concert
Global tech

The arts sector is now designed to make tech billionaires richer – and a new Australian book, Chokepoint Capitalism, ponders how to regain control

- November 28, 2022 8 MIN READ

This book speaks to a disenchanted present. The heady days of internet 2.0, with its anarchic disruption, empowered prosumers, flat hierarchies and sharing economies, are well behind us now. So too is the glamour of start-ups and creative entrepreneurs, remaking the self through pure willpower while transforming capitalism from the inside out, one almond latte… Read more »

Mark Zuckerberg
Global tech

America’s pioneering tech giants are shedding 25,000+ jobs as Chinese rival TikTok looks to double in size

- November 17, 2022 3 MIN READ

More than 25,000 jobs are set to be cut at three of the biggest tech companies in the world, as rapid growth during the pandemic slows and broader economic headwinds pick up speed. Reports emerged this week that Amazon is planning to lay off about 10,000 people, on the back of Facebook parent company Meta’s… Read more »

spotify
Global tech

Chokepoint Capitalism: how Amazon’s Audible, Spotify and other platforms squeeze cash from creators

- November 15, 2022 5 MIN READ

In 2020, the independent authors and small publishers whose audiobooks reach their readers via Audible’s ACX platform smelled a rat. Audiobooks were booming, but sales of their own books – produced at great expense and well-reviewed – were plummeting. Some of their royalty statements reported negative sales, as readers returned more books than they bought.… Read more »

man working at beach
Global tech

Tech Council releases roadmap to make Australia the regional hub for great tech businesses

- September 1, 2022 2 MIN READ

Lobby group The Tech Council of Australia (TCA) is looking to take the battle up to Singapore, China and Japan in making Australia the regional tech hub for the Asia-Pacific region, attracting global players to the country.  A new report commissioned by the TCA, Turning Australia into a Regional Tech Hub, outlines the existing strengths… Read more »

Global tech

AI weapons, robot subs & silent drones: the military tech startup created by the Oculus founder lands in Australia

- August 23, 2022 4 MIN READ

Earlier this month, posters started going up around Sydney advertising an event called “In the Ops Room, with Palmer Luckey”. Rather than an album launch or standup gig, this turned out to be a free talk given last week by the chief executive of a high-tech US defence company called Anduril. The company has set… Read more »

Google office
Global tech

Australia’s High Court says Google is not a publisher in landmark defamation decision

- August 17, 2022 2 MIN READ

Global search giant Google is not responsible as a publisher for serving up links to defamatory material, Australia’s High Court has ruled. The landmark decision overturns exisiting rulings by the Victorian Supreme Court and its Court of Appeal involving a $40,000 damages award against Google to Melbourne lawyer George Defteros for a hyperlink to an… Read more »

Global tech

Google smacked with $60 million for misleading Australian users over Android phone tracking

- August 15, 2022 2 MIN READ

Tech giant Google has been hit with $60 million in penalties by Australia’s Federal Court for for making misleading representations to consumers about the collection and use of their personal location data on Android phones. The fine resulted from legal action by consumer watchdog the ACCC, which took Google to court in October 2019 over… Read more »

Global tech

No, you didn’t imagine it – Google did crash yesterday, and it’s a reminder of how central it now is to modern life

- August 11, 2022 2 MIN READ

On Wednesday, reports began emerging Google was down. Google down for thousands of users – Downdetector https://t.co/jQYLzHdjNC pic.twitter.com/TIbcYrtImU — Reuters (@Reuters) August 9, 2022 While it has since returned, it once again highlights our dependence on technology service providers and shows how reliant many people are on a single operator for daily functions. There are… Read more »

cat on robot vacuum cleaner
Global tech

Amazon’s $2.45 billion play for iRobot – and a map inside your home – raises privacy questions

- August 10, 2022 4 MIN READ

Less than two weeks after the announcement of its acquisition of US healthcare company One Medical, Amazon is continuing its expansion with a US$1.7 billion offer for iRobot, the manufacturer of Roomba automated vacuum cleaners. The acquisition will bolster Amazon’s line of smart home products and add to the retail giant’s vast store of consumer… Read more »

Global tech

Book publishers v the Internet Archive: why the world’s biggest online library is in a legal fight over digital lending

- July 21, 2022 4 MIN READ

Earlier this month, the Internet Archive asked a US court to end a lawsuit filed against it by four large book publishers. The Internet Archive is a not-for-profit organisation founded in 1996 that lends digital copies of books, music, movies and other digitised content to the public. It aims to support people with print disabilities,… Read more »