Tech

Xbox, Nintendo or PlayStation: does it still matter? – BBC.com

Published

9 months ago

February 16, 2024

Harry Miller

By Zoe Kleinman

BBC

Four Microsoft Xbox video games – and the firm was frustratingly careful not to name them – will now be opened up to alternative platforms for the first time, boss Phil Spencer announced to the world last night.

He gave only a couple of clues: all four are community-driven, more than one year old, and they do not include recent releases Starfield or Indiana Jones.

This feels like a big change of gear for Microsoft, which has long favoured exclusivity to its own Xbox platform and Games Pass subscription service.

So what’s behind the shift and what does it tell us about the future of gaming?

Let’s start with a 12 year old I know – my son.

He loves Minecraft, and plays it wherever he can. On his phone, on his tablet, on our PlayStation, on his dad’s Xbox. He watches Minecraft videos on YouTube and he uses an unofficial app to create and share skins and mods.

He doesn’t care who owns the game (Microsoft bought the Mojang studio in 2014) and he has no brand loyalty to a particular device – his favourite is whichever one is to hand.

This is what the games giants are up against: a generation of young gamers who don’t buy into their hype.

It appears that Microsoft is starting, very cautiously, to respond to that.

Last night Mr Spencer insisted the four latest games did not signify a fundamental change in the firm’s games strategy.

But then he added: “I have a fundamental belief that in the next five to 10 years, exclusive games, which are exclusive to one piece of hardware, are going to be a smaller and smaller part of the games industry.”

And it’s not just Xbox warming to the idea – there have been similar rumblings from Sony. In a recent earnings call, interim gaming president Hiroki Totoki said that he wanted to put more PlayStation games onto other platforms.

Much like Microsoft, he did not name any particular games, or specific platforms. It is possible he meant the firm would continue with the status quo of putting PlayStation games onto PC several months or even years after their release.

Following years of fierce rivalry between the two firms, and expensive acquisitions of successful games studios producing the most popular games, in an attempt to lock in the best content to their own customers, this is definitely a change of heart (Nintendo meanwhile, still has more of a tendency to keep its games to itself).

The idea of basically turning any device with a screen into your company’s console is blisteringly simple, when you think about it. Why go through the expensive and time-consuming process of building and selling proprietary hardware when so many people are essentially carrying around a high-performance computer already, in the form of their phones?

Why restrict access to your best-selling titles when there’s a vast audience with alternative devices out there who also want to buy them, play them, and pay for in-game extras?

The analysts Ampere estimated that in 2023 there were a total of around 46.5m consoles sold, of which only 7.6m were Microsoft’s Xbox. That leaves nearly 39 million gamers that Xbox exclusives such as the long awaited Starfield from Bethesda, didn’t reach.

You begin to see that this is an old-fashioned business model, with an old-fashioned motive: money.

“The key reason Microsoft has been pursuing a more progressive multi-platform strategy with its games content and services since early in the Xbox One cycle is because it was unable to build on the relative success of the Xbox 360 era and take market share from Sony, and latterly, Nintendo post-the launch of the Switch,” says analyst Piers Harding-Rolls from Ampere.

In addition Microsoft has been busy hoovering up successful games studios for large amounts of cash – at a time when making games is already an expensive business.

Indeed, during its contentious $68bn acquisition of the massive games maker Activision Blizzard, one of Sony’s chief objections was that it could make smash hits like Call of Duty, played by millions on PlayStations, Xbox-exclusives. Microsoft was forced to promise that it would not do so for at least 10 years.

There has even been speculation that Microsoft might be preparing to walk away from the hardware market altogether, abandoning the Xbox console entirely, but Mr Harding-Rolls doesn’t think something that dramatic is on the horizon.

“Ampere does not expect Microsoft to exit the console platform business in the medium term as that would leave a gaping hole in its games-related revenues,” he added.

Indeed, Xbox president Sarah Bond even teased the idea of some brand new hardware in a podcast released by Microsoft on Thursday.

“What we’re really focused on there is delivering the largest technical leap you will have ever seen in a hardware generation,” she said.

Unfortunately, your guess about that at this stage is as good as ours, although the rumour mill is going into overdrive that it could be some kind of handheld device, designed to compete with the huge success of the Nintendo Switch.

In any case Darren Edwards from gaming news website TheXboxHub sums it up neatly: “It’s hardly a doomsday scenario for Xbox.”

As for the games themselves, Microsoft’s preferred gateway is via Games Pass. For £12.99 per month, it offers unlimited streaming access to hundreds of titles.

The firm has been very quiet for a while about subscriber numbers, but tonight revealed it had hit 34m. It launched in 2017 with an ambition to hit 100m by 2030, a goal that still feels some way off, with six years to go.

But it’s still good news for those making games which are on the Games Pass, like the UK-based publisher No More Robots.

“We want as many people on Game Pass as possible, because that naturally leads to more people playing our titles, which is especially useful for multiplayer titles that require larger player counts to keep the community alive,” said director Mike Rose.

Needless to say there are also a lot of relieved Xbox owners on social media right now. Many felt the announcement was an anti-climax after days of anticipation, and it certainly threw up more questions than answers. But at least the message was more business as usual than console bonfire.

One gamer on X summed up the most popular view: “Xbox isn’t going away or going 3rd party. Can we all chill now?”

Additional reporting by Tom Gerken

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Tech

Ottawa orders TikTok’s Canadian arm to be dissolved

Published

3 days ago

November 6, 2024

Anne Joseph

The federal government is ordering the dissolution of TikTok’s Canadian business after a national security review of the Chinese company behind the social media platform, but stopped short of ordering people to stay off the app.

Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne announced the government’s “wind up” demand Wednesday, saying it is meant to address “risks” related to ByteDance Ltd.’s establishment of TikTok Technology Canada Inc.

“The decision was based on the information and evidence collected over the course of the review and on the advice of Canada’s security and intelligence community and other government partners,” he said in a statement.

The announcement added that the government is not blocking Canadians’ access to the TikTok application or their ability to create content.

However, it urged people to “adopt good cybersecurity practices and assess the possible risks of using social media platforms and applications, including how their information is likely to be protected, managed, used and shared by foreign actors, as well as to be aware of which country’s laws apply.”

Champagne’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment seeking details about what evidence led to the government’s dissolution demand, how long ByteDance has to comply and why the app is not being banned.

A TikTok spokesperson said in a statement that the shutdown of its Canadian offices will mean the loss of hundreds of well-paying local jobs.

“We will challenge this order in court,” the spokesperson said.

“The TikTok platform will remain available for creators to find an audience, explore new interests and for businesses to thrive.”

The federal Liberals ordered a national security review of TikTok in September 2023, but it was not public knowledge until The Canadian Press reported in March that it was investigating the company.

At the time, it said the review was based on the expansion of a business, which it said constituted the establishment of a new Canadian entity. It declined to provide any further details about what expansion it was reviewing.

A government database showed a notification of new business from TikTok in June 2023. It said Network Sense Ventures Ltd. in Toronto and Vancouver would engage in “marketing, advertising, and content/creator development activities in relation to the use of the TikTok app in Canada.”

Even before the review, ByteDance and TikTok were lightning rod for privacy and safety concerns because Chinese national security laws compel organizations in the country to assist with intelligence gathering.

Such concerns led the U.S. House of Representatives to pass a bill in March designed to ban TikTok unless its China-based owner sells its stake in the business.

Champagne’s office has maintained Canada’s review was not related to the U.S. bill, which has yet to pass.

Canada’s review was carried out through the Investment Canada Act, which allows the government to investigate any foreign investment with potential to might harm national security.

While cabinet can make investors sell parts of the business or shares, Champagne has said the act doesn’t allow him to disclose details of the review.

Wednesday’s dissolution order was made in accordance with the act.

The federal government banned TikTok from its mobile devices in February 2023 following the launch of an investigation into the company by federal and provincial privacy commissioners.

— With files from Anja Karadeglija in Ottawa

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2024.

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Health

Here is how to prepare your online accounts for when you die

Published

2 weeks ago

October 24, 2024

Anne Joseph

LONDON (AP) — Most people have accumulated a pile of data — selfies, emails, videos and more — on their social media and digital accounts over their lifetimes. What happens to it when we die?

It’s wise to draft a will spelling out who inherits your physical assets after you’re gone, but don’t forget to take care of your digital estate too. Friends and family might treasure files and posts you’ve left behind, but they could get lost in digital purgatory after you pass away unless you take some simple steps.

Here’s how you can prepare your digital life for your survivors:

Apple

The iPhone maker lets you nominate a “ legacy contact ” who can access your Apple account’s data after you die. The company says it’s a secure way to give trusted people access to photos, files and messages. To set it up you’ll need an Apple device with a fairly recent operating system — iPhones and iPads need iOS or iPadOS 15.2 and MacBooks needs macOS Monterey 12.1.

For iPhones, go to settings, tap Sign-in & Security and then Legacy Contact. You can name one or more people, and they don’t need an Apple ID or device.

You’ll have to share an access key with your contact. It can be a digital version sent electronically, or you can print a copy or save it as a screenshot or PDF.

Take note that there are some types of files you won’t be able to pass on — including digital rights-protected music, movies and passwords stored in Apple’s password manager. Legacy contacts can only access a deceased user’s account for three years before Apple deletes the account.

Google

Google takes a different approach with its Inactive Account Manager, which allows you to share your data with someone if it notices that you’ve stopped using your account.

When setting it up, you need to decide how long Google should wait — from three to 18 months — before considering your account inactive. Once that time is up, Google can notify up to 10 people.

You can write a message informing them you’ve stopped using the account, and, optionally, include a link to download your data. You can choose what types of data they can access — including emails, photos, calendar entries and YouTube videos.

There’s also an option to automatically delete your account after three months of inactivity, so your contacts will have to download any data before that deadline.

Facebook and Instagram

Some social media platforms can preserve accounts for people who have died so that friends and family can honor their memories.

When users of Facebook or Instagram die, parent company Meta says it can memorialize the account if it gets a “valid request” from a friend or family member. Requests can be submitted through an online form.

The social media company strongly recommends Facebook users add a legacy contact to look after their memorial accounts. Legacy contacts can do things like respond to new friend requests and update pinned posts, but they can’t read private messages or remove or alter previous posts. You can only choose one person, who also has to have a Facebook account.

You can also ask Facebook or Instagram to delete a deceased user’s account if you’re a close family member or an executor. You’ll need to send in documents like a death certificate.

TikTok

The video-sharing platform says that if a user has died, people can submit a request to memorialize the account through the settings menu. Go to the Report a Problem section, then Account and profile, then Manage account, where you can report a deceased user.

Once an account has been memorialized, it will be labeled “Remembering.” No one will be able to log into the account, which prevents anyone from editing the profile or using the account to post new content or send messages.

It’s not possible to nominate a legacy contact on Elon Musk’s social media site. But family members or an authorized person can submit a request to deactivate a deceased user’s account.

Passwords

Besides the major online services, you’ll probably have dozens if not hundreds of other digital accounts that your survivors might need to access. You could just write all your login credentials down in a notebook and put it somewhere safe. But making a physical copy presents its own vulnerabilities. What if you lose track of it? What if someone finds it?

Instead, consider a password manager that has an emergency access feature. Password managers are digital vaults that you can use to store all your credentials. Some, like Keeper,Bitwarden and NordPass, allow users to nominate one or more trusted contacts who can access their keys in case of an emergency such as a death.

But there are a few catches: Those contacts also need to use the same password manager and you might have to pay for the service.

___

Is there a tech challenge you need help figuring out? Write to us at onetechtip@ap.org with your questions.

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Tech

Google’s partnership with AI startup Anthropic faces a UK competition investigation

Published

2 weeks ago

October 24, 2024

Anne Joseph

LONDON (AP) — Britain’s competition watchdog said Thursday it’s opening a formal investigation into Google’s partnership with artificial intelligence startup Anthropic.

The Competition and Markets Authority said it has “sufficient information” to launch an initial probe after it sought input earlier this year on whether the deal would stifle competition.

The CMA has until Dec. 19 to decide whether to approve the deal or escalate its investigation.

“Google is committed to building the most open and innovative AI ecosystem in the world,” the company said. “Anthropic is free to use multiple cloud providers and does, and we don’t demand exclusive tech rights.”

San Francisco-based Anthropic was founded in 2021 by siblings Dario and Daniela Amodei, who previously worked at ChatGPT maker OpenAI. The company has focused on increasing the safety and reliability of AI models. Google reportedly agreed last year to make a multibillion-dollar investment in Anthropic, which has a popular chatbot named Claude.

Anthropic said it’s cooperating with the regulator and will provide “the complete picture about Google’s investment and our commercial collaboration.”

“We are an independent company and none of our strategic partnerships or investor relationships diminish the independence of our corporate governance or our freedom to partner with others,” it said in a statement.

The U.K. regulator has been scrutinizing a raft of AI deals as investment money floods into the industry to capitalize on the artificial intelligence boom. Last month it cleared Anthropic’s $4 billion deal with Amazon and it has also signed off on Microsoft’s deals with two other AI startups, Inflection and Mistral.

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