Also, Mark Zuckerberg said that Facebook is being used to escalate sectarian crisis in Myanmar, and more
Two Singaporean Airbnb hosts fined US$45,800 — [Channel NewsAsia]
Four months after they were first charged, two Singaporean Airbnb hosts have been fined S$60,000 (US$45,800) for conducting unauthorised short-term letting.
According to Singapore’s new short-term rental laws, rental leases for private homes have to be at least 3 months — down from six months under the old law.
The two men had committed the crime before the new ruling kicked in, and pleaded guilty to leasing out four condominium units, or private flats, to tenants under six months.
Just last month, a family from New Zealand turned up for a four-night Airbnb stay at a condominium in Singapore only to be turned away by the security guard who informed them that short-term rents were illegal.
Mark Zuckerberg says Facebook has been used to escalate sectarian crisis in Myanmar — [Channel NewsAsia]
Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg said that nefarious actors are using the platform’s tools to escalate the sectarian crisis in the Rakhine state of Myanmar.
In recent years, Islamic militant groups have launched attacks against government forces, inflaming the already tense relations between the ethnic Rakhine Buddhists and Rohingya Muslims in the predominantly Buddhist state.
In an interview with Vox, he said that Facebook’s executives detected that members on each side of the conflict were using the Facebook Messenger to spread “sensational messages”, such as warnings of an uprising and a call to arms.
Facebook’s systems were able to stop the messages from going through but the broader issue remains unaddressed: Facebook has become a tool for governments — globally — to disseminate propaganda; and with Myanmarese relying on the platform as the primary source for news, the company needs to step up in curtailing misinformation, which could have harmful repercussions.
Alibaba sues Dubai company over its cryptocurrency called “Alibabacoin” — [Reuters]
Alibaba is suing Dubai-based company Alibabacoin for using its trademarked name to raise more than US$3.5 million worth of cryptocurrency called “Alibabacoins”.
Alibaba alleges that the company intentionally misused its trademark to lead consumers to believe that it was affiliated with the Chinese e-commerce giant.
Alibabacoin, also known as ABBC Foundation, was issued a temporary restraining order in the US District court. Alibaba is seeking compensation, punitive and triple damages, as well as for the company to halt all infringements.
Facebook teaming up with Tirto for fact-checking feature in Indonesia — [DailySocial]
As part of its effort to combat fake news, Facebook named Indonesian media startup Tirto as its third-party fact checker for the Indonesian market.
With more than 115 million monthly active users, Indonesia will be the first Facebook operations in Asia Pacific to have the fact-checking feature on board. The feature has previously been launched in the US, Italy, and Mexico.
Both Facebook and Tirto declined to share the number of fake news article that they are targetting, saying that they will focus on quality instead of quantity
Sequoia India leads US$11M Series B in growth management team Insider — [e27]
Singapore-based digital marketing startup Insider has secured US$11 million in a Series B round led by Sequoia Capital India, with participation from existing investors Dubai-based Wamda Capital and Turkey’s Dogan Group.
Insider will use this investment to accelerate its expansion in Asia — its strongest market.
The company also announced the launch of its growth management platform (GMP), which helps marketers create more intelligent interactions with their customers through exposing them to the most relevant content on their preferred channels.
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