Meta will no longer pay US publishers for news content

After Meta’s revenue shrank for the first time in its history, the company has reportedly told publishers it will no longer pay for content to run in Facebook’s News Tab, according to Axios. “Most people do not come to Facebook for news, and as a business it doesn’t make sense to over-invest in areas that don’t align with user preferences,” a spokesperson said in a statement.

Facebook spent around $105 million on such deals, paying $20 million to The New York Times, $10 million to The Wall Street Journal and $3 million to CNN, according to Axios. Facebook struck the deals back in 2019 as it boosted its investment in news and even hired journalists to direct traffic to the news tab. 

Facebook also promised to pay partner sites including The Guardian and The Economist for news in the UK when it launched the News Tab there late in 2020. Shortly after that, it signed a deal with Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp to pay for content in Australia, after the Australian Parliament passed a law requiring Facebook and Google to do so. 

Along with Google, Facebook has taken criticism for drawing ad dollars away from dedicated news sites. That has contributed to the failure of a quarter of US news sites over the last 15 years, according to Poynter, with the professional journalism vacuum often been filled by false or misleading news on Facebook. 

Sony lowers forecast for PS5 gaming sales in 2022

At the end of its fiscal year in May, Sony was fairly bullish on gaming sales, predicting sales of 18 million PlayStation 5s for 2022 after selling 11.5 million in 2021. The company also expected a “significant” revenue increase in its gaming division over 2021 due to a boost across “all categories.”

In its latest earnings drop, however, the company has revised its profit forecast down by 16 percent from 305 billion yen ($2.3 billion) in May to 255 billion yen ($1.9 billion), “due to an expected decrease in sales of first party titles,” it wrote. The company also chalked up the drop in revenue to higher expenses due to its acquisition of Bungie Studios closing earlier than expected. 

Sony didn’t say anything about its PS5 console forecast, but it sold 2.4 million units this quarter compared to 2.3 million in the same quarter last year (21.7 million units to date). That means it must sell over 5 million units on average for the next three quarters to meet its May forecast — something it has never done before. In May, however, Sony said that it will finally be able to ramp up production to meet PS5 demand as supply chain issues ease — though as it stands now, the consoles are still in short supply. 

On the software side, things also went south as Sony sold just 47.1 million titles, including 6.4 million first party games, compared to 63.6 million titles and 10.5 million first-party games in the same quarter of 2021. On top of that, PlayStation Plus users dropped slightly from Q4 (47.3 million instead of 47.4 million), and monthly active users also dropped from 106 to 102 million. Sony introduced the new higher-priced PS Plus Extra and Premium tiers in June, but it has yet to reveal the impact of those — hopefully, we’ll learn more next quarter.

Looking ahead, Sony has a few major titles on the horizon that could perk up software sales, including God of War Ragnarokcoming November 9th, and The Last of Us Part I remake arriving on September 2nd. On the hardware side, the PSVR 2 has been revealed but isn’t expected to arrive until next year.  

The next quarter will be a lot more interesting for Sony’s gaming division, as PS5 sales will show if it’s been able to ramp up production. Game sales will also be notable, as the steep drop this quarter bodes ominously for the industry as a whole. 

Update 7/29/2022 10:34 AM ET: The post has been updated with information that Sony has sold 21.7 million PS5s to date, not 21.4 million.

Logitech’s popular Litra Glow streamer light is 20 percent off right now

Logitech’s Litra Glow is a glare-free soft light developed for streamers that flew off the shelves after it was first unveiled early this year. Now, it’s on sale for the first time at Amazon for $50, or $10 off the regular $60 price — a significant 20 percent discount. 

Buy Logitech Litra Glow at Amazon – $50

The Litra Glow is designed to be gentle on the eyes and safe for all-day streaming, while providing a “natural, radiant look across skin tones.” It also promises cinematic color accuracy via Logitech’s TrueSoft technology, while providing a soft, flattering light. Logitech also said at launch that it works well for people of different skin tones

It’s ready to go out of the box thanks to five presets with different brightness levels and color temperatures, or you can use the G HUB software to create your own. As a bonus, any presets you create can be assigned to the G Keys on a Logitech G keyboard or mouse.

You can find other soft- and ring-style lights from Elgato and others, but most from any recognizable name brand are considerably more expensive. Now, with the discount on offer, it’s a particularly sharp deal, especially considering Logitech’s promised color accuracy. 

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Rivian lays off 6 percent of its workforce as it struggles with EV production

As expected, electric pickup manufacturer Rivian is laying off 6 percent of its 14,000-strong workforce in an effort to boost production without raising more funds, The Wall Street Journal has reported. The company has a 71,000 vehicle pre-order backlog for its R1T and R1S electric pickup and SUV, but had to slash its production forecast for 2022 in half to 25,000 vehicles. 

Rivian is also concerned about raising cash in the current economic environment. “Over the last six months, the world has dramatically changed with inflation reaching record highs, interest rates rapidly rising and commodity prices continuing to climb — all of which have contributed to the global capital markets tightening,” wrote chief executive RJ Scaringe in a note seen by the WSJ. 

With investors like Ford and Amazon having helped it raise $12 billion, Rivian is one of the best funded EV startups out there. However, the company is at a delicate phase, trying to ramp up production enough to finally bring in revenue after building a factory in Illinois. It’s also planning to accelerate development of a more budget-oriented EV called the R2 and build a second $5 billion factory for that model in Georgia.

Another EV startup struggling with production is Faraday Future, which delayed the launch of its first EV, the FF91, yet again. The company said it needs to raise another $325 million in cash to fund operations until the end of the year. 

Google’s second-gen Nest Hub is on sale for $55 right now

If you’ve been eyeballing a 2nd-generation Google Nest Hub but can’t stomach the regular $100 price tag, there’s good news. It’s now on sale for just $55 or 45 percent off at B&H Photo Video, matching one of the lowest prices we’ve seen to date. B&H also has other Nest devices on sale including the Google Nest Audio ($60 or $40 off), Nest Hub Max ($169 or $60 off) and Nest Mini at just $30, for a savings of $20. 

Buy Google Nest Hub at B&H Photo Video – $55

The Nest Hub earned a score of 89 in our review for good reason. It has a minimalist design, a bright 7-inch display, clearer and louder audio than its predecessor and faster performance as well. It’s just the right size to fit into any room and can act as a second screen for your video doorbell or even track your sleep from your bedside table. While it may not be as accurate as a slumber-focused wearable, the Nest Hub will show you sleep duration, quality, schedules and snoring data (if that’s something you’re after).

If it’s just a smart speaker you’re after and don’t need a screen, you may want the Google Nest Audio instead, on sale for $60 or 40 percent off. It has an unassuming yet attractive design, plus great audio quality that’s made even better if you pair two of them together and use them in stereo mode. It also functions as a Google Assistant device, giving you the forecast, control of smart home gadgets, music capabilities and more. 

Next up is the Nest Hub Max, available for $169 or $60 off. It’s the biggest of Google’s smart displays with the best sound quality, thanks to a 10-inch display large enough to comfortably watch YouTube or Netflix videos, or even take a Zoom call. Inside are stereo speakers that help the Hub Max sound better than any other Nest smart display, making it a good option if you want an all-in-one device to stream videos, listen to music and control devices like smart lights, cameras, thermostats and more.

And finally if budget is an issue, the Nest Mini is on sale for just $30, for a savings of $20. It offers the same functionality as Google Nest Audio, but without the same sound quality, of course. Still, it gives you a smart speaker with Google Assistant powers on the cheap for a spare or a kids room. 

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Uber doesn’t need to offer wheelchair-accessible vehicles in all cites, judge rules

A federal court has ruled that Uber does not need to provide wheelchair-accessible service in every US market, ABC News has reported. The company’s decision to provide such a service only in certain cities was not in violation of federal law and would be overly burdensome, said Chief Judge Richard Seeborg of the federal San Francisco Court. 

Two users of motorized wheelchairs in New Orleans and Jackson, Mississippi sued Uber over the lack of accessible services in those cities. Since Uber couldn’t accommodate non-foldable wheelchairs, they claimed that it was in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) that prohibits businesses from discriminating against people based on their disabilities. They further argued that Uber has a “deep-rooted accessibility problem,” treating it as an “afterthought.” The trial for the case lasted nearly five years. 

Uber said in its defense that it would be too expensive to offer wheelchair service in every city if it needed to contract with providers of wheelchair-accessible vehicles. Judge Seeborg agreed, saying that the plaintiffs gave “scant evidence” that Uber could do so cost-effectively and that wait times would still be “significant” if it did. “The anticipated cost here is too high for the limited service that would result, making the proposed modification unreasonable,” he said. 

The judge did reject Uber’s argument that it didn’t need to provide wheelchair-accessible services everywhere because it has done so in some cities, noting that the ADA looks at each modification for reasonableness.

Uber does accommodate wheelchair users in other cities like New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Boston. New Orleans considered mandating the service, but Uber lobbied against those efforts, according to the court records. “We welcome the outcome and are proud of our efforts to improve accessibility for all users, including through Uber WAV,” said an Uber spokesperson in a statement.

Noting that the decision arrived on the eve of the anniversary of the ADA’s passage into law, lead plaintiff Scott Crawford decried the ruling. “Uber made no sincere attempt to provide accessible service, but instead claimed it was too burdensome,” he said. “This could have been economically resolved years ago.’

The US Treasury is investigating Kraken for enabling crypto trading in sanctioned countries

It’s rough seas for crytpocurrency exchanges these days and the latest to be buffeted is one of the world’s largest, Kraken. It’s reportedly under investigation by the US Treasury Department over possible sanctions violations for letting users in Iran and elsewhere trade digital tokens, according to The New York Times. 

Kraken is a private exchange valued at $11 billion co-founded by chief executive Jesse Powell in 2011. The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has been investigating the company since 2019 and may impose a fine, according to the NYT‘s sources. It would be the largest crypto company to face enforcement action related to US sanctions imposed in 1979 prohibiting the export of goods or services to Iran.

Sanctions issues at Kraken first came up in November 2019 when an employee sued the company for doing business with prohibited countries. That suit was settled, but the OFAC began investigating the company the same year over accounts in Iran, along with other sanctioned countries including Syria and Cuba.

Powell allegedly posted a spreadsheet to a company Slack channel showing that Kraken had 1,522 accounts in Iran, 149 in Syria and 83 in Cuba as of last month, according to the NYT. The data supposedly came from residence information on “verified accounts.” 

Kraken declined to comment to the NYT, but said that it “closely monitors compliance with sanctions laws and, as a general matter, reports to regulators even potential issues.” A Treasury spokesperson said the agency was committed to enforcing “sanctions that protect US national security,” but also gave no further details. 

OFAC has previously fined other cryptocurrency exchanges over similar sanctions violations. BitGo was hit with a $98,000 fine in 2020 over 183 violations, and BitPay face a $500,000-plus fine last year for 2,102 violations.

Cryptocurrency exchanges are facing more than the usual scrutiny these days. Last year, the world’s largest crytpo exchange Binance faced a US money laundering probe for being a major destination of illicit cryptocurrency. Crypto lender Celcius is under investigation by multiple states after it froze transactions, and the Winklevoss twins’ crytpo exchange Gemini is facing lawsuits over a $36 million crypto theft. 

SEC investigates Coinbase, says it may have illegally sold unregistered securities

Coinbase is facing a US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) probe into whether it allowed users to trade digital tokens that should have been registered as securities, Bloomberg has reported. Coinbase, involved indirectly in another probe by the SEC and state of New York, recently caught the regulator’s eye after expanding the number of tokens it offers for trading. 

After taking a conservative approach to listing cryptocurrencies, Coinbase now lets Americans trade more than 150 tokens, according to Bloomberg. If any of those are considered to be securities, it would need to register as an exchange with the SEC. A token is considered to be a security if it involves investors putting up funds for a company in order to profit from the work of its leadership.

Last week, the commission accused a former Coinbase employee of violating insider-trading rules by helping his brother and a friend buy dozens of different types of tokens before they were listed on the platform. Coinbase itself wasn’t accused of any wrongdoing, but the SEC said it considered nine of the dozens of digital tokens traded by the men to be securities, including seven listed by the exchange. 

In a response by chief legal officer Paul Grewal, Coinbase said that it “does not list securities on the platform. Period.” As evidence of that, it said that the US Department of Justice “reviewed the same facts [as the SEC] and chose not to file securities fraud charges against those involved.” 

Coinbase has previously complained that there’s no regulatory framework for digital asset securities. As it happened, the company filed a petition for rule making to clarify those rules just before the SEC filed charges. “Instead of crafting tailored rules in an inclusive and transparent way, the SEC is relying on these types of one-off enforcement actions to try to bring all digital assets into its jurisdiction, even those assets that are not securities,” Grewal wrote.