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Local France
7 hours ago
- Business
- Local France
Porn sites suspend services in France in protest at age verification law
Pornhub and Youporn suspended access to their content in France until further notice in protest against the law. In January, France introduced rules that required all French porn websites and those based outside the European Union to introduce a mechanism to confirm the age of users . This was extended with a decree published in March that extended the measures to companies in the European Union – including Cyprus-based PornHub and YouPorn, as well as Hungary-based Jacquie et Michel. Governments have battled for years to find ways to stop young people viewing online pornography, while balancing the right to privacy of adult users. Age verification can be done with a credit card or by sending an identity document, but websites are also required to offer at least one "double blind" option for users to prove their age without revealing their identity. Advertisement But administrators at the pornographic websites pointed to privacy issues and the risk of personal data leaks in age verification, and argued that the solution must come from devices and operating systems. In the end, two decided to suspend their services in France, effective from Wednesday June 4th. Pornhub and Youporn's decision was welcomed – with no little irony – by France's Minister for Digital Affairs Clara Chappaz, who said she 'wished them well'. 'I say goodbye to them!' Chappaz said in an interview with France Inter, following the sites' decision. 'Because no one is above the law. 'If these websites prefer to withdraw from France rather than protect our children, they have no place here.' And she dismissed their data protection argument. 'It's too easy to take adults hostage and say 'we don't want to comply with our obligations'. 'These are simple obligations, which consist of saying that we can no longer be satisfied with the fact that children can click on the 'I am over 18' button to access adult content. 'It is not about stigmatising adults, but about protecting our children. If they don't want to do it, let them leave. 'I cannot accept that these sites, which generate hundreds of millions of euros, tell us that they are not ready, that there is no solution,' she added, citing 'about 15' possible technical solutions. She said that a number of other sites had 'complied' with the new rules. Advertisement Aylo, the parent company of Pornhub, had previously said it would comply with the law but has warned that the rules would likely prove 'ineffective' and 'dangerous' for users' security and privacy. It argues that under-age internet users could be sent to other less regulated and more extreme areas of the internet. A 2023 report by French senators found that two thirds of children aged 15 or less had seen pornographic content and concluded that there was 'massive, ordinary and toxic' viewing of porn by children, as well as routinely violent content.
Time of India
3 days ago
- Automotive
- Time of India
LG Energy begins mass production of batteries at US plant
Seoul: LG Energy Solution Ltd ( LGES ), South Korea's leading battery maker, said on Sunday it has begun mass production of lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries for energy storage systems (ESS) at its manufacturing plant in the United States. The pouch-type LFP batteries for ESS, based on long cell technology, are being manufactured at the LGES plant in Michigan, according to the Korean company, reports Yonhap news agency. "We are currently in discussions with multiple customers in the North American region for the supply of our ESS batteries," LGES officials said, noting that supply to a number of major U.S. energy firms, such as Terra-Gen and Delta Electronics, has already been confirmed. LGES said it plans to swiftly respond to growing demand for ESS in advanced industries, such as artificial intelligence (AI) data centres and renewable energies. LGES is the only major global battery maker that started mass production of LFP batteries tailored for use in ESS in the U.S. Meanwhile, LG Energy Solution has won a lawsuit against China's Sunwoda Group in Germany over the infringement of two patents related to battery separator technology, a company representing LGES in Germany said. The Munich District Court upheld injunction requests filed by Hungary-based patent management firm Tulip Innovation Kft ., barring Sunwoda Group affiliates from selling lithium-ion batteries in Germany, Tulip said in a press release. The affected companies include Sunwoda Electronic, Sunwoda Mobility Energy Technology, and their German subsidiaries, Sunwoda Europe and Sunwoda Electric Vehicle Battery Germany. "These appear to be the first injunctions in Germany related to car batteries. There is no 'free riding' for battery manufacturers on technologies developed by innovation leaders like LGES and Panasonic Energy," the release said. The court also ordered Sunwoda's affiliates to recall and destroy any remaining infringing batteries in their direct or indirect possession, pay damages to Tulip in principle, and provide detailed accounting records to facilitate damage assessment. Sunwoda Group is expected to appeal the rulings, but Tulip said it is "confident that the decision will stand on appeal." The two patents at issue involve battery separators -- a critical component for ensuring the safety and performance of electric vehicle batteries. -IANS na/
Hans India
3 days ago
- Automotive
- Hans India
LG Energy begins mass production of batteries at US plant
Seoul: LG Energy Solution Ltd (LGES), South Korea's leading battery maker, said on Sunday it has begun mass production of lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries for energy storage systems (ESS) at its manufacturing plant in the United States. The pouch-type LFP batteries for ESS, based on long cell technology, are being manufactured at the LGES plant in Michigan, according to the Korean company, reports Yonhap news agency. "We are currently in discussions with multiple customers in the North American region for the supply of our ESS batteries," LGES officials said, noting that supply to a number of major U.S. energy firms, such as Terra-Gen and Delta Electronics, has already been confirmed. LGES said it plans to swiftly respond to growing demand for ESS in advanced industries, such as artificial intelligence (AI) data centres and renewable energies. LGES is the only major global battery maker that started mass production of LFP batteries tailored for use in ESS in the U.S. Meanwhile, LG Energy Solution has won a lawsuit against China's Sunwoda Group in Germany over the infringement of two patents related to battery separator technology, a company representing LGES in Germany said. The Munich District Court upheld injunction requests filed by Hungary-based patent management firm Tulip Innovation Kft., barring Sunwoda Group affiliates from selling lithium-ion batteries in Germany, Tulip said in a press release. The affected companies include Sunwoda Electronic, Sunwoda Mobility Energy Technology, and their German subsidiaries, Sunwoda Europe and Sunwoda Electric Vehicle Battery Germany. "These appear to be the first injunctions in Germany related to car batteries. There is no 'free riding' for battery manufacturers on technologies developed by innovation leaders like LGES and Panasonic Energy," the release said. The court also ordered Sunwoda's affiliates to recall and destroy any remaining infringing batteries in their direct or indirect possession, pay damages to Tulip in principle, and provide detailed accounting records to facilitate damage assessment. Sunwoda Group is expected to appeal the rulings, but Tulip said it is "confident that the decision will stand on appeal." The two patents at issue involve battery separators -- a critical component for ensuring the safety and performance of electric vehicle batteries.
Gulf News
30-04-2025
- Business
- Gulf News
Wizz Air Abu Dhabi rolls out limited-time 15% fare cut on select routes
Abu Dhabi: Wizz Air Abu Dhabi has announced a 15% discount on select flights to and from the UAE capital, applicable for bookings made for travel between 1 May and 30 June 2025. The budget airline, a joint venture between Abu Dhabi Developmental Holding Company (ADQ) and Hungary-based Wizz Air, said the promotion is aimed at encouraging summer travel and will be available through its official website and mobile app. The discounted routes include several regional and European destinations, though the airline has not disclosed a full list of eligible flights. Travellers are required to book within the offer window to benefit from the reduced fares. The promotion comes as the airline continues to expand its network out of Abu Dhabi and aims to attract cost-conscious travellers during the peak summer season.
Local France
07-03-2025
- Politics
- Local France
France extends age verification measures to porn giants
France introduced rules in January that required all French porn websites and those based outside the European Union to introduce a mechanism to check the age of users. This was extended with a decree published Thursday that widens the measures to companies based in the European Union, meaning Cyprus-based PornHub and YouPorn as well as Hungary-based Jacquie et Michel. France's culture ministry said the move will "at last enable us to block minors from accessing the most-visited porngraphic websites in France", calling it "a major advance in the protection of our children and adolescents." Successive governments have battled for years to find ways to stop young people viewing online pornography while balancing the right to privacy of adult users. Age verification can be done with a credit card or by sending an identity document, but websites are also required to offer at least one "double blind" option for users to prove their age without revealing their identity. This entails the user uploading an identity document to a service provider, which then sends confirmation they are old enough to visit the site to the porn provider without revealing the user's identity. Aylo, the parent company of Pornhub, has said it will comply with the law but has warned that the rules would likely prove "ineffective" and "dangerous" for users' security and privacy. It argues that under-age internet users could be sent to other less regulated and more extreme areas of the internet. A 2023 report by French senators entitled "Hell Behind the Scenes" concluded that there was "massive, ordinary and toxic" viewing of porn by children, as well as routinely violent content. The report found that two thirds of children aged 15 or less had seen pornographic content.
