The ViacomCBS decision to license catalog Paramount TV shows and movies to NBCUniversal’s Peacock streaming service (see 2007010024) demonstrates “we’re in the content monetization business,” Dan Cohen, president, ViacomCBS Global Distribution Group, told the Digital Entertainment Group’s DEG Expo virtual event Thursday. ViacomCBS also is “very much in the space of using content for our own platforms and services,” he said.
Twitter, among social media and tech companies under public and policymaker scrutiny, faced additional skepticism after a hack of high-profile accounts. Legislators from both parties expressed concerns Thursday. After those who had verified accounts couldn't post new tweets Wednesday, the problem seemed fixed later that day. The company didn't comment.
Thursday's ruling tossing out Privacy Shield must result in a speedy replacement, industry groups said (see 2007160014). The European Court of Justice nixed the personal data transfer regime because of what it considered overzealous U.S. surveillance and inadequate ombudsman protections. The decision throws trans-Atlantic data flows into turmoil, stakeholders said. Industry urged both parties to return immediately to negotiations, while privacy advocates and consumers pressed the European Commission to do more to protect citizens in future talks.
A bipartisan group of House Oversight Committee members urged support Wednesday for creating a White House national cyber director. Republican opponents questioned the need for creating additional bureaucracy and duplicating cyber authorities, during a virtual hearing. Proponents cited COVID-19 as an example that the federal government isn’t prepared to respond to global threats.
The House Appropriations Committee voted 30-22 Tuesday to advance the Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies Subcommittee's FY 2021 funding bill with report language encouraging NTIA to coordinate with the FCC and other agencies “to preserve spectrum access for scientific purposes as commercial use of radio spectrum increases.” The underlying measure allocates $45.5 million for NTIA, just under $3.7 billion for the Patent Office, $1.04 billion for the National Institute of Standards and Technology and almost $180.3 million for DOJ’s Antitrust Division.
British online grocer Ocado Group experienced a “significant and permanent global channel shift” toward e-commerce during the COVID-19 pandemic, said CEO Timothy Steiner on a Q2 investor call Tuesday. The company licenses its technology platform to online retailers throughout the world and runs nearly five dozen customer fulfillment centers (CFCs) globally in partnership with its licensees.
Multifactor authentication should be a default for companies accessing and transferring customer data, the FTC heard. The agency proposed process-based requirements in April to add to its safeguards rule, which governs how financial institutions keep customer information secure (see 2004200062). Monday’s workshop was meant to gather information for the proposed rulemaking.
Political pressure in executive orders won’t sway the FTC, Chairman Joe Simons wrote June 29 to Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., and Rep. Jan Schakowsky, D-Ill. Blumenthal and Schakowsky wrote Simons June 15 with concerns about political influence from President Donald Trump’s EO (see 2005280060) directing the FTC to police unfair and deceptive practices involving online platforms’ content moderation practices, with language targeting Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. We received the correspondence via a Freedom of Information Act request to the trade commission.
Standardizing data shared on software components is vital for identifying cyber vulnerabilities and will have an impact across industries, stakeholders told NTIA Thursday. The agency held a virtual meeting on the multistakeholder process on software component transparency (see 2006180024).
The House Appropriations Committee voted by voice Thursday to advance the Agriculture Subcommittee’s FY 2021 bill, which includes a major increase the Agriculture Department's rural broadband funding allocation. The panel urged USDA in a report on the measure to examine how it can address broadband mapping issues separate from the FCC and do more on precision agriculture and connectivity in tribal areas. House Appropriations also released its report on the Legislative Branch Subcommittee’s FY21 bill, which includes $91.4 million for the Copyright Office (see 2007070063).