Amazon has been combatting fake reviews for quite some time, even going as far as taking legal action against the sellers purchasing them. Merchants still don’t seem to take the hint, as the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has concluded its first successful case against fraudulent, paid Amazon reviews, fining …
Read More »Twitch promises to stop promoting big streamer events on smaller channels
Controversy enveloped Twitch at the end of last year, with content creators criticising the platform’s promotion of a Ninja-hosted event during their streams. After repeating the mistake a second time with Pokimane just last week, Twitch has finally promised broadcasters that it will no longer advertise big streamer events across …
Read More »Amazon shows off New World footage in Twitter choose your own adventure
Although Netflix’s Black Mirror: Bandersnatch is far from the first ‘choose your own adventure’ experience, it’s fair to say that the feature-length episode has launched the genre back into prominence. Using an inventive marketing twist on the system, Amazon has chosen to showcase its upcoming MMO ‘New World’ by letting …
Read More »Germany bans Amazon’s Dash Button for conflicting with local consumer laws
Back in 2015, Amazon introduced Dash Buttons to its speedy replenishment services, allowing customers to place an order on consumables at the click of a single button. The technology has now been banned in Germany, after a Munich regional court found the technology to be in violation of consumer laws …
Read More »Twitch is selling Curse Media to Wikia’s Fandom
The now Amazon-owned Twitch acquired Curse back in 2016, and with it a plethora of websites, multimedia channels and applications housed within. Two years later, it seems as though Twitch is ditching the brand, selling Curse Media to information host Fandom. Fandom is a Wiki hosting service that currently provides …
Read More »Amazon reportedly fires employees connected with the selling of user data and services
Back in September, Amazon began investigating employees after allegations emerged accusing employees of handing over user data in exchange for cash. The online retailer has since taken action against a number of staff expected to be involved in the distribution of insider information, dismissing them from the company. Several workers …
Read More »Amazon quietly launches Part Finder to help display component compatibility
In an effort to maintain its position as a one-stop shop for all things, Amazon is slowly rolling out a compatibility checker on various PC parts. Dubbed the “Part Finder”, users will be able to utilise the tool to check the brand and model number of existing systems to ensure …
Read More »Amazon’s European workers protest Black Friday working conditions
The deals presented in various Black Friday sales can easily be blinding, saving incredible amounts of cash on tech, clothing and various other bits and bobs that would otherwise go overlooked. Due to this, it’s easy to forget the hard workers behind the scenes making timely shipping possible, resulting in …
Read More »Amazon is offering some steep discounts on M.2 SSDs today
If you have been saving up for a few PC upgrades, then now might be the best time to shop around. Black Friday deals are already starting to do the rounds and Amazon has some pretty great ones for SSDs today, including a 1TB Samsung 970 M.2 drive for just …
Read More »Apple partners with Amazon to bolster iPhone & iPad listings
Apple has struck a deal with Amazon to expand its product listings on the marketplace, including the latest smartphones, tablets and wearables. Apple’s HomePod is noticeably missing from the contract, as the virtual assistant would clash with Amazon’s Alexa-clad Echo range. In the coming weeks, listings for the iPhone XS, …
Read More »Amazon releases its Alexa virtual assistant for Windows 10
If Cortana simply isn’t enough virtual assistant for your needs when traversing Windows 10, Amazon has a potential solution by bringing Alexa to the platform. Unfortunately, it looks as though functionality will be limited at launch, which could be a deal breaker for some. Amazon had already put Alexa through …
Read More »Amazon’s Rekognition facial ID technology allegedly slammed as “dangerous” by staff
Amazon’s facial recognition technology has drawn controversy during its development, with mounting concerns towards known bias in machine learning and privacy. With Amazon on the cusp of licensing its aptly named Rekognition tech to US law enforcement, employees are now speaking out against the effort, calling it “unethical” and “dangerous.” …
Read More »GCHQ and US Homeland Security side with Apple and Amazon on China hack report
Last week, a big report came out claiming that Chinese spies were able to sneak tiny surveillance chips into Super Micro servers in an effort to steal information from other countries. At the time, Apple and Amazon were specifically named as companies affected by this. Both have since denied these …
Read More »Amazon and Apple deny reports of Chinese spy chips found in data centres
A recent exposé has accused China of inserting micropchips into computer servers, granting unparalleled backdoor access to data from the United States and other nations.
Read More »Leaked footage shows off Amazon’s upcoming MMO, New World
Amazon revealed that it would be venturing into the massive-multiplayer online (MMO) genre in 2016, being one of the first games under its Amazon Game Studios banner. Leaked footage has now given us our first look at what to expect from New World, including a breakdown of its core systems. …
Read More »Widespread outage of Amazon’s Alexa sparks debate of smart home viability
Amazon has placed a lot of emphasis on its Alexa virtual assistant recently, launching a plethora of Echo devices during a surprise event. Sadly, it seems as though Alexa is suffering issues throughout Europe resulting in devices not responding to ordinary commands. Unveiling a range of new Alexa-powered Echo devices, …
Read More »OnePlus’ “Dash Charge” is the centre of a lawsuit despite the firm no longer using the term
Back in May, the EU and US patent offices rejected OnePlus’ application to trademark the term Dash Charge for its proprietary fast charging technology. Although the name has since been dropped from its marketing, complaints from Amazon and Bragi have escalated, leading the latter to file a formal dispute against …
Read More »Snapchat could be partnering with Amazon with new feature
Earlier this year, Snapchat announced its plans to utilise Visual Search in order identify things within the frame of a picture and redirect users to a webpage containing that specific item. Announcing its partnership with Amazon, Snap will use this feature to make purchases easier than ever across both platforms. …
Read More »Amazon is probing employees accused of accepting bribes for sales data and services
Amazon has launched an investigation into its own staff following accusations that employees had been taking bribes that breach the vendor’s terms of service. In exchange for the payoffs, workers have supposedly been offering up confidential sales data and services to, wrongfully, preserve the integrity of independent companies and their …
Read More »Amazon has peaked at $1 trillion market value
Just over one month ago, we learned that Apple had become the first US company to reach a market value of $1 trillion. At the time, Amazon was hot on Apple's heels in the race to $1 trillion and now, the company has officially joined the club. Last night, Amazon …
Read More »Race to $1 trillion: Apple is edging out Amazon thanks to record third quarter
Within the past year, Amazon has risen up as a true contender in analyst predictions of which company will be first to pass the $1 trillion mark. It seems as though Apple has managed to cling on as the long-term favourite, however, following the company’s strongest-ever third quarter. The three-month …
Read More »Amazon aims to make hardware more affordable with interest-free payments
The cost of PC components is often in flux, with graphics cards, RAM and storage in particular soaring in price throughout the past two years. While prices are beginning to come down, it looks like Amazon could have you covered in future as it launches a trial for interest-free finance …
Read More »Video streaming services have overtaken pay-TV subscriptions in the UK
Even though investors are seemingly wary about Netflix’s next step, the platform is still unquestionably at its peak and leading the charge against traditionally paid television. Alongside Amazon Prime and Sky’s Now TV streaming services have garnered more subscriptions than pay-TV, with pay-TV actually shrinking for the first time in …
Read More »Sellers on Amazon caught repackaging GOG versions of games
We all love a good deal when it comes to new games, but recently on Amazon some shoppers noticed that some were too good to be true. It turns out that third-party sellers were managing to get away with re-selling DRM-free versions of games from GOG on Amazon. The Amazon …
Read More »Amazon silently kills Mayday Support for Fire Tablets
Five years ago, Amazon CEO, Jeff Bezos announced ‘Mayday', a live video calling support service for the company's own Amazon Fire tablets. The idea was to bring something new to customer support, making assistance quicker and faster. However, it looks like Amazon is now ready to move on, with Mayday …
Read More »Microsoft are working on their own Amazon Go rival
Whilst Amazon is currently at the forefront of a cashier-less shopping experience, Microsoft is looking to try its hand at it as well. This week, it was discovered that Microsoft is working on its own system that can track what shoppers add to their baskets. According to a report from …
Read More »Amazon buys the rights to show 20 Premier League matches a season until 2022
Amazon has been trying to get into the Sports streaming scene for a while now. Last year they bought the rights to show over 2,000 ATP World Tour matches. Today it was announced that Amazon will now have the rights to stream Premier League games. Amazon will show every game …
Read More »Microsoft has overtaken Google as the world’s third most valuable company
Google’s parent company Alphabet and Microsoft have been tussling for the title of the world’s third most valuable company for quite some time, with the search giant holding onto the spot for the past three years. Microsoft has once again overtaken its rival, valued at $753 billion over Google’s at …
Read More »Amazon’s facial recognition efforts with US authorities is drawing privacy and bias concerns
Amazon’s effort in facial recognition was made public this week, with Rekognition being developed in collaboration with US authorities in order to catch up to rival nations. Rekognition faces many problems now that its algorithm is in the wild, from privacy concerns to racial bias. Rekognitions facial recognition technology can …
Read More »Amazon’s Ring doorbells still grant access to previous users despite a password reset
Earlier this year, Amazon acquired smart doorbell maker Ring for $1 billion, allowing the tech giant to further push itself into the home market. Unfortunately, it seems that there is a flaw in current smart doorbells, allowing previous users access to view captured videos and the live camera despite a …
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