Penny Verbe, former CEO and Director of Smoke & Mirrors, has joined the Passion Pictures group of companies after her year sabbatical. Verbe's role at Passion is COO of the group which encompasses Passion's London, New York, Paris and Australian offices. In addition Verbe is currently focused on establishing a new division at the company's London office, further details of which are to be announced shortly. Verbe played a key role in Smoke & Mirrors and oversaw the growth of the company from startup to becoming part of the TAG group and the acquisition of Red Post Production. In January 2010 Verbe announced her intention to focus on other pursuits for a year….Believe Media has added director Jake Nava to its roster. Nava's credits include campaigns for global brands such as Armani, HSBC, Axe, Bacardi, Revlon and Puma. He has also directed music videos for artists such as Beyoncé, Britney Spears, Usher, Kanye West, Pink and the Rolling Stones….Director Neil Tardio, who continues to be handled in the U.S. by Third Street Mining Company, has shifted his representation in Canada from Radke to Partners….Miami-based post house 2150 has brought aboard film editor Alejandro Santangelo whose recent spot credits include Coca-Cola, McDonalds, Heineken, Axe, Renault and Subway. His work spans the Hispanic and general markets….
Apple and Google Face UK Investigation Into Mobile Browser Dominance
Apple and Google aren't giving consumers a genuine choice of mobile web browsers, a British watchdog said Friday in a report that recommends they face an investigation under new U.K. digital rules taking effect next year.
The Competition and Markets Authority took aim at Apple, saying the iPhone maker's tactics hold back innovation by stopping rivals from giving users new features like faster webpage loading. Apple does this by restricting progressive web apps, which don't need to be downloaded from an app store and aren't subject to app store commissions, the report said.
"This technology is not able to fully take off on iOS devices," the watchdog said in a provisional report on its investigation into mobile browsers that it opened after an initial study concluded that Apple and Google effectively have a chokehold on "mobile ecosystems."
The CMA's report also found that Apple and Google manipulate the choices given to mobile phone users to make their own browsers "the clearest or easiest option."
And it said that the a revenue-sharing deal between the two U.S. Big Tech companies "significantly reduces their financial incentives" to compete in mobile browsers on Apple's iOS operating system for iPhones.
Both companies said they will "engage constructively" with the CMA.
Apple said it disagreed with the findings and said it was concerned that the recommendations would undermine user privacy and security.
Google said the openness of its Android mobile operating system "has helped to expand choice, reduce prices and democratize access to smartphones and apps" and that it's "committed to open platforms that empower consumers."
It's the latest move by regulators on both sides of the Atlantic to crack down on the... Read More