Boardroom Tech Talk: Twitter’s Latest Scandals

In the latest edition of the Boardroom Tech Talk newsletter, we also discuss the Reddit blackout, LVMH and Epic Games’ expanded partnership, and more.

We’re testing something new here by teasing the latest version of our Boardroom Tech Talk newsletter on the website.

Here’s a snippet of this week’s edition.

Twitter’s Latest Scandals

Twitter is back in the limelight for all the wrong reasons. First, the National Music Publishers’ Association sued Twitter, alleging that the social media platform violated copyright laws when it used songwriters’ music without permission. The NMPA is comprised of members that song write for various music companies, each of which is seeking $150,000 per piece of work infringed.

Elsewhere, it seems like Twitter is having trouble keeping up with its bills. After signing a $1 billion contract with Google in 2018 to host its services on Google Cloud servers, Twitter refused to pay its latest bill as its contract renewal looms this month. The social media company also owes three months’ worth of rent on its Boulder, Colo., office, so a judge inked court documents to allow the building owner to evict Twitter from the premises.

But no fear, new CEO Linda Yaccarino is still excited about building what she calls Twitter 2.0.

This Week in Tech

The Rundown on Reddit’s Civil War

Thousands of popular Subreddit communities went dark earlier this week in protest of the social news network’s updated API pricing for third-party apps. Over 8,000 Subreddits either went offline or private, while others are considering shutting down indefinitely on June 30 when the new API pricing model officially goes into effect.

Reddit CEO Steve Huffman told staff in a memo that the API blowback will pass and it hasn’t had a real impact on revenue, but the Subreddit blackout caused a brief crash on Reddit’s site on Monday. That feels like some impact to me.

Puma Expands With Black Station 2

Puma expanded its digital shopping experience with Black Station 2, a metaverse platform that allows users to purchase phygital footwear and goods. The virtual world got a first look at Black Station during New York Fashion Week last year, but the updated digital destination features two explorable worlds called Unkai and Unter. Puma drew inspiration from the Japanese city, Shibuya, and Berlin’s club culture to build its virtual environments.

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