TECH

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NEW DELHI, Dec 19 (Reuters) - Apple Inc (AAPL.O) has asked India's antitrust watchdog to throw out a case alleging abuse of market power in the apps market, saying it is too small a player in the South Asian country where Google is dominant, a filing seen by Reuters shows.

The filing was made after the Competition Commission of India (CCI) started reviewing allegations that Apple hurts competition by forcing app developers to use its proprietary system which can charge commissions of up to 30% on in-app purchases.

Apple denied the allegations in its filing to the CCI and stressed that its market share in India is an "insignificant" 0-5%, while Google commands 90-100% as its Android operating system powers most other smartphones.

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COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Some parents kept their children home, police stepped up patrols and educators tightened security protocols Friday in response to viral TikTok posts alluding to unconfirmed threats of violence that raised anxiety levels at schools nationwide.

Vickie Cartwright, the interim superintendent of schools in Broward County, Florida, one of the nation’s largest school districts, said the U.S. government should take action if TikTok won’t get rid of dangerous posts that hurt American schools.

“I’m asking for our federal government at this point in time to intervene. We need help. I cannot fathom that any other country would allow this type of attack to be occurring on their education system,” she said.

With stress levels already soaring from the effects of the pandemic and a rash of hoax threats following a deadly school shooting in Michigan on Nov. 30, districts said they were taking precautions out of an abundance of caution.

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Dec 16 (Reuters) - Reddit Inc, whose message boards became the go-to destination for day traders during this year's meme stock frenzy, said on Wednesday it had confidentially filed for an initial public offering with U.S. securities regulators.

Reuters reported in September the company was hoping to hit a valuation of more than $15 billion by the time it planned to list its shares

The company's message boards were at the heart of a pitched battle between small-time traders and some of the big Wall Street firms that drove big gains in highly shorted shares of companies such as GameStop (GME.N) and AMC (AMC.N), while popularizing the term meme stocks.

At the height of the trading frenzy in February, Reddit's value doubled to $6 billion from a year earlier. The company was valued at $10 billion in a private fundraising round in August.

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Dec 14 (Reuters) - Alphabet Inc's (GOOGL.O) Google told its employees they would lose pay and eventually be fired if they do not follow its COVID-19 vaccination rules, CNBC reported on Tuesday, citing internal documents.

A memo circulated by Google's leadership said employees had until Dec. 3 to declare their vaccination status and upload documentation showing proof, or to apply for a medical or religious exemption, according to the report.

After that date, Google said it would start contacting employees who had not uploaded their status or were unvaccinated and those whose exemption requests were not approved, CNBC reported.

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LOS ANGELES (AP) — William Shatner’s durable role as an avatar of space’s promise drew a frenzy of attention when fiction became fact with his rocket ride.