European defense contractor Saft is set to supply lithium-ion battery systems for the next generation of naval submarines, replacing decades-old lead-acid technology with EV-style packs that promise higher energy density, faster charging, and superior underwater endurance.

Regulatory pressure over TikTok’s child safety measures continued to mount as the European Commission (EC) warned a preliminary look at the company’s protections found it wanting in various aspects.

The initial results of a formal probe into potential breaches of the Digital Services Act (DSA) show TikTok is falling short of the required standards. The EC explained a public-access setting means child accounts can still be viewed by all kinds of people whether they use the social media platform or not.

Another risk involves the content of 16- and 17-year-olds, which the EC found can be featured in recommendations to other users, presenting the risk of “unwanted contact” or cyberbullying.

It is inviting TikTok to view and respond to the preliminary findings and emphasised there is no prejudice to any final decisions in the investigation.

If TikTok is ultimately judged to be in breach of the DSA, the EC “may issue a non-compliance decision, which can trigger a fine”.

Other areas of concern the EC highlighted include an ability to view the profile pictures of children even when accounts are set to private mode, with discovery available if they are contacts of other users or by non-users of TikTok.

The EC explained the DSA requires platforms which children can use to “ensure a high level of privacy, safety and security”, a standard it considers TikTok may not be meeting.

UK regulator Ofcom is conducting its own probe into TikTok’s child protection measures.

The EC previously warned TikTok over its “potentially addictive design” as part of the same investigation.

The post EC warns TikTok over child protection breaches appeared first on Mobile World Live.

JOHANNESBURG — The European Union has ordered a 24-hour delay in the release of some Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 imagery following a request from the United States based on concerns that […]

The post EU delays release of Copernicus imagery over Gulf of Oman  appeared first on SpaceNews.

WARSAW, Poland — The Polish government has agreed to invest around $745 million in the development of the planned IRIS² multi-orbit satellite internet constellation with the European Union.  The money […]

The post Poland commits $745 million to EU’s IRIS² constellation project appeared first on SpaceNews.

The European Commission (EC) slapped two fines on Google totalling €890 million for non-compliance with the Digital Markets Act (DMA) and demanded the tech giant make changes to its search service and app store policies.

Decisions on the two probes follow investigations started in March 2024. Of the total, €460 million is for breaches on its search service and €430 million for app distribution restrictions on Google Play.

On the search charge, the EC determined Google gave its own services preferential treatment in rankings, either by having them at the top of a results page, or using enhanced visuals or filters.

This goes against DMA rules requiring “transparent, fair and non-discriminatory conditions” in rankings, the EC argued.

Its fine related to the Google Play app store was for not allowing developers distributing apps through the platform to inform customers of alternative offers and direct them to make purchases elsewhere.

The regulator acknowledged after what it termed constructive dialogue Google had begun testing changes to its services the regulator noted could “constitute substantial progress towards compliance”.

However, the EC stated the “fines imposed today on Google take into account the gravity and duration of the non-compliance”.

As part of the judgement, the EC demands Google ends the policies deemed in breach of the DMA.

Google has 60 days to comply, with the authority threatening periodic penalty payments of up to 5% of worldwide turnover if it does not.

The company has the right to appeal.

Breaking products
Unsurprisingly Google is unhappy with the changes it is being forced to make to meet DMA obligations.

In a statement, president of global affairs at Google and its parent company Alphabet Kent Walker claimed the way the DMA is implemented “continues to break everyday products” and degraded the experience of businesses and consumers in the European Union.

“To comply, we are having to strip away real-time Search features Europeans love like instant pricing and direct availability for hotels, flights and restaurants, and dismantle safety protections on Google Play,” he added.

“This isn’t fair competition, it’s product degradation driven by a small group of self-serving complainants, with European businesses and consumers taking the hit. Regulation should improve products, not make them worse.”

The post Google fined €890M for EU DMA breaches appeared first on Mobile World Live.

GSMA Intelligence estimated the cost of replacing equipment made by so-called high risk vendors (HRV) from telecoms networks in Europe will cost between €30 billion to €40 billion, based on data from operators representing almost half of the market.

In the study, independently commissioned and sponsored by seven operator groups, GSMA Intelligence put the cost of replacing mobile networks at €16 billion to €22 billion, equating to around €30 to €42 per mobile connection. This is driven by high exposure to HRV equipment and the cost of replacing equipment such as base stations.

Fixed network costs will hit up to €5 billion, representing the costs of fibre terminals, gateways and fixed wireless equipment. Transport networks, which includes optical switches, multiplexers and amplifiers will cost between €9 billion and €12 billion.

The figures cover only direct equipment replacement and exclude write-offs of existing assets, disruption cost, capacity constraints and broader impacts on future investment plans.

Higher prices
GSMA Intelligence further warned excluding HRV’s could reduce competitive pressure, leading to a 24% price increase in mobile network equipment, 19% in fixed network equipment and 10% in transport network equipment.

Higher prices would therefore raise operator investment costs by €8.5 billion between 2027 and 2030, with current budgets for mobile networks set at nearly €42 billion.

The European Commission outlined a proposal making it mandatory to “de-risk” European mobile telecoms networks from high-risk third party suppliers in January, as part of revisions to its Cybersecurity Act.

Over a five year period, it estimated phasing out equipment could lead to annual costs of €3.4 billion to €4.3 billion for operators, while investment in “trusted suppliers” could grow up to €2 billion per year.

Operators Deutsche Telekom, Fastweb, MEO, Orange, Telefonica, United Group and Vodafone Group took part in the GSMA Intelligence study, which was based on limited datasets provided by third parties.

The post High risk vendor rip out could cost EU up to €40B appeared first on Mobile World Live.

Firm told to treat third-party services that appear in its results in ‘fair and non-discriminatory manner’

Google has been fined a total of €890m (£760m) by the EU for breaches of online competition laws by its search and app store services.

The European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, said Google had broken the Digital Markets Act by giving priority to its own services, such as shopping and hotel deals, in search results over those of its rivals.

Liopleurodon ferox is a short-necked marine reptile that patrolled the seas of what is now England and France some 163 million years ago.

The post Jurassic Pliosaur Liopleurodon Was Big, but Not as Big as Once Feared appeared first on Sci.News: Breaking Science News.

France’s Transport Minister, Philippe Tabarot, says the country won’t authorize Tesla’s “Full Self-Driving” (Supervised) “as it currently stands,” pointing to two safety problems: the system lets drivers speed, and it doesn’t keep them attentive enough in cities.

But this isn’t France slamming the door on Tesla. It’s France refusing to rubber-stamp the Netherlands’ national approval and holding out for a proper EU-wide sign-off.

Virgin Media O2 CEO Lutz Schuler warned the UK’s net neutrality rules could hamper agentic AI and other emerging technology, as well as limiting innovation today, as the operator published a report making the case for policy reform.

The executive described net neutrality regulations in the UK as outdated and argued they hamper the realisation of the benefits from significant network investments being made.

He asserted the rules requiring all internet traffic to be treated equally meant the operator is “not able to help customers by prioritising taxi and map apps when travelling home at night and can’t prioritise payment apps for sole traders in crowded markets”, two in a series of examples.

“New technologies like agentic AI will improve the online experience and we’re investing £700 million this year in our mobile network to boost connectivity across the UK, but with network traffic growing relentlessly we won’t get the most out of it without much-needed reform,” he added.

The statement comes as the country is in the process of conducting a mobile market review, which Schuler argued should be used to remove “antiquated roadblocks to innovation” such as net neutrality.

VMO2 acknowledged current rules on the issue were initially intended to protect consumers, but noted they were issued a decade ago and set in a different era of connectivity.

The comments accompanied the release of Net Fatality, a 48-page report commissioned by the operator and produced by consultancy Communications Chambers.

It outlines the case against the current stance in the country along with a series of services it asserts are being hampered by net neutrality including the use of time sensitive applications and prioritising important video calls.

The post VMO2 takes aim at UK net neutrality rules appeared first on Mobile World Live.

Ukraine operators Kyivstar, Lifecell and Vodafone switched on their latest open 5G pilot network in capital city Kyiv, the fourth location in the country and their largest 5G testbed to date.

The move follows earlier 5G pilots this year in the cities of Lviv and Kharkiv and the town of Borodyanka.

Borodyanka in particular suffered severe devastation during the Russian occupation in early 2022.

The country’s Ministry of Digital Transformation stated almost 1.5 million Ukrainians have already tested the country’s 5G networks, with peak download speeds of more than 1 Gb/s and averages of 600-700 Mb/s.

5G is operating in two frequency bands: 3500MHz (for high data transmission speeds) and 700MHz (to ensure wider coverage).

More than 300 base stations are supporting the pilot network in Kyiv. It is based on Non-Standalone 5G technology (a 5G RAN using a 4G core network).

The southern city of Odesa is expected to be the next testbed.

It is not clear when commercial 5G services will be activated in Ukraine by the country’s operators but a statement from the Ministry said “Our task now is to qualitatively test 5G technology in order to scale it across the country after the end of martial law.”

According to GSMA Intelligence, 4G accounts for 78 per cent of mobile connections in Ukraine, offering peak download speeds of 1Gb/s.

The post Ukrainian operators launch 5G pilot in Kyiv appeared first on Mobile World Live.

Neso denies allegations aired by Tory MP that staff took part in cover-up over decision-making in heatwave

In a control room in Wokingham, Berkshire, staff work around the clock, minute by minute, to align Great Britain’s fluctuating power supplies with its ever-changing demand.

However, as households struggle to adapt to soaring summer temperatures, staff at the government-owned National Energy System Operator (Neso), tasked with keeping the lights on, have faced the kind of challenge usually reserved for the country’s coldest winter nights in recent weeks.

The British government and the Space Florida aerospace finance and development authority have each committed $200,000 to support joint research, innovation and commercialization projects.

The post UK and Florida commit $400,000 to joint space projects appeared first on SpaceNews.

Europe wasted no time using its landmark Digital Markets Act (DMA) to try to rein in Big Tech. Companies like Apple, Meta, and Google have faced steep fines and orders to modify their business practices since the law came into force in 2024. And the hits keep on coming for Big Tech in Europe. After several months of consideration, the European Commission has announced new DMA measures that will force Google to support interoperability and competition in the European Union, and Google is not happy about it.

The new "specification measures" cover two elements of Google's business: Android phones and search. Both changes could theoretically increase competition and give users more choices, but Google claims they will undermine privacy and security. But as a "gatekeeper" under the DMA, Google has no choice but to comply. As the European Commission points out in its announcement, these decisions are legally binding.

On Android, Google will have to open up access to competing AI platforms. Currently, Google's Gemini gets preferential access to the system. Gemini is preloaded on all Google-certified Android phones and can wake up in response to the "Hey Google" hot word. Google's AI also includes system and app automation features, screen content access, and more.

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From Nevada to Manchester, developers are trialling innovative solutions to clean energy’s biggest challenge

In the deserts of the United Arab Emirates a sprawling clean energy project, stretching across an area roughly the size of 12,600 football fields, will play host to a breakthrough allowing solar energy to power the equivalent of half a million homes through the night.

The Gulf state has been steadily combining 5.2GW of solar power capacity with 19GWh of battery storage to create the largest battery scheme in the world.

Europe wasted no time using its landmark Digital Markets Act (DMA) to try to rein in Big Tech. Companies like Apple, Meta, and Google have faced steep fines and orders to modify their business practices since the law came into force in 2024. And the hits keep on coming for Big Tech in Europe. After several months of consideration, the European Commission has announced new DMA measures that will force Google to support interoperability and competition in the European Union, and Google is not happy about it.

The new "specification measures" cover two elements of Google's business: Android phones and search. Both changes could theoretically increase competition and give users more choices, but Google claims they will undermine privacy and security. But as a "gatekeeper" under the DMA, Google has no choice but to comply. As the European Commission points out in its announcement, these decisions are legally binding.

On Android, Google will have to open up access to competing AI platforms. Currently, Google's Gemini gets preferential access to the system. Gemini is preloaded on all Google-certified Android phones and can wake up in response to the "Hey Google" hot word. Google's AI also includes system and app automation features, screen content access, and more.

Read full article

Comments