As browser rivals block third-party tracking, Google pitches ‘Privacy Sandbox’ peace plan • The Register

Disclaimer: No advertisers were harmed in making this project   On Thursday, Google reminded everyone who might have forgotten that “privacy is paramount to us” and announced an initiative called “Privacy Sandbox” that proposes paving over a few privacy pitfalls without suffocating its ad business. It takes a certain chutzpah for a company with such…

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Google Employee Writes Memo About ‘The Burden of Being Black at Google’ – VICE

In a memo he sent before leaving the company, a former Google employee criticized the internet giant and its employees, noting that he regularly encountered racism during his experience as a Black worker at the company. The memo, obtained by Motherboard, is titled “The Weight of Silence,” and argues that Google is lacking in diversity,…

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‘Shooting,’ ‘Bomb,’ ‘Trump’: Advertisers Blacklist News Stories Online – WSJ

Like many advertisers, Fidelity Investments wants to avoid advertising online near controversial content. The Boston-based financial-services company has a lengthy blacklist of words it considers off-limits. If one of those words is in an article’s headline, Fidelity won’t place an ad there. Its list earlier this year, reviewed by The Wall Street Journal, contained more…

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Publishers must prep for a cookie-less world by building walled gardens of their own | AdAge

Amid heightened concern around consumer privacy, Google is the latest browser developer to make policy changes that impact the use of cookies. In strengthening the privacy protections within its Chrome browser, Google has made it easier for users to block third-party cookies and harder for tech companies to fingerprint. With consumers bombarded by targeted ad messages that…

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Will Facebook’s Rebranding of Instagram and WhatsApp Boost Its Rep or Hurt Theirs? – Adweek

Is adding “From Facebook” to the branding for the social media giant’s Instagram photo- and video-sharing network and WhatsApp messaging application a good move, a bad move or inconsequential? Writer and business coach Jason Aten opted for the second, saying in his post on Inc., “Let’s put this in context: This branding move would be like…

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How Facebook Is Changing to Deal With Scrutiny of Its Power – The New York Times

  ImageFacebook, under its chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg, is making changes to deal with antitrust scrutiny.CreditCreditTom Brenner/The New York Times SAN FRANCISCO — Senator Elizabeth Warren has called for the breakup of big tech companies like Facebook. Regulators have opened investigations into Facebook’s power in social networking. Even one of Facebook’s own founders has laid…

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The White House Readies Draft of Executive Order That Could Break the Internet

It appears the Trump administration is drafting an executive order that has the potential to radically change how the content posted on social networks are governed, stripping crucial protections from tech companies and inserting much more government oversight. This is being done under the guise of a popular political talking point claiming that social media…

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Facebook Offers News Outlets Millions of Dollars a Year to License Content – WSJ

ABC News was among the news outlets that received a pitch from Facebook to license their content. Photo: Kena Betancur/Getty Images Updated Aug. 8, 2019 4:31 pm ET Facebook Inc. FB 2.71% is offering news outlets millions of dollars for the rights to put their content in a news section that the company hopes to…

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Life Fitness’s Advertising Platform Brings Programmatic Ads to the Gym – Adweek

Programmatic advertising isn’t just regulated to our computer screens anymore. Recent months have seen digital billboards in malls, airports and city streets go digital. Now, the trend is hitting the gym. Today, Life Fitness—a fitness equipment company that produces everything from treadmills to elliptical bikes for gyms, college dorms and hotels across the country—officially kicked…

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House Votes To Allow Internet Service Providers To Sell, Share Your Personal Information

The new Federal Communications Commission’s rules intended to limit how companies like AT&T, Comcast, Verizon, and Charter can use internet customers’ sensitive personal information are effectively dead in the water, thanks to a House of Representatives vote today to kill the regulations, making sure internet service providers can use and sell user data. The final…

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