Apple
Fortnite Reveals New In-Game Concert Series Amid Bitter Legal Battle with Apple
The wildly popular battle royale mass multiplayer game Fortnite has been continually collaborating with musicians such as Marshmello, Diplo, and Travis Scott, pushing the envelope of what’s really possible within the world of video games. Fortnite has now announced a brand new concert series within its “Party Royale” mode to kick off with singer and rapper Dominic Fike, but users hoping to stream the shows via their Apple devices may find themselves royally peeved. Amid a bitter legal battle stemming from Apple’s accusation that Fortnite creator Epic Games introduced its own in-app payment system to circumvent the tech giant’s 30% transaction fee on all digital payments, Fortnite is currently unavailable on th...
Apple announces September 15 date for online iPhone 12 reveal event
Despite acknowledging that this year’s iPhone launches will be delayed by a few weeks relative to their traditional late September street dates, Apple isn’t stopping the hype train from leaving the station this month. The company announced today that a media event will indeed take place on September 15, roughly a week after its typical iPhone and Apple Watch debuts, setting the stage for new devices to arrive in October. Like the company’s WWDC20 developers’ conference, this event will be virtual rather than in-person, and livestreamed online for immediate viewing across the globe. The stream will start at 10 a.m. Pacific Time (1 p.m. Eastern) on Apple.com for viewing through browsers, as well as the TV apps on iOS, iPadOS, and tvOS devices. Apple is expected to announce the iPhone 12 fami...
Apple will seek damages from Epic Games for breach of App Store contract
Apple will seek damages against Epic Games for allegedly breaching its contract with the iOS App Store, in a new escalation of the two companies’ ongoing legal fight. The allegation was entered on Tuesday, alongside counterclaims for unjust enrichment and tortious interference with Apple’s relationship with its customers. Apple is seeking monetary damages as part of the claim, although the precise amount is not specified in the filing. “By all accounts, Epic has taken advantage of Apple’s support and services more than any other app developer for the past two years,” the filing reads. “But sometime before June 2020, things changed. Epic decided that it would like to reap the benefits of the App Store without paying anything for them.” Apple declined to comment beyond the filing. Apple has ...
Apple Reportedly Rejects Plans for New Facebook Feature
Facebook has revealed that Apple has rejected its plan to tell app users that “the iPhone maker would take a 30% cut of sales in a new online events feature, forcing Facebook to remove the message,” reports Reuters. Apple claims that such a message within the new feature, which would allow users to purchase buy tickets to online events, violates an App Store rule that prevents developers from showing users irrelevant information. Image sourced from The Verge In an official statement, Facebook says “Now more than ever, we should have the option to help people understand where the money they intend for small businesses actually goes. Unfortunately, Apple rejected our transparency notice around their 30 per cent tax but we are still working to make that information available inside the app ex...
Fortnite’s Season Update will not Release on Apple Devices
Epic Games has confirmed that its newest Fornite season will not be available to Apple gamers. In an official statement, the game developer says that Apple is blocking said updates. “Apple is blocking Fortnite updates and new installs on the App Store, and has said they will terminate our ability to develop Fortnite for Apple devices. As a result, Fortnite’s newly released Chapter 2 – Season 4 update (v14.00), will not release on iOS and macOS on August 27.” And that’s not all, Epic Games confirmed to The Verge that “players on iPhone, iPad, and Mac will also lose cross-play Fortnite multiplayer with non-Apple platforms”. This comes in the midst of a massive brawl between the two companies over in-app payments and Apple alleged App Store monopoly. /* custom css */ .tdi_3_111.td-a-rec-img{ ...
Epic Games’ Attempt to Restore Fortnite on App Store Fails
Epic Games was hit with a set back after a US District Court Judge denied its motion to restore Fortnite to the iOS App Store. The popular game was removed after Epic Games launched a sneaky update that allowed it to dodge revenue sharing with Apple. Apple retaliated by pulling the game from its App Store and blocking access to Unreal Engine. Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ruled that “the game will remain off the App Store unless Epic Games attempted to bring it back in accordance with App Store guidelines,” reports TechCrunch. However, it’s not all bad news for the game developer. The Judge also ruled that “Apple can’t retaliate against Epic Games by blocking the gaming firm’s developer accounts or restrict developers on Apple platforms from accessing Unreal Engine.” /* custom css */ .tdi_3...
Microsoft Sides with Epic Games in Fight with Apple
Microsoft has put its weight behind Epic Games during its ongoing feud with Apple. The tech company says that Apple’s App Store created barriers and tolls – and these are even more serious than “Microsoft’s own Windows ever did when the company was found guilty of violating US antitrust laws.” This comes after Epic Games launched a sneaky Fortnite update that allowed it to dodge revenue sharing with the tech company. Apple retaliated by pulling the game from its App Store and limiting the game developers acces to key graphics technology. “The graphics technology, known as Unreal Engine, is a suite of software used by millions of developers to build 3D games and other products. Cutting off Epic from Apple’s iOS and Mac developer tools would mean the gaming company can no longer distribute U...
Apple could Offset Expensive 5G iPhone Tech with Cheaper Battery Parts
Apple analyst, Ming-Chi Kuo reports that the tech company is looking at “cheaper and less complex battery technology” to offset the cost of pricey 5G components. Kuo told investors that “Apple is reducing the number of layers in the battery board and placing cell components in a smaller area” – something that The Verge believes will result in a “battery board that’s 40 to 50 percent cheaper than the iPhone 11’s equivalent part”. Apple Might Ditch the Charger and EarPods When Shipping 5G iPhones Apple may no longer include a power adapter and EarPods with new iPhones claims Kuo. Starting with 2020’s iPhone range, Kuo believes that Apple will ditch the accessories in an attempt to offset the cost increases that come with upgrading the iPhone range to 5G – noting that the company wants t...
Internet celebrity Mompha files N5 million suit against EFCC over ‘unlawful arrest, detention’
An Internet personality, Ismaila Mustapha, popularly called Mompha, on Tuesday filed a suit seeking to compel the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to pay him N5 million as damages for alleged unlawful re-arrest and detention. Newsmen report that Mustapha, who is facing a N32 billion fraud charge, was re-arrested on Friday, (Aug.14) by the EFCC. He was re-arrested when he went to the EFCC Office, Ikoyi, Lagos, to reclaim his five wristwatches, one Apple airpod, one iPhone, eight mobile phones and one pair of sunglasses seized from him by the anti-graft agency in 2019. The visit followed a ruling given by Justice Mohammed Liman on July 24, in which the judge ordered the release of the seized items on the grounds that the EFCC did not list them as exhibits in court. In the suit...
Beats 1 Radio Is No More, Say Hello To Apple Music 1 & Two New Radio Stations
Source: Apple / Apple Music Radio Apple’s Beats 1 Radio is getting a swift rebrand and two new stations the tech company announced Tuesday (aug.18). The company that Jobs built said goodbye to Beats 1 radio, well just the name and today revealed the renaming of its flagship radio station to Apple Music 1. The decision is a no brainer as Apple continues to transition away from the Beats branding, which could only be found on the then-named Beats 1 station on the Apple Music Service. The station is described by Apple as “one of the most-listened-to radio stations in the world.” Along with the name change, Apple revealed it will be launching new stations as well. One of them being Apple Music Hits, which will give listeners who enjoy bopping to hit records strictly from the ’80s, ’90s, and 20...
Stock market volatility hits Norway’s sovereign wealth fund
Norway’s Central Bank on Tuesday said its pension fund lost 188 billion kroner ( 21 billion dollars equivalent) in the first half of 2020 amid stock market volatility during the coronavirus pandemic. The bank said the return on the sovereign wealth fund fell by 3.4 per cent during the January-to-June period. The Deputy Chief Executive of Norges Bank Investment Management, Trond Grande, said there were major fluctuations in the equity market. “The year started with optimism, but the outlook of the equity market quickly turned when the coronavirus started to spread globally. “The sharp decline in global stock markets during the first quarter is, however, limited by a massive monetary and financial policy response. “Even though markets recovered well in the second quarter, we are still witnes...
#FreeFortnite: Epic Games Claps Back At Apple & Google By Suing Both Companies
Source: Fortnite / Epic Games Thursday (Aug.13), the gaming community was thrown for a loop after Apple decided to boot Fortnite from its App store. Not too soon after, Google followed suit removing the highly-addictive game from its Google Play store. Now the game studio has clapped back at both tech giants. #FreeFortnite, that’s what Epic Games is screaming after both companies were not feeling the fact the studio decided it was tired of paying the 30% revenue cut both Apple and Google get for in-game purchases. The decision to remove Fornite from the App Store and Google Play Store came immediately after Epic Games announced that players will get a 20% discount when they purchase the game’s in-game currency, V-Bucks, directly from the Epic Games store. Defending its decision, Google sta...
