Former Netflix engineers have been hit with insider trading charges, LG shows off 6G technology, and Amazon could be looking to expand into a new venture.
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It’s all the tech news that’s trending right now, welcome to Hashtag Trending! It’s Friday, August 20, and I’m your host, Tom Li.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has charged three former Netflix employees with insider trading. The insiders include three Netflix engineers as well as two others connected to the group, according to an article from Market Watch. The insider trading ring reportedly operated amongst the former employees between July of 2016 and July of 2019, with the group using nonpublic information on the streaming service’s user base to buy and sell Netflix securities. According to the complaint filed in Federal court, the ring used encrypted messaging to execute insider trades on 13 separate occasions, netting them $3 million in profits. The SEC was ultimately able to catch the offenders by using data analysis tools to detect improbable success rates.
LG Electronics has successfully demonstrated 6G data transmission according to South Korea’s Yonhap news agency. The report details that LG was able to successfully send data over 6G terahertz spectrum across “100 meters in an outdoor environment”. The feat was done through a collaborative effort with a European research organization. The demonstration, which occurred in Berlin last week, was accomplished using a new power amplifier from LG. The South Korean electronics company stated that they hope to have 6G communication commercialized by the end of the decade, with talks for standardization beginning in 2025.
And finally, Amazon is reportedly looking to open several large physical retail locations in the U.S., according to the Wall Street Journal. The stores would reportedly open in Ohio and California, and would mark a new venture for the online shopping giant. While it is not yet clear what brands will be represented at the stores, the same sources claim that the company’s Amazon Basics brand would likely be a sure bet. One big strategic reason for the move could be related to allowing consumers to try out items, specifically clothing, which is an option Amazon’s online store can’t offer. Amazon is now the largest clothing retailer in the world, according to a Wells Fargo report, and by adding physical stores the company would ideally expand its market share even further. According to the WSJ, the stores could provide customers with more clarity compared to online shopping in terms of issues like sizing and appearance, as well as providing customers with the “instant gratification” of an in-person purchase.
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 Briefing 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 Friday at 3 pm. If you have a suggestion or tip, please drop us a line in the comments or via email. Thanks for listening, I’m Tom Li.