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The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has issued a number of proposals to improve broadband connection in the country, one of which is to set the minimum download speed for broadband access at 2Mbps. This is four times faster than the existing minimum broadband speed of 512Kbps, which was set by the FCC in 2014 as an improvement to the previous 256Kbps level. TRAI further suggests that the government expedite fixed-line broadband expansion in rural regions by reimbursing 50% of monthly subscription charges. Its proposals to improve broadband penetration…

WhatsApp’s latest User Safety Monthly Report reveals that the instant messaging platform banned over three million accounts during the months of June and July this year. WhatsApp says the accounts were banned in the interest of preventing online abuse and keeping the user experience safe and spam-free. It bans accounts based on user complaints, mails received from the India Grievance Officer, and using its own automated tools to prevent harmful behavior on the platform. The report also reveals that a total of 316 ban appeals were made by users and…

Amazon is working to tackle a frequent complaint about smart home speakers by adding Adaptive Volume, which would cause Alexa to react louder if it senses that you are in a noisy area. The mode, according to the company, is designed to ensure that Alexa’s replies can be heard over background noise. According to Amazon, the functionality is presently accessible to US customers and can be enabled by asking “Alexa, switch on adaptive volume.” Amazon does not mention adaptive volume operating in the reverse direction, becoming quieter if there is…

Facebook is expanding an experiment that aims to reduce political information in the News Feed. According to an update to a February blog post, the company has found “good outcomes” in reducing this content for some users in a few regions. It is now expanding a test of the strategy to Costa Rica, Sweden, Spain, and Ireland. Axios reported on Facebook’s plans prior to the announcement. AAs it notes, Facebook’s new test also involves changing the signals it favors when promoting content. “Some engagement signals can better indicate what posts…

Google CEO Sundar Pichai announced in an email to employees today that, while “we are welcoming back tens of thousands of Googlers on a voluntary basis,” the company will extend its voluntary return to work policy until at least January 10th, 2022. After that date, the current plan is to have countries and locations make mandatory return to work decisions depending on local conditions. The most recent publicly disclosed plan would have brought Google employees to the workplace at some time in September, but that will not happen. Pichai underlined…

LinkedIn announced Tuesday that it is discontinuing its ephemeral Stories product. According to Liz Li, senior director of product, the company intends to “remove the existing Stories experience by the end of September.” Internal testing of the Snapchat-style video Stories started in February 2020. LinkedIn discovered that users didn’t want disappearing video, which was one of the reasons for the suspension. “When we developed Stories, we anticipated that users wouldn’t want informal videos connected to their profile, and that ephemerality would lower the barriers that people feel about posting,” Li…