With files from Jori Negin-Shecter
Amazon works on a supply chain workaround, Verizon’s App is collecting more data than you think, and Youtube makes a surprising revelation about their copyright enforcement.
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That’s all the tech news that’s trending right now, welcome to Hashtag Trending! It’s Tuesday, December 7, and I’m your host, Tom Li.
According to an article from CNBC, Amazon will begin to produce its own cargo containers, following years of chartering its own private shipping vessels. The online retail giant has nearly doubled its spending on shipping since 2019. According to one source, the company has also seen a 72% increase in the number of packages delivered with the company’s own shipping service. By creating their own containers, Amazon will be able to avoid vying for them against other companies, which has been driving up container costs over the past few months. Amazon’s spending spree doesn’t stop there, as the company has also fought against the worker shortages by incentivizing seasonal workers with sign-on bonuses of up to $3,000. It seems that Amazon is doing everything that it can to avoid the supply chain squeeze during this busy holiday season.
Mobile carrier Verizon is reportedly collecting more data than expected, namely your internet browsing history. According to an article from The Verge, Verizon has claimed it is doing so to best understand its customers’ interests. Perhaps more surprising is that Verizon automatically opts their users into sharing this information through their Verizon custom experience program. According to Verizon’s website, the initiative may see Verizon use your information to offer peripheral services. Verizon customers can opt-out of the service by entering their My Verizon app and selecting “Manage privacy settings”. From there, users can both toggle off the feature, as well as erase information that Verizon has already collected.
Finally, YouTube has revealed some intriguing information about its copyright strike system via its biannual copyright transparency report. Perhaps the most noteworthy stats from the report was that roughly 60% of all copyright claims filed were resolved in favour of the uploader. This news comes in spite of the fact that many content creators have repeatedly criticized the existing system. Other findings from the report show that claims filed manually are twice as likely to be disputed than automated ones, indicating creators are more reluctant to appeal against Content ID claims. The report is a part of YouTube’s recent effort to curb creator dissatisfaction with the platform.
And now for something a little bit different. According to an article from The Guardian, Chinese weather authorities reportedly “controlled the weather” prior to a Major political celebration earlier this year. While this may sound like science fiction, the use of Cloud Seeding technology allowed authorities to manipulate the weather according to a study from a Chinese university. The technology involves “adding chemicals like small particles of silver iodide, to clouds, causing water droplets to cluster around them and increasing the chance of precipitation.” While the celebration faced challenges such as increased air pollutants, the rain was able to raise the air quality index rating from “moderate” to “good” based on the WHO standards. Researchers noted that the rain was the only disruptive event during that period, which made the drop in air pollution be due to natural causes.
That’s all the tech news that’s trending right now. Hashtag Trending is a part of the ITWC Podcast network. Add us to your Alexa Flash Briefing or your Google Home daily briefing. Make sure to sign up for our Daily IT Wire Newsletter to get all the news that matters directly in your inbox every day. If you have a suggestion or tip, please drop us a line in the comments or via email. Thanks for listening, I’m Tom Li.
