In a video interview over Google Hangouts this week, 76-year-old Vint Cerf explained to the Washington Post why the internet’s 50-year-old architecture is still holding up, “with a mix of triumph and wonder in his voice.” “Resiliency and redundancy are very much a part of the Internet design,” explained Cerf, whose passion for touting the wonders of computer networking prompted Google…
Tag: regulators
Apple Will Stop Taking a Cut of Some Video App Purchases Made Through the App Store
Yesterday, Apple said it would stop taking a cut of some sales for “qualifying” streaming video services on iPhones and other Apple devices, including Amazon’s Prime Video. Reuters reports: To make purchases inside apps on its App Store, Apple requires the use of its own payment systems and takes a commission of between 15% and 30% before passing on the rest…
China Shuts Down All Cinemas, Again
China’s film regulators have slammed the breaks on their plans to gradually reopen the country’s cinemas. From a report: Over 600 movie theaters across China were given the green light to reopen their doors over the past week, but Beijing’s Film Bureau put out a notice late Friday ordering all theaters to go back into shutdown. No official explanation for the…
UK Cash Usage Halves Within Days as Shops Close Due To Coronavirus
Cash usage in Britain has halved in the past few days, according to Link, which operates the UK’s biggest network of ATMs. From a report: The closure of shops, a shift to contactless payments, plus concerns that notes may harbour the virus has contributed to the dramatic decline. Link said the ATM system was operating at its normal standard and that…
Doctors Are Hoarding Unproven Coronavirus Medicine By Writing Prescriptions For Themselves and Their Families
An anonymous reader quotes a report from ProPublica: A nationwide shortage of two drugs touted as possible treatments for the coronavirus is being driven in part by doctors inappropriately prescribing the medicines for family, friends and themselves, according to pharmacists and state regulators. Demand for chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine surged over the past several days as President Donald Trump promoted them as…
YouTube To Limit Video Quality Around the World for a Month
YouTube will reduce the quality of videos around the world starting Tuesday, an effort by the world’s most popular video site to ease internet traffic during the coronavirus outbreak. From a report: Over the coming days, viewers will at first see YouTube videos in standard definition, the company said. Users will still be able to watch in high definition if they…
US Regulators Quickly Approve Roche’s New and Faster COVID-19 Test
schwit1 quotes the International Business Times:
Swiss pharmaceutical giant Roche announced Friday it had received emergency approval from U.S. regulators for a new and much faster test for diagnosing the deadly new coronavirus… The test can be run in high volumes on fully automated equipment, Roche said, suggesting it could provide more results far faster than other tests available. “We are increasing…