Category: News
ShinyShiny snippets: Sharing Netflix password details may be illegal, government suggests
Users of online streaming platforms such as Netflix could be breaking the law by sharing their account with other households, a government agency has said. The Intellectual Property Office (IPO) said password sharing may amount to “secondary copyright infringement”. In guidance published this week, the IPO said: “Pasting internet images into your social media without permission, or accessing…
ShinyShiny snippets: UK’s first space mission ready for lift off
Image: Virgin Orbit The first space mission on British soil is due for lift-off in the coming weeks after the regulator granted licences. Virgin Orbit has been awarded licences to operate the UK's first space launch. The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson's company demonstrated it has "taken…
Trustpilot reports fewer positive reviews
Review platform Trustpilot has reported 50,000 fewer positive reviews since April, a five per cent drop on the previous year. The biggest problem areas raised by reviewers are deliveries, response times to enquiries and mistakes made with orders. The data was released by the review platform, which also commissioned research of 2,000 UK consumers which found 30…
ShinyShiny snippets: Oppo latest to launch foldable phones
Image: Oppo Chinese companies seem really keen to get their phones out before the end of the year, as hot on the heels of the Xiaomi 13 launch, there’s now the Oppo Find N2 and Oppo Find N2 Flip – two new foldable phones designed to compete with the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 and Samsung Galaxy Z…
ShinyShiny snippets: Could TikTok be banned from US?
Democrats and Republicans don't agree on much these days, but have joined forces to unveil bipartisan legislation that would ban TikTok across the US. Representatives on both sides of the political divide in the House of Representatives and Senate have spoken out against what they perceive as a threat to national security. Those concerns were…
ShinyShiny snippets: Twitter dissolves Trust and Safety Council
Twitter has dissolved its Trust and Safety Council, the advisory group of nearly 100 independent civil, human rights and other organisations. The company, now run by Elon Musk, formed the council in 2016 to address hate speech, child exploitation, suicide, self-harm and other problems on the platform. It had been scheduled to meet with Twitter representatives on…
ShinyShiny snippets: Twitter re-launches Blue Tick from $8 a month
Twitter's paid-for verification feature is rolling out once again on Monday. It was paused last month after being swamped by impersonators. It is still $8 per month - but there is now an increased fee of $11 for those using the Twitter app on Apple devices. Twitter's owner Elon Musk has previously said in tweets…
ShinyShiny snippets: Google opens technology centre for disabled
An alarm clock for people who are deaf is on display at the Google tech centre. Image: Google If you design technology with disabled people in mind, you design technology better for everyone. This was the sentiment from Google as it opened its first UK research and development centre dedicated to…
ShinyShiny snippets: Elon Musk’s Neuralink to begin ‘brain chip’ trials
Image: Neuralink Elon Musk said on Wednesday he expects a brain chip developed by his health tech company to begin human trials in the next six months. During a presentation by Musk’s company Neuralink, Musk gave updates on the company’s wireless brain chip. In addition to forecasting clinical trials, Musk said…
ShinyShiny snippets: Batteries thrown in household waste cause hundreds of fires
Batteries thrown in household rubbish bins cause about 700 fires every year in dustcarts and waste-processing centres, local authorities say. Lithium-ion batteries can explode if damaged or crushed. The Environmental Services Association says resulting fires cost fire services and waste operators some £158m a year. Non-profit organisation Material Focus, which surveyed local authorities, runs an online search tool…
