J57 Internet Publishing and Broadcasting

Australian privacy watchdog launches court action against Facebook over Cambridge Analytica access

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Original article by Jack Snape, Ariel Bogle
abc.net au – Page: Online : 10-Mar-20

The Australian Information Commissioner has taken social media firm Facebook to the Federal Court for allegedly breaching the privacy of around 311,127 Australians in regard to the Cambridge Analytica scandal. The Commissioner has stated that the court can impose a fine of up to $1.7 million for each "serious and repeated" offence. The UK privacy watchdog has previously fined Facebook Stg500,000 billion ($998,000) over the Cambridge Analytica episode, while a US Federal Trade Commission investigation resulted in Facebook paying US5 billion ($7.64 billion) over allegations that it duped users over their ability to control personal information.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. OFFICE OF THE AUSTRALIAN INFORMATION COMMISSIONER, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, CAMBRIDGE ANALYTICA LLC, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION

BBC makes streaming move into Australia

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Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 22 : 6-Mar-20

The BBC and UK commercial television network ITV will launch a streaming joint venture in Australia towards the end of 2020. Britbox will operate as a 50-50 joint venture between BBC Studios and ITV, and it is expected to feature programs such as ‘Poldark’, ‘Blackadder’ and ‘Call the Midwife’. Pricing information for Britbox in Australia has not yet been released, but it costs Stg5.99 a month in the UK and US6.99 a month in the US.

CORPORATES
BRITISH BROADCASTING CORPORATION, ITV PLC, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC

ACMA report shows Australians are embracing data-hungry tech

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Original article by Finbar O’Mallon
The New Daily – Page: Online : 27-Feb-20

The Australian Communications & Media Authority’s annual report has highlight consumers’ growing use of digital technologies. ACMA notes that almost nine in 10 Australians accessed the internet via mobile phone in 2018-19, although fixed internet lines accounted for the bulk of data downloads. Meanwhile, more than half of Australians use Netflix, while one in 10 Australian use at least four streaming video services. The figures also show that online advertising is now worth $8.8bn a year.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN COMMUNICATIONS AND MEDIA AUTHORITY, NETFLIX INCORPORATED

ACCC takes fight up to digital giants

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Original article by Leo Shanahan
The Australian – Page: 19 : 26-Feb-20

The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission has advised that it now has more than 10 active investigations into digital platforms, compared with five when the final report into its landmark inquiry into the sector was released in July. ACCC chairman Rod Sims says it is examining both competition and consumer issues in relation to digital platforms. He notes that the use and abuse of consumers’ data by such platforms is one of the key concerns.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED

Optus eyes more European football

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Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 24-Feb-20

Optus has ramped up its soccer coverage since gaining the local broadcasting rights to the English Premier League in 2015. The telco also has the rights to the FIFA World Cup and the UEFA Champions League, amongst others, and its Optus Sport streaming service now boasts some 825,000 active subscribers. Optus is also believed to be looking at gaining the rights to Germany’s Bundesliga, Spain’s La Liga and Italy’s Serie A; beIN Sports Australia’s existing rights deals are set to end in the next year or so.

CORPORATES
SINGTEL OPTUS PTY LTD, OPTUS SPORT, ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE, FEDERATION INTERNATIONALE DE FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION, BEIN SPORTS AUSTRALIA

Facebook admits Russia error

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Original article by Helen Warrell, Guy Chazan, Michael Peel
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 19 : 17-Feb-20

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has called for greater regulation of harmful content on the internet while speaking at the Munich Security Conference. Zuckerberg conceded that the social media company had been tardy in understanding Russian disinformation campaigns during the 2016 US presidential election campaign, while he said that purveyors of disinformation are becoming better at "covering their tracks". Zuckerberg added that Facebook has 35,000 people working on content and security reviews, and that it takes down more than one million fake accounts each day.

CORPORATES
FACEBOOK INCORPORATED

Optus in rugby maul as it chases new subscribers

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Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 24 : 14-Feb-20

Tender documents for Rugby Australia’s new five-year broadcasting rights deal will be sent to prospective bidders within days. Optus CEO Allen Lew says the telco would be interested in buying the rights, which would boost the offering of its sports streaming service. Optus Sports boasts some 825,000 active subscribers, making it the nation’s largest sports-focused streaming service. Foxtel has been Rugby Australia’s broadcast partner for 25 years, and some media reports have suggested that it will not seek to renew the rights.

CORPORATES
SINGTEL OPTUS PTY LTD, OPTUS SPORTS, RUGBY AUSTRALIA, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD

Kayo streaming service kicks off deal for Telstra customers

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Original article by David Swan
The Australian – Page: 24 : 12-Feb-20

Telstra has secured an exclusive deal to provide its customers with discounted access to Foxtel’s Kayo Sports streaming service. New and returning Kayo subscribers who are Telstra customers will be eligible to receive a monthly discount of $10 on its basic and premium packages for 12 months. Kayo boasted 350,000 subscribers at the end of December. Telstra is the minority shareholder in Foxtel, which is controlled by News Corp.

CORPORATES
FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, KAYO SPORTS, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS

Facebook’s secrecy putting kids at risk

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Original article by Ben Packham
The Australian – Page: 2 : 7-Feb-20

Child protection groups have urged Facebook not to proceed with end-to-end encryption across Messenger and its other platforms. The groups state that introducing such encryption will lead to "more serious and sustained sexual abuse", and that Facebook should only proceed with the encryption if it adopts measures to scan for child abuse images and consents to share data with governments and child safety experts. Sonya Ryan, the CEO of the Carly Ryan Foundation, has described the potential impact of Facebook’s end-to-end encryption plans as "frightening".

CORPORATES
FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, CARLY RYAN FOUNDATION

Streaming titans to have tilt at our top tennis title

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Original article by John Stensholt
The Australian – Page: 23 & 25 : 28-Jan-20

The international broadcasting rights for the Australian Open expire in January 2021, and bidders are expected to include subscription video-on-demand providers such as Netflix and social media companies like YouTube. Tennis Australia’s chief revenue officer Richard Heaselgrave notes that most of the international rights will expire at the same time, which will allow the organisation to pursue global deals rather than for specific countries or regions.

CORPORATES
TENNIS AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN OPEN TENNIS, NETFLIX INCORPORATED, AMAZON PRIME VIDEO, YOUTUBE INCORPORATED