Rajeev Chandrasekhar’s answer to India’s internet access gap
Expanding BharatNet into remote areas, rolling out 5G services, establishing the National Data Centre, and implementing a Cloud Policy were a few suggestions offered up by Union Minister of State for Electronics and IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar when asked about the widening disparities faced by Indians looking to access and use the Internet, according to an ET report.
Instagram to play up creator content by adjusting algorithms
The head of Instagram Adam Mosseri revealed that the social media platform is looking to boost its ranking system and better highlight original content from creators, as per an ET report. “We’ve added new ways to tag and improved ranking: Product tags, enhanced tags, ranking for originality,” Mosseri said on Twitter.
BigBasket gets in on instant delivery with BBNow
Tata’s grocery delivery platform BigBasket is upping its bet on the quick commerce sector by offering instant delivery of grocery essentials through BBNow, according to inc42. While its foray into quick commerce was first announced in October last year, what’s new is that BBNow will undertake delivery orders within a 1.5-2.5 km radius for more than 3,000 products, all within a 10-20 minute time range. But these shrinking delivery times have triggered a debate on gig worker protections.
Mu Sigma’s founder buys back company shares from investors
Data analytics firm Mu Sigma’s founder Dhiraj Rajaram has taken back full control of his company after buying out Sequoia Capital and General Atlantic, Moneycontrol reported. Rajaram founded the firm nearly 20 years ago, the report added. The company’s investors are reportedly exiting with at least 3x of what they had put into Mu Sigma.
Social commerce startup GlowRoad bought by Amazon India
Amazon India has acquired India-based GlowRoad, an online platform that not only sells products to customers at wholesale prices but also helps them resell those products on Facebook and WhatsApp, TechCrunch reported. This is part of the e-commerce giant’s social commerce push in key overseas markets like India, the report said.
Former Facebook exec launches guide for regulating online content
In response to tech firms and lobby groups trying to sway US state laws around tech and privacy, Meta’s former head of global policy development Matt Perault has come out with a guide on how lawmakers in these states should approach online content regulations. Speaking to Axios, Perault said that the guide tries to take both Republican and Democratic concerns about online content into consideration seriously.
Google to give European users a button to reject all tracking cookies
According to The Verge, Google is rolling out new options to reject tracking cookies in Europe after its existing dialog boxes attracted million-dollar fines from France’s data protection agency. The Commission Nationale Informatique & Libertés had held that Google’s cookie banners tried to steer users into accepting these cookies by having them go through a slew of menus, thus violating EU data laws.
Musk backs up his offer to buy Twitter with a funding plan
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has told US regulators that he has secured $46.5 billion in funds to buy Twitter Inc, according to an NDTV report. While $33.5 billion of it will come from Musk himself, in the form of equity and margin loans, banks such as Morgan Stanley have reportedly agreed to pitch in another $13 billion in debt.
Philippines scraps SIM card registration law over surveillance fears
Phillipines President Rodrigo Duterte has vetoed the measure seeking the mandatory registration of SIM cards of mobile phone users, CNN said in its report. The proposed law had made it mandatory for users to submit their real names and phone numbers to social media platforms in order to set up accounts. “The President similarly found that certain aspects of state intrusion, or the regulation thereof, have not been duly defined, discussed, or threshed out in the enrolled bill, with regard to social media registration,” acting presidential spokesperson Martin Andanar said.
Also Read:
- Reliance Enters Quick Commerce By Picking Up 26 Percent Stake In Dunzo
- Five reasons why Google is being sued in the US for location tracking
Have something to add? Post your comment and gift someone a MediaNama subscription.
