearly all of Africa’s violent conflicts. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Ethiopia, Somalia, Sudan and the Sahel region, social control media platforms have augmented hate speech and disinformation campaigns.
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RFA ☛ Russian prosecutor chief in North Korea for cooperation talks
The foreign minister of Belarus will also visit the North this week amid deepening Russia-North Korea ties.
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JURIST ☛ Russia court sentences Russian-American journalist to 6.5 years for ‘spreading false information’ on military
The Supreme Court of Tatarstan has sentenced Russian-American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva to 6 and a half years of imprisonment for spreading false information about the Armed Russian Forces of the Russian Federation in a secret trial, the court’s press service said on Monday.
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Hong Kong Free Press ☛ US warns of China-Russia military cooperation in Arctic amid competition over maritime routes
The US Defense Department warned Monday of increasing Russian-Chinese collaboration in the Arctic, as climate change opens the region to greater competition over maritime routes and resources.
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France24 ☛ French police arrest Russian suspected of plotting Paris Olympics 'destabilisation'
A Russian man was under investigation on suspicion of trying to disrupt the Paris Olympics that are set to kick off on July 26, French prosecutors said. The state prosecution service gave no details but said the alleged plot was not terrorist in nature.
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Latvia ☛ Former MEP Ždanoka subject of security service searches
On Monday, July 22, Latvia's State Security Service (VDD) conducted investigative activities at locations related to former Member of the European Parliament Tatjana Ždanoka (Latvian Russian Union), reports the LETA newswire.
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RFERL ☛ Ukraine's Foreign Minister Visits Beijing For First Time Since Start Of War
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has arrived in Beijing for the first time since Russia's full-scale invasion for talks geared towards finding a possible Chinese role in ending the war.
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RFERL ☛ Ukrainian Lawmakers Approve Presidential Decrees Extending Martial Law
Ukrainian lawmakers on July 23 approved bills to support decrees issued by President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to extend martial law and a general military mobilization for 90 days starting on August 12.
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Meduza ☛ ‘Wake up’ Former top commander Valerii Zaluzhnyi on how the Russia-Ukraine war is redefining modern warfare — Meduza
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RFERL ☛ Bulgarian President Admits Blocking Pro-Western Envoy To Kyiv
Bulgarian President Rumen Radev has criticized the temporary appointment of a former defense minister as Sofia's ambassador to Kyiv, underscoring a long-running division between the head of state and successive governments over ongoing support for Ukraine against invading Russian forces.
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LRT ☛ Lithuanian town signs cooperation pact with Ukraine’s Khotyn
The Lithuanian town of Kazlų Rūda and the Ukraine city of Khotyn have signed an agreement on closer cooperation and the exchange of information and best practices.
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Atlantic Council ☛ Biden’s legacy depends most of all on Ukraine
The US president has recognized that the world is at an inflection point. Now comes the part he cannot control.
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JURIST ☛ EU High Representative Borrell switches EU meetings to Brussels from Budapest after criticizing Hungarian president Orbán
The EU Foreign Affairs High Representative Josep Borrell characterized Hungarian President Viktor Orbán as being disloyal to the EU during a press conference Monday, after which he switched the locations of informal EU Foreign Affairs and Defence Ministers meetings to Brussels rather than Budapest.
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Environment
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Science Alert ☛ Sunday Was Earth's Hottest Day Ever Recorded
Making history for all the wrong reasons.
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Energy/Transportation
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University of Michigan ☛ The West must change its EV strategy to compete with China
China’s identity as the world’s premier manufacturing powerhouse is no secret. Over a quarter of global manufacturing output comes from China, and over the last decade, it has leveraged its industrial dominance to expand its auto industry, especially its electric vehicle production.
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Silicon Angle ☛ Tesla shares drop 6% on mixed results as price-cutting drives down automotive revenue
Shares in Tesla Inc. fell about 6% in late trading today after the electric car maker and energy company reported mixed quarterly results.
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New York Times ☛ Tesla Q2 Earnings Report Reveals 45% Profit Drop Amid Weak E.V. Sales
The company led by Elon Musk is selling fewer electric cars, and its big bets on driverless taxis and artificial intelligence could take many years to pay off.
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New York Times ☛ U.K. Royal Family Gets Financial Boost From Offshore Wind and Palaces
Profits at the Crown Estate doubled thanks to offshore wind deals, while visitors to royal palaces are almost back to prepandemic levels.
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Federal News Network ☛ Could a talent shortage at the FAA lead to more trouble for the airline industry?
The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Aviation Subcommittee held a hearing on maintaining staffing for the U.S. air traffic control system.
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Unicorn Media ☛ More Data Centers Are Lowering Their Environmental Impact as a Side Effect of Liquid Cooling [Ed: Is this marketing or greenwashing "news"?]
According to Dell'Oro's report, CoolIT Systems, Boyd, and Motivair were the top three earners in the Data Center Liquid Cooling arena in 2023.
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Wildlife/Nature
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Science Alert ☛ Shift in India's Vulture Population Linked to Half a Million Human Deaths
It all started with a painkiller.
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Science Alert ☛ Cuttlefish Can Falsely Remember The Past in The Same Way Humans Do
Clever little friends!
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Overpopulation
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RFA ☛ Leaked plan reveals bid to get Chinese officials to have more kids
The draft plan sparks concerns that the government will seek ways to strong-arm families into making more babies.
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Finance
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Atlantic Council ☛ Key takeaways from China’s Third Plenum 2024
The communiqué of the Third Plenum of the CCP Central Committee lacks major policy initiatives to address the country’s near-term growth challenges.
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BIA Net ☛ Turkey's Central Bank keeps policy rate constant, contends inflation will rise in July
The bank has warned that inflation is expected to rise temporarily in July due to adjustments in administered prices, taxes, and supply-side factors in unprocessed food prices.
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Hong Kong Free Press ☛ HSBC, Manulife decline comment after report that wanted activists barred from accessing pension funds
Financial institutions HSBC and Manulife have declined to comment on a report that two overseas Hong Kong activists wanted under the security law, former lawmaker Ted Hui among them, were blocked from accessing their pension funds.
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Latvia ☛ New chair for Latvian banking industry body
Starting from October 1st, 2024, Uldis Cērps will take over the leadership of the Finance Latvia Association (FNA) as its Chair of the Board, the organization announced July 23.
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Reason ☛ Harris Promises Expensive Paid Leave and Child Care Subsidies in First Campaign Speech
Both had been dropped from the Inflation Reduction Act over concerns about the bill's cost and the amount of borrowing needed to pay for them.
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Atlantic Council ☛ Biden will leave an enduring legacy of linking economic and national security
The Inflation Reduction Act, the CHIPS and Science Act, and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law revived the idea that economic security and national security are deeply interconnected.
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AstroTurf/Lobbying/Politics
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Breach Media ☛ 10 mansions that ‘common man’ Pierre Poilievre has fundraised in
Tour the homes of uber-wealthy Canadians who are connecting the Conservative leader to elite donors
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Latvia ☛ Legislation ping-pong between Rēzekne's ex-council and now-administration
A case has been initiated before the Constitutional Court regarding the dismissal of the Rēzekne State Municipal Council. The municipality is now run by an interim administration, which plans to ask the Constitutional Court to annul the case, Latvian Television reported on July 22.
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JURIST ☛ Arrests occur during anti-corruption protests in Uganda capital
An ongoing march to parliament organized by young people over corruption in the Uganda government led to the arrests of protestors on Tuesday. Joel Ssenyonyi, the leader of the parliamentary opposition, also alleged in a Ugandan parliament speech that police have used excessive force against protestors.
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Misinformation/Disinformation/Propaganda
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RFA ☛ Singapore media regime whack-a-mole with Chinese misinformation (Part I)
Beijing’s talking points get laundered through China-friendly media coverage and immigrant websites.
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Censorship/Free Speech
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RFA ☛ North Korea bans hit war movie 5 months after release
Though ‘72 Hours’ tells Pyongyang’s account of the start of the Korean War, it is now illegal to watch.
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RFA ☛ Police arrest activists after Facebook (Farcebook) video angers Cambodia’s Hun Sen
The activists discussed whether a joint program with Vietnam and Laos could put Cambodian territory at risk.
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RFA ☛ Vietnam intensifies crackdown on critics before general secretary’s funeral
Social media posts have been removed and internet commentators summoned by the police.
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Freedom of Information / Freedom of the Press
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Press Gazette ☛ B2B newsletter publisher without journalists exceeds one million subs
Trending Now runs 27 AI-powered newsletters with ten staff (but no editors).
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Press Gazette ☛ Huw Edwards tops 2024 list of BBC’s highest-paid journalists despite departure
Number of BillBC journalists earning more than £178,000 increases from 43 people to 46.
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Press Gazette ☛ BBC to cut 500 more jobs as revenue falls 6% to £5.4bn
BBC says it is facing "serious pressure" on its finances.
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Civil Rights/Policing
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RFA ☛ Xinjiang authorities intensify reporting requirements for Uyghur visitors
The measure allows Chinese authorities to monitor Uyghurs’ movements in China’s far-western region.
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RFA ☛ Tortured Chinese activist Cheng Yuan released from prison
Cheng remains under surveillance and separated from his family, who are shocked by his appearance in a video call.
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Off Guardian ☛ The People’s Court of New Normal Germany
Just when I thought things could not possibly get more shockingly totalitarian in New Normal Germany, where I’m being prosecuted in criminal court (for the second time) for tweeting, the German authorities have gone and surprised me again.
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Reason ☛ The Latest in the Prosecution of eBay Managers for Cyberstalking Online Critics
From the Justice Department's Thursday press release: The former Senior Manager of Special Operations for eBay's Global Security Team was sentenced today in federal court in Boston for his role in a cyberstalking campaign targeting a Massachusetts couple.
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Internet Policy/Net Neutrality
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AccessNow ☛ Safeguarding digital freedoms and fundamental rights in Bangladesh amid ongoing student protests
We strongly condemn the violence against peaceful demonstrations, and urge the authorities to uphold human rights, and restore access to the country’s communication and Internet services.
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APNIC ☛ Democratizing LEO satellite network measurement
Guest Post: Researchers create the new open-source methodology 'HitchHiking' to conduct the largest LEO network measurement to date.
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Patents
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JUVE ☛ Italian Supreme Court rules on Bolar exemption in Boehringer Ingelheim dispute
In early July, the Italian Supreme Court found Sicor and its parent company Teva are infringing Boehringer Ingelheim’s patent monopoly and the associated SPC for the active ingredient tiotropium bromide (case ID: 2224/2022). Thus the judges upheld the rulings of the two lower courts. In 2018 Milan Regional Court ruled that Sicor,
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Kluwer Patent Blog ☛ Barcelona Appeal Court reverses first instance judgment that had found apixaban patent monopoly to be invalid [Ed: EPO patents found to be invalid]
This morning, the Barcelona Appeal Court has announced a judgment of 18 July 2024, reversing the judgment of 15 January 2024 from Commercial Court number 4 of Barcelona, which had found patent monopoly EP 1,427,415 (“EP ‘415”), protecting apixaban, to be invalid. >
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Dennis Crouch/Patently-O ☛ Animated GUI Design Patents
The MPEP identifies these as “changeable computer generated icons,” explaining that:
Computer generated icons including images that change in appearance during viewing may be the subject of a design claim. Such a claim may be shown in two or more views. The images are understood as viewed sequentially, no ornamental aspects are attributed to the process or period in which one image changes into another. A descriptive statement must be included in the specification describing the transitional nature of the design and making it clear that the scope of the claim does not include anything that is not shown.
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Kangaroo Courts
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Kluwer Patent Blog ☛ UPC’s Order to Produce Evidence: Huawei vs. Netgear [Ed: UPC is illegal and unconstitutional, so this entire thing is ridiculous overreach by a fake kangaroo court pretending to do "law"]
Regular readers of this blog will be aware of my interest, or rather my passion, for several Patent Law topics, including notably SEPs (see notably here, here and here), proof of infringement (see notably here, here and here) and UPC (see notably here, here and here).
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Trademarks
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TTAB Blog ☛ TTAB Easily Finds TREEBNB Confusable with AIRBNB for Temporary Housing Services
Lightning struck the Bolts in their attempt to register the mark TREEBNB & Design for, inter alia, "Arranging temporary housing accommodations." The Board found confusion likely with the registered mark AIRBNB for the identical services. Although one DuPont factor weighed in their favor, the Bolts' application was uprooted by the remaining relevant factors. Airbnb, Inc. v. Seth Bolt and Victoria Bolt, Opposition No. 91273632 (July 17, 2024) [not precedential] (Opinion by Judge Karen S. Kuhlke).
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Copyrights
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Digital Music News ☛ AccuRadio Says SoundExchange Lawsuit Was A “Complete Surprise To Us”
Yesterday, Digital Music News first reported on a new lawsuit brought forth by SoundExchange against AccuRadio for unpaid royalties. Now AccuRadio has reached out to say the lawsuit is a total surprise for them. SoundExchange filed the lawsuit in an Illinois federal court, alleging that AccuRadio’s royalty payments “slowed and finally stopped in 2018.”
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Digital Music News ☛ Spotify Urges MLC Lawsuit Dismissal, Defends Bundling Frenzy: ‘Books Are Not Music, and Audiobook Streaming Is Not Music Streaming’
Spotify has officially shed light on its dismissal arguments concerning the unpaid-royalties lawsuit filed by the Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC). The music streaming giant, in keeping with an updated July response deadline, just recently previewed those arguments in a pre-motion letter to the court.
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Press Gazette ☛ OpenAI asks New York Times to disclose reporters’ notes in ‘vindictive’ legal move
New York Times warns of "chilling effect" on reporting if Proprietary Chaffbot Company forces disclosure of journalistic materials.
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Monopolies/Monopsonies
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