A top EU regulator has fined Meta $414M for violating local privacy laws on its Facebook and Instagram platforms. Ireland's Data Protection Commission (DPC), which issued the fines, accused Meta of forcing users to accept service terms that effectively allowed their data to be used in targeted advertising. More: - The fines stem from two complaints filed against Meta, then Facebook, in 2018.
- The complaints claimed the company violated Europe's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) rules when it asked Facebook and Instagram users to accept terms of service that opened up their data to personalized ads.
- According to the DPC, the language in the terms did not sufficiently make it clear to users on how their personal data would be processed.
- The agency has fined Meta €210M ($223M) for Facebook’s rule violations and another €180M ($191M) for Instagram's.
- Meta said it disagrees and plans to appeal the ruling.
Zoom Out: - In September, Ireland's data privacy regulator fined Instagram ~$402M for allegedly failing to better protect young people's data.
- A two-year investigation found that Instagram mishandled the personal information of children aged 13-17, violating the GDPR.
- At the time, it was the second-largest penalty issued under the EU data privacy rules.
AXIOS 
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A group of game developers has voted to form Microsoft's first labor union in the U.S. About 300 game quality-assurance testers from Microsoft's ZeniMax studios have agreed to organize, becoming one of the few U.S.-based unions to form in the gaming industry. More: - Microsoft confirmed that it has agreed to recognize the ZeniMax Workers United union and looks forward to "good faith negotiations as we work towards a collective bargaining agreement.”
- The group encompasses employees in Maryland and Texas who test games in the Arkane, Bethesda, and id Software units.
- The union will be represented by the Communications Workers of America, which is also representing workers at Activision Blizard's Proletariat studio in Boston.
- Microsoft acquired ZeniMax, the developer of “Doom,” “The Elder Scrolls,” and “Fallout,” for $7.5B in 2021.
Zoom Out: - The software giant, which owns about two dozen gaming studios, is also seeking to buy Activision Blizzard for $68.7B.
- Last month, the Federal Trade Commission filed a lawsuit attempting to block that deal, citing concerns that it will harm competition to Microsoft's Xbox gaming console, subscription content, and cloud-gaming businesses.
CNN
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Salesforce said that it will lay off 10% of its workforce, or roughly 8,000 employees, as it seeks to cut costs amid the economic slowdown. The business software company said it plans to close some of its offices but didn't specify where. More: - In a letter to employees today, CEO Marc Benioff said the current environment "remains challenging and our customers are taking a more measured approach to their purchasing decisions."
- He acknowledged that Salesforce overhired when its revenue accelerated during the pandemic, when more people shifted to remote work and relied on cloud applications and other technology to collaborate.
- In the U.S., employees who are let go will receive five months' pay minimum as well as health insurance, he noted.
- Salesforce expects the reductions to cost $1.4B to $2.1B and be completed by the end of fiscal 2024.
Zoom Out: - Buoyed by its acquisition of Slack in 2021, Salesforce's workforce grew by 30,000 employees between January 2020 and the end of October 2022.
- The CRM company has committed to a 25% operating margin by 2025, up from its goal of 20.4% in 2022.
THE NEW YORK TIMES
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Apple is said to be developing lower-priced "AirPods Lite" as well as its first Apple Watch with a micro-LED display, according to tech analyst Jeff Pu. He expects the tech giant to release both products in 2024. More: - According to Pu, the high-end Apple Watch could feature a 2.1-inch micro-LED display, which is larger than current OLED models.
- The device would be an updated version of the Apple Watch Ultra that launched in September.
- Meanwhile, Pu claims that Apple is working on the lighter AirPods to compete against less expensive wireless earbuds.
- He expects demand for AirPods to drop this year. According to industry sources, Apple's AirPods shipments could fall to 63 million in 2023, down from 73 million units in 2022.
Zoom Out: - Pu also confirmed previous rumors about the iPhone 15 lineup due out in September 2023.
- He expects Apple to release a 6.1-inch iPhone 15, 6.7-inch iPhone 15 Plus, 6.1-inch iPhone 15 Pro, and 6.7-inch iPhone 15 Pro Max.
- The Pro and Pro Max could have titanium frames and solid-state buttons featuring haptic feedback, he said.
MACRUMORS
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Roku announced plans to make its own line of smart TVs as it expands further into the hardware space. The streaming platform company has offered branded TVs through third-party manufacturers but will now design and build them on its own. More: - Roku plans to sell 11 models with HD and 4K resolutions.
- Ranging in size from 24 inches to 75 inches, the TVs will come with Roku voice remotes.
- Like the third-party TVs, the models will run on Roku’s proprietary operating system.
- They will launch in the U.S. this spring at a price point of $119 to $999.
Zoom Out: ENGADGET
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OpenAI's ChatGPT chatbot is able to generate phishing emails for potential cyber-attacks, new research has found. The finding means hackers and scammers could use ChatGPT to help craft email and text-based phishing attacks. More: - OpenAI, an AI research company co-founded by Elon Musk, first introduced a public demo of ChatGPT in November.
- In addition to responding to user questions, the chatbot can generate code, produce scripts, write basic academic essays, offer customer support, and solve problems.
- However, Check Point Research analysts were recently able to get ChatGPT to write a "plausible phishing email" that sounded like it came from a web-hosting service.
- ChatGPT did provide a warning that the response could violate OpenAI's content policy but still generated the text.
- Similarly, Abnormal Security researchers asked ChatGPT to craft an email with a "high likelihood of getting the recipient to click on a link.
- ChatGPT is in a research preview, and OpenAI is still improving the tool to prevent abuse, a spokesperson told Axios.
Zoom Out: AXIOS
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- FTX co-founder and former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried has pleaded not guilty to eight counts of fraud, conspiracy, money laundering, and illegal campaign contributions.
- Shopify launched a new service that allows retailers to integrate with their own online platform tools and services they offer.
- Samsung said it will showcase an AI-enabled smart oven during this week's CES.
- U.S. crypto trading exchange Coinbase reached a $100M settlement with New York's Department of Financial Services over its anti-money laundering and know-your-customer practices. Coinbase will pay $50M to resolve the investigation and invest another $50M to improve the programs.
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UPCOMING EVENTS - January 05 - AMA with Gun.io - Building and managing software development teams w/ Deividi Silva (Watch On Demand)
- January 06 - AMA with LinearB - Improving workflow for developers w/ Ori Keren (Watch On Demand)
- January 10 - Inside Startups Coffee Break (Register Here)
- January 17 - Inside Marketing Coffee Break (Register Here)
- January 31 - Growth Summit 2023 (Register Here)
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 |  | Beth is a writer and editor at Inside.com covering artificial intelligence and daily technology news. You can reach her at Beth.Duckett@inside.com. |   | | Editor | Eduardo Garcia is a writer and editor based in New York. He is the author of "Things You Can Do," an illustrated book about climate action. Bylines in The New York Times, The Guardian, Slate, Scientific American, and others. In one of his previous lives, Eduardo worked as a Reuters correspondent in Latin America for nearly a decade. | |
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