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Dr Disrespect Gives Statement On Twitch Ban During His YouTube Return Stream – Forbes

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The man can generate hype, I’ll give him that. After a mysterious disappearance that lasted longer than a month, Dr Disrespect has returned to streaming today on YouTube, his apparent new home after his permanent Twitch ban.

Yesterday afternoon Doc started running a static stream, and after the first hour or so, revealed that he’d return today at 3 PM ET. Well, that was pushed to 4 PM, and now he is indeed live to over 500,000 viewers at the time of this writing and no, naturally he does not have any concrete answers for us about his famous Twitch ban. He addressed the ban, saying that he still has no idea why Twitch banned him, and that he cannot think of anything he would have done to have warranted the ban. This remains difficult to believe, and yet Doc pushed back on critics that don’t believe this line about the ban, calling it a “cockroach approach” to speculate on what happened. The “last thing” he said he was going to say about it was “let the legal professionals do what they need to do, that’s it.”

Quite literally nothing has leaked out about Doc’s Twitch ban in the last month. Not from him, Twitch or inside sources. Twitch abruptly ended a recently signed, multi-million dollar contract with Dr Disrespect just months after the deal was made, and gave no reason for doing so, only saying that all creators are subject to the same rules, no matter their size. Dr Disrespect maintained that he had not been told why he was banned, and managed to get through a lot of major interviews revealing absolutely nothing about what was going on in a PR-sanitized tour where he kept saying he couldn’t talk about what was going on with Twitch for legal reasons.

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What legal reasons? That remains unclear. Perhaps more unclear than ever, now. At first, given that Doc’s ban came immediately after a wave of #MeToo allegations in the gaming industry, many of which led to Twitch bans, the logical leap was that perhaps something of that nature, and/or something criminal, might be going on behind the scenes.

But there were no public accusations ever made against Doc. He has not been arrested or charged with anything in the last month. So now he is essentially mounting a “comeback” from something that…no one knows the details of. It’s a very strange situation. This is, of course, the type of speculation that Doc has pushed back against, yet has offered no plausible theories of his own about the ban, and is now content to be quiet and let lawyers work it out.

It does feel a little weird to see such massive support for Doc’s return without ever getting clarity on the Twitch situation. The line among his fans seems to be that since nothing bad has come out, there’s no reason not to support him, and they assume that Twitch just screwed him over in some way, and whatever “legal” issues are ongoing, they must be contractual, not criminal. It’s possible, but it’s also probably too soon to rule anything out, even if it’s been over a month now.

So, here’s the comeback, which does not involve Doc signing a new contract, but instead just heading to YouTube to stream without any sort of high dollar deal, just to…stream. And of course he can make money anyway and has already raked in tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of dollars in subscriptions and donations for the lead-up to his return and now the return itself. Since we do not know what he did to get banned from Twitch, we have no idea if that same thing could have him end up getting banned on YouTube, but he certainly doesn’t seem to think so, hence all the hype and set-up for this grand return.

It really is one of the most confounding mysteries in gaming. I had little interest in Doc before any of this, but this situation has just been so perplexing it’s hard not to be engrossed in the mystery of it all. In this industry, the truth has to leak out at some point about what happened here, but I am frankly stunned it hasn’t already, so who knows.

It appears that for now, YouTube is Doc’s new home, with or without a contract, and sources are saying that no deals from YT or any other streaming services are imminent, and yet he’s free to stream elsewhere like anyone normally would be. Even if Doc gets back to regular streaming, it’s a changed situation. He’s not allowed to stream with any of his old Twitch buddies (part of the nature of a ban), and yet he can continue creating content on YouTube unless a new ban takes effect. And since we don’t know what caused the last one, it’s impossible to say what happens next.

If you want to be one of the hundreds of thousands of people watching Doc’s return, you can view his comeback stream here. This story is not over, and if anything, is really only getting more confusing the longer answers remain out of sight.

Follow me on TwitterYouTube and Instagram. Pick up my sci-fi novels Herokiller and Herokiller 2, and read my first series, The Earthborn Trilogy, which is also on audiobook.

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Ottawa orders TikTok’s Canadian arm to be dissolved

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The federal government is ordering the dissolution of TikTok’s Canadian business after a national security review of the Chinese company behind the social media platform, but stopped short of ordering people to stay off the app.

Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne announced the government’s “wind up” demand Wednesday, saying it is meant to address “risks” related to ByteDance Ltd.’s establishment of TikTok Technology Canada Inc.

“The decision was based on the information and evidence collected over the course of the review and on the advice of Canada’s security and intelligence community and other government partners,” he said in a statement.

The announcement added that the government is not blocking Canadians’ access to the TikTok application or their ability to create content.

However, it urged people to “adopt good cybersecurity practices and assess the possible risks of using social media platforms and applications, including how their information is likely to be protected, managed, used and shared by foreign actors, as well as to be aware of which country’s laws apply.”

Champagne’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment seeking details about what evidence led to the government’s dissolution demand, how long ByteDance has to comply and why the app is not being banned.

A TikTok spokesperson said in a statement that the shutdown of its Canadian offices will mean the loss of hundreds of well-paying local jobs.

“We will challenge this order in court,” the spokesperson said.

“The TikTok platform will remain available for creators to find an audience, explore new interests and for businesses to thrive.”

The federal Liberals ordered a national security review of TikTok in September 2023, but it was not public knowledge until The Canadian Press reported in March that it was investigating the company.

At the time, it said the review was based on the expansion of a business, which it said constituted the establishment of a new Canadian entity. It declined to provide any further details about what expansion it was reviewing.

A government database showed a notification of new business from TikTok in June 2023. It said Network Sense Ventures Ltd. in Toronto and Vancouver would engage in “marketing, advertising, and content/creator development activities in relation to the use of the TikTok app in Canada.”

Even before the review, ByteDance and TikTok were lightning rod for privacy and safety concerns because Chinese national security laws compel organizations in the country to assist with intelligence gathering.

Such concerns led the U.S. House of Representatives to pass a bill in March designed to ban TikTok unless its China-based owner sells its stake in the business.

Champagne’s office has maintained Canada’s review was not related to the U.S. bill, which has yet to pass.

Canada’s review was carried out through the Investment Canada Act, which allows the government to investigate any foreign investment with potential to might harm national security.

While cabinet can make investors sell parts of the business or shares, Champagne has said the act doesn’t allow him to disclose details of the review.

Wednesday’s dissolution order was made in accordance with the act.

The federal government banned TikTok from its mobile devices in February 2023 following the launch of an investigation into the company by federal and provincial privacy commissioners.

— With files from Anja Karadeglija in Ottawa

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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Here is how to prepare your online accounts for when you die

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LONDON (AP) — Most people have accumulated a pile of data — selfies, emails, videos and more — on their social media and digital accounts over their lifetimes. What happens to it when we die?

It’s wise to draft a will spelling out who inherits your physical assets after you’re gone, but don’t forget to take care of your digital estate too. Friends and family might treasure files and posts you’ve left behind, but they could get lost in digital purgatory after you pass away unless you take some simple steps.

Here’s how you can prepare your digital life for your survivors:

Apple

The iPhone maker lets you nominate a “ legacy contact ” who can access your Apple account’s data after you die. The company says it’s a secure way to give trusted people access to photos, files and messages. To set it up you’ll need an Apple device with a fairly recent operating system — iPhones and iPads need iOS or iPadOS 15.2 and MacBooks needs macOS Monterey 12.1.

For iPhones, go to settings, tap Sign-in & Security and then Legacy Contact. You can name one or more people, and they don’t need an Apple ID or device.

You’ll have to share an access key with your contact. It can be a digital version sent electronically, or you can print a copy or save it as a screenshot or PDF.

Take note that there are some types of files you won’t be able to pass on — including digital rights-protected music, movies and passwords stored in Apple’s password manager. Legacy contacts can only access a deceased user’s account for three years before Apple deletes the account.

Google

Google takes a different approach with its Inactive Account Manager, which allows you to share your data with someone if it notices that you’ve stopped using your account.

When setting it up, you need to decide how long Google should wait — from three to 18 months — before considering your account inactive. Once that time is up, Google can notify up to 10 people.

You can write a message informing them you’ve stopped using the account, and, optionally, include a link to download your data. You can choose what types of data they can access — including emails, photos, calendar entries and YouTube videos.

There’s also an option to automatically delete your account after three months of inactivity, so your contacts will have to download any data before that deadline.

Facebook and Instagram

Some social media platforms can preserve accounts for people who have died so that friends and family can honor their memories.

When users of Facebook or Instagram die, parent company Meta says it can memorialize the account if it gets a “valid request” from a friend or family member. Requests can be submitted through an online form.

The social media company strongly recommends Facebook users add a legacy contact to look after their memorial accounts. Legacy contacts can do things like respond to new friend requests and update pinned posts, but they can’t read private messages or remove or alter previous posts. You can only choose one person, who also has to have a Facebook account.

You can also ask Facebook or Instagram to delete a deceased user’s account if you’re a close family member or an executor. You’ll need to send in documents like a death certificate.

TikTok

The video-sharing platform says that if a user has died, people can submit a request to memorialize the account through the settings menu. Go to the Report a Problem section, then Account and profile, then Manage account, where you can report a deceased user.

Once an account has been memorialized, it will be labeled “Remembering.” No one will be able to log into the account, which prevents anyone from editing the profile or using the account to post new content or send messages.

X

It’s not possible to nominate a legacy contact on Elon Musk’s social media site. But family members or an authorized person can submit a request to deactivate a deceased user’s account.

Passwords

Besides the major online services, you’ll probably have dozens if not hundreds of other digital accounts that your survivors might need to access. You could just write all your login credentials down in a notebook and put it somewhere safe. But making a physical copy presents its own vulnerabilities. What if you lose track of it? What if someone finds it?

Instead, consider a password manager that has an emergency access feature. Password managers are digital vaults that you can use to store all your credentials. Some, like Keeper,Bitwarden and NordPass, allow users to nominate one or more trusted contacts who can access their keys in case of an emergency such as a death.

But there are a few catches: Those contacts also need to use the same password manager and you might have to pay for the service.

___

Is there a tech challenge you need help figuring out? Write to us at onetechtip@ap.org with your questions.

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Google’s partnership with AI startup Anthropic faces a UK competition investigation

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LONDON (AP) — Britain’s competition watchdog said Thursday it’s opening a formal investigation into Google’s partnership with artificial intelligence startup Anthropic.

The Competition and Markets Authority said it has “sufficient information” to launch an initial probe after it sought input earlier this year on whether the deal would stifle competition.

The CMA has until Dec. 19 to decide whether to approve the deal or escalate its investigation.

“Google is committed to building the most open and innovative AI ecosystem in the world,” the company said. “Anthropic is free to use multiple cloud providers and does, and we don’t demand exclusive tech rights.”

San Francisco-based Anthropic was founded in 2021 by siblings Dario and Daniela Amodei, who previously worked at ChatGPT maker OpenAI. The company has focused on increasing the safety and reliability of AI models. Google reportedly agreed last year to make a multibillion-dollar investment in Anthropic, which has a popular chatbot named Claude.

Anthropic said it’s cooperating with the regulator and will provide “the complete picture about Google’s investment and our commercial collaboration.”

“We are an independent company and none of our strategic partnerships or investor relationships diminish the independence of our corporate governance or our freedom to partner with others,” it said in a statement.

The U.K. regulator has been scrutinizing a raft of AI deals as investment money floods into the industry to capitalize on the artificial intelligence boom. Last month it cleared Anthropic’s $4 billion deal with Amazon and it has also signed off on Microsoft’s deals with two other AI startups, Inflection and Mistral.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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