Trumps policies

As if the shortage of graphics cards from AMD and Nvidia in 2020 wasn’t already bad enough, gamers who were unable to purchase a GPU last year may find that their coveted PC component will cost more in 2021. A price increase isn’t to blame for the increased cost this year, however, which is the good news. The bad news is that since these cards are manufactured in China, and the Trump administration’s 25% tariff on China imports will likely drive up the prices for GPUs, motherboards, and processors. The tax was slated to take effect in September 2019, but temporary exemptions were made for GPUs and accelerator modules, according to a New York Times report, at the time. However, those exemptions expired at the end of 2020, and the administration did not provide any further extensions. This means that graphics cards purchased in 2021 could carry a 25% tariff, making them even more costly for gamers. The cost of Nvidia’s $699 flagship GeForce RTX 3080 will go … [Read more...] about GPU prices expected to go up 25% due to Trump tariffs

TikTok is running out of time to sell its U.S. operations and President Donald Trump has ruled out the possibility of an extension. On Thursday, September 10, Trump (via CNN) told a group of reporters before boarding Air Force One that if TikTok doesn’t secure a U.S. buyer before the imminent deadline, it will be banned. “We’ll either close up TikTok in this country for security reasons or it will be sold. There will be no extension of the TikTok deadline,” Trump said. TikTok’s deadline itself has remained an open question due to a series of conflicting announcements and statements by the Trump administration. The timeline was further complicated by a subsequent order signed by Trump on August 14th that extended the deadline to mid-November. However, yesterday Trump explicitly said TikTok only has until September 15th next week to finalize a deal. We’ve reached out to TikTok for a comment and we’ll update the story when we hear back. … [Read more...] about Trump says TikTok won’t get a deadline extension to sell its U.S. operations

How much information should a legal conflict between Apple and Epic Games reveal about Steam? Apple seems to think the answer is “a lot,” according to a report from PCGamer , but Valve maintains that its platform isn’t directly related to the dispute. The companies made their positions clear in a joint discovery letter filed with the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California on Thursday. Lawyers for both companies said they “have been unable to reach an agreement” on the issue. Let’s back up a bit. This all started in August 2020 when Epic Games claimed Apple and Google’s app distribution policies and monetization were anti-competitive. The developer has since made similar complaints in the UK, Australia, and EU. Apple subpoenaed Valve in November 2020 to gather information about Steam that might help its case. The letter filed yesterday made it clear that Valve provided some of this information but was unable or unwilling to provide everything Apple … [Read more...] about Apple Drags Valve Into Epic Games Dispute Over App Store Policies

WhatsApp recently announced it would be changing its privacy policy, in a move that has many users worried about how much of their data will be shared with WhatsApp’s parent company, Facebook. Now, the service has revealed what will happen to the accounts of users who don’t agree to the new policy by the May 15 deadline. TechCrunch contacted WhatsApp for more details on what would happen to users’ accounts if they didn’t agree to the new privacy policy. It reports that WhatsApp will “slowly ask” its users to agree to the new privacy changes, warning that they need to do so to continue having full access to the app’s features. Users who decline to accept the new policy will be able to continue using the app for a few weeks, but only in a limited way. “For a short time, these users will be able to receive calls and notifications, but will not be able to read or send messages from the app,” the company told TechCrunch. The new privacy policy enables more sharing of data between … [Read more...] about What’ll happen to your WhatsApp account if you don’t agree to new privacy policy

Although the Personals section on Craigslist appears to be visually intact for now, clicking any associated link will reveal that the section is shut down due the FOSTA bill ( HR 1865 ) just approved by the Senate. The bill holds websites accountable for the actions of its users, forcing sites to censor individuals else face criminal and civil liability. To avoid any legal and/or financial woes, Craigslist is merely shutting down the Personals section rather than dealing with censorship and possibly jeopardizing its other services. “Any tool or service can be misused,” Craigslist states . “We can’t take such risk without jeopardizing all our other services, so we are regretfully taking craigslist personals offline. Hopefully we can bring them back some day. To the millions of spouses, partners, and couples who met through Craigslist, we wish you every happiness! FOSTA is short for the Allow States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act, and according to the … [Read more...] about Craigslist, Reddit prep for legal woes from FOSTA sex-trafficking bill