conditions

Saudi Arabia is threatening to block several popular Internet chat, call, and messaging services if they don't get in line with the country's regulatory requirements.

The apps in question include Skype, WhatsApp, and Viber, according to the country's official news agency SPA.

Apparently, the Saudi Arabian Communications and Information Technology Commission issued a statement that said, "The Commission emphasizes that it will take appropriate action regarding these applications and services in the event of failure to meet those conditions."

It's unclear exactly what rules the apps were breaking, but local media reports from earlier … Read more

The attention brought to bear on the labor practices of Apple's manufacturers and suppliers in China may be starting to create real, positive change in the electronics industry, says an article published this evening in The New York Times.

The Times, along with other media outlets, published several high-profile reports this year on the practices of Apple suppliers -- including contract manufacturer Foxconn, which produces Apple's iPhone and iPad, as well as products for other companies. The reports also included looks at Apple's lack of manufacturing facilities in the U.S. and its tax strategies.

Such media … Read more

Despite recent efforts to improve working conditions at Foxconn's factories, a new investigative report claims that there are still numerous issues.

The findings come in a report by French TV program Envoyé Spécial, which yesterday aired hidden-camera footage it captured at Foxconn's facility in Zhengzhou, China, which manufactures Apple's iPhone. It's also the same factory where a worker strike occurred two months ago.

Among the issues found by the group, as relayed by Engadget, were workers living in buildings that were in the process of being built, meaning those living there were without … Read more

On the eve of the unveiling of the iPhone 5, the Shanghai Evening Post published an insider report of what it's like to work at Foxconn's Tai Yuan factory assembling the device. And while it could be worse, the conditions aren't pretty.

The story is told by a Shanghai Evening Post reporter who went undercover, got a job at the plant, and then kept a diary of his life while working there for 10 days. His article was translated and summarized in English by MIC Gadget.

After going through an intensive seven-day orientation -- during which he … Read more

Exhausting workloads, humiliating discipline, and cramped dormitories are still "the norm" for workers at Foxconn factories in China, according to a report released today that details alleged working conditions at the manufacturing giant.

Managers at the company, which manufactures hardware for companies such as Apple, Hewlett-Packard, Dell, and Sony, often discipline factory workers by forcing them to write and read aloud "confession letters" and to clean toilets, according to a report released by the workers rights group Students and Scholars Against Corporate Misbehavior (SACOM).

The report, which is based on interviews with 170 workers and supervisors … Read more

After a wishy-washy last couple of weeks, Apple has finally told the micro-payment donation app Flattr that there's no deal. The iPhone maker said that the service violates the App Store's terms and conditions with third-party payments.

"Apple is notoriously secretive about its motives or what would be the compliant and best way of doing things that are sort of new," Flattr's community manager Siim Teller wrote in a blog post. "What does this mean for the future of Flattr inside applications for iPhone and iPad?"

With the motto, "Support Great Web … Read more

Senator Al Franken says Comcast may be violating Net neutrality rules by exempting its own video service from a usage cap on its broadband network.

The Minnesota Democrat today sent a letter to the Federal Communications Commission and the Department of Justice asking the agencies to take a closer look at a new service Comcast announced in March that will stream Xfinity on-demand content to Microsoft Xbox consoles.

The content that is streamed directly to the Xbox console will not be counted against subscribers' total bandwidth usage caps.Comcast now imposes a 250GB monthly data cap on its subscribers.

This … Read more

The average Foxconn worker logs at least 56 hours a week, finds the factory stressful, has seen an accident, wants better air conditioning, and plans on a tenure of about two years. That worker also wants better food in the canteen.

Welcome to Apple's supply chain.

After logging 3,000 staff hours while investigating three factories since February, the Fair Labor Association finally released its very detailed report about labor rights violations going on within the factories of Apple's largest supplier, Foxconn. What has emerged from the report is a composite sketch of the day in the life … Read more

Apple says it's making progress on working conditions in supplier facilities.

The company recently issued its monthly report on "excessive work hours" in supplier factories around the world, saying that 89 percent of workers were in compliance with a 60-hour work week. In January, 84 percent of the employed workers were found to be in compliance.

According to Apple, the typical factory worker was on the job for 48 hours each week in February.

"That's a substantial improvement over previous results, but we can do better," the company wrote on its Supplier Responsibility page. &… Read more