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Big tech companies are fleeing China like the plague. Their future depends on it

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The growing tension between China and the United States is causing a stampede among big technology companies. Apple already made a move at the beginning of the year and now Microsoft and Amazon follow. They are not the first companies that They move from China to manufacture in other Asian countriesbut this migration is different as they are trying to eliminate China from the entire supply chain down to the smallest component level. What is happening. They count in Nikkei Asia that Microsoft wants to manufacture most of its products outside of China and has set a limit of 2026. This movement would affect the production of Microsoft Surfaces and especially data centers, since it is a much more sensitive product. In fact, they have already managed to move a large part of the production of server components because it is a more sensitive product, but their goal is for at least 80% of the components to come from outside China. They also want to move some Xbox production out of China, although in this case they are not being as strict. Why is it important. This move by Microsoft consolidates the trend of big technology companies moving towards independent supply chains from China. It is not a question of patriotism, it is an attempt to ensure their survival and minimize risks derived from the increasingly tense trade warsuch as interruptions in supply and price increases. Besides, in the middle of the AI ​​raceindependence becomes even more necessary. Something has changed. As we said, this is not the first time that technology companies have tried to become independent from China. The improvement in working conditions has made it not so cheap to produce there (although have found ways to retain manufacturing), so its status as the “factory of the world” has been lost in favor of other Southeast Asian countries. However, this time it is a broad movement that covers everything from assembly to materials and components such as PCBs, connectors, cables and fibers. The challenge. Moving the assembly is the easy part, but moving the entire production to the last component is a huge challenge. The date that Microsoft has set does not seem very realistic, especially considering that we are talking about a large production volume. According to Omdiadistribute about 4 million Surfaces per year. amazon. AWS is also moving towards ‘non-Chinese’ production for its AI data centers. They were considering reducing the presence of SYE, their printed circuit board supplier, but realized that it was not so easy to replace them. They are companies with which they have a relationship for decades and offer good prices, as well as quality and great production capacity. Google. Those in Mountain View are also embarking on a similar path. According to Nikkei, they are asking their suppliers to expand server production in Thailand. At the end of 2024 we learned that They planned to invest 1 billion dollars and it seems to have paid off because they have managed to double their production capacity with four new facilities. Image | Flickredited In Xataka | The problem is not that Europe has “expropriated” Nexperia from a Chinese company: it is that it approved its sale just a year ago

The garbage rate has become the big hot potato of Spanish politics. In reality there is little unexpected

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They call him the rubbish and, whether you like it more or less, what is undeniable is that the word sums up well the surprise that thousands of Spanish households have encountered when reviewing their accounts: suddenly their town councils have started charging them sums more than considerable for garbage collection or have skyrocketed their rates (in some cases going from 67 to 126 euros), which even it is already felt in the CPI. In reality there is little unexpected, if you take into account that it is something that can be seen coming (at least) from 2022. What there is behind it is debate… and doubts. What has happened? That Spain has seen how garbage became a huge political hot potato. And rightly so, if we take into account that thousands of homes spread throughout the country have found that the bill their city council passes them to finance waste collection has been shot. In some cities a new rate. The rise has been so forceful that it is already reflected clearly in the IPC and in some municipalities has provoked heated protests. The best example was left on Monday Cangas (Pontevedra), where a thousand residents gathered in front of the City Hall to protest against what has already been called (there and in the rest of the country) rubbish. The neighborhood anger escalated to such a level in the municipality that the councilors had no choice but to leave escorted by the police. But why is the rate more expensive? By the BOE. To understand it you have to go back to Law 7/2022 . Among other issues, the rule establishes that the town councils of Spain must provide themselves with “a tax or property benefit of a non-tax public nature, specific, differentiated and non-deficit that allows the implementation of a payment system per generation and that reflects the real cost, direct or indirect, of the collection, transport and treatment operations.” The wording is somewhat confusing, but at least it leaves two ideas clear. First, municipalities have to charge a specific bill focused on garbage. Second, the ‘polluter pays’ maxim must prevail, with a rate that covers “the real, direct and indirect cost” of the collection service. It is not a minor nuance if we take into account that in many municipalities the service was deficient and it was compensated via taxes. The Commonwealth of O Morrazo, for example (the one that suffered Monday’s protests) handles a report that reveals that its service suffered a deficit of about two million of euros. Why is it news now? Because the Law 7/2022 included another indication: it gave the town councils a maximum of three years to comply with this requirement, a period that ended at beginning of april. Since then, the municipalities with more than 5,000 inhabitants They are obliged to conform to the norm. Some, like Barcelona, they have been for years preparing the ground to soften the blow; but others have waited until almost the end. The majority of councils have in fact chosen to drag their feet and some have not yet adjusted, as is the case in Malaga either Balearics. Where the change has been noticeable is in Madrid. There the impact has been especially notable because in 2015 the then mayor (Ana Botella) decided “eliminate” the garbage rate for the sake of “less fiscal pressure on the citizen’s pocket.” After years with the amount included within the IBIresidents of the capital have encountered a Waste Management Fee that, according to the calculations published by the Consistory itself in October, will have an average cost of 141 euros for homes and 310 for commercial properties. Does it affect the pockets that much? The best way to answer that question is to use the INE. Its latest calculations on the CPI, corresponding to the month of September, show a year-on-year increase of 30.3% in garbage collection, the largest (by far) in a historical series dating back to 2008. The data far exceeds the general index (3%) and has in fact influenced its upward trend. It is an important nuance because, although the deadline set in the 2022 law has already ended, its guidelines have not been applied in all cities of the country. When that happens, it is not unreasonable to think that that 30.3% will be even higher. Why so much controversy? If he rubbish has raised such a political stir, it is not only because of the cost it entails for residents and businesses. The debate has revolved around more formal but equally important questions: Who is ultimately responsible for the increases? Is it the city councils with the formulas they apply when calculating it, is it the Government for promoting the 2022 standard or is it Brussels, through the community directives that cites the law itself? Some town councils, such as Alcobendashas already released statements to inform its neighbors that the new “mandatory” garbage receipts apply. The truth is that months before the deadline set by law expired, in October, the Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces (FEMP) already demanded the Government to review a law that, in his opinion, is “complicated to understand and apply” and ignores municipal autonomy. Specifically, they asked the Sánchez Government for “a much clearer and more concise regulation that avoids the discretion of each local entity” and at the same time guarantees the objectives set by Brussels. Is that important? Yes. And for several reasons. The first because one of the topics that is raising the most debate about the rubbish They are the differences between cities and the risks that this implies. “It can be applied depending on the address, the number of people residing in the home, the cadastral value… There are many possibilities and without a guide we can end up with more than 8,000 different garbage rates, which will surely generate resources and even different criteria in the courts until the Supreme Court unifies doctrine,” explained already last December ABC the Association … Read more

ZonaGemelos generates the darkest content on the Spanish internet. They had to cancel their own ‘Big Brother’ in nine hours

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Extreme content has always existed on the Internet, but until recently it was part of the exclusive redoubt of the network’s sewer: deep webforums in which you had to register to enter, P2P circuits closed to the general public. Social networks, however, are increasingly expanding their themes in more aggressive directions. The lack of moderation and the avalanche of content has created monsters like ‘The House of Twins’, a reality show inspired by ‘Big Brother‘ which was canceled nine hours after its premiere. But who are you? Daniel and Carlos Ramos are brothers and content creators under the label ZoneTwins. They have become known for debate videos that revolve around controversy, morbidity, arguments and sometimes live violence between the guests of their program. Their accounts have hundreds of thousands of followers (just over 300,000 on YouTube, almost 400,000 on TikTok) and their style is reminiscent of entertainment programs from the beginning of the century like ‘Crónicas Marcianas’, and also dating shows like ‘First Dates’ or challenge shows, but in a more extreme way. Among its regulars are Paco Porras or Simon Perezand also include betting and gambling content (in casinos like LocoWin, with high-risk bets). What is ‘The House of Twins’? A reality show for networks which premiered on October 12 on Kick (the twins are banned from Twitch) and YouTube and was canceled in the early hours of the next day, due to violent incidents and serious confrontations between the seven participants, especially between two women who are regulars in the ZonaGemelos debates: la Falete and Triana Marrash. The latter had its fifteen minutes of fame on a national scale thanks to ‘Tardear’ and an alleged disappearance that turned out to be a setup to gain followers. What happened? Three contest participants voluntarily left the program before its cancellation, given the direction the program was taking, with the participants becoming increasingly drunk. Among other things, constant fights could be seen, attempts to quilting with three people involved, inappropriate comments on sensitive topics such as the war in Ukraine and destruction of the house and furniture. The organizers, when announcing the closure, spoke of “a second edition with some basic rules of coexistence and a few hours to sleep.” Some figures. In its first hours, the program was followed by more than a million live viewers, which makes it clear that we are not exactly facing a niche product. The hashtag #LaCasaDeLosGemelos became a trending topic on X and YouTube ended up cutting the broadcast due to the questionable content. Of course, as happens in reality shows, it soon began to generate lots of derivative content from other creators commenting on what happened in the house. extreme youtube. The type programs reality streaming like The House of Twins raise moral and ethical questions that have been object of study: emotional manipulation, exploitation of participants, loss of privacy, psychological and social effects on those who participate and consume this type of entertainment… Producers usually edit and manipulate recorded material to provoke conflicts and extreme reactions that keep the public’s attention. This strategy generates economic benefits, but results in the emotional exploitation of the contestants, who may suffer anxiety and psychological deterioration. Other key moral dilemma revolves around the actual consent of the participants. In many productions, contestants sign contracts that allow them to be constantly filmed, without effective control over their image once broadcast: participants are recorded in moments of emotional and physical vulnerability, such as arguments or personal crises. And if these issues are considerable in realities traditional, its impact is multiplied on the internet, where algorithms amplify emotionally conflictive content to maximize public interaction. In Xataka | Now I regret what I uploaded about myself to the internet when I was a teenager

The popular hair drug hides a big problem behind depression

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Finasteride has long been a popular solution for the treatment of androgenic baldnesswhich has long been a very popular solution to stop hair loss. However, behind its apparent cosmetic success hides an alarming reality that has taken more than twenty years to receive greater attention: a significant association with depressionanxiety and suicide. The analysis. Published in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry by Professor Mayer of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, systematically reviews the accumulated evidence and exposes what he describes as “a systemic failure of pharmacovigilance.” The study concludes that both the drug’s manufacturer, Merck, and regulatory bodies, such as the US FDA, failed to take relevant action despite growing danger signals about serious health problems. The evidence. Although concerns about depression associated with finasteride arose as early as 2002, it was not until the last decade that the evidence became overwhelming following studies done after the product was marketed. Brezis’ analysis is based on eight large independent studies published between 2017 and 2023, which used two main methods: disproportionality analysis in adverse event reporting systems and analysis of massive health registry databases. The results. The study carried out in countries such as Sweden, Canada and Israel points to very consistent results: the use of finasteride is associated with a significantly higher risk of developing depression, anxiety and suicidal behavior. All of this with a good statistical significance that shows that it is not due to chance. The human cost of this two-decade delay is devastating. The report estimates that, globally, “hundreds of thousands of people may have suffered from depression, and hundreds, or even thousands, may have died by suicide.” The data. One of the main reasons why it took so long to react was the massive under-reporting of cases. In 2010, the FDA was already discussing internally the possibility of including depression as a side effect, but noted that reported suicides were lower than expected in such a large user population. Brezis’ analysis puts figures on this discrepancy: For 2011, with a base of 4.6 million users worldwide, between 6,440 and 12,880 suicides were expected over a period of 10 to 20 years. However, only 18 cases had been reported to the FDA system (FAERS). By 2024, reported suicides amounted to 320, compared to the 19,320 that would be expected over a 30-year period. FDA inaction. The report is especially critical of the manufacturer and the regulator. Despite suspicions, none of the eight studies analyzed were conducted by Merck or requested by the FDA. This is striking, since Merck itself had validated in 2006 the usefulness of the pharmacovigilance tools used in these investigations, concluding that they had “sufficient sensitivity and specificity.” For its part, the FDA was disconcertingly slow. In 2011 it recognized depression as an adverse effect and in 2022 it added suicidal ideation, but not as a formal warning on the label. It took the agency five years to respond to a citizen petition requesting the drug be removed from the market. Internal FDA documents from 2010 show entire sections redacted as “confidential,” hiding key data about the drug’s safety. The case in Europe. In addition to the report issued by the FDA, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) has also launched an alert following its research on this same medication and suicidal tendencies. This is something that the Spanish Agency for Medicines and Health Products (AEMPS) has collected on its website, pointing out that from now on the packages of finasteride 1 mg will include a patient information card with the aim of reinforcing these warnings. In France they wanted be much more critical with the recommendations made by the EMA to confront this serious problem. Specifically, they have pointed out that the introduction of this alert card or the dissemination of a letter to professionals is not enough. Especially considering that the latest recommendations made by the regulator have not reduced the incidence of suicidal ideation in treated patients. Because. The relationship between finasteride and mood disorders is not a simple correlation, but has a plausible biological basis. The drug inhibits the enzyme 5α-reductase, reducing the conversion of testosterone. This process also decreases the synthesis of brain neurosteroids, such as allopregnanolone, which are crucial for mood regulation. For some users, the effects do not go away when they stop treatment. The so-called “post-finasteride syndrome” describes severe neuropsychiatric symptoms that persist for months or years after stopping the drug. Call to action. Brezis emphasizes that, as it is a medicine for a cosmetic indication, the balance between benefit and risk is radically different. “It wasn’t about a life-or-death medical need. It was about the hair,” he emphasizes. Images | Nik Shuliahin 💛💙 In Xataka | A natural, safe and already approved sweetener for consumption: the new and unexpected solution against baldness

The US attacked China with tariffs and China has counterattacked by stopping buying meat from them. The big winner has been Australia

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The United States was one of the main exporters of beef to China, but the tension between both countries and the tariff war has ended this relationship. The winner of the situation is Australia, which is already the country that exports the most beef to China, but also one of the main partners of the United States. What is happening. There was no official statement from the government. Last March, China did not renew its beef export licenses with the United States and has found a new partner to meet demand: Australia. Beef exports have increased 35% in the first half of the year and the Australian livestock sector has already invoiced 6.6 billion dollars, according to Nikkei Asia. Shipments to the Chinese market have grown by 65%, but they have also increased to the United States by 48%. It’s a double victory. Why it is important. China is the largest importer of agricultural products and is using this stance to harm the United States. They already did it with their decision to stop buying soybeans from the United Stateswhich was their main supplier, and now they have done it with beef. The beef trade between the United States and China produced around 120 million dollars a month. Now that number is zero. It is another example that dismantles Trump’s storywhich defends tariffs as a beneficial measure for the United States. Skyrocketing prices. The price of meat reached its all-time high last September, according to data from United Nations. In particular, the increase in the price of beef is caused by several factors. On the one hand, the decrease in production in countries such as the United States, New Zealand and Europe. In the United States specifically, the shortage has been caused because of the drought. On the other hand, tariffs and geopolitical tensions have put pressure on international market prices. The game board has been reconfigured, with the United States and China turning primarily to Australia and Brazil to meet their demand. perfect position. At least for the moment, Australia wins because it is in a good position with the main meat importers. In China they are already the first supplier of beef, while in the United States they are the second behind Brazil. The key is that while Trump imposed 50% tariffs on Brazilin Australia they only have 10% because they mainly export minced meat for hamburgers. Australia and China. There was not always harmony between the two nations. In 2020, China suspended imports of Australian beef. The reason given was labeling problems for some products, but everything indicates that the decision had more to do with the critical stance of the Australian government about China’s handling of the coronavirus. Image | Wikipedia, PXhere In Xataka | China has just beaten the United States in the most unexpected fight: that of branded coffee shops

Amancio Ortega’s taste for big logistical bets

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One of the keys that led Inditex to maintain its position as world leader of fashion was the ability of Amancio Ortega to get ahead of growth and taking advantage of market changes with an impressive logistics network for its ecosystem of brands. Although Amancio Ortega is no longer the visible head of Inditex, his strategy is still in force under the mandate of his daughter Marta Ortega. The latest move by the multinational: a historic investment in Sagunto, to build a new logistics center on a 380,000 m2 plot right next to a Volkswagen gigafactory. Inditex was left alone in the bid. According to informed The Opinion of A CoruñaInditex has presented the only offer to acquire a plot of approximately 388,000 square meters in the Parc Sagunt II business park, near the Valencian town of Sagunto, where a new logistics base will be located. The offer was presented through a recently created limited company called Alveston ITG, established with an initial capital of 3,000 euros and linked to Inditex. This company was the only one that submitted an offer for one of the lots that the managing consortium Espais Econòmics Empresarials (a commercial company jointly owned by the Generalitat and the State Society for Industrial Promotion and Business Development) put up for sale this summer. Just a slice of the whole cake. According to detailed The Confidentialthe complete plot that was put up for sale consisted of a total area of ​​1,000,202 square meters with a combined price of 160 million euros. However, this plot was divided into four smaller lots. Two of them with surfaces of 388,000 and 381,000 m2 for 62.14 million and 61 million respectively, one of which has been awarded to Inditex, as well as two smaller ones with 164,407 m2 and 65,612 m2 respectively. According to sources consulted by El Confidencial, Inditex would have only bid for the largest of the lots with 388,377 m2, the usual surface area of ​​its logistics platforms. Volkswagen Neighbors. The land on which the next Inditex logistics center will be built will border those of the gigafactory that Volkswagen is building in Sagunto. In fact, the land that the multinational founded by Amancio Ortega has acquired was reserved for suppliers of PowerCO, a company linked to Volkswagen that builds batteries for electric cars. However, as there was no interest from third parties, the authorities opened the tender for other possible industrial or logistics projects, including the Inditex proposal. A new piece for the Inditex gear. Inditex’s interest in Parc Sagunt is neither new nor coincidental. The company already has another platform of almost 280,000 square meters in place for its Tempe footwear brand in the first phase of the same industrial park (Parc Sagunt I), so it is expected that this new investment will reinforce Inditex’s commitment to converting Sagunto into a hub for your logisticsafter lowering his interest in Cheste’s land. This new purchase considerably expands its logistics capacity in the area, where connectivity and access play a fundamental role in the efficiency of your stores. The location allows quick communications with Madrid, Aragon and the Mediterranean corridor, including ports and railways. The project, which will still have to be developed for several years, is part of the Inditex logistics plan 2024-2025which includes investments of more than 1,800 million euros in new distribution centers and expansions in Spain and abroad. In Xataka | Inditex is the goose that lays the golden eggs for Amancio Ortega: it receives 98 euros per second and has tripled its dividends Image | Wikimedia Commons (Nemigo), GTRES

reserve November 20 for the big annual technology festival

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The Xataka NordVPN Awards are almost here! Like every year, we invite you to join us on November 20 to the in-person event that we will hold at the Capitol Cinemas in Madrid and that can be followed live from anywhere in the world from Xataka.com. During the event we will award the most important technological devices of the year, chosen by you and our jury, we will present the Xataka Leyenda and we will include some well-kept surprises. All under the direction of Joaquín Reyes, a regular at the Awards, and our colleague Ángela Blanco, the two presenters of this edition. when and where When: November 20 at 8 p.m. Where: Capitol Cinemas (Madrid) and Xataka.com Tickets: Soon If you can’t physically come to the gala, don’t worry: the ceremony will be broadcast on streaming in full through Xataka.com. How to get your ticket He October 20 We will open a registration form through which you can request your free entry. Capacity is limited, so tickets will be delivered on a first-come, first-served basis until all available places are filled. We will explain the process when we launch the form, but don’t miss the date if you don’t want to be left without entry. More coming soon… Like every year, this announcement is just the beginning. This week we will begin voting in all categories so that you can help us choose the best of the year. We will tell all the news about the awards here, on our website, and on our social media profiles (Twitter, Facebook, instagram, TikTok, YouTube). So stay connected. Thank you very much and we are waiting for you November 20!

Voltage problems have returned to the Spanish electrical system and the big question is what have we been doing these last six months

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The ghost of big blackout has returned to the fray: the Spanish electrical system has voltage problems. Serious problems, indeed. So serious that Red Eléctrica has had to ask for permission to take action on the matter. It goes without saying, but uncertainty spread like wildfire. Six months after the great blackout, Spain is living a little déjà vu. Are there reasons to be alert? What has happened? Electrical Network just notified to the CNMC which, for a couple of weeks, has observed sudden variations in voltage in the peninsular system. As he explained, this could compromise the security of supply and urgent measures would need to be taken to solve it. That includes temporarily modifying various operating procedures to stabilize the system while underlying problems are found. What do these modifications consist of? The proposals go from allowing technical adjustments to be applied directly during daily programming to giving the operator more room to act quickly if it detects a risk of instability, even before the operating day begins. In addition, it adopts stricter control of the automatic instantaneous balance mechanism and tightens the reactive voltage control. In summary, what has been notified is an express adjustment of the country’s electrical operations to contain the ups and downs in voltage that have been recorded. And all of this, to be implemented in five days. The big question is “now?” Because as Javier Blas pointed out“for months, the Spanish electricity grid operator (and the government) have been putting off the country’s electrical problems” and now, suddenly, a whole series of urgent measures are required. Red Eléctrica’s response. Given the concern generated by the request, the operator had to leave in passing, clarifying that there has been “no talk of a risk of imminent or widespread blackout”, that the voltage variations “have not posed a supply risk because they have been within the admissible limits”. However, the truth is that no one is too calm. As Blas said“The urgent request adds up to an additional $1 billion cost for Spanish customers as the grid operator is operating the system in what it calls a “boosted mode” since April 29 (in effect, operating gas-fired power plants more intensely and reducing solar and wind power).” If under these conditions the entire series of measures that have been requested are needed, there is some underlying problem. Or, at least, that’s what it seems: that the symptoms of stress in the system are clear and it is not at all clear that a handful of temporary measures are the solution we need. Image | Anton Dmitriev In Xataka | Harvest wheat or kilowatts? The new account that many farmers in Spain make

The DGT has created a Big Brother against belts and cell phones. Next objective: the continuous line

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Little by little, without making much noise, the DGT has been expanding its horizons. First there were speed cameras. Then came mobile controllers and the use of helicopters. And, over the years, a continuous expansion of cameras to monitor the use of seat belts or mobile phones. And, now, for the continuous lines. By land… and air. In Spain there are currently active, a total of 3,395 devices to control speed or any other type of infraction, according to data collected by Faconauto. These data not only include the DGT controllers, it must be taken into account that the Basque Country and Catalonia have transferred powers and that the municipalities can also have their own devices. According to the DGT itself, which collects this data on its website by compiling the position of all its radars, in Spain there are more than 1,300 points to be monitored between fixed and mobile radars. Furthermore, it must be taken into account that, regarding the latter, the DGT has empty boxes scattered throughout the territory national as an intimidating measure. To these systems we must add the performance of Pegasusthe DGT helicopters that chase speeding from the air. Some teams that, despite being leaders, seem to have become obsolete next to the Catalan teams in this sense. Not just radars. In this aerial surveillance, the DGT does not only live on speed radars. The public entity has more than 200 cameras that monitor the use of the seat belt and the mobile phone. We are talking about teams that can sanction us with 200 euros and four points In the first case and with 200 euros and six points of the driving license if we use the second one. But, in addition, in recent times the DGT has introduced a new type of controllers. With cameras, the agency is able to detect if a driver skips a stop sign or skips a continuous line. Infractions, both, punishable by a fine of 200 euros as they are considered serious infractions. Madrid as a laboratory. Of these last continuous line control cameras, the four registered by the DGT are located in Madrid. The region is the one highlighted by the DGT. All of them are located near the capital. According to the data shown by the DGT itself, we find them in the following locations: Camera type Road kilometer point Sense continuous line A1 15.95 Decreasing continuous line A2 11.8 Decreasing continuous line A42 16.9 Decreasing continuous line A6 20.2 Decreasing And how do they work? The system, explained by the DGTit’s simple. A camera in each lane detects at the beginning of the monitored section which cars are traveling on each side of the continuous line. Thus, they record all the license plates that pass by. At the end of the controlled section, the camera has to record the same car again. In case the second camera does not coincide with the first, the answer is clear: the driver has jumped the solid line. That is, if it appears in the right lane (let’s say camera A) in a first step and when leaving the monitored section it is recorded by the camera in the left lane (let’s say camera B), the driver has skipped the solid line. The same happens in the opposite case. In the event that the license plate is recorded by the same camera (A or B) at the two monitored points, the car will not have moved from its place: Photo | Google Maps and Xataka In Xataka | The 0 and ECO label classification of cars is broken: it is being filled with highly polluting combustion cars

the town’s latest big event has crossed borders

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The Vigo City Council has been fighting a battle against Uber for months that is not going exactly well. Of course, the response of the council in recent days has been to complicate things at the service of VTC. The Conxemar fair, one of the most important business events in Galicia, has been the chosen scenario to prove it. Conflict. Since Uber landed in Vigo in Junetaxi drivers have denounced that VTCs operate illegally on urban routes. Galician regulations stipulate that these vehicles can make intercity trips, but not those of an urban nature, such as going from the center to the Ifevi fairgrounds. However, the application continued to offer services in the city with hardly any consequences. At the end of August, the City Council reported that 60% of Uber vehicles in Vigo had been proposed for sanction. The data has its merits, since all these vehicles belong to companies based in Madrid that domiciled their cars in Galicia this same year. The complaints ended up recurring all the time while the activity continued. The pressure of taxi drivers. Conxemar was the first big event in the city since the arrival of Uber, and taxi drivers feared that the VTCs would keep part of the business generated by the fair. Faced with the situation, nearly 300 professionals created a pressure group outside the taxi employers’ associations. “If the local Police or the Civil Guard do not act on the first day of Conxemar, we may collapse the fair,” said Ángel, one of the group’s taxi drivers, to the media. The Voice of Galicia. The pressure took effect. The Local Police deployed controls at the accesses to the Ifevi with an application from the Ministry of Transport that allows knowing in real time the origin and destination of each trip, in addition to the complete history of VTC movements. Sanctions and controversy. During the first day of Conxemar, the Local Police reported four vehicles and immobilized two others with a tow truck included on Airport Avenue. Daniel Matías, president of the Elite Taxi Vigo association, acknowledged with satisfaction that the authorities “have done their job today,” just as shared the middle. The taxi drivers, who deployed some 400 vehicles in large shifts, celebrated the performance. However, Uber continued to offer trips in the morning with prices higher than 25 euros due to “high demand”, and some drivers They managed to jump the police fence to access Ifevi and the airport during the afternoon. A legal loophole. The Unauto employers’ association already has announced that he will appeal all sanctions. José Manuel Gallo, its director of legal services, commented to the media Faro de Vigo that “Let us not forget that VTC vehicles are covered by a totally legal transport authorization.” The employers’ association regrets that they are being “turned away” when “it is a reality that the VTC wants to make its way in Vigo”, after having unsuccessfully requested meetings with the Council and the Xunta. Uber takes advantage of the gaps in the system, since some vehicles come in the morning from Pontevedra and perform services on the limits of Vigo, a gray area that makes police action difficult. An open pulse. Penalties can reach up to 6,000 euros per vehicle, but all those imposed so far have been appealed in court. Meanwhile, in Vigo up to 40 VTCs operate without a municipal license, protected by what the employers consider a “legal loophole” and which the taxi sector directly classifies as illegal activity. Matias explains to the media that they now hope that “the situation remains the same”, aware that the complicated thing is “being behind” these vehicles when there are no events that facilitate the controls. Cover image | Paula Pereira and Tingey Injury Law Firm In Xataka | In case the electric car was not enough, Europe is missing another train: that of autonomous cars

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