Google outlined sustainability commitments Monday, saying by 2020, 100 percent of shipments going to or from customers will be carbon neutral. In 2022, 100 percent of Made by Google products will include recycled materials with a goal to maximize recycled content wherever possible, blogged Anna Meegan, head of sustainability, consumer hardware. Commenting on the pervasiveness of phones, tablets, computers and smart speakers in consumers’ lives, Meegan said building the devices and getting them into consumers’ hands “takes a lot of resources and disposing of our old electronics can create significant waste.” From 2017 to 2018, Google’s carbon emissions for product shipments decreased by 40 percent, she said, and its Power Project will bring 1 million energy-saving Nest thermostats to families in need by 2023. Much of the Nest product portfolio was produced with post-consumer recycled plastic, she said.

Significant fiscal Q1 unit-sales declines in TVs and smartphones prompted Sony Tuesday to downgrade its April sales forecast in its core consumer tech sector by 80 billion yen ($736.5 million) for the fiscal year ending March 31. Sony now expects sales in its Electronics Products and Solutions business to reach 2.16 trillion yen ($19.9 billion) for the year, a 7 percent decline from the previous 12 months. The segment is expected to finish the year with an operating profit of 121 billion yen ($1.1 billion), unchanged from the April forecast and a 58 percent improvement from a year earlier. Sony sold 2 million TVs in Q1 ended June 30, a 23 percent decline from the same year-earlier quarter. It now expects to sell 10.5 million TVs for the year, 500,000 fewer than in its April forecast. That would be a 7 percent decline from the year ended March 31 and a 15 percent decline in the fiscal 12 months ended March 2018. “Thanks to actions we have taken” in the TV business, “such as the launch of new products and price reductions, sales have recovered since June,” said Chief Financial Officer Hiroki Totoki on an earnings call Tuesday. “We continue to pay close attention to changes in the market for panels and the trends for competitive pricing.” Sony sold 900,000 smartphones in Q1, 55 percent fewer than in Q1 a year earlier. It downgraded its April forecast for the year by a million units to 4 million.

Logitech’s global portfolio combines mature businesses with compelling growth stories, wrote Wedbush analyst Michael Pachter in a Wednesday investor note. Logitech “leans in on growth opportunities” such as video collaboration, audio and gaming, “while pulling back on investment in categories faced with stiff competition,” said Pachter, referencing smart home. The company’s global portfolio of mature businesses coupled with compelling growth stories “is driving share gains.” Wedbush raised the price target to $46 from $45, maintaining an "outperform" rating.

Laser-scanning display developer MicroVision raised $2 million by selling 3.04 million shares of common stock to Toronto real-estate developer Shmuel Farhi, said the company Tuesday. MicroVision will use the proceeds for general corporate purposes, it said. Farhi’s purchase price was just over 65 cents a share. The stock closed trading Tuesday unchanged at 70 cents. MicroVision faces a renewed delisting risk under a Nasdaq “delinquency notice” received June 13 after shares sold for under $1 for 30 straight trading days (see 1907190013). MicroVision had $4.6 million cash on hand at the end of Q2, said the company last week.

The Choose Your Own Adventure book series publisher doesn't point to anything explicitly misleading in Netflix's use of a reference to that series in its Black Mirror: Bandersnatch original production, as the 2nd Circuit's Rogers decision requires it to, Netflix said Friday in a court reply (in Pacer). The reply was in support of its motion to dismiss Netflix's amended claim. Chooseco is alleging trademark infringement and unfair competition (see 1901140004). Netflix said the "choose your own adventure" phrase is artistically relevant to Bandersnatch's story and structure. It said the phrase was dialogue in a lengthy work, and was never used to market the film, and there's no likelihood of confusion under the 2nd Circuit's Polaroid. Chooseco outside counsel didn't comment Monday.

Globalstar and Echo Ridge agreed to collaborate and jointly pursue markets for assured positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) technology that can back up or complement GPS, they said Monday. The satellite operator and the engineering consultancy will jointly assess market requirements and uses for an assured PNT service based on augmented positioning system technology. They plan limited trial service this year.

Facebook downplayed Wednesday the amount of access and control it will have over a new cryptocurrency project (see 1906190060). Lawmakers and consumer groups sought a moratorium on the so-called Project Libra. The company has done a lot to “democratize free, unlimited communications for billions of people,” and it wants to do the same with digital money, blogged Calibra Head David Marcus: The key difference this time is Facebook will “relinquish control over the very network and currency we’ve helped create.” The company created the subsidiary Calibra, a virtual wallet service integrated with Libra. Facebook will own and control Calibra but “won’t see financial data from Calibra,” Marcus wrote. Facebook also is only one of 28 founding members that include Mastercard, Visa and PayPal. All members will play a part in naming a managing director and establishing governance rules, Marcus said. The system is designed to limit the power of any single organization, he said. The company is committed to working with lawmakers, central banks and regulators as it prepares to launch the new currency, said Marcus, who will testify before the Senate Banking and House Financial Services committees “in the weeks to come.” Libra's goal is to “bring the world closer together,” he said. Individuals who can’t afford traditional banking services, struggle with meeting minimum balances and can’t afford associated penalties, he said.

The House Financial Services Committee plans a hearing on Facebook’s recently announced cryptocurrency (see 1906190060) at 10 a.m. July 17 in 2128 Rayburn, announced Chair Maxine Waters, D-Calif.

Verizon failed to deliver promised community benefits from a 5G partnership with Sacramento from two years ago, the Communications Workers of America said Monday, releasing a report and launching a website about ensuring such accountability. The deal lacked accountability and transparency, and the 5G network reaches 6 percent of residents, said CWA, citing Moffett Nathanson from March. The carrier isn’t required to build to all parts of the community, so it’s not bridging the city's digital divide, and the agreement didn’t address employment standards and hiring practices, the union said. “It’s clear that Verizon pushed Sacramento into an unfair deal with the promise of being a 5G city,” said District 9 Vice President Tom Runnion. Verizon and other carriers should be held accountable, said The Utility Reform Network Executive Director Mark Toney: “A public-private partnership becomes a corporate giveaway if companies aren't required to provide promised public benefits in exchange for preferred access to infrastructure or other public resources.” A California court last year ruled the deal conflicted with Sacramento's contract with XG Communities (see 1810040048). Verizon and the state capital city didn’t comment.

Samsung is shipping the 2019 QLED Serif lifestyle TV, designed to blur the line between furniture and technology, it said Monday. The $1,599 55-inch TV has an ambient mode, which can display information on time, weather and the day’s headlines, plus photos and customizable design patterns, said Samsung.