While not a perfect barometer for web freedoms, Google's annual transparency report provides one of the oldest and most comprehensive datasets of government requests to censor or take down content.
Cellphone numbers have become a primary way for tech companies like Facebook to uniquely identify users and secure accounts, in some ways becoming a proxy for a national ID.
Why it matters: That over-reliance on cellphone numbers ironically makes them a less effective and secure authentication method. And the more valuable the phone number becomes as an identifier, the less willing people will be to share it for communication.
Quartz reports Tuesday that a California startup called Kobold, which has developed advanced methods to chase down supplies of cobalt, has won backing from the Bill Gates' Breakthrough Energy Ventures and the VC powerhouse Andreessen Horowitz.
Why it matters: Cobalt is a critical component in batteries needed for smartphones and the growth of EVs, so demand is growing.
New reports shows ways that fake news is hiding in plain sight in America, and how it's getting harder to track in real time.
Driving the news: An investigation by fact-checking company Snopes finds that a series of seemingly innocuous local websites, first reported last year by Politico, are being run by GOP consultants whose businesses are funded in part by candidates the websites cover.
From Lyft’s IPO filing last week: The company acknowledged that it will have to brush up on health care privacy law as it expands into the industry.
How it works: Hospitals, clinics and other health care companies pay Lyft "platform" fees to help arrange rides for patients to their doctors' appointments.
Steven Spielberg made waves this week when he suggested a rules change that would disqualify movies from Oscars consideration that debut on streaming services or only appear in a short theatrical window. He argued they should be eligible for Emmy Awards instead.
Why it matters: Members of the creative community pushed back, arguing that Spielberg was attempting to preserve the old guard. Netflix tweeted in response that it gives people better access to movies and gives filmmakers more opportunities. Its film "Roma" received 3 Oscars this year, but was passed up for "Best Picture."
A global reckoning around the future of the internet is underway as autocratic regimes look to censor the internet in their countries, and races to develop new internet technologies, such as blockchain and 5G, heat up between the U.S. and China.
Why it matters: The next version of the internet could be split between countries that embrace an open web and isolationists that don't. It could also be fractured by different technologies that could fundamentally change the interconnected nature of the network and limit who can do business where.
Facebook is facing a new wave of criticism for letting users identify individuals by phone number even when they only gave Facebook the number for the purpose of two-factor authentication.
Why it matters: Critics are saying a measure that users take in order to protect their security is instead, in Facebook's hands, exposing their privacy.
Luminary Media, a Chicago-based subscription podcast network with exclusive content, reportedly raised around $60 million in new funding. The company has now raised nearly $100 million in total, from backers like NEA.
Why it matters: This comes just weeks after Spotify acquired a pair of large podcast networks, with its own ambitions of becoming Netflix for podcasts. "To some degree, of course, all media start-ups think they are going to be the next Netflix. The test for Luminary will come in the execution. And there are plenty of challenges. Subscription-based businesses are hot at the moment, but analysts say that consumers will begin pushing back and asking, How many entertainment services do I really need to be paying for every month?" writes Brooks Barnes in the New York Times.
Lyft has publicly filed its IPO prospectus, and word is that we should be getting the same from Uber within the next few weeks — though not this week.
By the numbers: Lyft's $911 million net loss in 2018 will be a massive hurdle to jump, given that it would appear to be the largest-ever net loss for a company entering the public markets for the first time. As of now, there is no visible path to profitability.
An investigation by fact-checking company Snopes finds that a series of seemingly innocuous local websites, which have popped up all over the country, are being run by GOP consultants whose businesses are funded in part by candidates the websites cover.
Why it matters: The consultants setting up these websites, first reported last year by Politico, are expanding their efforts to more battleground states in the run-up to the 2020 presidential election.
Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou is suing Canada over her arrest at Vancouver airport last year, CBC reported Sunday.
Why it matters: U.S. authorities formally requested in January for Canada to extradite Meng, after the Justice Department unveiled indictments against the executive and others associated with the Chinese tech giant. They are accused of violating Iran trade sanctions. Meng filed a notice of civil claim in British Columbia Supreme Court Friday against members of the Canada Border Services Agency, Canada's federal government and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, alleging "serious breaches of her constitutional rights" and false imprisonment.
