Tech Roundup: Google JioPhone Next, Twitter Super Follow & More

[A recurring feature on the latest in Science & Technology.]

• Facebook's rebranding to Meta stems from a 50-page document titled "The Metaverse" sent by Oculus executive Jason Rubin in June 2018 outlining the futuristic ambitions for the company to build a virtual world, noting "the right way to break through consumer indifference to VR is to deliver what they expect and want from the medium: THE METAVERSE."
• The revamp comes as the social technology attempts to solve a number of problems in one stroke — an ageing user base (where teen users are increasingly moving to platforms like TikTok), reduce dependence on Google and Apple by steering users to its own platforms like Oculus, regulatory risk, and reputational damage in the wake of endless controversies that have plagued the company, effectively imposing a "brand tax" on its sister apps Instagram, Messenger and WhatsApp.
• The scandal-hit company has been battling a barrage of revelations that show the company was aware its products harm teens' mental health, that its algorithms were driving polarisation, and that it put profit ahead of user safety and other real-world harms by optimising its algorithms to drive engagement by amplifying problematic content.
• Google partners with Reliance Jio to debut US$ 87 JioPhone Next with a 5.45-inch HD+ display and Qualcomm's quad-core QM-215 chipset, and runs an optimised version of Android called Pragati OS; expands Google One VPN offering beyond Canada, Germany, Italy, Mexico, Spain, the U.S., and U.K. to 10 new countries, including Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland.

• Social media and news platform Twitter begins allowing all iOS users to "Super Follow" select creators, after previously limiting the feature — which enables users to monetise their Twitter account and create exclusive content through monthly subscriptions — to U.S. and Canada.
• Microsoft once again overtakes Apple to become the world’s most valuable company with a market cap was almost US $2.49 trillion surpassing the iPhone maker's capitalisation of about US$ 2.46 trillion; purchases Two Hat, an AI-powered content moderation provider that has helped improve Xbox by leveraging the technology into gaming and non-gaming experiences to detect and remove harmful content, for an undisclosed amount.
• Facebook's newly rebranded parent company Meta to remove Facebook login requirement for Quest VR headsets by next year; acquires Within, the company behind VR fitness game Supernatural.
• Google gets fined 32 million roubles (US$ 455,079) in Russia for repeatedly failing to delete banned content on its search engine and YouTube.
• Apple reveals that its products compete as gaming platforms with Sony Playstation, Microsoft Xbox and Nintendo, signalling its growing gaming ambitions and reversing its earlier stance that it only competes with Google's Android and Microsoft Windows.