The Head of Global Security for Apple Incorporated has been charged with Bribery. Details were provided that $70,000.00 in bribes were provided to Thomas Moyer, with financial compensation awarded to the Head of Global Security in the form of concealed firearms licenses. Those licenses were distributed to unknown individuals on the Apple Security Team, with suppliers awarded with iPads. Collectively, it’s been determined that $70k in concealed firearms were distributed to Thomas Moyer alongside their respective licenses.

These charges have been known to the Apple Corporation for a prolonged period, with the company refusing to comment on Thomas Moyer with media personnel. It was announced by the California State Courts that a Grand Jury had found Thomas Moyer guilty of committing his crimes. What was more interesting is that justice was evoked towards the two officers supplying Thomas Moyer with concealed firearms & the respective licenses. Santa Clara County Sheriffs were charged and are expected to spend a shorted timeframe in prison for their actions.

Sheriff Captain James Jenson & County Undersheriff Rick Sung wer accused of requesting Thomas Moyer for bribes via iPad for the concealed firearm licenses/weaponry. It would be revealed in-court that Moyer had worked diligently to maintain the firearms legally, and that these officers refused Thomas. After being backed into a corner that required him to accept bribes & award these Sheriff’s with iPads, the officers regularly recorded Moyer. The Head of Global Security for Apple also recorded those policemen, resulting in everyone being found guilty.

Jobs Lost

Two years of investigation followed after accusations were made, with Apple Incorporated selecting to terminate Thomas Moyer days after learning he’d taken bribes from law enforcement. It’s expected that neither of these cops will be permitted back to the Santa Clara County Sheriff Department following their charged being removed.

As the political environment in the United States continues to be hostile after the election, Vice President Elect Kamala Harris has been facing misogynistic and racist posts, comments and racially charged memes.

This has seen Facebook removing a large number posts after it was alerted about three groups active on Facebook that are known to post hateful content on their respective pages. One media body that routinely monitors this type of activity on Facebook has described the posters pages as one dedicated to misogynistic and racist smears.

In response to the warning, Facebook has stated that its systems automatically flag 90% of hate oriented posts. However, while the pages in question are routinely being directed to the president-elect, Facebook has opted not to take additional actions against the group.

Angelo Carusone, who is the president of Media Matters commented that: “Facebook’s removal of this content only after it’s been flagged to them by the media confirms that the rules and guidelines they establish are hollow because they put little to no effort into detection and enforcement.”

Carusone furthermore stated that from a detection perspective, this is the lowest of low and that until notified by the media, that Facebooks “detection” software failed to identify the hate-filled comments. In addition to the quoted comments brought to light by Angelo Carusone, other posts suggested Harris was not black enough, and that she should be sent back to India.

Harris invited to visit Canada

The Canadian House of Commons gave its unanimous consent on Monday to a motion tabled by the NDP. The motion was in reference towards congratulating both U.S. president-elect Joe Biden and vice-president-elect Kamala Harris on their winning the election. This comes while current president Donald Trump refuses to conceded and remains focused on trying to disrupt and challenge vote results. 

While the motion non-binding, its passing reflects Canada’s desire to see it’s returning to friendlier terms with the United States after a strenuous four years under the leadership of Donald Trump. That sediment was shared by many other countries who found the hostile nature of Trump to be disheartening.

An iconic & prominent developer from Great Britain has announced that it’s been acquired by Take-Two Interactive. Codemasters revealed via Twitter and later made official confirmations via SkyNews that Take-Two Interactive had acquired their corporate possessions. This includes office space owned by Codemasters, subsequent development studios, and all licensed properties including Formula One. It means that Take-Two Interactive will govern over the development of new titles for F1 & Dirt Rally.

Codemasters was founded in the United Kingdom in 1986 at Banbury, England. Their first title surrounded motorsports & was named “BMX Simulator”. It released for multiple consoles in 1986, with that title now being an iconic game worth hundreds. The 90s saw Codemasters released numerous games for the Sega Genesis & NES. Popularity for this studio wouldn’t arrive until 1988 after partnering with Jester Interactive Limited. Multiple games themed around MTV Music would be developed.

Throughout the early 2000s, Codemasters began returning to motorsport games & started developing shoots, with their iconic series “Operation Flashpoint” still loved by thousands. Codemasters would cement their name throughout gaming in 2010 when they received the Formula One gaming license. They’ve maintained that license over ten years, with contract renewal approved in 2020 for an additional four years. Take-Two Interactive will hold priority control over that license from now on.

No Firm Offer

Codemasters announced to employed personnel on an unfortunate date, with Dirt Rally Five being released the same day. Workers were informed that Codemasters had been sold to Take-Two Interactive for $973 Million. Information given to employees noted that the acquisition contract hasn’t been signed, with Take-Two Interactive not having made a firm offer to date. Codemasters making this announcement could be a strategic decision to evoke other parties into a bidding war, which would force Take-Two Interactive to make a firm offer.

Take-Two Interactive taking control of Codemasters would mean solving numerous problems associated with their games. Formula One & Dirt Rally are known for having horrible internet connections, which often decreases the quality of gameplay. It’ll be issues like these that Take-Two Interactive considers before making their firm offer.

The VirnetX Company has done the impossible & defeated Apple in court. It was announced on November 1st after ten years of cases against Apple; a Texas Jury has determined that the tech conglomerate must pay out $502.8 Million in royalties. This follows after evidence indicates that Apple uses the “VPN on Demand” technology operated by VirnetX, which Apple stole to maintain its FaceTime service. VirnetX filed patents on the “VPN on Demand” service in 2010, which follow the exact formula Apple uses for FaceTime. It’s unsurprising that when the case went to a jury, they determined that $502.8 million must be paid out.

The Apple Company actively avoided this case, reaching a jury, knowing that implicating evidence wouldn’t lean in their favour. Lawyers under the employment of Apple are refusing to give up against VirnetX, confirming that they’ll appeal the decision & that implicating patents don’t sustain enough evidence to suggest the core operations of FaceTime are consistent with “VPN on Demand”. Apple would then use an excuse that they are infamous for accomplishing in numerous industries, with representatives stating that VirnetX is stifling innovation for consumers. Considering that Apple regularly stifles innovation for international customers, their excuses are irrelevant & borderline ignorant.

Appealing is Foolish

Analysts anticipate that Apple will see the US Court System reject their appeal. It’d be consistent with VirnetX winning another case earlier this year. However, Apple hopes that history will repeat itself similarly to 2018. A Texas Judge ordered in 2018 that Apple payout $502.8 Million in royalties to VirnetX. That decision was overruled by a panel of three judges, prompting another year of unneeded court involvement.

Judges ordered a jury be instituted for this case & within days of being called for assessment, jurors came to their conclusion. It was read to the court by the leading juror that Apple had knowingly underlined the technology of iMessage & FaceTime by stealing patent information from VirnetX. Apple will likely fail in their appeal process, with most judges standing behind the decision of a jury. Lawyers from Apple will have to prove without a doubt that jurors were corrupted into swaying the decision.