Today in Tech: Twitter's new censorship ability

January 27, 2012: 3:00 AM ET

Fortune's curated selection of tech stories from the last 24 hours. Sign up to get the round-up delivered to you each and every day.

* Twitter now has the ability to censor tweets or accounts in certain countries if legally required, a move some writers see as a "huge setback and disappointment." "As we continue to grow internationally, we will enter countries that have different ideas about the contours of freedom of expression," the company wrote on its blog." Some differ so much from our ideas that we will not be able to exist there. Others are similar but, for historical or cultural reasons, restrict certain types of content, such as France or Germany, which ban pro-Nazi content. ... Starting today, we give ourselves the ability to reactively withhold content from users in a specific country — while keeping it up in the rest of the world. We have also built in a way to communicate transparently to users when content is withheld, and why." (Marketing Land and Boing Boing)

* In response to The New York Times' second installment in its investigative series about Apple (AAPL), TechCrunch argues that the Cupertino-based giant may not be the only tech company to blame for harsh worker conditions. (TechCrunch)

* How one Amazon (AMZN) merchant is effectively bribing buyers of its products for five star reviews. (The New York Times)

* Google's Mountain View headquarters expanded by 67% last year, adding 2.9 million square feet of space. (Silicon Valley Mercury News)

* Samsung reported $4.7 billion in operating profit on sales of $42 billion for the latest quarter, with mobile accounting for 40% of company sales. (Engadget)

* HTC is changing up its strategy after it saw its fourth quarter revenues dip 2.5% to nearly $3.4 billion. This year for the company will be all about focusing on quality over quantity. (All Things D)

* As for Motorola Mobility, the device manufacturer pulled in $3.4 billion in sales but posted $80 million in losses. (Boy Genius Report via PandoDaily)

* Almost 50% of businesses now support Macs and 27% support the iPad. (VentureBeat)

* North Korea warned citizens that anyone using cell phones during the 100-day mourning period for Kim Jong-il will be branded and punished as "war criminals." (The Telegraph)

Don't miss the latest tech news. Sign up now to get Today in Tech emailed every morning.


Posted in: , , , ,
Join the Conversation
About This Author
JP Mangalindan
JP Mangalindan
Writer, Fortune

With a background in consumer products and pop culture trends, JP Mangalindan has brought his ability to spot the next big things to his coverage of the tech industry for Fortune.com, writing on topics as diverse as the evolution of net neutrality and the influence of social media. A graduate of Fordham University, Mangalindan has written for GQ, Popular Science, Entertainment Weekly, and nymag.com. He lives in San Francisco.

Email JP
Current Issue
  • Give the gift of Fortune
  • Get the Fortune app
  • Subscribe
Powered by WordPress.com VIP.