Ring, the Amazon-owned doorbell camera company, canceled a partnership with Flock Safety, a company that provides license plate reading cameras, following significant backlash over a Super Bowl advertisement. The ad, which was perceived as dystopian, sparked outrage and led to the termination of the deal, according to Ars Technica.
The Super Bowl ad, intended to highlight Ring's "Search Party" feature for finding missing pets, instead alarmed viewers. The ad began with a young girl receiving a puppy, then highlighted the issue of missing dogs, before introducing the new feature. This turn, however, was seen as unsettling.
The partnership between Ring and Flock Safety would have given law enforcement access to a vast network of Ring cameras. The decision to end the deal came after Amazon faced substantial criticism for the ad, according to Ars Technica.
In other news, rising coffee prices are causing Americans to change their habits. Coffee prices in the U.S. were up 18.3% in January compared to the previous year, according to the Consumer Price Index released on Friday, as reported by Fortune. This has led some coffee drinkers to cut back on cafe visits, switch to cheaper alternatives, or forgo coffee altogether. Chandra Donelson, a 35-year-old from Washington, D.C., told Fortune, "I did that daily for years. I loved it. That was just my routine, she says. And now its not."
Meanwhile, pressure is mounting on tech companies to shield users from what advocates say are unlawful government requests, according to Hacker News. Allegations of ICE officers being doxed have led to demands to censor content. Early lawsuits show that platforms have complied, even though experts believe they could refuse these demands without a court order.
In a separate development, actress Jennifer Garner's organic food brand, Once Upon a Farm, recently went public with a valuation of $724 million, as reported by Fortune. Garner, who began her career earning just $150 a week as an understudy in a New York theater, said, "I certainly never expected to be in front of a camera one day of my life."
Finally, the Iranian regime has cut off the country's residents from the global internet during the latest anti-government uprising, according to Wired. This is a repeat of past actions, but the regime also shut down access to the country's intranet, which is becoming a mechanism of constant surveillance.
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