Microsoft is relatively benign as Big Tech overlords go, but don’t imagine it’s any less interested in grabbing your data. Its latest gambit is to purchase TakeLessons, a web marketplace for online and in-person classes. TakeLessons offers mostly consumer-oriented subjects, which expands Microsoft’s reach beyond the business-oriented classes it already offers on LinkedIn Lessons.
In case you spent the weekend in a cave or otherwise cut off from world news: a US district court judge on Friday ordered Apple to let companies in the App Store accept payments outside of Apple’s in-app purchase system, which charges a 30% commission. The change could cut billions of dollars from Apple profits. The decision is sure to be appealed but it’s still a rare victory for the rebels against Big Tech.
If taking a cooking class from Microsoft sounds a little strange, try wrapping your head around getting restaurant reviews from JPMorgan Chase bank. The financial services giant just bought The Infatuation, a “restaurant discovery platform” whose properties include the once-popular Zagat guide. The intent is apparently to offer new benefits and experiences to credit card customers. Data gathering, ecommerce, and advertising revenue are probably on the menu as well.
It’s tough to get brand safety right, but the industry keeps trying. IPG Mediabrands announced a new set of tools to find and block inappropriate ad placements, while IAS expanded its suitability measurements to include standards from the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM). Meanwhile, DoubleVerify admitted a mistake made brand safety on X/Twitter look worse than it really was in October 2023 and March 2024.