internet and www – The News Desk

Microsoft to widely offer an AI feature into outlook that can write emails for you

15Oct

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Technology

Microsoft to widely offer an AI feature into outlook that can write emails for you

New York CNN — Artificial intelligence could soon be writing more company emails in Microsoft Outlook, as the company expands its rollout of AI tools for corporate users. The Microsoft 365 Copilot tool – “your everyday AI companion,” as the company bills it – will help users write their emails to “keep your sentences concise and error-free.” The tool also summarizes long email threads to quickly draft suggested replies. Users with Microsoft 365 Personal or Family subscriptions will get more advanced AI help through Microsoft Editor, an intelligent writing assistant. The update will include suggested edits for “clarity, conciseness, inclusive language and more” to help workers create more “polished a...

Apple rejected opportunities to buy Microsoft’s Bing, integrate with DuckDuckGo

6Oct

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Technology

Apple rejected opportunities to buy Microsoft’s Bing, integrate with DuckDuckGo

CNN — Since 2017, Apple has turned down multiple opportunities to chip away at Google’s search engine dominance, according to newly unsealed court transcripts, including a chance to purchase Microsoft’s Bing and to make the privacy-focused DuckDuckGo a default for users of its Safari’s private browsing mode. The previously confidential records, unsealed this week by the judge presiding over the US government’s antitrust lawsuit against Google, illustrate the challenges that have faced Google’s rivals in search as they’ve tried to unseat the tech giant from its pole position as Apple’s default search provider on millions of iPhones and Mac computers. It’s a privilege for which Google has paid Apple at least $10...

5Oct

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Technology

Microsoft, Amazon facing UK antitrust probe over cloud serivces

London CNN — Microsoft and Amazon could be in hot water over apparently making it difficult for UK customers to use multiple suppliers of vital cloud services. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), the country’s antitrust regulator, said Thursday it was launching an investigation into the UK cloud infrastructure services market to determine whether players were engaged in anti-competitive practices. Cloud computing firms, such as Microsoft and Amazon Web Services (AWS), use data centers around the world to provide remote access to computing services and storage. This “cloud infrastructure” forms the foundation for how software applications, such as Gmail and Dropbox, are developed and run. ...

Antitrust Trial: Microsoft CEO warns of impact of Google’s search monopoly on AI

3Oct

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Technology

Antitrust Trial: Microsoft CEO warns of impact of Google’s search monopoly on AI

CNN — Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella warned on Monday of a “nightmare” scenario for the internet if Google’s dominance in online search is allowed to continue, a situation, he said, that starts with searches on desktop and mobile but extends to the emerging battleground of artificial intelligence. Nadella testified on Monday as part of the US government’s sweeping antitrust trial against Google, now into its 14th day. He is the most senior tech executive yet to testify during the trial that focuses on the power of Google as the default search engine on mobile devices and browsers around the globe. Taking the stand in a charcoal suit and tie, Nadella painted Google as a technology giant that has block...

Netflix is ending its subscriber-based DVD rental service

29Sep

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Technology

Netflix is ending its subscriber-based DVD rental service

CNN — Netflix will send out its last red envelope on Friday, marking an end to 25 years of mailing DVDs to members. The company announced earlier this year it is shutting down its DVD-by-mail service, 16 years after it gradually shifted its focus to streaming content online. Netflix will continue to accept returns of customers’ remaining DVDs until October 27. Introduced in 1998 when Netflix first launched, the DVD service promised an easier rental experience than having to drive to the nearest Blockbuster or Hollywood Video. The red envelopes, which have long been synonymous with Netflix itself, littered homes and dorm rooms across the country. Although the idea of receiving a DVD in...

FCC to propose rules for net neutrality that ban internet providers from blocking websites

27Sep

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Technology

FCC to propose rules for net neutrality that ban internet providers from blocking websites

CNN — The US government aims to restore sweeping regulations for high-speed internet providers such as AT&T, Comcast and Verizon, reviving “net neutrality” rules for the broadband industry — and an ongoing debate about the internet’s future. The proposed rules from the Federal Communications Commission will designate internet service — both the wired kind found in homes and businesses as well as mobile data on cellphones — as “essential telecommunications” akin to traditional telephone services, said FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel. The rules would ban internet service providers (ISPs) from blocking or slowing down access to websites and online content. In addition to the prohibitions on b...

12Sep

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Technology

Landmark Google trial opens with sweeping DOJ accusations of illegal monopolization

CNN — US prosecutors opened a landmark antitrust trial against Google on Tuesday with sweeping allegations that for years the company intentionally stifled competition challenging its massive search engine, accusing the tech giant of spending billions to operate an illegal monopoly that has harmed every computer and mobile device user in the United States. In opening remarks before a federal judge in Washington, lawyers for the Justice Department alleged that Google’s negotiation of exclusive contracts with wireless carriers and phone makers helped cement its dominant position in violation of US antitrust law. The Google case has been described as one of the largest US antitrust trials since the fe...

Google stands trial against US government officials in antitrust lawsuit over the company’s accused search monopoly

10Sep

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Technology

Google stands trial against US government officials in antitrust lawsuit over the company’s accused search monopoly

CNN — Google will face off in court Tuesday against government officials who have accused the company of antitrust violations in its massive search business, kicking off a long-anticipated legal showdown that could reshape one of the internet’s most dominant platforms. The trial beginning this week in Washington before a federal judge marks the culmination of two ongoing lawsuits against Google that started during the Trump administration. Legal experts describe the actions as the country’s biggest monopolization case since the US government took on Microsoft in the 1990s. In separate complaints, the Justice Department and dozens of states accused Google in 2020 of abusing its dominance in onli...

More than 20 million Americans enrolled in a federal program for subsidized internet access

20Aug

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Technology

More than 20 million Americans enrolled in a federal program for subsidized internet access

Washington CNN — More than 20 million US households are now receiving discounts on internet service as part of a federal program created to close the digital divide, according to the Federal Communications Commission. The milestone highlights the cost of reliable internet service for low-income families, an issue that the government’s Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) seeks to address by providing $30-a-month subsidies to eligible US households. Recipients living on tribal lands can receive even more, up to $75 per month to help cover internet access costs. US residents can can qualify for the program if they meet certain eligibility requirements, such as participating in other government assi...

12Aug

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Technology

New tools aim to protect art and images from AI’s grasp

CNN — For months, Eveline Fröhlich, a visual artist based in Stuttgart, Germany, has been feeling “helpless” as she watched the rise of new artificial intelligence tools that threaten to put human artists out of work. Adding insult to injury is the fact that many of these AI models have been trained off of the work of human artists by quietly scraping images of their artwork from the internet without consent or compensation. “It all felt very doom and gloomy for me,” said Fröhlich, who makes a living selling prints and illustrating book and album covers. “We’ve never been asked if we’re okay with our pictures being used, ever,” she added. “It was just like, ‘This is mine now, it’s o...