Mar 4, 2020 - Technology

Apple allows push notifications for ads

Facebook, Messenger, Instagram and WhatsApp displayed on an iPhone. Photo: Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Apps on Apple products can now send push notifications for ads and promotions as long as customers explicitly opt in to get those alerts, according to the company's updated App Store guidelines.

Why it matters: Apple has long prevented ads in notifications. Including marketing material alongside alerts for personal messages and breaking news runs the risk of further cluttering peoples' feeds.

Separately, Apple also made a few other changes to its App Store rules:

Apple will reject pitches for "fortune telling" and dating apps "unless they provide a unique, high-quality experience," citing an over-saturation of those apps.
App developers now must use Apple's own API for prompting customer reviews. In the past, developers could push app users to review products by asking leading questions.

Go deeper: Apple's growth areas rely on its shrinking iPhone business

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Updated 18 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios

Global: Total confirmed cases as of 3:30 a.m. ET: 18,814,178 — Total deaths: 707,754— Total recoveries — 11,361,953 — Map.
U.S.: Total confirmed cases as of 3:30 a.m. ET: 4,823,891 — Total deaths: 158,256 — Total recoveries: 1,577,851 — Total tests: 58,920,975 — Map.
Public health: Florida surpasses 500,000 confirmed cases — Fauci calls U.S. coronavirus testing delays "totally unacceptable."
Business: America's next housing crisis.
States: Virginia launches contact tracing app using specs from Apple and Google.
Cities: L.A. mayor authorizes utilities shut-off at homes hosting large gatherings
Politics: White House, Democrats remain "trillions of dollars apart" on stimulus talks.

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Rebecca Falconer

29 mins ago - World

Hiroshima mayor warns of rise of nationalism on 75th anniversary

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (C) at the Memorial Cenotaph in the Peace Memorial Park during the 75th anniversary service for atomic bomb victims in Hiroshima, Japan, on Thursday. Photo: Philip Fong/AFP via Getty Images

Hiroshima's Mayor Kazumi Matsui on Thursday urged the international community to work together to defeat the coronavirus pandemic and warned against an increase in "self-centered nationalism," per the Washington Post.

Why it matters: He said at a remembrance service on the atomic bombing of the Japanese city that the 1918 flu pandemic killed millions as countries fighting in World War I were unable to overcome the threat together, per DPR. "A subsequent upsurge in nationalism led to World War II," he added. The U.S. bombing of Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945 and Nagasaki three days later contributed to the end of World War II, but tens of thousands of people died. At the service, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe lamented nuclear weapons' "inhumanity," but he didn't mention Japan's wartime past, WashPost noted.

Go deeper: How new tech raises the risk of nuclear war

Rebecca Falconer

1 hour ago - Sports

LeBron James on Trump NBA protest remarks: "We could care less"

The Los Angeles Lakers' LeBron James kneels during the national anthem before the game against the Oklahoma City Thunder in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, on Wednesday. Photo: Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

LeBron James responded on Wednesday night to President Trump's comments calling NBA players "disgraceful" for kneeling during the national anthem to protest racism and that he won't watch games because of the action.

The big picture: Trump has repeatedly criticized sports players for taking the knee since 2016. But James said during a news conference, "I really don’t think the basketball community are sad about losing his viewership, him viewing the game." November's elections marked "a big moment for us as Americans," he said. "If we continue to talk about, 'We want better, we want change,' we have an opportunity to do that," he added. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver has said the league will "respect peaceful protest."

Go deeper: LeBron James forms voting rights group to inspire Black voters