Foundation, the production/post/creative house with offices in Chicago and Santa Monica, has secured Ellen Knable as West Coast rep…..Digital production studio Speedshape–with offices in L.A., Detroit and London–has signed reps Elexis Stearn for the East Coast, Paula Arnett on the West Coast, and Denise Potts Mueller and Angela Sheridon of Potts Mueller in the Midwest….Maria V. Elgar of Hardtribe Creative Representation in Hollywood, has taken on repping duties for Sherpa Pictures, a Las Vegas-based house headed by EP Don Turley, who previously managed the production staff on all radio, TV and video projects at Vegas agency R&R Partners. Sherpa’s directorial roster includes Kevin T. Wilson, The Bodega Boys, and Jamal Dedeaux…..DP Magni Agustsson has signed with Dattner Dispoto and Associates (DDA), Hollywood. A prominent name in Swedish and British cinematography, Agustsson broke into the U.S. with his 2007 film The Last Winter. In ’04, Agustsson shot the Oscar-nominated short The Last Farm. He has also shot spots for such clients as Coke, Nintendo, Nike and Sony, and a number of music videos….
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