Signs of Our Times

The Ambitious Plan Behind Facebook’s Cryptocurrency, Libra | WIRED 19 June 2019

How would you build the internet of money? A friction-free global digital currency would be a boon for the many people with mobile phones but no access to banking. And who better to develop something like this, he wondered, than Facebook, with its global reach and massive user base? Marcus, then head of Facebook Messenger, […]

Ars Technica: Google’s ninth attempt at a messaging service will be based on RCS 19 June 2019

A Supreme Court Decision Could Have Implications for Social Media Free Speech - Pacific Standard 18 June 2019

Although this case does not deal with social media explicitly, it could have considerable implications for the regulation of free speech on such platforms. Sites like Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube provide forums for discussion, so if the First Amendment can't be enforced against a private entity that provides a public forum, that may also be […]

$1 billion for 20,000 Bay Area homes 18 June 2019

Today we’re announcing an additional $1 billion investment in housing across the Bay Area. First, over the next 10 years, we’ll repurpose at least $750 million of Google’s land, most of which is currently zoned for office or commercial space, as residential housing. This will enable us to support the development of at least 15,000 […]

The New Wilderness (Idle Words) 17 June 2019

The large tech companies point to our willing use of their services as proof that people don’t really care about their privacy. But this is like arguing that inmates are happy to be in jail because they use the prison library. Confronted with the reality of a monitored world, people make the rational decision to […]

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