UK regulator warns of big fines, service suspensions for tech giants ahead of new safety rules

Published

5 hours ago

October 17, 2024

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Sebastien Bozon | AFP | Getty Images

LONDON — Technology giants could face “significant” fines if they don’t comply with the U.K.’s internet safety regulations, which are set to enter into force in two months’ time, the British media regulator Ofcom warned Thursday.

The Online Safety Act includes sweeping new rules that will force large tech firms to do more to combat illegal content online. Over the past six months, Ofcom has consulted on its codes and guidance for illegal harms, pornography age verification and children’s safety.

The watchdog said it submitted its advice to the government on which services it would look to subject to additional duties based on certain thresholds. Ofcom has also spoken with tech firms, including some of the largest platforms, about what they will need to do next year.

Ofcom said it’s already secured better protections from several online platform companies. That includes the adult content-focused subscription platform OnlyFans, which introduced age verification; free speech-focused video-sharing site BitChute, which improved its content moderation, and live-streaming service Twitch, which introduced measures to prevent children from seeing harmful videos.

Meta and Snapchat have also implemented changes to protect children from grooming, Ofcom said. The regulator added that, while these are positive steps, more changes will be needed wen the Online Safety Act comes into force.

From December this year, Ofcom will publish first edition illegal harms codes and guidance. Tech platforms will then have three months to complete an illegal harms risk assessment.

The watchdog has further milestones to cross as the regulation rolls out in 2025. In January Ofcom said it’ll finalize children’s access assessment guidance and age assurance guidance for porn sites. Then in Spring, it will consult on additional measures for “second edition” codes and guidance.

Ofcom warned that tech companies face sizable fines if they fail to comply once the rules kick into action. It will have the power to levy fines of as much as 10% of companies’ global annual revenues for breaches.

In cases where repeat breaches occur, individual senior managers could even face jail time. In the most serious cases, Ofcom said, the regulator could seek a court order to block access to a service in the U.K. or limit the firm’s access to payment providers or advertisers.

“The time for talk is over. From December, tech firms will be legally required to start taking action, meaning 2025 will be a pivotal year in creating a safer life online,” Melanie Dawes, Ofcom’s chief executive, said in a statement.

“We’ve already engaged constructively with some platforms and seen positive changes ahead of time, but our expectations are going to be high, and we’ll be coming down hard on those who fall short,” Dawes added.

Ofcom’s update comes after U.K. Technology Minister Peter Kyle submitted a letter to the regulator Wednesday asking for an update on its response to anti-immigration protests and riots that took place across the country earlier this year.

“I would appreciate an update from you on the assessment Ofcom has made about how illegal content, particularly disinformation, spread during the period of disorder; and if there are targeted measures which Ofcom is considering for the next iteration of the illegal harms code of practice in response,” Kyle said in the letter, which was posted on social media platform X.

Technology

Google CEO names new search and ads boss, slides predecessor to CTO

Published

51 mins ago

October 17, 2024

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Google CEO names new search and ads boss, slides predecessor to CTO

Prabhakar Raghavan, senior vice president at Google, speaks during the US Conference of Mayors Winter Meeting in Washington, DC, US, on Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2024.

Julia Nikhinson | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Google is replacing Prabhakar Raghavan, the company’s search and ads boss, with longtime Google executive Nick Fox.

The move was announced by Alphabet and Google CEO Sundar Pichai, who said that Raghavan will be moving into the role of Google chief technologist after 12 years of leading teams across the search company. Raghavan will continue to report to Pichai in the new CTO role, the company told CNBC in a statement.

“Prabhakar has decided it’s time to make a big leap in his own career,” Pichai wrote in a company blog post. “In this role, he’ll partner closely with me and Google leads to provide technical direction and leadership and grow our culture of tech excellence.”

The move comes as Google continues to restructure its teams to move more quickly in the AI arms race as it faces increased competition. The company also finds itself facing several antitrust lawsuits related to its search and ads business.

Fox has long been a member of Raghavan’s leadership team. He will be leading Google’s Knowledge and Information division, which includes the company’s search, ads and commerce products, Pichai said.

A Google employee since 2003, Fox has been vice president for the product and design for the company’s Assistant product in recent years. He previously worked within the company’s ads business unit.

“Over the past few years, Nick has been instrumental in shaping Google’s AI product roadmap and collaborating closely with Prabhakar,” Pichai wrote.

Raghavan led the knowledge and information unit since 2018. Earlier this year, Raghavan told employees to prepare for a different market reality because “things are not like they were 15-20 years ago,” CNBC reported.

Additionally, Pichai announced that the team working on Google’s Gemini app, which includes Google’s AI direct-to-consumer products, will join Google DeepMind under Google’s AI head Demis Hassabis.

“Bringing the teams closer together will improve feedback loops, enable fast deployment of our new models in the Gemini app,” Pichai wrote.

The move also means the Assistant teams focused on devices and home experiences will move to the Platforms and Devices unit “so they can sit closer to the product surfaces they’re building for,” Pichai wrote.

WATCH: Google Cloud information security chief on safeguarding data & supply chains

Technology

Amazon makes first foray into live news with election night special hosted by Brian Williams

Published

55 mins ago

October 17, 2024

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Brian Williams.

Lloyd Bishop | NBC | Getty Images

Amazon said Thursday it plans to host an election night special anchored by Brian Williams, marking the company’s first foray into live news coverage.

The one-night special will provide election results and analysis on Prime Video starting at 5 p.m. ET on Nov. 5, the company said. Amazon emphasized it will be a “non-partisan presentation” pulling information from a variety of third-party news sources.

Williams will lead the special and interview analysts across the political spectrum. Viewers will not be required to have a Prime subscription to access the stream.

“After 41 years in the business — from local news to network shows to cable news — this feels like the next big thing,” Williams, who left NBC News in 2021 after a 28-year run, said in a release. “And the global marketplace of Amazon is a natural home for this first-of-its-kind venture.”

Amazon has been increasingly moving into live sports programming on its Prime Video streaming service as a way to boost subscriptions and drive additional revenue to its lucrative advertising business. In July, Amazon signed an 11-year rights deal to carry NBA games starting with the 2025-26 season. Amazon also streams “Thursday Night Football” games and has the rights to stream some NHL games.

Now the company is angling to position itself as a “growing home for news viewers.” It offers streaming news channels on Prime Video, including live content from ABC News Live, CNN Headlines, LiveNOW from FOX and NBC News Now.

Disclosure: NBC and CNBC are divisions of NBCUniversal.

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Technology

Nvidia stock rises to new record, exceeding June high as AI trade is rekindled

Published

3 hours ago

October 17, 2024

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Nvidia stock rises to new record, exceeding June high as AI trade is rekindled

Jensen Huang, co-founder and CEO of Nvidia, speaks during an event in Taipei, Taiwan, on June 2, 2024.

Annabelle Chih | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Shares of Nvidia rose to a new record Thursday as investors piled back in to the artificial intelligence trade, which had stalled a bit since the summer. The stock rose more than 3% at one point to briefly tap a new intraday high of $140.89.

The new high bested a previous record of $140.76, which was set June 20. Shares were trading at about $139.59 as of 10.26 a.m. ET.

Nvidia, 5 years

Nvidia’s intraday record comes after Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, the world’s largest chip producer, beat third-quarter earnings estimates and posted a 54% increase in profit. The company produces chips for companies such as Apple, Nvidia, AMD and ARM.

Nvidia stock hit a closing high of $138.07 on Monday, topping its prior record of $135.58 set June 18. Shares are up 180% year to date and have increased more than ninefold since the beginning of 2023.

Companies including Microsoft, Meta, Google and Amazon are purchasing Nvidia GPUs in massive quantities to build increasingly large clusters of computers for their advanced AI work. Those companies are all slated to report quarterly results by the end of October.

Nvidia recently said demand for its next-generation AI GPU, called Blackwell, is “insane” and it expects billions of dollars in revenue from the new product in the fourth quarter.

— CNBC’s Kif Leswing contributed to this report.