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Business|Facebook to Pay More Than $110 Million in Back Taxes in FranceAug. 24, 2020Updated 9:33 a.m. ETPARIS — Facebook's French subsidiary has agreed to pay more than 100 million euros ($118 million) in back taxes, including a penalty, after a ten-year audit of its accounts by French tax authorities, the company said on Monday. France, which is pushing hard to overhaul international tax rules on digital companies such as Facebook, Alphabet's Google, Apple and Amazon, has said the big tech groups pay too little tax in the country where they have significant sales.Current international tax rules legally allow companies to funnel sales generated in local markets in Europe to their regional headquarters. Some of the tech companies, including Facebook, have European or international headquarters based in countries with comparatively low corporate tax rates, such as Ireland. A Facebook spokesman said French tax authorities carried out an audit on Facebook's accounts over 2009-2018 period, which resulted in an agreement by the subsidiary to pay a total 106 million euros. The Facebook spokesman did not elaborate further on the details of the agreement. France's tax administration also did not give more details. Facebook's spokesman also said that since 2018 the company had decided to include its advertising sales in France in its annual accounts covering France.As a result, Facebook's total net revenue almost doubled in 2019 from a year earlier to 747 million euros, a copy of Facebook France's 2019 annual accounts, filed with France's companies registry and seen by Reuters, showed. Facebook France, which employs 208 people, refers to the French tax audit report in its 2019 annual accounts, saying it amounted to a tax adjustment of about 105 million euros. This includes a penalty of about 22 million, the annual accounts showed.French magazine Capital was first to report the payment…

FILE PHOTO: A 3D-printed Facebook logo is seen placed on a keyboard in this illustrationBy Mathieu RosemainPARIS (Reuters) - Facebook's French subsidiary has agreed to pay more than 100 million euros ($118 million) in back taxes, including a penalty, after a ten-year audit of its accounts by French tax authorities, the company said on Monday.France, which is pushing hard to overhaul international tax rules on digital companies such as Facebook, Alphabet's Google, Apple and Amazon, has said the big tech groups pay too little tax in the country where they have significant sales.Current international tax rules legally allow companies to funnel sales generated in local markets in Europe to their regional headquarters. Some of the tech companies, including Facebook, have European or international headquarters based in countries with comparatively low corporate tax rates, such as Ireland.A Facebook spokesman said French tax authorities carried out an audit on Facebook's accounts over 2009-2018 period, which resulted in an agreement by the subsidiary to pay a total 106 million euros.The Facebook spokesman did not elaborate further on the details of the agreement. France's tax administration also did not give more details.Facebook's spokesman also said that since 2018 the company had decided to include its advertising sales in France in its annual accounts covering France.As a result, Facebook's total net revenue almost doubled in 2019 from a year earlier to 747 million euros, a copy of Facebook France's 2019 annual accounts, filed with France's companies registry and seen by Reuters, showed.Facebook France, which employs 208 people, refers to the French tax audit report in its 2019 annual accounts, saying it amounted to a tax adjustment of about 105 million euros. This includes a penalty of about 22 million, the annual accounts showed.French magazine Capital was first to report the payment of back taxes.Facebook's spokesman…

Dark mode is one of the most significant additions Facebook By David Cohen 5 hours ago The thorough overhaul of Facebook’s desktop experience, initially introduced at F8 2019 last May, will become the only option sometime next month.Some users began seeing notifications alerting them to the imminent demise of “classic” Facebook, and the social network said on a Help Center page, “If you’re using the new Facebook.com, you can switch back to the classic Facebook temporarily. Starting in September, everyone will have the new design.”CEO Mark Zuckerberg debuted the new look at F8 2019, calling it FB5 and saying that there had been four major versions of Facebook up to that point, and this was the fifth.Changes in the new layout include: dark mode; faster load times and transitions between pages; larger fonts; a more simplified layout; and easier access to sections such as events, Facebook Watch, groups and Stories.

We are not ashamed of running yet another story, an update, on the situation with Ellen Kessler, the animal activist who has been appointed to the Colorado State Board of Veterinary Medicine.Our efforts to stop this appointment are so important especially as now she has targeted 4-H youth, saying that 4-H clubs, “teach children that animal lives don’t matter.”I just read a story on AgDaily about Victoria Banks, a member of a 4-H club in Michigan who started a Facebook page to share her 4-H projects and activities with others.The page is called Victoria’s 4-H Page and recently one of her friends shared a photo of Victoria and her hog Tequila to a group called Vegan Revolution.As you can imagine Victoria’s page was flooded with negative comments, which Victoria’s mother described as “aggressive, demeaning, vulgar, hateful and disgusting.”In other words, the animal activists were bullying a 14-year-old at a time when bullying is being blamed for many pre-teen and teen suicides.Luckily they messed with the wrong person this time.Although her parents were skeptical, Victoria decided to keep her page pubic because she respects others opinions and is not ashamed about anything that she does and has nothing to hide.“Everyone has different opinions, and I never said that anyone’s opinion is wrong because it is not like mine. Not allowing people to express them is wrong,” Victoria said in the AgDairy article. “I respect everyone for their opinion but was never rude to those who believe differently than I do.”So just as all of you supported our #showingup for rural Colorado campaign, let’s share that support for Victoria on her Facebook page Victoria’s 4-H Page.Let’s let her know that she is not alone and that her courage and convictions in the face of this onslaught from animal activists is appreciated.In other…

Chris Jordan, Asbury Park Press Published 11:19 p.m. ET Aug. 18, 2020 | Updated 12:54 a.m. ET Aug. 19, 2020CLOSE On the day of his 70th birthday, staff at the Monmouth County Historical Society in Freehold prepare for their 'Springsteen: My Hometown' exhibit. Asbury Park PressOops. Facebook flagged Bruce Springsteen for spreading "false information" on Tuesday, Aug. 18, but FB says it was all a mistake.  The Democratic National Convention video of the Bruce Springsteen song “The Rising,” in which Springsteen and wife Patti Scialfa make an appearance, was removed from Springsteen’s verified Facebook page at approximately 9:30 p.m. EST, Tuesday, Aug. 18.“Facebook found this post repeats information about COVID-19 that multiple independent fact-checkers say is false,” read an explanation superimposed over a faded image of the video.About two and a half hours later, the label was removed and the video was viewable."The label was applied by mistake and was quickly removed once we became aware of the issue," said Facebook's spokesperson Katie Derkits to the USA Today Network New Jersey via email.    The video features Springsteen's 2002 song “The Rising” framed as a message of resiliency against the Donald Trump presidency. Scenes of a COVID-19 ravaged  America, including an empty subway and football stadium, are shown as “The Rising” begins. That's contrasted with the march of neo-Nazis with torches in Charlottesville, Virginia and Trump throwing paper towels to hurricane victims in Puerto Rico.After that, first responders, George Floyd protesters, Black Lives Matter sign makers, mask wearers and more who are dedicated to the Rising  are shown.More: Bruce Springsteen 'The Rising' video takes on Donald Trump at Democratic ConventionMore: Why the concept of time is different for Bruce Springsteen than it is for you and meA Facebook “Science Feedback” explanation of the video removal, accessible by a click on the label, said that “SARS-CoV-2 is a novel…

The “From Facebook” part of virtual reality unit Oculus From Facebook will soon be emphasized a bit more when it come to logging into its VR devices.Starting in October, people using Oculus devices for the first time must login with a Facebook account.Existing users can choose to login with Facebook and merge their Oculus and Facebook accounts, or continue using their Oculus accounts until Jan. 1, 2023, at which point support for Oculus accounts will cease.Oculus said in a blog post that people can continue using their devices after Jan. 1, 2023, but they will not be able to take advantage of their full functionality without a Facebook account.The VR unit explained, “We will take steps to allow you to keep using content you have purchased, although we expect some games and applications may no longer work. This could be because they include features that require a Facebook account or because a developer has chosen to no longer support the app or game you purchased. All future unreleased Oculus devices will require a Facebook account, even if you already have an Oculus account.”Oculus said giving people a single way to login will make it easier for them to find, connect and play with friends in VR and allow it to introduce more Facebook-powered multiplayer and social experiences, such as social VR world Facebook Horizon, where people can explore, play and create worlds.The VR unit pointed out that the majority of its users already login to Oculus with Facebook accounts in order to use features including chats, parties and events and to tune into live experience in Oculus Venues.Oculus users will soon be able to use their VR avatars on other Facebook apps and technologies.People who login via Facebook accounts can still create and maintain unique VR profiles and make their…

New York, Aug 16 (IANS): Struggling to tame the spread of misinformation on its platform, Facebook can better reduce the extent to which their users fall for and spread fake news articles by deploying a better designed fake news flag. Researchers from the University of Texas at Austin found that although Facebook users may be too quick to believe or share misinformation, flagging fake news can also make a significant difference. The new paper published in Information Systems Research, studied what tools would help Facebook users spot fake news. Lead author Tricia Moravec, an assistant professor in the McCombs School of Business, and co-authors, Antino Kim and Alan R Dennis of Indiana University, found that two simple interventions, especially when combined, had a strong effect on helping people discern reality from fake news. The first intervention the researchers tested was a stop sign icon. The second was a strong statement, "Declared Fake by 3rd Party Fact-Checkers". Each intervention was effective, but when combined, they were almost twice as powerful. "Ideally, we would see Twitter and especially Facebook use some type of flag for misinformation with a brief statement to nudge people to think more critically," Moravec said. Twitter has begun using labels and warning messages. Facebook uses technology and fact-checkers to identify false information and moves the information lower in the News Feed so it's less likely to be seen. Facebook says that people who repeatedly share false news will see their distribution reduced and their ability to advertise removed. "Twitter has been doing a much better job than Facebook at managing misinformation, since they actively flag misleading information," Moravec said. "It is a good step that Facebook is taking to at least demote misinformation and punish repeat offenders, but based on the misinformation I have seen about COVID-19 on…

How realistic are hopes that agriculture will revive demandin a pandemic-hit economy? Himanshu crunches the numbers in Mint. A senior Facebook executive opposed the idea of removing contentious posts by Bharatiya Janata Party leaders, warning that this could hurt the company’s business prospects in India, reports the Wall Street Journal.   Having Kamal Harris in the White House would mean someone with a strong understanding of India might speak thoughtfully and criticallyabout Kashmir, or the Indian nationalism that has marginalised the country’s Muslim community and led to a controversial citizenship law that excludes Muslim immigrants – issues President Trump has failed to meaningfully address, says Akanksha Singh in CNN.   It was expected that the introduction of Goods and Services Tax would increase India’s Gross Domestic Product of the country because the simplified tax structure would eliminate the cascading effect of taxes and increase the government’s revenue. This has not happened, says Vinay K Srivastava in the Hindustan Times. Was there any dharma in flaunting the bhoomi puja for the Ram temple, making a national spectacle of it, knowing full well that an entire section of the population, not just Muslims, was feeling excluded, deprived and diminished? TM Krishna writes about Modi’s visit to Ayodhya in The Indian Express. When your name is Osama and you’re living in post-9/11 America, you always know “The Question” is coming. Osama Shehzad, a Pakistan national, on the travails of traveling with a dreaded name.   Scarred by trauma and devoted to Donald Trump, a man began mailing explosives to the president’s critics on the eve of an election. Garrett M Graff in Wired describes the race to catch the man.   Danielle Tcholakian in Longreads puts together a reading list on Kamala Harris.   Israel Prime Minister Netanyahu’s quest to open relations with Arab countries without settling the Palestinian conflict long seemed quixotic. External events…

With TikTok potentially facing a US ban, depending on whether or not a Microsoft acquisition goes through, a Facebook short videos feature has been spotted in testing. TikTok is of course based on short, user-created videos. As a highly popular app in the US, its withdrawal from the country would leave a huge vacuum … Among kids, TikTok is a big hit in the US. A major study of app usage has found that TikTok is almost as popular with kids as YouTube. The analysis of 60,000 families across the US, UK, and Spain found that kids age 4-15 spend 80 minutes a day watching TikTok videos, just five minutes less than they spend watching YouTube. Instagram wasted no time in seeking to capitalize on this, cloning TikTok’s functionality with a new short-form video feature called Reels. Reels invites you to create fun videos to share with your friends or anyone on Instagram. Record and edit 15-second multi-clip videos with audio, effects, and new creative tools. You can share reels with your followers on Feed, and, if you have a public account, make them available to the wider Instagram community through a new space in Explore. Reels in Explore offers anyone the chance to become a creator on Instagram and reach new audiences on a global stage. Software engineer Roneet Michael tipped off Matt Navarra that the company now appears to be aiming to do something similar in its main app. TikTok may survive in the US if a sale to a US company successfully completes. Apple was briefly mentioned as a possible buyer, though the company quickly dispelled the notion. Twitter is also reported to have expressed an interest, though Microsoft remains the front-runner. The Chinese company is also threatening a legal challenge to Trump’s executive order. Either way,…

Kelly Fisher, Nashville Tennessean Published 7:35 a.m. CT Aug. 13, 2020 | Updated 10:48 a.m. CT Aug. 13, 2020CLOSEState and local officials confirmed Wednesday that the multi-million-dollar data center in Gallatin, previously known as Project Woolhawk, is the social media behemoth Facebook, a project years in the making.Facebook will invest $800 million to construct the new state-of-the-art center that’ll cover nearly 1 million square feet and run entirely on renewable energy, Gov. Bill Lee, Department of Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bob Rolfe and Facebook announced.Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg said the Gallatin center — the 13th Facebook location in the U.S. and 17th in the world — will create 100 high-paying positions, excluding construction jobs. She also noted Facebook’s responsibility to the community as a priority.More: Facebook is building an $800M data center in GallatinUntil Wednesday morning, there had only been widespread speculation and some media reports without confirmation from officials that Facebook was the company eyeing Gallatin to construct its latest data center. However, local officials previously hailed it as a significant potential revenue source for Gallatin and Sumner County.James Fenton, executive director of economic development in Gallatin, previously said the development would be “very equitable for both parties,” and noted the “extremely competitive process.” Local officials have been in talks with Facebook representatives for about three years.“Our community made the decision three years ago to pursue technology jobs as part of our economic development strategy," Gallatin Mayor Paige Brown said in the release Wednesday. "We are pleased to welcome Facebook to Gallatin, and we look forward to the positive impact they will have on our city.”Fenton and others have often emphasized job opportunities the project would create. He also highlighted that Gallatin facilitated a partnership with Vol State Community College to help cultivate necessary skills.Local officials previously referred to…