Chris Welch | Vox

The FTC is investigating Venmo over ‘deceptive or unfair practices’

2019-03-06T05:15:18-05:00

Venmo, the hugely popular peer-to-peer payments service owned by PayPal, is under investigation by the Federal Trade Commission. Its parent company acknowledged the situation today in an SEC filing. “On March 28th, 2016, we received a Civil Investigative Demand (CID) from the Federal Trade Commission as part of its investigation to determine whether we, through our Venmo service, have been or are engaged in deceptive or unfair practices in violation of the Federal Trade Commission Act,” the filing reads.

“The CID requests the production of documents and answers to written questions related to our Venmo service. We are cooperating with the FTC in connection with the CID.” PayPal warns that depending on where the FTC goes with the investigation, there could be some trouble ahead, ranging from legal fees to potential changes in the way that Venmo functions.

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This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

Amazon’s New Kindle Oasis Has Leaked: Cool Battery Case, but Not Waterproof

2019-03-06T05:14:27-05:00

Amazon has a new, top-of-the-line Kindle announcement coming at some point this week, but a Tmall page (that went down while I was writing this story) has spoiled the details before Jeff Bezos’ grand reveal. It’s called the Kindle Oasis, according to the page, and right away you’ll notice the large bezel on the right side — or left, depending on how you prefer to hold it. Sure, it’s a bit unsightly, but I can see the appeal; it’s probably more comfortable to hold one-handed, and those large page turn buttons mean you’ll never have to gunk up the screen with fingerprints.

The Oasis features a 300ppi screen, matching the Kindle Voyage in terms of sharpness and text clarity, and apparently there’s been a 60 percent increase in the number of LEDs inside, so the backlighting should be even more uniform when you’re reading in the dark.

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This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

Google’s Project Fi Mobile Network Now Open to Everyone in the U.S.

2019-03-06T05:37:41-05:00

Project Fi is ditching the invite system. Ten months after Google unveiled its own mobile network, which lets consumers pay only for the amount of data they use each month, the company is opening access to everyone inside the United States.

For the next month, Google is discounting the Nexus 5X down to $199 as an inexpensive way to get started with Fi, which only works with Nexus smartphones. Project Fi connects to the cellular networks of both T-Mobile and Sprint, switching between the two to offer customers the best possible coverage.

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This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

Microsoft ‘Wholeheartedly’ Supports Apple in FBI Encryption Case

2019-03-06T05:39:52-05:00

Speaking at a congressional hearing today, Microsoft President and Chief Legal Officer Brad Smith said that his company “wholeheartedly” supports Apple in the ongoing case that’s pitted the iPhone maker against the FBI.

“We at Microsoft support Apple and will be filing an amicus brief next week,” Smith said. An amicus brief is a “friend of the court” filing that allows parties not directly involved in the case to weigh in. Before today, Microsoft had offered only tepid support for Apple, but now it’s getting behind the company in a big way.

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This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

T-Mobile Expands Binge On, Makes It Easier to Turn Off Throttling

2019-03-06T05:14:06-05:00

T-Mobile is doing two things with its Binge On program today: Adding new partners including Amazon, and making it simpler for consumers to turn off what has fast become the company’s most controversial “Uncarrier” perk.

Starting today, Amazon Video, WWE Network, Fox News and Univision are part of Binge On, meaning customers can stream video from those services at DVD quality without it counting toward their chosen T-Mobile data plan. But, in response to growing net neutrality complaints and calls for the FCC to closely examine Binge On, T-Mobile has also made it much easier to disable the feature and view content at full quality.

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This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

Amazon Is Dropping Prime Subscriptions to Just $73 This Weekend

2019-03-06T05:13:29-05:00

In celebration of its pair of “Mozart in the Jungle” Golden Globes victories last Sunday, Amazon is reducing the price of Amazon Prime memberships this weekend. Subscribing will cost $73 — down from the regular $99 — from 9 pm PT Friday until 11:59 pm local time Sunday night.

As is normally the case with these promotions, Amazon is targeting them at new Prime members only.

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This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

Lenovo Is Making the First Consumer Phone With Google’s Project Tango

2019-03-06T05:18:32-05:00

Project Tango is moving from experiment to a feature that Lenovo hopes will sell phones. Tonight at CES, Lenovo and Google have announced that the former will be the first manufacturer to release a consumer handset with Project Tango built in. And there’s already a release date: It’s coming this summer. The device will cost under $500 and will launch globally, according to both companies. Also interesting is that Lenovo and Google have said it’ll be “less than 6.5 inches” in size. Tango, unveiled nearly two years ago, allows devices to map the 3-D space around them in real time using a combination of cameras and sensors.

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This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

Android Pay Now Works for In-App Purchases

2019-03-06T06:07:03-05:00

Google’s Android Pay already handles tap-and-pay transactions just fine, and today the company is launching the other half of its mobile payment platform: In-app purchases.

A little over a dozen apps including Lyft, OpenTable and Hotel Tonight are getting in-app purchases at launch, and Google says many more will be integrating the feature over the coming months — hopefully at the same level of adoption that Apple Pay has seen on iOS. A few partners from the initial list are also offering limited-time deals to encourage users to get started with Android Pay. Google says in-app purchases are just as secure and time-saving as NFC-based payments.

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This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

‘Key Figure’ in Silk Road Drug Marketplace Arrested

2019-03-06T06:06:29-05:00

Roger Thomas Clark, accused of being “a senior adviser” of Silk Road creator Ross Ulbricht, has been arrested in Thailand. The U.S. Department of Justice announced the news in a press release late this evening, describing Clark as “a close confidante of Ulbricht’s who advised him on all aspects of Silk Road’s operations and helped him grow the site into an extensive criminal enterprise.”

Clark reportedly went under the username “Variety Jones” at the Silk Road, an underground drug marketplace that operated on the dark Web between 2011 and 2013, when authorities shut it down. Today’s press release says Clark was paid “hundreds of thousands of dollars” for his role in helping Ulbricht steer the illegal site’s path.

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This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

Microsoft Opens New York City Flagship Store

2019-03-06T05:36:52-05:00

Microsoft choose a busy day to hold the grand opening of its Fifth Avenue retail store. Today marks the launch of the company’s new Surface products, including the Surface Book and Surface Pro 4. And later, the new Microsoft Store (and countless other retailers) will hold a midnight launch for the release of Halo 5 for Xbox One.

On hand for the store opening and ribbon cutting ceremony were Surface boss Panos Panay, Microsoft COO Kevin Turner, store manager Bill Madden, Deputy Mayor Richard Buery and New York City’s first-ever chief technology officer, Minerva Tantoco.

This is the first of Microsoft’s retail locations to be labeled a “flagship” store, and is easily the largest Microsoft Store to date. The company is leasing five floors at the the 677 Fifth Avenue building, with three of them open to customers.

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This article originally appeared on Recode.net.