T.C. Sottek | Vox

Read the Email the Xbox Team at Microsoft Just Received About Sexism

2019-03-06T05:10:49-05:00

Microsoft held a party with overtly sexist themes at GDC 2016 this week — one that Xbox chief Phil Spencer today called “unequivocally wrong.” It’s a troubling incident in a long history of sexism at professional conferences and events in the gaming industry, especially considering Microsoft’s enormous influence. The party, which showcased women in revealing costumes dancing on podiums, served to alienate several attendees who shared their discomfort and disappointment online.

Spencer quickly denounced and disavowed his company’s actions today, stating that the event “represented Xbox and Microsoft in a way that was not consistent or aligned to our values.” He said the behavior “will not be tolerated” and that Microsoft “will do better in the future.”

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This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

Senate Republicans Claim Irregularities in FCC’s Net Neutrality Ruling

2019-03-06T05:10:05-05:00

A report released by Senate Republicans claims that the White House made a significant effort to influence the FCC and steer Chairman Tom Wheeler to pass net neutrality rules that President Obama wanted.

The inquiry was conducted by the majority on the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, and concludes that the FCC would not have chosen to reclassify broadband under Title II of the Telecommunications Act if the president had not supported it. Republicans in Congress have been working for years to cripple the FCC’s authority, and today’s report could set off a new fight over who ultimately controls the agency.

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This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

Verizon Betrays Net Neutrality, Excludes Its Video App From Data Caps

2019-03-06T05:16:55-05:00

The FCC’s net neutrality rules, passed last year, explicitly ban Internet providers from a number of discriminatory measures like throttling and blocking, but there’s evidently a huge loophole that every major wireless carrier in the U.S. has rushed to exploit. T-Mobile’s Binge On program, which throttles video content, is troublesome — but AT&T and Verizon’s programs are much worse, especially the one Verizon just announced today in the fine print of an update for its Go90 video app.

Verizon’s Go90 video platform — the company’s effort to compete with its own video bundle — now won’t count against customers’ data caps. That’s a huge deal, since video eats up a lot of data on mobile devices, and especially since Verizon’s data plans are expensive.

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This article originally appeared on Recode.net.