Spotify To Suspend Political Ads
Spotify announced that it would stop selling political advertisements on its streaming service on Friday. It also announced that the pause would affect its original and exclusive podcasts as well. “At this point in time, we do not yet have the necessary level of robustness in our processes, systems, and tools to responsibly validate and review this content,” a Spotify spokeswoman said in a statement.
Spotify will suspend the ads in early 2020, months ahead of the November 2020 presidential election. However, it will only affect ad sales, not advertisements embedded in third-party content. But, these will still fall under Spotify’s broader content policies.
Scotland Gives Go-Ahead For Driverless Cars
Scotland is “open for business” to help develop self-driving cars. Cabinet Secretary Michael Matheson wants Scotland to be at the forefront in the development of self-driving technology. In addition, Transport Scotland’s new “Roadmap For Scotland” sets out plans to put Scottish business at the forefront of innovation.
One of its first projects is a fleet of autonomous buses running from Fife to Edinburgh. To help, partners from government, design, and academia are collaborating in the design and operation of the project. Overall, they plan to keep Scotland as the spearhead in driverless cars.
Tesla Gets $1.29Bn Loan From China
Tesla and Chinese banks agreed to a $1.29Bn loan for its Shanghai factory. In addition, Tesla said that it had also signed agreements for a smaller, 2.25Bn yuan loan, also for the Shanghai factory. Tesla wants the factory to act as the centerpiece of its hopes to boost its foreign markets. It also wants to avoid high import tariffs imposed on US-made cars.
Chinese Start-Up Loses More Than 200,000 Bikes
Chinese start-up Mobike lost more than 200,000 bikes in 2019. In a statement, it said that 205,600 dockless bikes were stolen or broken. Originally, Mobike intended the bikes to be used for short, cross-city trips. Users are then supposed to lock the bikes in a public place. However, some people take them home or throw them away in ditches and canals.
US Retailers Rush To Comply With California
After California passed a new privacy law, many US retailers have rushed to make sure they complied with them. Stores like Walmart added a “Do Not Sell My Info” link to websites and signage in stores. Overall, California hopes to let shoppers understand and know what personal data retailers collect.
