Tech

Russia tells Google to stop spreading threats against Russians on YouTube

Published

2 years ago

Farwa

Russia demands YouTube to stop spreading threats to Russians.
Facebook, Instagram blocked in Russia; Google under pressure.
Russia says it has the tools to develop its own social media.

Russia on Friday demanded that Alphabet Inc’s (GOOGL.O) Google stop spreading what it called threats against Russian citizens on its YouTube video-sharing platform, a move that could presage an outright block of the service on Russian territory.

The regulator, Roskomnadzor, said adverts on the platform were calling for the communications systems of Russia and Belarus’ railway networks to be suspended and that their dissemination was evidence of the U.S. company’s anti-Russian position. It did not say which accounts were publishing the adverts.

“The actions of YouTube’s administration are of a terrorist nature and threaten the life and health of Russian citizens,” the regulator said.

“Roskomnadzor categorically opposes such advertising campaigns and demands that Google stop broadcasting anti-Russia videos as soon as possible.”

Google removed an advertisement that was flagged by the Russian government, according to a source familiar with the matter who declined to describe it.

The dispute was the latest in a series between Moscow and foreign tech firms over Ukraine.

YouTube, which has blocked Russian state-funded media globally, is under heavy pressure from Russia’s communications regulator and politicians.

Outraged that Meta Platforms (FB.O) was allowing social media users in Ukraine to post messages such as “Death to the Russian invaders”, Moscow blocked Instagram this week, having already stopped access to Facebook because of what it said were restrictions by the platform on Russian media.

Russian news media including RIA and Sputnik quoted an unnamed source as saying YouTube could be blocked next week or as early as Friday.

Domestic alternatives

Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Friday wrote a fierce criticism of foreign social media firms, mentioning by name both Meta and YouTube, but he hinted that the door leading to their possible return to the Russian market would be left ajar.

“The ‘guardians’ of free speech have in all seriousness allowed users of their social media to wish death upon the Russian military,” Medvedev, who served as president from 2008 to 2012 and is now deputy secretary of Russia’s Security Council, wrote on the messaging app Telegram.

Medvedev said Russia has the necessary tools and experience to develop its own social media, saying the “one-way game” of Western firms controlling information flows could not continue.

“In order to return, they will have to prove their independence and good attitude to Russia and its citizens,” he wrote. “However, it is not a fact that they will be able to dip their toes in the same water twice.”

VKontakte, Russia’s answer to Facebook, has been breaking records for activity on its platform since Russia sent troops into Ukraine on Feb. 24.

The site attracted 300,000 new users in the two weeks after Russia began what it calls a “special operation” to demilitarise and “de-Nazify” its neighbour.

On the day Instagram was blocked in Russia, VKontakte said its daily domestic audience grew by 8.7% to more than 50 million people, a new record.

Anton Gorelkin, a member of Russia’s State Duma Committee on information and communications, pointed Russians to services that would help them move videos from YouTube to the domestic equivalent, RuTube.

“It’s not that I’m calling for everyone to immediately leave YouTube,” he said on his Telegram channel. “But, probably, in light of recent events, it is worth following the principle of not keeping all your eggs in one basket.”

He said earlier this week that YouTube may face the same fate as Instagram if it continues “to act as a weapon in the information war”.

Russian tech entrepreneurs said this week they would launch picture-sharing application Rossgram on the domestic market to help fill the void left by Instagram. read more

In November, Gazprom Media launched Yappy as a domestic rival to video-sharing platform TikTok.

Latest News

Pakistan launches first-ever lunar mission with iCube Qamar

Published

3 days ago

Farwa

China’s Chang’E6 spacecraft carried Pakistan’s first satellite mission to the moon, iCube Qamar, into orbit.

The Institute of Space Technology states that IST worked with Pakistan’s national space agency SUPARCO and China’s Shanghai University SJTU to design and develop the satellite ICUBE-Q.

The launch event was streamed live on both Chinese state television and the IST website.

Two optical cameras are carried by the ICUBE-Q orbiter to capture images of the lunar surface. ICUBE-Q has now been successfully integrated into the Chang’e6 mission after qualification and testing.

The sixth in China’s sequence of lunar exploration missions is called Chang’e6.

China’s Lunar Mission, Chang’6, will land on the Moon’s far side in order to gather surface samples and bring them back to Earth for analysis.

Pakistan would benefit from the mission since it will carry a Pakistan CubeSat Satellite, called iCube-Q, which was created by IST.

Small satellites known as “CubeSats” are typified by their uniform design and compact size. They are built in the form of a cube and are made up of modular parts that follow predetermined dimensions.

These satellites are regularly placed in orbit for a variety of uses and only weigh a few kilos.

Cubesats are primarily used to support space exploration education, technology development, and scientific research. Many different missions are carried out by these satellites, such as telecommunication, astronomy, remote sensing, Earth observation, atmospheric research, and technological demonstration.

CubeSats provide universities, research centers, and commercial organizations with the chance to engage in space missions and acquire important data for scientific advancement and innovation because of their small size and very low cost when compared to regular satellites.

They act as test beds for novel ideas and technology, opening up space to a wider spectrum of users and encouraging cooperation amongst members of the space community.

Latest News

The green colour of WhatsApp ‘angers’ some users.

Published

1 week ago

Farwa

After changing its display colour from blue to green, WhatsApp, which was before well-known for its blue motif, caused its users to hold divergent views.

New upgrades to the Meta app always spark a lot of discussion, regardless of how big or small the changes are.

Still, Meta-owned WhatsApp hopes that these modifications would “make it more accessible as well as easier to use” and offer a “modern, new experience” with relation to the updated display color.

A statement from the firm claimed that they had altered WhatsApp’s “looks and feels, including spacing, colors, icons, and more.”

Both iOS and Android users can now view the new WhatsApp update; the green tint on the latter has changed from the previous version.

However, iPhone users will notice that every display element, including the chat-list window and status bar, has changed with the recent design update. WhatsApp used to have a blue color scheme on iPhones.

Furthermore, the formerly blue links shared within the app are now displayed in green.

In addition, WhatsApp has made other improvements to improve its user experience outside of the color shift.

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Punjab will provide fifty thousand solar kits.

Published

1 month ago

Farwa

On Tuesday,Tuesday, while presiding over a review meeting on solar household solutions, the CM gave the order to begin the installation of one kilowatt solar systems right away. She also gave the order to introduce the newest solar systems.

Phase-I solar systems would be balloted for by 50,000 protected users who use 100 units each month, at a cost of Rs 12.6 billion.

Home-based solar systems will eventually be made available to other Punjabi consumers. A solar system will consist of a battery, inverter, sophisticated solar plate, and more related accessories.

Attending the meeting were Provincial Information Minister Azma Zahid Bukhari, MPA Sania Ashiq, Former Senator Pervaiz Rashid, Chief Secretary, Chairman Planning and Development, Secretaries of Energy, Finance, and Punjab Power Development Board (PPDB) Managing Director, in addition to other pertinent officers.

During his inaugural speech as Punjab’s chief minister, Maryam Nawaz outlined her five-year plan and promised to develop a strategy for customers who use fewer than 300 units of power.

According to Maryam Nawaz, the PML-N’s main goals for her term will be to provide jobs, healthcare, and education.

She said, “I am working on a plan to provide solar panels to consumers using up to 300 units of electricity or less in installments.”