News highlights for August 3
The Apollo 11 Lunar Module ascent stage. Photo courtesy of NASA/Handout via REUTERS
Private company wins U.S. clearance to fly to the moon
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (Reuters) – A Florida-based company won U.S. government permission on Wednesday to send a robotic lander to the moon next year, the firm’s founder said, marking the first time the United States has cleared a private space mission to fly beyond Earth’s orbit. The Federal Aviation Administration’s unprecedented go-ahead for the Moon Express mission also sets a legal and regulatory framework for a host of other commercial expeditions to the moon, asteroids and Mars. Read more…
EU lawmaker says Tinder breaches data protection rules
Brussels (Reuters) – An EU lawmaker says dating app Tinder breaches the bloc’s data protection rules because it uses personal data without explicit consent and should be investigated by the European Commission. Read more…
Hulu mounts push to draw and keep subscribers: executive
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Hulu has beefed up its customer service staff and is hiring executives from outside and within the online video business to slow subscriber defections ahead of the introduction of its live TV service, a top official of the streaming company said. Luring and keeping customers is becoming harder as the online streaming market gets more crowded and subscribers, freed from cable television’s contract model, can cancel service with a click of the mouse. Read more…
Pokemon no-go: New Jersey resident sues over trespassing players
NEW YORK (Reuters) – A New Jersey man has a message for the millions of players obsessed with the mobile game Pokemon Go: “Get off my lawn!” Jeffrey Marder of West Orange has filed a federal class action against the companies behind the game, Nintendo Co Ltd, Niantic Inc and Pokemon Company International, claiming it has brought unwanted trespassers to his house and countless other private properties. Read more…
Massive funding, Apple backing helped Didi outrun Uber in China
SAN FRANCISCO/HONG KONG (Reuters) – Apple Inc’s $1 billion investment in car-hailing app Didi Chuxing in May helped accelerate Uber’s decision to agree a halt to a costly two-year battle with its rival in China, people close to the companies and analysts said. Didi Chuxing Technology Co and Uber Technologies Inc raised billions of dollars in funding and spent heavily on discounted rides as they slugged it out for drivers, passengers and market share in the world’s second-biggest economy. Read more…
Bitcoin worth $72 million stolen from Bitfinex exchange in Hong Kong
HONG KONG (Reuters) – Nearly 120,000 units of digital currency bitcoin worth about US$72 million was stolen from the exchange platform Bitfinex in Hong Kong, rattling the global bitcoin community in the second-biggest security breach ever of such an exchange. Read more…
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