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Israeli justice reforms spark tech investor flight fears

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Israeli justice reforms spark tech investor flight fears

Barak Eilam, a former Israeli intelligence officer who now heads cloud-based software provider NICE (NICE.TA), says he has never had problems selling Israel as an investment destination.

But on a call last week, Eilam sensed this may be changing when major investors he had partnered with for years began asking pointed questions about a radical judicial overhaul.

“For now, they re not pulling out any investment but they are kind of watching it carefully,” the 47-year-old said.

The proposals by the new right wing government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to strengthen political control over judicial appointments while weakening the Israeli Supreme Court s ability to overturn legislation or rule against government action have brought tens of thousands onto the streets of Tel Aviv and other cities over fears they will politicize the judiciary and compromise its independence.

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Yoav Tzruya, general partner at venture capital fund JVP, said investors were mainly worried about stability, corruption and a reliable judicial system.

“I think there will be some investors that, given concerns about stability about corruption or whatever might put more hurdles in front of especially a new fund manager,” he said.

Earlier this week, an open letter from a group of more than 270 business and economy experts, including former central bank officials and Netanyahu advisers, said the judicial reforms represented “a danger to Israel s economy”.

Netanyahu s office did not immediately comment when approached by Reuters on Friday, but during a meeting with dozens of senior businessmen, he said the judicial reforms would boost growth while the legal system would remain independent.

“Not only will the reform not harm the economy, it will jumpstart it,” he said in a statement.

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For Israel s tech companies, an independent legal system is crucial to protecting their main asset, intellectual property (IP), with some executives saying they may consider domiciling abroad as a result of the Netanyahu government s plans.

On Thursday, a day after Netanyahu and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich dismissed concerns that the proposals would harm the economy, Anat Guez CEO of Papaya Global announced she was taking her payroll systems group s money out of Israel.

“Everybody knows Israel is never on safe ground because of the complicated diplomatic issues,” Guez told Reuters. “But now we re adding this reform which is ultimately emerging as harming democracy, that s a fatal blow.”

Netanyahu s administration says the overhaul is needed to rein in activist judges who it says have encroached into political decision making.

“Nobody will harm intellectual property rights and the honoring of agreements, values which are sacred to us and which are the critical test,” Netanyahu said on Wednesday.

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Hillel Fuld, a start-up marketing adviser, also dismissed the outcry as “unnecessary hysteria”.

“We are still building the best tech in the world. Israeli tech isn t going anywhere. If people pull money then it s their loss, not ours”, he said.

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Plea seeking restoration of ‘X’ adjourned till April 2

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Plea seeking restoration of 'X' adjourned till April 2

 Lahore High Court has adjourned the hearing of miscellaneous application seeking restoration of X (formerly Twitter) till April 21

LHC’s Justice Asim Hafeez heard the petition of Advocate Huzaifa Naeem filed for restoration of social media app X.

During the hearing Justice Asim Hafeez inquired about the petition and the petitioner stated that Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has made impossible for public to access the micro-blogging site X.

The court suggested a solution referring to a minister who has suggested to access the platform with VPN.

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The petitioner stressed for a long-term effective solution, replied that “if police say to avoid a certain route as dacoit rule there, it is not a solution.”

The petition requested to court to declare the X outage as illegal and direct opposition to ensure the public access of X. Court has adjourned the petition for hearing till April 2.

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Samsung Galaxy to launch AI features in other devices as well on March 28

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Samsung Galaxy to launch AI features in other devices as well on March 28

Samsung Galaxy AI features will be introduced into other devices as well after on the acclaimed Galaxy S24 series.

Starting March 28, One UI 6.1 will begin rolling out across the Galaxy S23 series, S23 FE, Z Fold5, Z Flip55, and Galaxy Tab S9 Ultra, Tab S9+ and Tab S9 WiFi versions beginning this week.

In the US, Samsung Galaxy S24 users are embracing several innovative features that have revolutionized their smartphone experience.

One standout feature is Circle to Search with Google, which has become immensely popular among users. This feature allows users to search for information quickly by simply circling items on their screens, eliminating the need to switch between apps.

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Live Translate has been a game-changer for users, facilitating seamless communication by providing real-time voice and live caption translations during phone calls. This feature helps users overcome language barriers, ensuring smooth and effective communication.

Samsung’s Generative Edit tool has also garnered significant attention, offering users powerful AI-driven photo editing capabilities. This tool allows users to easily adjust and enhance their favorite pictures by resizing or filling in backgrounds after removing unwanted objects from the frame.

Another highly utilized feature is Chat Assist, integrated into the Samsung Keyboard. This feature provides users with translation, writing style suggestions, and spelling and grammar corrections, enhancing their communication experience across various apps.

These innovative AI features are enhancing the functionality and usability of Samsung Galaxy S24 smartphones, providing users with convenient and efficient ways to interact with their devices and communicate with others. 

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Amazon loses court fight to suspend EU tech rules’ ad clause

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Amazon loses court fight to suspend EU tech rules' ad clause

Amazon (AMZN.O) on Wednesday lost its fight to suspend a requirement regarding its online advertising under EU tech rules after Europe’s top court backed EU regulators, saying EU interests outweigh the U.S. online retailer’s material interests.

Under the Digital Services Act (DSA) which kicked in last year, Amazon was designated as a very large online platform subject to tough rules to tackle illegal and harmful content on its platform.

The company subsequently challenged a DSA requirement to make publicly available a repository containing detailed information on its online advertising and also asked for an interim measure until the court rules on the case.

A lower tribunal in September agreed to its request for an interim measure to suspend the contested obligation, which prompted the European Commission to turn to Europe’s top court.

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The Luxembourg-based Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) set aside the suspension order and dismissed Aamzon’s application for an interim measure.

The judge said that Amazon’s argument that the obligation unlawfully limits its fundamental rights to respect for private life and the freedom to conduct a business was not irrelevant.

He also said that without a suspension, it was likely that Amazon would suffer serious and irreparable harm before any judgment annulling the Commission’s decision.

However, he said a suspension could have a detrimental impact on the objectives of the DSA.

“Suspension would lead to a delay, potentially for several years, in the full achievement of the objectives of the Regulation on a Single Market for Digital Services and therefore potentially allow an online environment threatening fundamental rights to persist or develop,” the judge said.

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“The interests defended by the EU legislature prevail, in the present case, over Amazon’s material interests, with the result that the balancing of interests weighs in favour of rejecting the request for suspension.”

Amazon said: “We are disappointed with this decision, and maintain that Amazon doesn’t fit the description of a ‘Very Large Online Platform’ (VLOP) under the DSA, and should not be designated as such.”

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