Plus, Skype is shutting down. And companies respond to the U.K.’s competition watchdog’s investigation into Google Search. Julie Chang hosts.
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[00:00:00] Zscaler extended its Zero Trust architecture with powerful AI engines trained by 500 trillion daily signals to prevent ransomware and AI attacks that target business. Zscaler Zero Trust plus AI. Learn more at zscaler.com slash Zero Trust AI. Here's your TNB Tech Minute for Friday, February 28th. I'm Julie Chang for The Wall Street Journal.
[00:00:26] Intel says it's delaying a $28 billion semiconductor project in New Albany, Ohio by about five years. The chipmaker said today that the site is now set to be completed in 2030, with operations starting as late as 2031. Intel said it's slowing construction to manage capital and align with demand. It isn't the first delay of the project, which started in 2022.
[00:00:51] The company has struggled to find customers for its contract chipmaking business. Intel stock has lost nearly half its value in the past year. You won't be hearing this sound for long. Microsoft is shutting down Skype in May. The company said today it's retiring Skype to streamline its free consumer communications offerings. The tech titan is encouraging Skype users to migrate to its free Teams app.
[00:01:22] Skype, the communications service that popularized making calls over the internet, was acquired by Microsoft in 2011 for $8.5 billion, which at the time was the biggest acquisition in the company's history. And the UK's Competition and Markets Authority published comments yesterday from companies, lobbyists, and academics as it continues its antitrust investigation into Google search.
[00:01:47] The CMA has been looking into whether Google search and advertising search businesses need to come under the scope of its new tech antitrust rules, and if so, what the company needs to do to comply with the rules. In its comments, Samsung said the CMA's potential intervention is likely to have a significant effect on it and other original equipment manufacturers, as well as other browsers.
[00:02:10] Meanwhile, broadcasters, BBC Studios, Premier League, and Sky asked the regulator in a joint response to require Google to shore up how it handles illegal content listed in search results. Google said that its products have a profound positive impact on companies doing business online, and that it is a vital resource in the digital economy. For a deeper dive into what's happening in tech, check out Monday's Tech News Briefing Podcast.