Apple announces a surprising delay, Facebook bans new political ads for the week before the U.S. election and SpaceX is testing its Starlink internet system. This is your Daily Crunch for September 3, 2020.
\nThe big story: Apple delays ad-tracking changes
\nAt this year\u2019s Worldwide Developers Conference, Apple announced that in iOS 14 (currently in public beta), app developers would have to ask users whether they wanted to be tracked for ad purposes.<\/p>\n
The move seems like a straightforward win for privacy, but some developers and advertisers have been pretty worried \u2014 Facebook, for example, predicted that this could render its Audience Network ad network completely ineffective. So Apple announced today that it\u2019s delaying the changes until early next year.
\n\u201cWe want to give developers the time they need to make the necessary changes, and as a result, the requirement to use this tracking permission will go into effect early next year,\u201d Apple said in a statement.
\nThe tech giants
\nFacebook to block new political ads 1 week before Nov 3, adds more tools and rules for fair elections \u2014 Campaigns can still run ads to encourage people to vote, and they can still run older political ads.
\nNintendo\u2019s latest trick is turning the Switch into an RC controller for an AR Mario Kart game \u2014 The idea is that you can control real RC cars in your home.
\nAmazon launches an Alexa service for property managers \u2014 The company\u2019s goal is to Alexa a tool for smart home management, even for those without their own Amazon account.
\nStartups, funding and venture capital
\nSpaceX confirms Starlink internet private beta underway, showing low latency and speeds over 100Mbps \u2014 While the current private beta is limited to SpaceX employees, the company said that the public Starlink beta is still on track to kick off later this year.
\nOptimizely acquired by content management company Episerver \u2014 In a statement, Episerver CEO Alex Atzberger said this is \u201cthe most significant transformation in our company\u2019s history \u2013 one that will set a new industry standard for digital experience platforms.\u201d
\nIndia\u2019s Zomato raises $62 million from Temasek \u2014 The food delivery startup announced in January that Ant Financial had committed to provide it with $150 million, but apparently the firm has yet to deliver two-thirds of that capital.
\nAdvice and analysis from Extra Crunch
\n9 top real estate and proptech investors: Cities and offices still have a future \u2014\u00a0Optimism still runs high for startup hubs as well as supercities like New York and San Francisco.
\nMedia Roundup: Patreon joins unicorn club, Facebook could ban news in Australia \u2014 Are you interested in the media business? Do you appreciate my news-gathering skills? Then this is the roundup for you!
\nWhat happens when public SaaS companies don\u2019t meet heightened investor expectations? \u2014 The lesson for startups is clear: You\u2019d better be damn impressive.
\n(Reminder: Extra Crunch is our subscription membership program, which aims to democratize information about startups. You can sign up here.)
\nEverything else
\nSpirit Airlines starts testing biometric check-ins \u2014 It\u2019s starting at Chicago\u2019s O\u2019Hare airport.
\nNSA call records collection ruled illegal by US appeals court \u2014 The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals found that the NSA\u2019s \u201cbulk collection\u201d of call records violated the law, but the judges fell short of ruling the program unconstitutional.
\nDisrupt 2020 Labor Day flash sale \u2014 Starting today, you can save $100 off the price of a Disrupt Digital Pro Pass.
\nThe Daily Crunch is TechCrunch\u2019s roundup of our biggest and most important stories. If you\u2019d like to get this delivered to your inbox every day at around 3pm Pacific, you can subscribe here.<\/p>\n