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Apple Will Remove Thousands of Unlicensed iPhone Games in China

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(Bloomberg) —

Apple Inc. will start removing thousands of mobile games lacking government approval from its App Store in China next month, closing a loophole that the likes of Rockstar Games have relied on for years.

Developers and publishers in China have been told that their iOS games will need licenses to continue operating from July, according to people familiar with the matter. The decision ends the unofficial practice of allowing games to be published while awaiting authorization from the country’s slow-moving regulators.

This has until now allowed games such as Grand Theft Auto, whose gory depictions of violence are unlikely to ever pass muster with Chinese censors, to be available within the country’s borders. China’s regulators require all games that are either paid or offer in-app purchases to submit for review and obtain a license before publication, and major Android app stores have enforced such rules since 2016. But unapproved games have flourished on Apple’s iPhone platform.

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It’s unclear why Apple — a target of numerous regulatory clampdowns in the past — hasn’t moved as swiftly as other app stores in China, which are owned and operated by local mobile giants like Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and Xiaomi Corp.

The latest approvals process took effect in 2019 amid confusion among industry players about the speed with which Beijing, known for months-long content reviews that may or may not lead to a monetization license, would process requests. For its part, Apple has begun ramping up oversight of its Chinese app store, removing two podcast apps earlier this month at China’s request.

Back in February, Apple reminded iOS developers in the country to obtain licenses for their titles by June 30. But it was only after prolonged uncertainty about enforcement that the iPhone maker explicitly told publishers that any unlicensed games after the deadline will be banned and removed from the local App Store, according to the people, who asked not to be identified because the matter is not public.

There’s no telling how long it will take to remove all unlicensed games once the change comes into effect. Chinese gaming blog Gamelook earlier reported Apple’s upcoming enforcement.

An Apple representative declined to comment.

China accounted for about a fifth of the $61 billion in digital goods and services sold via Apple’s App Store in 2019, making it the largest market after the U.S., the Analysis Group estimates. Apple takes a 30% cut from the majority of such transactions.

There are roughly 60,000 games on China’s iOS App Store that are either paid or contain in-app purchases, and at least a third of them don’t have a license, according to an estimate by AppInChina, which helps companies localize and publish their apps in the country.

“These companies will suddenly lose all revenue from what is typically their second-largest market after the U.S.,” said AppInChina Chief Executive Officer Rich Bishop. His firm received three times its usual volume of enquiries about game licenses over the past week, he added.

Apple’s new effort highlights the Chinese government’s tightening grip on gaming. Citing concerns about the proliferation of addiction among minors and the dissemination of offensive content, regulators now adopt a much stricter and slower review process than before they temporarily halted all approvals in 2018.

While big local players like Tencent Holdings Ltd. and NetEase Inc. have adapted their existing cash cows and can respond to censors’ demands in the development of new games, smaller developers and publishers lack the same resources. Many of them have started attaching a single license to multiple games with similar gameplay, logos or heroes, though the government is aware of the practice and cracking down on it as well.

Imported games are under particularly tight scrutiny, and the App Store loophole served as a last resort for getting some of them distributed in China. Plague Inc., which mimics the spread of an epidemic, had topped the download charts on China’s App Store for weeks during the country’s Covid-19 lockdown. But the unlicensed title was pulled in March after Chinese regulators deemed it to have “illegal” content, according to its developers.

Neither of the remaining options for small game developers appears particularly enticing. They could switch their revenue model to in-app advertising, which is not covered by the same approval process. Or they can team up with big publishers like Tencent to obtain licenses, though that would involve giving up some measure of autonomy, while Tencent itself is more interested in well-known franchises.

 

Source: – Yahoo Finance

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For Practitioners, by Practitioners: Solve Your Software Challenges at InfoQ & QCon Software Events – InfoQ.com

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Behind every InfoQ Dev Summit and QCon software development conference is a collective of distinguished senior software practitioners who carefully curate the topics based on the crucial trends and essential best practices you need to know about. These architects and leaders are charged with creating THE conference they would want to attend.

While some conferences issue calls for papers, InfoQ Dev Summit and QCon hand-select all the speakers. Domain experts individually select each talk for fit and merit. We search for the talks and find the speakers you want to learn from. These are not always the most famous people, but they are often the most compelling voices you’ll find in software.

Once the speakers are found, they undergo multiple interviews (with committee members, track hosts, and the conference chair) and a mandated rehearsal process before speaking at InfoQ Dev Summit and QCon. We offer training webinars, mentorship, and slide/code reviews with past speakers to enhance our speakers’ presentations, so they are sharp by the time they get to you. We take your time and conference investment as seriously as you do. We value the trust you place in us.

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If you’re curious to see what types of talks you’ll find at InfoQ Dev Summit and QCon, take a look at a few recent talks:

  • How Netflix Really Uses Java: At QCon San Francisco 2023, Paul Bakker, Java Platform @Netflix, Java Champion, and Co-Author of “Java 9 Modularity”, explored the current Netflix architecture(s). He provided a deep dive into how and why the architecture evolved the way it did and related this to the evolution of the Netflix Java tech stack.
  • Banking on Thousands of Microservices: Suhail Patel, Staff Engineer @Monzo, shared at QCon London 2023 the lessons he and his team learned from building an online bank. He discussed technological choices, such as using Cassandra and Kubernetes in the early days, and explored how @Monzo has maintained its speed of execution through a focus on platform engineering and developer experience.
  • Why Technical Experience Matters: How to Build a Lifelong Career in Software Development: At QCon London 2023, Sven Reimers, System Engineer @Airbus Defence & Space, shared how you can be a lifelong software developer. He discussed how to have your deep technical expertise valued by the industry and the role you can play in mentoring the next generation.

We believe InfoQ Dev Summit and QCon conferences are special experiences. If you’ve never been before, you owe it to yourself to understand why our conferences are so popular among developers and architects. Come find out why we’ve earned the reputation as a conference of “practitioners talking to practitioners.” You won’t forget the experience.

The upcoming software development conferences for 2024:

P.S. Teams as small as 3 attendees working for the same company are eligible for a group discount. For more details, email info@qconferences.com and mention the conference and size of the group to receive your discount code.

P.S.S. Due to popular demand, we’re extending the early bird dates for InfoQ Dev Summit Boston and Munich by two weeks for InfoQ readers. Save $100 for InfoQ Dev Summit Boston with code LIMITEDOFFERIDSBOSTON24 and €75 for InfoQ Dev Summit Munich with promo code LIMITEDOFFERIDSMUNICH24 when registering. Valid until May 6.

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The Ultimate Recap of Sea Otter 2024 – Pinkbike.com

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Vittoria Releases New Peyote & Mezcal XC Race Tires
Maxxis Team Spec Aspen ST Tire
New DT Swiss 240 DEG Hubs
Kali Protectives’ New Full Face Helmets
Industry Nine’s SOLiX M Hubs & Wheelsets
Michelin’s Aggressive New Wild Enduro Tires
Praxis’ New Flat Pedals, Stem, & Carbon Bottle Cage
Transmission Cage Upgrades from Kogel, Ceramicspeed, and Cascade Components
Randoms Round 1 – Sea Otter 2024
Madrone Cycles’ SRAM Eagle Repair Kits & Prototype Derailleur
Vorsprung’s New Telum Coil Shock
EXT’s Vaia Inverted DH Fork & Updated Coil Shocks
Randoms Round 2: New Tools, Goggles, Grips, Racks, & More – Sea Otter 2024
What’s New in Women’s MTB Apparel at Sea Otter 2024
Even More Randoms – Sea Otter 2024
Randoms Round 3: Dario’s Treasures
What’s New for the Kids at Sea Otter 2024
Deity Releases New Stems, Grips, & Pedals
Dario’s Final Sea Otter Randoms
Brian’s Randoms from Sea Otter 2024

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Videos

With roots dating back to 1991, the Sea Otter Classic is one of the biggest biking events and tradeshows each year and brings together all sides of the biking industry from athletes to brands, spectators and consumers. Taking place in April in the sunny hills of Monterey, California, that means this event really feels like the official start to the biking season in North America. Christina Chappetta covers why it’s much different to an indoor European biking tradeshow, a World Cup racing weekend or even Crankworx mountain bike festival, in that it encompasses nearly ALL of the biking disciplines, including road cycling, enduro, downhill, dual slalom, XC, trials riding and more.

In the past fortnight, we have seen large amount of new tech releases. However, Sea Otter 2024 represents some of the first opportunities for many riders to see these things in the flesh, as well as take a deeper dive into what the product aims to do.
Welcome to a video summary from Day 2 of the Sea Otter Classic.
There are so many giveaways, interesting new products and colourful characters at Sea Otter Classic that it’s hard to stand out from the crowd. Ben Cathro takes a lap of the venue to find his favourites.



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Apple iPad Air 2024: Insider Makes Hasty U-Turn On New Feature – Forbes

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Well, that was quick. On May 18, a respected industry insider predicted a new display technology for the iPad Air that’s expected in the coming days—Apple just announced its latest special event.

The new 12.9-inch iPad Air, the report claimed, would have the same miniLED backlighting currently found on the larger iPad Pro, using the leftover inventory from the current Pro as that model switches to OLED. That was exciting news.

But now, Ross Young, the analyst who made the claim, has changed his mind. The new prediction, shared with paid subscribers only, is that the miniLED technology won’t be coming to the iPad Air, in either size.

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While it made sense that the inventory could be maximized in this way, it now “makes sense” that it won’t.

Young says that while he’d heard from supply chain sources that it would, he’d now had contact from “even more supply chain sources” that it won’t.

And the reason this change of heart now makes sense is that this miniLED technology is expensive, so it would be surprising if it made it to the iPad Air, which is more affordable than the Pro.

That’s not quite all the analyst shared. He also said that there are now reports of a new iPad coming later in the year. This is a 12.9-inch iPad, with miniLED backlighting and it could arrive between October and December this year.

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This is intriguing. What could it be? Assuming that the iPad Pro and iPad Air are released in May, it’s extremely unlikely either will be updated later in the year. And if the iPad Air isn’t pricey enough for miniLED to be included, what tablet could Apple be introducing that is the same size as the bigger Pro, with a pricey screen tech, which would sit between the Air and the Pro, it seems?

Young is highly reliable, but this seems slightly preposterous to me. The only other iPad in the range due a refresh is the regular iPad (at 12.9-inches, the iPad mini is clearly out of the picture) and that doesn’t seem likely either.

It seems to me that any regular iPad will almost certainly have the same screen size as now, 10.9 inches. The regular iPad only grew to this size screen in the current generation, and Apple almost never changes designs after one iteration.

Perhaps things will become clearer as the year goes on.

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