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ROME (Reuters) -STMicroelectronics announced on Thursday the appointment of two new Italian members of its supervisory board, signalling that Italy and France were moving to settle their differences over the chip maker's governance. The group, in which the French and Italian governments indirectly own a combined 27.5% stake, has battled an industry-wide sales slump since the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, hit by low demand, high inventories, and geopolitical disruption. Veteran ambassador Armando Varricchio and former STMicro executive Orio Bellezza will replace Maurizio Tamagnini and Paolo Visca on the board, the company said in a statement. The appointments will be subject to shareholders' approval at a meeting set for December 18, it added. Italy and France clashed in April, when STMicroelectronics rejected a previous Italian candidate for the board, former senior Treasury official Marcello Sala. That month, Italian Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti said his government's attitude toward STMicroelectronics CEO Jean-Marc Chery was one of "criticism and opposition". Relations have improved since, and all parties are trying to iron out tension to cooperate on a relaunch of the company, a source familiar with the matter said, speaking on condition of anonymity. In a first sign of efforts to settle the dispute, STMicroelectronics pledged last month not to slash jobs in Italy, committing to a plan for voluntary departures with trade unions. According to the source, the Egon Zender consultancy is likely to be picked to screen potential candidates for the CEO position, replacing Chery, whose term expires in 2027. (Reporting by Giuseppe Fonte; Editing by Alvise Armellini and Clarence Fernandez)

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By Munsif Vengattil and Arpan Chaturvedi BENGALURU (Reuters) -The Indian government has reduced the number of officials who can order content to be taken down from the internet, a move that follows a bitter legal battle with Elon Musk's X that centered around a contentious policy. X, Musk's social media platform, had been in opposition to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 2023 decision to police the internet by allowing thousands of officials to file takedown orders. In August, Reuters reported that police inspectors were issuing takedown orders on cartoons and satirical posts, sparking one of X's most high-profile legal challenges against a government's content-removal policy. X lost the lawsuit in Karnataka High Court in September, with a judge ruling that its challenge was without merit and X had to abide by local laws. But late on Wednesday, India's IT ministry changed its policy by limiting the number of people who can issue such orders to top bureaucrats and police officials. Now only bureaucrats with the rank of joint secretary or higher and police officials who are serving as deputy inspector general or above can issue takedown orders, the government said in its modification to the rules. "The government is backing down and reducing its earlier powers that extended to many more officials, but the number of officials who can issue orders will still be in the hundreds," said Akash Karmakar, a partner at Indian law firm Panag & Babu who specializes in technology law. The changes are meant to ensure "additional safeguards to ensure senior-level accountability, precise specification of unlawful content and periodic review of government directions at (a) higher level," a government statement said. X did not respond to a request for comment. It previously said it would challenge the Karnataka High Court's ruling. GOVERNMENT BACKING DOWN, 'REASONED INTIMATION' NEEDED In its court challenge, X argued that India's actions were illegal and unconstitutional, adding that they trampled upon free speech by allowing scores of government agencies and thousands of police to suppress legitimate criticism of public officials. India contended that it was attempting to curb a proliferation of illegal content and ensure accountability online. When it changed its rules on Wednesday, the government did not make reference to its legal fight with the social media platform. In July, X's counsel said in court that every "Tom, Dick, and Harry" in India was illegally issuing takedown orders. The change in rules will become effective on November 15. "The process of challenging these takedown orders remains onerous and inverts the burden of proof on the user whose content is taken down, curbing free speech," said Karmakar, the tech-focused lawyer. The new rules also require content takedown orders to be supported by a "reasoned intimation", "clearly specifying the legal basis and statutory provision invoked, the nature of the unlawful act" as well as the website's address. The earlier rules did not contain such requirements. In another layer of scrutiny, the rules also add a requirement that takedown orders shall be "subject to periodic review" by an officer of secretary rank once a month. (Reporting Munsif Vengattil and Arpan Chaturvedi; Editing by Aditya Kalra and Thomas Derpinghaus.)

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By Gianluca Lo Nostro -Nokia's CEO Justin Hotard said artificial intelligence is driving a long-term growth trend that resembles the internet boom of the 1990s, but downplayed concerns about a potential bubble. Hotard's remarks come amid growing debate over whether the surge in AI investment is sustainable. "I fundamentally think we're at the front end of an AI supercycle, much like the 1990s with the internet," Hotard said in an interview with Reuters. "Even if there's a bubble, a trough, we'll look to the longer-term trends. And right now, all those trends are very favourable." A Bank of America survey this month showed that more than half of fund managers believe AI stocks are in a bubble. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman have also cautioned that investor excitement could lead to major losses. Still, demand for data centres is rising sharply as companies race to build the infrastructure needed to support AI. Hotard, who led Intel's data centres and AI group before joining Nokia in April, said the company is seeing this growth "across the board," from large tech firms to smaller players expanding in Europe. "Clearly the incremental, growth investment is driven by data centres," he said. "It's a huge step up in volume." Earlier on Thursday, the Finnish telecoms equipment maker reported quarterly earnings that beat market expectations, helped by strong optical and cloud demand, including sales to AI-driven data centres after its acquisition of U.S. optical networking firm Infinera. Nokia's push into AI marks its biggest shift since selling its mobile phone unit in 2013. While mobile networks remain its core business, the company is weaving AI into areas such as radio access and fibre networks. Last year, it bought Infinera, one of the largest vendors for intra data centre communications. In September, Nokia set up a dedicated Technology and AI organisation led by newly-appointed Chief Technology Officer Pallavi Mahajan, a former Intel executive, to accelerate its AI efforts. (Reporting by Gianluca Lo Nostro; Editing by Matt Scuffham)

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By Gianluca Lo Nostro -Nokia's CEO Justin Hotard said artificial intelligence is driving a long-term growth trend that resembles the internet boom of the 1990s, but downplayed concerns about a potential bubble. Hotard's remarks come amid growing debate over whether the surge in AI investment is sustainable. "I fundamentally think we're at the front end of an AI supercycle, much like the 1990s with the internet," Hotard said in an interview with Reuters. "Even if there's a bubble, a trough, we'll look to the longer-term trends. And right now, all those trends are very favourable." A Bank of America survey this month showed that more than half of fund managers believe AI stocks are in a bubble. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman have also cautioned that investor excitement could lead to major losses. Still, demand for data centres is rising sharply as companies race to build the infrastructure needed to support AI. Hotard, who led Intel's data centres and AI group before joining Nokia in April, said the company is seeing this growth "across the board," from large tech firms to smaller players expanding in Europe. "Clearly the incremental, growth investment is driven by data centres," he said. "It's a huge step up in volume." Earlier on Thursday, the Finnish telecoms equipment maker reported quarterly earnings that beat market expectations, helped by strong optical and cloud demand, including sales to AI-driven data centres after its acquisition of U.S. optical networking firm Infinera. Nokia's push into AI marks its biggest shift since selling its mobile phone unit in 2013. While mobile networks remain its core business, the company is weaving AI into areas such as radio access and fibre networks. Last year, it bought Infinera, one of the largest vendors for intra data centre communications. In September, Nokia set up a dedicated Technology and AI organisation led by newly-appointed Chief Technology Officer Pallavi Mahajan, a former Intel executive, to accelerate its AI efforts. (Reporting by Gianluca Lo Nostro; Editing by Matt Scuffham)

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By Giulia Segreti and Tim Hepher ROME/PARIS (Reuters) -European aerospace groups unveiled an initial deal on Thursday to pool their loss-making satellite manufacturing activities, combining forces after months of negotiations to counter the runaway growth of rivals led by Elon Musk's Starlink. The keenly awaited deal between Airbus, Thales and Leonardo aims to forge a new venture starting from 2027, subject to approval by European regulators who have resisted such moves in the past. The unnamed new entity will employ 25,000 people across Europe with annual revenues of 6.5 billion euros ($7.58 billion), based on 2024 figures, the companies said in a statement. Airbus will hold 35%, while Thales and Leonardo will each hold 32.5%, the statement said, adding it would operate under joint control "with a balanced governance structure". The space combination is expected to generate "mid-triple digit" millions of euros of synergies on operating income per year, starting after five years, the companies said. Code-named "Project Bromo," talks between the three aerospace groups started last year in a bid to copy the co-operation model of European missile maker MBDA, which is owned by Airbus, Leonardo and BAE Systems. Europe's top satellite makers have long competed to build complex spacecraft in geostationary orbit but have been hit by the arrival of cheap tiny satellites in low Earth orbit. The CEOs of the three companies said in a joint declaration that the merger would help governments ensure "Europe’s autonomy across the strategic space domain". The deal will combine manufacturing and services activities of Thales Alenia Space and Telespazio – two joint ventures between Leonardo and Thales – as well as various Airbus space and digital businesses, the remaining space activities owned by Leonardo and Thales SESO. The companies, who have already cut a combined total of some 3,000 jobs in space, made no mention of any further job cuts, but said unions would be consulted on the project. Reuters reported earlier this week that the three aerospace groups had reached a framework deal on a proposed tie-up of their satellite businesses. Agreement between the three companies – each of which has had periods of prickly relations in the past – was salvaged after sources familiar with the matter said the talks had hit obstacles over governance and valuation during the summer. ($1 = 0.8575 euros) (Reporting by Giulia Segreti in Rome and Tim Hepher in Paris;Editing by Alvise Armellini/Sudip Kar-Gupta)

(The article has been published through a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has been published verbatim. Liability lies with original publisher.)

By Munsif Vengattil and Arpan Chaturvedi BENGALURU (Reuters) -The Indian government has reduced the number of officials who can order content to be taken down from the internet, a move that follows a bitter legal battle with Elon Musk's X that centered around a contentious policy. X, Musk's social media platform, had been in opposition to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 2023 decision to police the internet by allowing thousands of officials to file takedown orders. In August, Reuters reported that police inspectors were issuing takedown orders on cartoons and satirical posts, sparking one of X's most high-profile legal challenges against a government's content-removal policy. X lost the lawsuit in Karnataka High Court in September, with a judge ruling that its challenge was without merit and X had to abide by local laws. But late on Wednesday, India's IT ministry changed its policy by limiting the number of people who can issue such orders to top bureaucrats and police officials. Now only bureaucrats with the rank of joint secretary or higher and police officials who are serving as deputy inspector general or above can issue takedown orders, the government said in its modification to the rules. "The government is backing down and reducing its earlier powers that extended to many more officials, but the number of officials who can issue orders will still be in the hundreds," said Akash Karmakar, a partner at Indian law firm Panag & Babu who specializes in technology law. The changes are meant to ensure "additional safeguards to ensure senior-level accountability, precise specification of unlawful content and periodic review of government directions at (a) higher level," a government statement said. X did not respond to a request for comment. It previously said it would challenge the Karnataka High Court's ruling. GOVERNMENT BACKING DOWN, 'REASONED INTIMATION' NEEDED In its court challenge, X argued that India's actions were illegal and unconstitutional, adding that they trampled upon free speech by allowing scores of government agencies and thousands of police to suppress legitimate criticism of public officials. India contended that it was attempting to curb a proliferation of illegal content and ensure accountability online. When it changed its rules on Wednesday, the government did not make reference to its legal fight with the social media platform. In July, X's counsel said in court that every "Tom, Dick, and Harry" in India was illegally issuing takedown orders. The change in rules will become effective on November 15. "The process of challenging these takedown orders remains onerous and inverts the burden of proof on the user whose content is taken down, curbing free speech," said Karmakar, the tech-focused lawyer. The new rules also require content takedown orders to be supported by a "reasoned intimation", "clearly specifying the legal basis and statutory provision invoked, the nature of the unlawful act" as well as the website's address. The earlier rules did not contain such requirements. In another layer of scrutiny, the rules also add a requirement that takedown orders shall be "subject to periodic review" by an officer of secretary rank once a month. (Reporting Munsif Vengattil and Arpan Chaturvedi; Editing by Aditya Kalra and Thomas Derpinghaus.)

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By Nathan Vifflin (Reuters) -STMicroelectronics on Thursday forecast fourth quarter sales below market expectations, showing a slower than expected recovery in its main markets and sending its shares lower. One of Europe's largest chipmakers, whose clients include Tesla and Apple, sees fourth quarter revenue reaching $3.28 billion, up from the $3,19 billion it reported this quarter. Analysts polled by LSEG had forecast fourth quarter revenue of $3.34 billion, and $3.12 billion in the third quarter. STMicro shares fell 5.8% in early trade, the worst performer among France's CAC 40, and Italy's FTSE MIB blue chip indexes. "The sales guidance confirms… that though the industry is in an up-cycle, the up-cycle is very muted" analysts of JP Morgan said in a note. Chipmakers exposed to the struggling automotive, industrial, and consumer chip markets such as STMicro, Texas Instruments, or NXP have faced a multi-year long sales slump since the pandemic's end, hit by low demand, high inventories, and geopolitical disruptions. Analysts had raised concerns after U.S.' Texas Instruments forecast a dour fourth quarter on Wednesday, with sales falling more than expected. STMicro's third quarter results were lifted by stronger sales of imaging sensors and microcontrollers, but weakness in power and discrete products for cars and factories hurt results. "Our strategic priorities remain clear: accelerating innovation; executing our company-wide program to reshape our manufacturing footprint" STMicroelectronics' STMicro's chief executive Jean-Marc Chery said in a statement. The Franco-Italian firm also trimmed its capital expenditure plans for the year of 2025, citing current market conditions as a reason. STMicro's capex plan is now slightly below $2 billion, from a range of 2$ to $2.3 previously. The firm also said its cost-cutting plan "remains on schedule" after it faced opposition in Italy over its implementation. (Reporting by Nathan Vifflin in Gdansk; editing by Matt Scuffham)

(The article has been published through a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has been published verbatim. Liability lies with original publisher.)