Find out the week’s top mobile stories from around the world.
This week.. Inquiry to be held into National Security Council Huawei row, researchers weigh in on Apple’s targeted ad tracking, India trumps China for data use and much more…
Huawei row: Inquiry to be held into National Security Council leak
BBC
A formal inquiry is to be held into the leaking of discussions about Huawei at the National Security Council, the BBC has learned.
This follows the Daily Telegraph publishing details of a meeting about using the Chinese telecoms firm to help build the UK’s 5G network. Several cabinet ministers have denied they were involved in the leak.
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Is Privacy Really iPhone? Researchers Weigh in on Apple’s Targeted Ad Tracking
Threat Post
A unique identifier is enabled by default on every iPhone that’s shipped, allowing advertisers to follow the phone’s activity across the web.
Apple has a consistent track record of implementing privacy controls, which it has been touting via a series of saturating “Privacy? That’s iPhone” television ads.
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Data Growth: India Trumps China, Mobile Users Consume 8.3GB Data A Month
Express Computer
With data costs falling by 95 per cent since 2013, India will see internet users rise by about 40 per cent and number of smartphones to double by 2023, McKinsey said in a report. It also expects core digital sectors to jump two-fold to USD 355-435 billion by 2025.
The report ‘Digital India – Technology to Transform a Connection Nation’ by McKinsey Global Institute said the country is one of the largest and fastest-growing markets for digital consumers, with 560 million internet subscribers in 2018, second only to China.
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Users in Japan to get more rights to stop abuse of personal data
Asahi Shimbum
People in Japan will gain more rights to prevent IT giants harvesting big data from abusing their personal information under a proposed revision to a privacy law.
The Personal Information Protection Commission decided to order the firms, including the so-called GAFA (Google, Amazon, Facebook and Apple), to comply when someone asks them to stop using their personal data such as their purchasing history.
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IoT being harmed by lack of security skills
ITProPortal
The Internet of Things (IoT) industry is exploding, but this ‘explosion’ could be held back by a severe lack of talent to help future development.
This is according to a new report by Experis, which analyses the state of the job market among tech companies. The report claims that the number of cybersecurity roles advertised in Q4 2018 were up 10 per cent compared to the same period last year, and 16.6 per cent, compared to the previous quarter.
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How chat is changing travel
Travel Daily Media
Jesse Martin, trends analyst at Smooch, tells us how airlines, hotels, and other travel entities are embracing messaging now that customers are ready to chat. Facebook’s planned backend integration of WhatsApp, Messenger, and Instagram has animated the tech world, with manydrawing comparisons to China’s do-everything-messaging app WeChat.
Facebook’s pivot from public news feed to private messaging comes at a time when messaging apps have superseded social networking apps in popularity, while Conversational Commerce gains traction in retail, healthcare, and finance. But nowhere is this more true than in the travel industry.
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Mobile Security Risks Are on the Rise, But Employers Continue to Cut Corners
Security Intelligence
Mobile devices have taken over the enterprise. Ninety-five percent of us own a cellphone, and a full 100 percent of people between the ages of 18–29 carry one, according to Pew Research Center. And those mobile devices are making their way into the workplace, whether they are corporate-owned or via a bring-your-own-device (BYOD) policy. In any case, once these devices are in the workplace, they are always nearby, turned on and ready to use.
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China’s most popular app is a propaganda tool teaching Xi Jinping Thought
Tech In Asia
A slick tool for teaching Xi Jinping Thought has become the most popular smartphone app in China, as the country’s ruling Communist Party launched a new campaign that calls on its cadres to immerse themselves in the political doctrine every day.
Xuexi Qiangguo, which translates to “study powerful country,” is now the most downloaded item on Apple’s domestic App Store, surpassing in-demand social media apps such as WeChat and TikTok (known as Weixin and Douyin, respectively, in mainland China).
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Nintendo mobile division sales up 17% to $412m in FY2019
Pocket Gamer
Sales for Nintendo’s mobile division increase 17 per cent year-over-year to ¥46 billion ($412m) in FY2019.
Nintendo’s mobile business sits under ‘mobile, IP related income, etc.’, which includes both sales from its own games and royalties.
Some of that increase is likely thanks to the launch of Cygames’ Dragalia Lost back in September 2018. Nintendo did not disclose exactly how well the title is doing, though App Annie data shows an inconsistent performer that regularly sits outside the top 50 and 100 grossing App Store positions in Japan.
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