Techmeme
January 16, 2024, 9:50 PM

Top News

Bloomberg:
SCOTUS refuses to hear Apple's and Epic's appeals, allowing an appeals court ruling that lets app developers steer users to other payment systems take effect  —  - Billions of dollars in revenue are at stake for iPhone maker  — Fortnite maker seeks to open App Store to cheaper alternatives
Chance Miller / 9to5Mac:
Apple revises its US App Store rules to let devs link to outside payment methods, but will charge a commission of 27%, or 12% for small business program devs  —  In light of the US Supreme Court denying to hear Apple's appeal in its legal battle with Epic Games, Apple has announced a handful …
Engadget:
Apple Vision Pro hands-on: eye and hand tracking are very accurate, but typing is frustrating, the killer app is watching movies, can feel heavy after 15+ min  —  We got hands-on with the device once more before its official launch, with some new features available to test this time.
Joe Rossignol / MacRumors:
Apple details select streaming and sports apps available on Vision Pro at launch, including Disney+, ESPN, MLB, PGA, Max, and TikTok; some will have 3D movies  —  Apple today revealed various streaming services and sports apps that will be available on the Vision Pro at launch, including Disney+ …
Zac Hall / 9to5Mac:
FCC filings seem to indicate Apple Vision Pro will not support Ultra Wideband, Wi-Fi 6E, or Wi-Fi 7  —  If you were hoping for Ultra Wideband and Wi-Fi 6E or 7 chips in Apple Vision Pro, well, those are very specific expectations.  Also, Apple Vision Pro appears to lack those chips, based on the official FCC filing from today.
Jason Koebler / 404 Media:
A study monitoring product review queries on Google, Bing, and DuckDuckGo for a year suggests that search engines are losing the cat-and-mouse game of SEO spam  —  “The majority of high-ranking product reviews in the result pages of commercial search engines use affiliate marketing …
Sander Lutz / Decrypt:
The Treasury and IRS say they aren't enforcing a rule requiring businesses to report the receipt of digital assets worth $10K+ within 15 days of receiving them  —  The tax law would require business-related crypto transactions over $10,000 to be reported like cash, but it's not quite ready yet.
Christopher Dring / GamesIndustry.biz:
Ubisoft rebrands its $18/month tier as Ubisoft+ Premium and adds Ubisoft+ Classics on PC; executive Philippe Tremblay says Ubisoft has “millions” of subscribers  —  Ubisoft introduces its Classic service to PC; and ‘more to come’ on Activision Blizzard  —  Feature by Christopher Dring Head of Games B2B
Bloomberg:
OpenAI VP Anna Makanju says the company is developing tools with the US DOD on open-source software and held talks on ways to assist preventing veteran suicide  —  OpenAI is working with the Pentagon on a number of projects including cybersecurity capabilities, a departure from the startup's earlier ban …
Kyle Wiggers / TechCrunch:
OpenAI forms a Collective Alignment team to design a process for collecting and using input from the public “to train and shape the behavior of our models”  —  OpenAI says it wants to implement ideas from the public about how to ensure its future AI models “align to the values of humanity.”
Joanna Glasner / Crunchbase News:
In 2023, US metaverse VC funding was ~$910M, the lowest in at least six years and below a $3.11B peak in 2021; no consumer metaverse US startup raised $100M+  —  Almost nobody these days is spending much leisure time in the metaverse.  Additionally, almost no investors are backing fresh rounds …
More: KnowTechie and Bloomberg
Dean Takahashi / VentureBeat:
Magic Leap's CEO and CTO talk about the future of the company, as a filing shows it received $590M in debt funding from Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund  —  Magic Leap announced in a filing that Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund has poured another $590 million in debt funding into the mixed reality headset maker.
Joann Muller / Axios:
Uber is working with Tesla to urge its drivers to switch to EVs in a bid to be emissions-free in the US and Canada by 2030, including by sharing trip data  —  Uber is working with Tesla to encourage its drivers to switch to electric vehicles (EVs) as part of its broader goal to be emissions-free …

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More News

Reuters:
Will Nelson / PCGamesN:

Earlier Picks

Thomas Seal / Bloomberg:
IDC:
Zheping Huang / Bloomberg:
Bloomberg:
Barry Schwartz / Search Engine Land: