Reading Global(2022.03.25)
The EU agrees on the Digital Market Act, which is expected to enter into force in October
Reuters reported that Margrethe Vestager, the head of the EU's antitrust, said on the 25th that the harsh new regulations for US technology giants reached later in the previous day are expected to take effect in October. Tech companies designated as "gatekeepers" will have six months to comply with the new rules.
"In accordance with the expected procedure, this legislation will be published after the vote is passed, so it will come into force sometime in October," Vestager said at a news conference. ”
Lianhe Zaobao news, the European Parliament, the European Council and the European Commission on the evening of the 24th, reached an agreement on the "Digital Market Act", aimed at restricting Google, Apple, Amazon, Facebook and other technology giants.
The European Parliament issued a statement saying EU lawmakers reached an interim agreement on the Digital Market Act. The bill would restrict certain behaviors of tech giants identified as "gatekeepers," allowing the European Commission to market-investigate them and sanction them for non-compliance.
EU legislators agree that large short messaging platforms must be open and interoperable with smaller messaging platforms when required; that businesses can use personal data for targeted advertising only with the explicit consent of users; and that users can freely choose browsers, virtual assistants or search engines.
If a business violates the Digital Market Act, it will face fines of up to 10% of its global annual turnover in the previous financial year and up to 20% of its re-offending.
India's semiconductor localization started in backwardness
Japan Economic News reported on the 25th that the trend of India's promotion of semiconductor localization is becoming increasingly obvious. In the context of the escalation of the investment war in various countries, including Japan, in order to cultivate the previously backward semiconductor industry, India will recover the decline through cooperation between the government and the private sector.
Indian resource giant Vedanta and Hon Hai's Foxconn group signed a memorandum in February to form a joint venture involved in semiconductor manufacturing. Vidanta and Hon Hai will invest 60% and 40% respectively in the new company to manufacture semiconductors in India by 2025. Involved in the pre-process of circuit formation, it is envisaged that the width of the electrical route is 28-65 nanometers.
In India, factories such as automobiles and smartphones are also increasing. According to government statistics, the size of the country's domestic semiconductor market is expected to reach $63 billion by 2026, expanding more than 4 times to 2020. Local media reported that although there are related companies such as design contracting in China, unlike Japan, Chinese mainland and Taiwan, there are no semiconductor factories and all rely on imports.
In this case, the Indian government is actively promoting the localization of chips. The government has introduced a system to encourage domestic production, finalizing a policy of investing 760 billion rupees (about 63.4 billion yuan) to support the production of chips and liquid crystals. In addition to Vedanta and Foxconn, Singaporean companies and others have also applied for the system.
The localization of Indian chips and the revitalization of the industry through localization are also facing many challenges. ORF, a local think tank in India, pointed out that "the problem is that the chip industry needs huge investment and the recovery cycle is also very long." India, where manufacturing is weak, will take a lot of time just to set up a chip production base."
In the future, blockchain will become the "glue" to connect the power grid
Forbes reported on the 25th that in the past, a power company would transmit electrical energy from one direction to many users, and as the power grid continues to develop, millions of devices will trade, exchange and share power, system services and information in multiple directions.
Today, energy labs in the United States are already working on developing systems that manage these behaviors through blockchain.
Trust is key. Today, blockchain is often associated with cryptocurrencies, and cryptocurrencies rely on the technology's ability to build trust, or at least transparency. The grid of the future will require a reliable hyperledger in order to be transparent to multiple parties.
Anthony James, a data scientist and senior engineer at Southern California Edison (SCE) Utilities, said, "With inverters, electric vehicles, connected buildings, data will be used in more scenarios and will move from static to more real-time applications." So this and blockchain seem to be a very good, very strong match, a match worth exploring. Data integrity and trust are the two most basic functions. He added that blockchain may also help manage cyber risk.
Dave Benton, cybersecurity research expert at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), said: "The grid is evolving to meet the new demands of new distributed energy sources. We're going to have more wind, solar, and batteries, and we can't drive evolution without knowing how safety will be affected and how security needs to change to accommodate these new technologies. ”
Christopher Irwin, a project manager at the U.S. Department of Energy, believes that blockchain gives utilities less control than traditional systems, but it makes the system work better.
Honda's humanoid robot ASIMO will be "retired" at the end of the month
Kyodo News Agency reported on the 25th that Honda released the first-generation model in 2000 and symbolized Japan's technical strength of the humanoid robot "ASIMO" will be "retired" on the 31st. Demonstrations of running, dancing, and other movements that are performed on a daily basis at the Honda Headquarters Showroom in Minami Aoyama, Tokyo, will also end on the same day.
The asIMO of the active model was unveiled in 2011 and has been around for more than 10 years. Honda announced in September last year that it would work on developing a "twin robot" that can be controlled remotely, and the company believes that ASIMO has completed its mission.
The active model has the ability to automatically judge and act using sensors to avoid obstacles. It can also use five fingers to do sign language, or pour water from a kettle into a paper cup. When then-U.S. President Barack Obama visited Japan in 2014, he gave a welcome speech and performed kicks and jumps at the Japan Museum of The Future of Science.
Honda has stopped development of ASIMO a few years ago. In addition to the company's headquarters, the demonstration at the Japan Science Future Pavilion will also end on the 31st. It is reported that Honda will continue to sell ASIMO-related products, etc., and its image will remain.
South Korea will introduce 460,000 oral doses of COVID-19 early
Yonhap News Agency reported that the South Korean Central Disaster Safety Countermeasures Headquarters said on the 25th that it will introduce 460,000 copies of the new crown pneumonia oral medicine that has been secured by the end of April.
The current oral covid-19 drugs prescribed in South Korea are Pfizer's Paxlovid and MSD's Molnuupiravir (trade name: Lagevrio). As of the 24th, a total of 163,000 paravids had arrived, and only 48,947 copies were left. Palovid and Monupive will ship a total of 184,000 servings this month. Together with 276,000 oral doses of COVID-19, a total of about 460,000 oral doses will arrive from the end of March to the end of April. The exact number will be announced at a later date.
Li Jiri, the first control officer of the Countermeasure Headquarters, said at a press conference on the same day that the epidemic prevention department is studying the prescription of AstraZeneca antibody therapeutic agent "AZD7442" in other countries. The epidemic prevention department said that if necessary, it will consider the exchange of oral drugs for new crown pneumonia with other countries.
The medical frontline has been calling for insufficient oral covid-19 drugs. The South Korean government is taking early steps to introduce Pfizer oral drugs scheduled for April, and the signing of a new batch of drugs in early April is nearing completion.
Today's picture
Image source: Visual China
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES: The largest white diamond to date is about to be auctioned for an estimated price of $30 million
On March 25, 2022, local time, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, the staff of Christie's auction house displayed a giant diamond nicknamed "Rock" and is expected to be auctioned for $30 million. According to Christie's, the 228.31 ct pear-shaped diamond is the largest white diamond ever auctioned. The diamond was mined and polished in South Africa more than 20 years ago.
(This article is compiled from Reuters, Yauzu Ryodai, Nihon Keizai Shimbun, Forbes, Kyodo News Agency, Yonhap News Agency)
Economic Observation Network intern reporter Zhou Yuqing sorted out