TECHNOLOGY BRIEFS
Uber argues it should remain in business in London
LONDON — Uber argued Monday that is should be allowed to keep driving on the streets of London, telling a court that the ride-hailing app has made significant changes since a regulator refused to renew the company’s operating license last year.
Lawyers for the company opened their case in an effort to overturn Transport for London’s ruling in September that Uber was not a “fit and proper” company after repeated lapses in corporate responsibility. Uber attorney Tom de la Mare said the ruling led to “wholesale change” at the company.
“It’s profound and very much for the better,” he said at the Westminster Magistrates Court.
The regulator had raised a number of concerns about Uber, including driver vetting, the way it reports serious criminal offenses and the use of technology that allegedly helps the company evade law enforcement officials.
Since then, de la Mare argued, three Transport for London inspections have shown a “perfect record of compliance.” Uber has said it has also made significant changes to its leadership and has been proactively reporting serious incidents to the Metropolitan Police.
Egypt’s president approves law for ride-hailing apps
CAIRO — Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi approved a law governing popular ride-hailing apps Uber and Careem after the companies appealed a court ruling that revoked their licenses, the country’s official gazette reported Sunday.
The law establishes the basis for operating licenses and fees, and requires licensed companies to store user data for 180 days and make it available to Egyptian security authorities upon request.
There was no immediate comment from Uber and Careem. Both companies, however, had welcomed the draft law when parliament approved it in May.
Both companies provide smartphone apps that connect passengers with drivers who work as independent contractors. In March, an Egyptian court deemed it illegal to use private vehicles for taxi services and ordered Uber and Careem’s apps to be blocked. But another court overruled that ruling in April, and both companies have since continued operating. The Supreme Administrative Court on Saturday adjourned the appeal to Aug. 25.
Data privacy is a major concern for Uber in its dealings with the Egyptian government. The strict new European General Data Protection Regulation law comes into effect on May 25 and is expected to impact its operations worldwide.
AT&T is buying yet another company
AT&T said Monday that it is buying the digital advertising company AppNexus, in an effort to hasten the growth of its new media empire.
AppNexus gives the telecom giant control over one of the world’s largest internet advertising exchanges, which marketers use to buy ad space from online publishers. It could help AT&T challenge Google and Facebook — the two giants of online advertising — by bolstering its ability to analyze customer behavior and advertise against content produced by Time Warner, now renamed WarnerMedia.
AT&T didn’t disclose the terms of the AppNexus deal, which came days after AT&T completed its landmark merger with Time Warner. AppNexus sought a valuation of $2 billion when it filed confidentially for an IPO in 2016. The acquisition is expected to close in the third quarter of 2018.
AT&T’s aggressive expansion underscores the speed at which the telecom industry is changing. No longer satisfied with selling access to voice services, mobile data and home internet, providers such as AT&T are increasingly seeking control over digital media content that they can use to set themselves apart from the competition. The trend reflects a mindset, common among Silicon Valley companies, that customer attention is a valuable product.
Spaceflight company to try to launch from Alaska
KODIAK, ALASKA — A commercial spaceflight company is preparing for its third attempt to launch from the Kodiak spaceport.
If successful, it would be the first commercial launch from the spaceport at Narrow Cape, the Kodiak Daily Mirror reported Friday. State-owned Alaska Aerospace Corp., which helps facilitate launches, would not name the company, citing a nondisclosure agreement, but said it would try to take off between July 14 and 20.
Two launch attempts by the company over the past three months have been postponed.
“We’ve tried twice to get their flight off,” Barry King, Alaska Aerospace Corp. director of range operations, said during a board meeting Thursday. “Both times, they’ve run into some issues.”
A launch attempt April 6 was scratched over unnamed technical issues, spaceport employees said. Another postponement happened May 11.