Kalakshar US

Online retailers like Temu and Shein are known for selling cheap products like baby clothes, kitchen gadgets and electronics. The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) wants to know the true costs that foreign online retailers are cutting to sell these products at lower prices.

CPSC commissioners Peter Feldman and Douglas Dziak released a joint statement today calling for their staff to evaluate the operations of foreign e-commerce sites. The statement cites Shein and Temu as two online retail companies that “raise specific concerns.”

Recent news reports of “deadly baby and toddlers products” being sold on these platforms started to raise red flags at the CPSC. A recent report from The Information found several baby and children’s products on Shein deemed to be unsafe, such as children’s drawstring hoodies for sale that had been flagged by regulators as a strangulation risk. The fashion industry news site Fashion Dive found Temu selling children’s pajamas by brands that the CPSC ruled violated “the flammability standards for children’s sleepwear.”

A Shein spokesperson said in a statement to CNN that its customers’ safety remains their “top priority and we are investing millions of dollars to strengthen our compliance programs.” We’ve also reached out to Temu by email for the opportunity to respond to the CSPC claims.

The CSPC isn’t the first US government agency to scrutinize foreign e-commerce companies like Shein and Temu. Last year, the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission issued a brief detailing the challenges presented by “Chinese ‘fast fashion’ platforms.” The Commission questioned these platforms’ alleged exploitations of trade loopholes and concerns about its sale of items that posed product safety risks, violated copyrights and trademarks and used forced labor to make and sell products.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/the-us-government-may-be-preparing-to-investigate-internet-retail-giants-like-shein-and-temu-193218089.html?src=rss 

A new ruling from Meta’s Oversight Board regarding the use of the phrase “From the River to the Sea” found that it does not violate the platforms’ policies on hate speech, violence and incitement or dangerous organizations and individuals. The board also said in its ruling that the three flagged cases that used the phrase highlight the need for greater access to Facebook’s Content Library for qualified researchers, civil society groups and journalists who previously had access to CrowdTangle.

The ruling looked at three pieces of Facebook content containing the phrase “From the River to the Sea,” a phrase considered by many to be pro-Palestinian that refers to the stretch of land between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea. The rallying cry is a politically charged one with different interpretations and meanings. Critics of the phrase like the Anti-Defamation League call it an “anti-semitic slogan commonly featured in anti-Israel campaigns.” Others like US Rep. Rashida Tlaib, who the House censured last year for using the phrase in statements about the Israel-Gaza war, called it “an aspirational call for freedom, human rights and peaceful coexistence, not death, destruction or hate,” according to the New York Times.

The Oversight Board ruled that the phrase itself is not a “standalone phrase” calling for violence against a group of people, the exclusion of a particular group of people or a blanket stance of support for Hamas. The board also said it’s “vital” that Meta’s platforms assess the context surrounding the use of the phrase while assessing content from its users.

“Because the phrase does not have a single meaning, a blanket ban on content that includes the phrase, a default rule towards removal of such content, or even using it as a signal to trigger enforcement or review, would hinder protected political speech in unacceptable ways,” the ruling reads.

The board also raised concerns about Meta’s decision to shut down the CrowdTangle data analysis tool in August in its research on content and called for greater transparency regarding the new system. CrowdTangle was a free research tool used by news outlets, researchers and other groups to learn about the dissemination of information on platforms like Facebook and Instagram.

Meta replaced the tool with the Meta Content Library, a much more tightly controlled data examination system with stricter access rules. The Content Library restricts access to those who work with “a qualified academic institution or a qualified research institution” committed to “a not-for-profit endeavor,” according to Facebook’s guidelines.

The Oversight Board recommended that Meta onboard qualified researchers, groups and journalists within three weeks of submitting an application. The board also recommended that Meta “ensure its Content Library is a suitable replacement for CrowdTangle,” according to the ruling.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/metas-oversight-board-says-phrase-from-the-river-to-the-sea-should-not-be-banned-174506090.html?src=rss 

Intel’s been trying to recapture its glory days and establish itself, once again, as a leading chipmaker. However, this dream has run into a major snag. The company’s next-gen manufacturing process, currently referred to as 18A, has reportedly failed crucial tests, according to Reuters.

Semiconductor developer Broadcom helped conduct these tests as part of an evaluation process for a potential order. The report indicates that Intel sent Broadcom’s silicon wafers, which are the components used to form the base of a semiconductor, through the 18A manufacturing process, which is supposed to increase efficiency. Broadcom was reportedly not happy with the results, suggesting that Intel’s new-fangled manufacturing process isn’t ready for high-volume production.

A Broadcom spokesperson said the company is “evaluating the product and service offerings of Intel Foundry and have not concluded that evaluation.” Intel had planned on using this new process to produce chips for major partners like Microsoft beginning next year. Despite these reported test results, the company says that timetable is still viable.

“Intel 18A is powered on, healthy and yielding well, and we remain fully on track to begin high volume manufacturing next year,” a spokesperson told Reuters. “There is a great deal of interest in Intel 18A across the industry but, as a matter of policy, we do not comment on specific customer conversations.”

It’s no secret that Intel has fallen a bit from the chipmaking perch it once dominated. It recently reported $1.6 billion in losses in the second quarter of 2024. This led to layoffs that impacted more than 15,000 workers. It’s also been dealing with widespread stability issues affecting its 13th and 14th Gen CPUs.

Reports indicate that Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger will soon pitch more cost-cutting measures to get the company back on track. These measures allegedly include delays on new manufacturing facilities in Germany and Ohio. The company could also sell off Altera, a business that makes programmable logic devices.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/intels-next-gen-chip-manufacturing-process-reportedly-hits-snag-after-failing-crucial-tests-172220843.html?src=rss 

Phoenix Springs, a very stylish point-and-click game that caught our attention during the Summer Game Fest edition of Day of the Devs, will be arriving a little later than expected. The neo-noir detective title will hit Steam on October 7 rather than the previously announced date of September 16. Calligram Studio plans to bring Phoenix Springs to GOG and Itch.io later in the year and it’s in talks with publishers to release console ports as well.

Calligram says it’s pushing back the Steam release date by a few weeks after it “lost a bit of momentum this summer.” Phoenix Springs, which will cost $20, is being made by a three-person team that said it needed just a little extra time.

Senior Reporter Jessica Conditt had the chance to try out Phoenix Springs during Summer Game Fest and came away impressed. The hand-drawn art and intriguing story may well be a winning combination, so having to wait a few extra weeks to delve into the mystery isn’t the end of the world.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/pc/stylish-neo-noir-detective-game-phoenix-springs-is-delayed-until-october-7-173529355.html?src=rss