The bill that could ban TikTok in the United States inches closer to becoming law. The legislation passed the House of Representatives last month, then had to face the Senate — and opposition from a few prominent lawmakers. The House is to vote on a package of bills this weekend, which includes a slightly revised version of the TikTok bill. In the latest version, ByteDance would have up to 12 months to divest TikTok, instead of the six months initially pitched.
That change alone was apparently key to winning support from some skeptical members of the Senate, including Sen. Maria Cantwell, chair of the Senate Commerce Committee. What will happen if the bill passes into law? TikTok (and potentially other apps “controlled by a foreign adversary”) would face a ban in US app stores if it declined to sell to a new owner.
— Mat Smith
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Chinese regulators cited national security concerns.
… and in what you might believe is something of a tit-for-tat move for blocking TikTok, Apple has pulled . The country’s internet regulator says the removal was required and justified on national security grounds. Apple is always willing to comply, lest it harm relations with one of its largest markets.
At the exact same time as her new album drops.
Taylor Swift has a new album out.
A second chance for an underappreciated console.
Analogue’s latest retro console takes us to the multimedia era with the Duo: a love letter to one of Japan’s most beloved (but niche) consoles, the TurboGrafx-16. It’s a deep cut from a brand that has made its name reviving the most obscure hardware from gaming history. But, as much as you can emulate all of these titles on pretty much any device you have laying around, there’s something different about running it from the original media.
There’s no penalty for secrecy if you’re a streaming company.
Netflix has always been secretive about how much of its near-limitless library of content is being watched at any given time. Now, to prevent giving Wall Street another stick with which to beat it. Instead, it’ll only drop data when it’s good PR, like crossing the 300-million subscriber threshold, and stick telling everyone how much money it’s making.