Hashtag Trending June 13 – Unsatisfactory broadband; GM EV sale; more Meta lawsuits

Americans are unhappy about their internet services, General Motors cut the cost of its electric cars, and Meta is facing more allegations that it impacts the mental health of children.

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That’s all the tech news that’s trending right now, welcome to Hashtag Trending. It’s Monday, June 13, and I’m your host, Tom Li.

The latest American Customer Satisfaction Index study showed that the TV and broadband industry in America has the lowest approval rate. It ranks below wireless phone service, Gas stations, and even social media. While service providers appear to have made progress in developing more user-friendly apps and websites, service outages, choice of plans, and customer service continue to cause frustrations for consumers. Additionally, consumers are less satisfied with the quality of supporting services, like email and security, compared to 2021.

Source: Tech Dirt

General Motors has lowered the price of its electric Chevrolet Bolt hatchback and Bolt EUV by about $6,000. The move, according to Arkansas Online, is to claw back some market share in an increasingly competitive industry. GM has had a rough couple of months, having to recall almost all of the Bolt vehicles ever sold due to a potential battery fire hazard. Now that its EV production has resumed, GM is looking to incentivize consumers with a steep discount. The $6,000 savings represents an 18 per cent off on the Bolts’ regular price. However, the article described that GM may have had no other choice if they wanted to stay competitive.

Source: Arkansas Online

Meta is once again facing allegations that its social media platforms harm children’s well-being, this time from eight different complaints. The lawsuits claim that the company’s algorithms are tuned to lure young people into a destructive addiction. Further, the complaints also alleged that excessive exposure to these platforms has led to attempted or actual suicide, eating disorders and sleeplessness. When asked by Bloomberg, Meta declined to comment on these litigations but noted that the company provides tools and resources to protect the users’ mental health.

Source: Bloomberg

A Leica camera was auctioned for $14.4 million euros last Friday. The 35mm Leica O-series camera was one of the very first models ever made by Oskar Barnack, the creator of the 35mm camera. The camera dates back to around 1923, and has been used by Barnack to record his life. Due to its vintage, the auctioneers had originally expected it to raise around $3 million euros, but the final sum went on to set a record for the most expensive camera ever sold,

Source: Kiratas

That’s all the tech news that’s trending right now. Hashtag Trending is a part of the ITWC Podcast network. Add us to your Alexa Flash briefings or your Google Home daily briefing. Make sure to sign up for our Daily IT Wire newsletter to get all the news that matters directly in your inbox every day. Also, catch the next episode of Hashtag Tendances, our weekly Hashtag Trending episode in French, which drops every Thursday morning. If you have a suggestion or a tip, drop us a line in the comments or via email. Thank you for listening, I’m Tom Li.

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Jim Love, Chief Content Officer, IT World Canada
Tom Li
Tom Li
Telecommunication and consumer hardware are Tom's main beats at IT World Canada. He loves to talk about Canada's network infrastructure, semiconductor products, and of course, anything hot and new in the consumer technology space. You'll also occasionally see his name appended to articles on cloud, security, and SaaS-related news. If you're ever up for a lengthy discussion about the nuances of each of the above sectors or have an upcoming product that people will love, feel free to drop him a line at tli@itwc.ca.

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