Welcome to the world of facts and news: December 2022

Quarter’s delay likely in Oyo IPO as Sebi seeks updated filing

Regulator wants risk factors, KPIs, outstanding litigation, basis for valuation refreshed in DRHP, which may take up to 3 months

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/EU3BFIt

Zomato registers 45% surge in order volumes on New Year's Eve compared to 2021

Zomato CEO Deepinder Goyal urged customers to order in early to avoid the year end rush and cautioned against a potential server crash

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/VS56CDI

Immediately fix incorrect map of India: Union minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar tells WhatsApp

Union Minister of State for Electronics and IT, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, on Saturday told Meta-owned WhatsApp to immediately fix an incorrect map of India in its New Year celebration live-streaming link.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/Z0QxnMt

New Twitter navigation tools arriving in January: Elon Musk

Elon Musk on Saturday announced that new navigation features will arrive on Twitter in the New Year, as he aims to rejig the whole experience to make the platform faster.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/PvQHAGy

Logistics firm Trackon eyes Rs 100 crore revenue from B2B operations

At present, the company has around warehouses across the country, mostly servicing B2C or corporates and plans to nearly double its services to 10,000 pin codes over the next few years, from 5600 pin codes now

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/3i6YEtW

Sam Bankman-Fried set to enter not guilty plea in FTX fraud case: report

Bankman-Fried is accused of illegally using FTX customer deposits to support his Alameda Research hedge fund, buy real estate and make millions of dollars in political contributions.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/iHB9uU8

2022 Year in Review: Ecommerce faces a post-Covid test

From a constant tussle between Flipkart and Amazon for the numero uno spot and new launches fuel the race to delayed IPOs and regulatory concerns forcing the shutting of etailers , ecommerce had an eventful 2022.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/439U0J5

Huawei says it's out of 'crisis mode', though revenue flat

Huawei Technologies Ltd, China's first global tech brand, has struggled since then-US President Donald Trump blocked its access to US processor chips and other technology in 2019 on grounds that Huawei could facilitate Chinese spying.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/xtY85JN

Cyber attacks against Indian government agencies doubled in 2022: CloudSEK report

India, along with China, USA and Indonesia, continued to be the most targeted countries in the last two years accounting for 40% of the total incidents reported in the government sector.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/VX2cJGo

E-bike startup GearHead Motors raises Rs 6 crore in funding

The fresh funds will be used to expand the startup’s operations pan India of high-quality electric bikes to accelerate growth in electric vehicles.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/KX6BRry

Electric vehicle sales on track to cross 1-million milestone this year

According to data on the government's Vahan website, about 9,89,000 EVs have been registered with regional transport offices till Thursday. The numbers already show a more than three-fold increase from 2021. The numbers do not include data from Telangana.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/mXGuAZk

Bahamas regulator holds FTX assets pending delivery to customers, creditors

FTX's Bahamas unit's digital assets were transferred to digital wallets under the exclusive control of the commission in November soon after the company and its hedge fund Alameda Research and dozens of affiliates filed for U.S. bankruptcy.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/YOMSQzb

Digital intermediaries hoping for a nuanced definition under Digital India Act

Digital intermediaries currently include internet service providers, cloud service providers, consumer-facing social media platforms, and video sharing sites.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/Psutqdo

Google gets notices from CCI for non-payment of penalties amounting to nearly Rs 2,274 cr



from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/Or3NTz6

Google employees brace for a cost-cutting drive as anxiety mounts

The worries have grown as Google's tech industry peers have handed out pink slips amid a souring global economy. Last month, Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, purged its ranks by 11,000, or about 13% of its workforce.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/bKy9IeM

US-listed Chinese tech companies cancel HK-listing plans: report

While the Chinese ecommerce firm has paused discussions of a potential Hong Kong listing, freight company Full Truck Alliance has scrapped its long time plan, according to the report.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/jyJznrs

Twitter down for thousands of users, many unable to sign in

​​Some users also complained that their Twitter notifications were not working, while others got an error and the tweets were not showing up in their feed​​.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/aQ3zn49

DTH firms turn to OTT aggregation to stem user churn

Aggregating OTT may help DTH platforms retain customers, diversify offerings: Expert

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/yiFEkAY

No longer startup, time to grow up

A section of startups with proven growth strategies can also use the downturn in private investment to prepare for listing. Open market appetite will revive, and some companies could see merit in not leaving that money on the table when it does.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/NKrI3Uz

From IT rule tweaks to Thanos' snap at Twitter, social media hits reset in 2022

The year gave a tonne of new ways for users and platforms to reward creativity, and pay the creators. Tumblr launched tip jar feature and YouTube announced new pathways for creators to make money for their content.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/gzk60ia

FTX customers file class action to lay claim to dwindling assets

The lawsuit is the latest legal effort to lay claim to the dwindling assets of FTX, which is already feuding with liquidators in the Bahamas and Antigua as well as the bankruptcy estate of Blockfi, another failed crypto company.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/SiuBM1V

Startups laid off 18,000 employees in 2022; Udaan, Ola, Oyo saw the most senior-level exits

This time last year, India’s startup ecosystem was counting unicorns. Now, it’s tallying layoffs. According to data compiled for us by Longhouse Consulting, 52 of India’s new-age companies fired almost 18,000 employees between them in 2022. Shockingly, almost half of these took place at just 15 edtech companies as Covid’s retreat battered the sector.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/0UKRogs

2022 Year in Review: Udaan, Ola and Oyo log most senior executive exits this year

At least 50 top executives - ranging from C-suite to category and business heads - left Udaan in 2022, as the company grappled with funding and business model issues, even as two of its founders moved away from active roles over the course of the year.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/35TM1xj

Ride-hailing companies, quick-commerce firms among worst workplaces for gig workers: Fairwork India report

Fairwork, which evaluates the working condition of gig workers, assessed digital platforms on five principles — Fair Pay, Fair Conditions, Fair Contracts, Fair Management, and Fair Representation — with a basic point and an advanced point for each principle. Uber and Ola scored zero points on a scale of 10 for the second year in a row.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/1UPHwSR

actyv.ai welcomes Rajeev Mittal and Radhakrishnan as advisors



from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/mi0NlMp

Lionsgate Play targeting double-digit share in Indian OTT market

Rohit Jain, MD, Lionsgate South Asia, said the Indian SVOD market has 50–60 million paying subscribers, and the number of such customers is expected to rise to 75–80 million in the coming years.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/fpMbriD

ETtech State of Startups Survey 2022; revisit this year’s top-level movements

Indian startups have had a torrid 2022, and it shows. In our annual survey on the state of homegrown startups, which took place during a crippling funding winter this year, 87% of respondents said they would not shy away from shutting down unviable businesses and restructuring their organisations. That’s a sea change from 2021, when ‘growth at any cost’ was the prevailing mantra.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/MrR1UGk

2022 Year in review | Who's in, who's out? Top-level movements at Indian startups this year

ETtech has put together its annual list of CXO-level exits and big movements in the startup and tech industry in collaboration with executive search firm Longhouse Consulting.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/c1yGCfR

Platforms wary as voluntary BIS standard comes to e-user reviews

Any move to make BIS standards mandatory for e-reviews may lead to onerous conditions, costs.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/Oz79scr

Campaign to educate on online gaming, crypto

New strategy to target various asset classes and cover all Ponzi schemes.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/7TdKCYv

ETtech State of Startups Survey: Conserve cash, cut burn, turn profitable

Top founders, investors & internet execs polled amid tech winter. 64% of respondents see funding crunch easing in second half; 87% open to closing unviable businesses .

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/1840Ylk

Apple Japan hit with $98 million in back taxes: report

According to Nikkei, bulk purchases of iPhones by foreign shoppers were discovered at some Apple stores with at least one transaction involving an individual buying hundreds of handsets at once and the store missed taxing at least one possible reseller.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/kPQfhJS

Indian-American MIT scholar VA Shiva Ayyadurai wants to be the next Twitter CEO

Mumbai-born VA Shiva Ayyadurai, 59, who holds four degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), including a PhD in biological engineering, took to his Twitter to apply for the position.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/KwNM89l

Indian fintech faces tough 2023; PayU India lays off 6% of employees

The operating environment is expected to get tougher for Indian fintech startups next year amid a worsening funding winter and regulatory changes over the past few months, multiple founders and investors told us.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/CGxW3vT

2022 Year in Review | A tumultuous 2023 awaits fintech startups

With the regulatory overhang on fintechs continuing, and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) taking steps to regulate various aspects of the sector, investors are expected to remain selective in their approach, leading to potential consolidation in the coming months.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/u2HR56p

Time for 'cockroaches, not unicorns': layoffs, funding winter set to continue

Thousands lost jobs amid deepening funding winter in 2022 as massive layoffs by the tech companies this year alone surpassed the levels from the Great Recession the world went through in 2008-2009 that began with Lehman Brothers collapse.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/mDjOwMB

Will metaverse come out of its cocoon or fail to woo netizens?

Meta (formerly Facebook), which sacked more than 11,000 employees in 2022, is reportedly struggling to gain and keep users on its social virtual reality (VR) platform called Horizon Worlds -- its biggest bet to fulfil its $10 billion metaverse dream.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/8OG2jZq

Google's anti-competitive activities harm Indian consumers, economy: MapMyIndia CEO

Google has approached the appellate tribunal NCLAT to challenge the CCI order on unfair business practices in the Android mobile device ecosystem, alleging that the decision presents a major setback for its Indian users and businesses, who trust Android's security features and potentially raises the cost of mobile devices.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/z3fdKly

Twitter restores suicide prevention feature

Twitter head of trust and safety Ella Irwin confirmed the removal and called it temporary. "We have been fixing and revamping our prompts. They were just temporarily removed while we do that," Irwin said in an email to Reuters.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/mJpxat4

WhatsApp working on feature to let users report status updates

Meta-owned messaging platform WhatsApp is reportedly working on a new feature which will provide users the ability to report status updates on desktop beta.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/TrQg3Fj

Wadhwani AI gets $1 million grant from Google.org to build AI solutions in agriculture

Wadhwani AI had received a USD 2 million grant from Google.org in 2019 to support the CottonAce AI-powered pest management solution.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/1ubLgYd

Twitter Blue users now get 'prioritised rankings in conversations'

Micro-blogging platform Twitter has updated the list of features for its Blue service, which mentioned that subscribers paying for the $8 per month service will now get "prioritised rankings in conversations."

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/OAnvTaQ

FBI 'obviously overreached' with regard to online censorship: Elon Musk

The 'Twitter Files' earlier alleged that top Twitter executives, including former top FBI lawyer Jim Baker, suppressed and censored former US President Donald Trump in the days before the 2020 election, finally deplatforming him on January 8, 2021 - two days after the storming of the Capitol Hill that left five dead.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/hl0CYct

Elon Musk freed the bird, but who'll free him?

Last Sunday, Twitter announced new rules under which it would suspend accounts that posted links to other social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram with the main purpose of promoting content on these platforms.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/0rmpiRy

Apple workers in Australia go on Christmas strike demanding better wages, work terms

Workers represented by Australia's Retail and Fast Food Workers Union had earlier this month announced a walk out from Apple's retail outlets nationwide on December 23, with plans to stay away throughout Christmas Eve.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/ofG5891

Apple Watches violate AliveCor patents but import ban on hold: US ITC

Apple said in a statement that it "firmly" disagreed with the ITC decision but was pleased that the import ban was paused.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/8GtZ2WF

Microsoft tells judges its $69 billion Activision deal would benefit gamers

ACTIVISION-M-A-MICROSOFT-Microsoft tells judges its $69 billion Activision deal would benefit gamers

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/CShZKiP

FTX founder Bankman-Fried to be released on a $250 million bond

Sam Bankman-Fried will be released on a $250 million bond package while he awaits trial on fraud charges related to the collapse of the FTX crypto exchange, a federal magistrate judge said on Thursday.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/IJOqhfi

ByteDance finds employees obtained TikTok user data from two U.S. journalists

ByteDance employees accessed the data as part of an unsuccessful effort to attempt to investigate leaks of company information and were aiming to identify potential connections between two journalists and company employees.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/MTRZJH2

Elon Musk’s frequent Twitter polls are at risk of bot manipulation

With less than $100, one can buy tens of thousands of votes for Twitter polls using bot-for-hire manipulation services, according to the nonprofit digital rights group Accountable Tech. The finding, first reported by Bloomberg, could spark new concerns about Musk’s reliance on the tool to chart the future of one of the world’s most influential social media companies.

from Tech-Economic Times https://ift.tt/Itbrgn5

Yellow.ai deploys 30% of global generative AI bots domestically

While markets like the US are mostly using GenAI for customer support in a bid to cut costs, India Inc. is using them as an opportunity to g...