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EU Lays Out New Search Ranking Guidelines For Google And Other Tech Firms

Charlotte Henry ·

Google, Microsoft, and other tech firms will have to provide more transparency about how they rank online search results. Reuters reported on new EU guidelines forcing the change that were released on Monday.

The guidelines, which take immediate effect, will be followed up next week by the publication of draft rules that could eventually impose further restrictions on the tech sector… The Commission said the guidelines require online platforms to identify the algorithmic parameters that determine ranking and to share them with companies. “These guidelines set the standard for algorithmic ranking transparency and will increase fairness in the online platform economy, which drives innovation and welfare for millions of Europeans,” European Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said in a statement.

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Antitrust Lawsuit Reveals Apple-Google Search Relationship

Andrew Orr ·

The U.S. government has sued Google, saying the company is a monopoly that uses its power to crush competition in search. Mark Gurman writes about the money that Google pays Apple for it to be the default search engine. I’ve been disappointed in this, because a lawsuit from previous years alleges Google pays Apple around US$12 billion to be the default. Apple can do better.

The details, many of which have not been disclosed before, may support the U. S. government’s allegation that Google uses these agreements to block out search rivals and give consumers less choice. Google called the government’s case “deeply flawed” and said it would hurt consumers because it would “artificially prop up” lower-quality search options.

Artificially prop up lower-quality search options. Wouldn’t paying Apple be artificially propping up Google? I spent a day drinking beer and eating potato chips watching Bill Gates’ deposition for fun. I’m sure the one with Sundar Pichai will be equally entertaining.

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Apple Removed a Third Party Google Stadia App

Andrew Orr ·

StApple recently removed Stadium, an app that let people use Google Stadia’s game streaming service on iOS.

Specifically, Knox says Apple objects to how his app is “extending WebKit with native APIs to connect with Bluetooth.” This is what allowed the app to connect Bluetooth controllers to Stadia. Apple’s ruling appears to refer to section 4.7 of Apple’s App Store guidelines, which governs web-based games on the platform.

At first I thought it was removed because some random non-Google party created a Google service workaround. But it sounds like it’s more because of API specifics, or at least that’s the official Apple statement.

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How Homeland Security Caught Suspect in R. Kelly Case

Andrew Orr ·

A recently revealed warrant in the R. Kelly case revealed how U.S. Homeland Security used a Google search warrant.

Homeland Security special agent Sylvette Reynoso testified that her team began by asking Google to produce a list of public IP addresses used to google the home of the victim in the run-up to the arson. The Chocolate Factory complied with the warrant, and gave the investigators the list.

As we discussed on Security Friday today, it’s cool that law enforcement was able to do this, yet simultaneously scary since it involved a dragnet of Google users.

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Plot Twist: Apple Also Has to Follow Google Play Store Rules

Andrew Orr ·

Google has updated its Play Store rules, saying that developers have to use Google Play’s billing system. From Daring Fireball:

Most reports are mentioning Spotify and Netflix here, but unless I’m missing something this policy change (or as Google claim, “clarification”) will also apply to Apple Music — the Android version of which charges users who sign up directly. The fact that Apple forces all subscription streaming services to use Apple’s in-app payments on iOS but doesn’t use Google’s on Android for Apple Music has been a source of much heckling.

I’m on the side of Apple in the Epic v Apple case, but if Apple has to follow Google’s similar rules for developers when it hadn’t already, simultaneously enforcing similar rules on its own side for developers, is hilarious to me. I hope that made sense.

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iOS 14 vs Android, App Library, Widgets, and Default Apps

Andrew Orr ·

Writer Nicole Lee is happy with iOS 14 features that are similar to Android, like widgets, default apps, and App Library. And she wants more of that.

But for me, the real star of iOS 14 is not quite so obvious (It’s so low-key that Apple didn’t mention it at its WWDC keynote). It’s the fact that, at long last, iOS now lets you pick your own default email and browser apps. This one feature, more than any other, is what I feel is a key factor in preventing me from switching to Android. That’s because, as an iOS user, it is not Android that I find attractive — it’s Google.

I’m trying to wrap my head around this argument. I don’t want to be one of those people who say, “If you’re not happy with iOS, then switch to Android.” But it doesn’t make sense to me that setting default apps would stop her from switching, considering Android had that all along. She goes on to say that she hasn’t bothered with iOS 14 widgets and that Android widgets don’t appeal to her. Okay, don’t use them?? Just like you’re not using iOS 14 widgets?? There’s more I have to say but this is running up against the length limitation of our Linked Teasers. Go read.

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Google’s ‘Fabricius’ Tool Uses ML to Decode Hieroglyphs

Andrew Orr ·

Here’s something cool that Google has created: A web tool called “Fabricius” that uses machine learning to decrypt hieroglyphs.

So far, experts had to dig manually through books upon books to translate and decipher the ancient language–a process that has remained virtually unchanged for over a century. Fabricius includes the first digital tool – that is also being released as open source to support further developments in the study of ancient languages – that decodes Egyptian hieroglyphs built on machine learning.

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Google Chrome 85 Hides Full URL Addresses

Andrew Orr ·

Google wants to follow in Apple’s footsteps by hiding the full URL in Google Chrome 85. Instead, with an optional (for now) toggle, users can choose to have the address bar display only the top level domain.

There’s no public explanation yet for why Google is pressing ahead with these changes, but the company has said in the past that it believes showing the full address can make it harder to tell if the current site is legitimate.

However, it’s also worth considering that making the web address less important, as this feature does, benefits Google as a company. Google’s goal with Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP) and similar technologies is to keep users on Google-hosted content as much as possible, and Chrome for Android already modifies the address bar on AMP pages to hide that the pages are hosted by Google.

In other words, Google doesn’t want people to be able to tell the difference between Google and the internet.

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How to Spot Online Scams Using Google’s New Tool

Andrew Orr ·

Partnering with the Cybercrime Support Network, Google has a new tool called Scam Spotter. It gives you a quiz to help you spot online scams. It simplifies advice from experts into three golden rules:

  • Slow it down: Are they telling you it’s urgent? Take your time and ask questions to avoid being rushed into a bad situation.
  • Spot check: Are they claiming to be from a specific institution? Do your own research to double check the details you’re getting.
  • Stop! Don’t send: Are they asking you to go to the store and get gift cards? If you think a payment feels fishy, it probably is.