President Trump addressed the ongoing fallout surrounding the departure of White House Staff Secretary Rob Porter following allegations of domestic abuse in a morning tweet, saying that "lives are being shattered and destroyed by a mere allegation."
Facebook is gathering data to better assess what resonates with consumers through conversations on the platform. The "downvote" button is part of a short-term test that currently doesn’t affect ranking for the comment, the post or the page.
Why it matters: In an effort to create more meaningful engagement on its platform, Facebook wants to also emphasize meaningful interactions through comments.
Amazon plans to launch its own shipping service for businesses, sending their products directly to consumers, reports The Wall Street Journal. The "Shipping with Amazon" service will begin in Los Angeles soon — for now, targeted only at Amazon's own third-party merchants — but it's expected to roll out to other cities and customers eventually.
Why it matters: The move positions Amazon to take on shipping giants UPS and FedEx, especially as the tech giant plans to undercut both their prices. It's reflective of Amazon's broader ambitions beyond e-commerce, highlighted by its burgeoning Hollywood presence, acquisition of Whole Foods, and cloud-computing services. FedEx (FDX) shares are currently at $231.21 (-3.37%.) Amazon (AMZN) shares are currently at $1,315.06 (-2.62%.)
YouTube said Friday it would "temporarily suspend" ads on Logan Paul's channels.
"This is not a decision we made lightly; however, we believe he has exhibited a pattern of behavior in his videos that makes his channel not only unsuitable for advertisers, but also potentially damaging to the broader creator community," the company told Variety.
The bigger picture: Paul — for whom YouTube ad revenue is reportedly a lucrative source of income — has been under pressure since his January decision to post footage of the body of someone who had committed suicide he had filmed on a trip to Japan. This week, according to The Daily Beast, he was slammed by activists for using a Taser on dead rats as part of another video.
Waymo, the self-driving car unit of Google parent Alphabet, stunned a packed courtroom this morning by announcing that it and Uber have settled their legal dispute.
As part of the agreement, Waymo will receive around $244.8 million worth of stock in Uber (i.e., 0.34% stake at a $72 billion valuation) and a pledge not to incorporate Waymo's trade secrets into its own technology.
