10 things you need to know this morning in Australia

Hello team, hope you had good weekends.

Google says it will pull Search out of Australia if the government doesn't back down on the media bargaining code

Google Australia boss Melanie Silva has told a Senate Committee that the company could pull its search engine out of Australia. The threat comes as the tech giant demands the Australian government change proposed legislation that would compel it to pay local news companies.

Scott Morrison says the cap on international arrivals will stay halved until February, despite the backlog of Australians stranded overseas

The cap on international travelers allowed into Australia is unlikely to be lifted before mid-February, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said today. Australia slashed the number of international arrivals it will accept earlier this month, owing to concerns about a new and highly virulent coronavirus strain.

Victorians in all but one Greater Sydney region are now allowed to return home after changes to the travel permit system

Victoria has again revised its travel permit system, downgrading all but one Greater Sydney local government area to an 'orange' zone. People from across the Greater Sydney region, excluding those in the Cumberland local government area, will be permitted to enter Victoria from 6pm Friday.

'Undoing that good work': Advocates are pointing to the damage that could be done if the government doesn't extend JobSeeker

The federal government should permanently boost the JobSeeker payment despite promising new employment figures, says the Australian Council of Social Service (ACOSS).

'Just get over the marijuana stigma': The benefits of building houses with hemp, according to experts

Industrial hemp - a cannabis plant with very low concentrations of psychoactive chemical THC - can be used to build houses and has several benefits.

Facebook and Amazon were the top spenders in lobbying efforts in 2020: Report

Alphabet Inc. and Apple were also among the top spenders in lobbying in 2020, the analysis revealed. The expenditures are only part of the efforts by the tech giants to earn goodwill in Washington.

Bitcoin whales: what are they – and how are they affecting the cryptocurrency's price?

There are around 1,000 individuals, known as whales, who own 40% of the market. Whales have the potential to manipulate the currency valuations.

A hotel in Aruba is offering workstations on the beach for digital nomads — see the setup

Boardwalk Boutique Hotel in Aruba has created two outdoor workstations for the digital nomad crowd. The hotel can also set up indoor work stations in a guest's booked room, or casitas.

Sex toys for men are becoming smarter and more innovative with technology – here's how

Over the last few decades, attitudes towards sex toys have changed. The once shameful vibrator hidden at the back of your sock drawer has burst into the mainstream. Not only have sex toys become more readily accepted, they've become an essential component of people's sex lives.

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