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Rabu, 09 Oktober 2019

Google is reportedly working on a 5G Pixel phone - Android Police

Google's new hardware lineup has been leaked to death ahead of its official unveiling, and with less than a week to go, new rumors keep coming. According to a new and not entirely surprising report, Google is planning a 5G Pixel device that it may or may not reveal at its October 15 hardware event.

Nikkei Asian Review's sources tell the publication that this 5G phone is already in test production. The sources didn't pin down release timing — the phone will either be announced alongside the regular Pixel 4 and 4 XL next week or in Spring 2020 with "a budget Pixel phone" (presumably the Pixel 4a).

The announcement of a 5G Pixel next week would mark the first device from an American company to support the new wireless standard. Even if the phone comes next spring, that'd still probably be the case; Apple, the only other American company likely to release a 5G phone in the near future, announces its new iPhones in the fall.

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https://www.androidpolice.com/2019/10/09/pixel-5g-rumor/

2019-10-09 12:25:00Z
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Blizzard, a Gaming Company, Stirs a Backlash for Penalizing Hong Kong Player - The New York Times

HONG KONG — Activision Blizzard became the latest American company to find itself caught between its business interests in China and the values of its core customers after it suspended an e-sports player who voiced support for the Hong Kong protests during a live broadcast.

The decision to suspend Chung Ng Wai, a professional Hearthstone player in Hong Kong, for a year, while forcing him to forfeit a reported $10,000 in prize money, prompted a backlash in the United States similar to the public relations debacle the N.B.A. has faced this week. Gamers posted angrily on social media and in forums, while politicians saw it as another troubling sign of China’s chilling clampdown on speech worldwide.

“Recognize what’s happening here. People who don’t live in #China must either self censor or face dismissal & suspensions,” Senator Marco Rubio, Republican of Florida, wrote on Twitter. “China using access to market as leverage to crush free speech globally.”

Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon, a Democrat, concurred, saying on Twitter that Activision Blizzard showed “it is willing to humiliate itself to please the Chinese Communist Party.”

“No American company should censor calls for freedom to make a quick buck,” he said.

Activision Blizzard, which has created some of the most popular games in e-sports, including Overwatch and World of Warcraft, said Mr. Chung had run afoul of a rule barring players from any act that “brings you into public disrepute, offends a portion or group of the public, or otherwise damages” the company’s image.

In a post-match interview with the Taiwan stream of Hearthstone, Mr. Chung, who is known as Blitzchung, appeared with ballistic goggles and a gas mask, protective gear often worn by protesters during demonstrations in Hong Kong. Mr. Chung shouted in Mandarin: “Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our times,” a popular slogan of the protesters.

Mr. Chung did not respond to an interview request on Wednesday. But in a chat with fans on Tuesday on Twitch, a live-streaming service, he expressed no regret.

“Today, what I have lost in Hearthstone is four years of time,” he said, referring to the years he spent playing the game. “But if Hong Kong loses, it would be the matter of a lifetime.”

In the second quarter of 2019, Activision Blizzard earned $173 million from the Asia Pacific region, about 12 percent of its $1.4 billion worldwide total revenues.

Blizzard did not respond to a request for comment on Wednesday.

Several companies have recently apologized after offending Chinese sensitivities, or have pre-emptively self-censored to ensure that they do not lose access to the lucrative Chinese market.

This week, the N.B.A. was forced onto a tightrope after Daryl Morey, the general manager of the Houston Rockets, tweeted support of the Hong Kong protests. An initial statement from the N.B.A. was widely seen as insufficiently supportive of Mr. Morey, prompting accusations that the league was more interested in its Chinese business interests than supporting free speech.

Last week’s “South Park” episodes mocked Chinese censors and American businesses that compromise their values for the Chinese market, causing the show to be pulled from Chinese platforms.

It was not yet clear what commercial impact the backlash to Blizzard would have, but many of its users reacted strongly. Threads on Reddit forums dedicated to Blizzard games lit up with criticism, while calls to boycott the company or cancel subscriptions spread throughout Twitter.

One person to cancel his World of Warcraft subscription was Mark Kern, who led the team that created the game.

In an interview, Mr. Kern said China was a major source of revenue for the gaming industry, and he knew he was “closing many doors” careerwise by speaking out on Twitter.

But Mr. Kern, who lived in Hong Kong as a teenager, said the company’s actions were “a deterioration of Blizzard values that really broke my heart.”

“It’s one thing to stay out of politics in games, quite another to take harsh, punitive actions designed to appease a government whose values are against what Blizzard has traditionally stood for,” he said.

Patrick Chow, 20, who works at an e-sports stadium in Hong Kong, said he used to play Hearthstone a lot but would immediately stop playing Blizzard games. He said Mr. Chung had the right to use his influence to help the people of Hong Kong, and that the company shouldn’t have “controlled the player’s freedom of speech.”

“It breaks my impression of Blizzard,” he said.

Tiffany May contributed reporting.

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https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/09/world/asia/blizzard-hearthstone-hong-kong.html

2019-10-09 09:14:00Z
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Overwatch's Mei Is Becoming A Symbol Of The Hong Kong Resistance - Kotaku

After Chung “Blitzchung” Ng Wai called for the liberation of Hong Kong, Blizzard suspended the Hearthstone player and withheld any prize money. The decision has been widely criticized. Fans have now started posting images of Overwatch hero Mei supporting the Hong Kong protests as a show of solidarity.

In Overwatch, Mei hails from Xi’an, China. By turning her into a symbol of the Hong Kong resistance, fans are showing the character standing up to Chinese rule while thumbing their noses at Blizzard.

Photoshops originated on r/HongKong (here and here) with Redditors encouraging each other to share the images. Twitter users have also been uploading images.

Mei isn’t the only Overwatch character being used to show support for the Hong Kong protests.

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https://kotaku.com/overwatchs-mei-is-becoming-a-symbol-of-the-hong-kong-re-1838899963

2019-10-09 09:00:00Z
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Samsung Issues Critical Galaxy And Note Warning For 40 Million Users - Forbes

Samsung confirms multiple Galaxy smartphone vulnerabilities

SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

Samsung has this week confirmed security vulnerabilities that affect Galaxy S8, S9, S10, S10e, S10 Plus, S10 5G, Note 9, Note 10 and Note 10 Plus users. Amongst these is a critical vulnerability and three that are rated as "high." In all, there are some 21 security issues covered; 17 related to Samsung's "One" user interface and four concerning Android. Here’s what you need to know and what you need to do now.

Let's look at the Android vulnerabilities first

You can read about the Google Android vulnerabilities in this report from Kate O'Flaherty on Forbes. The patches to fix these, including a critical rated vulnerability, started rolling out to Google phone users on October 8, and the advice is to update as soon as possible.

The Samsung Galaxy specific security warnings

The latest Samsung security maintenance release (SMR) has also now started to roll out to users of Galaxy devices across the product range. The October SMR includes patches from Google, which affect Galaxy 10 users as well as those with earlier devices from Samsung. There are also a whole bunch of vulnerabilities that specifically impact Galaxy 8 and Galaxy 9 device users. Amongst these, there is a Galaxy 9 vulnerability that is rated as being critical: SVE-2019-15435. This affects both the Galaxy S9 and Note 9, although details are sketchy as to the exact technical nature of the vulnerability as it has been "privately disclosed" to protect users until patches are installed. With around 30 million Galaxy 9 smartphones sold, and another 10 million Galaxy Note 9 devices, that's a potential 40 million users who need to take notice of this warning.

What is the critical Galaxy 9 and Note 9 vulnerability?

What is known about SVE-2019-15435? As I say, not a lot. The only information that Samsung has published is as follows: "Enhancement in IMEI security mechanism is required for improved protection against potential IMEI manipulation." It has been suggested this relates to a method of circumventing the IMEI blacklist which prevents stolen devices from being easily resold. Anything that gets around this kind of protection makes the devices involved more attractive to criminals who could get a better profit by selling them on with a "clean" IMEI number.

Should you update now?

While, just as with updates for Microsoft Windows that have a history of going wrong, Samsung updates are not always perfect, you should still update as soon as possible. Putting off installing the latest updates means your smartphone remains vulnerable. Once vulnerabilities are disclosed, it doesn't take long for the criminals to get cracking and hacking, with exploits tailored to each. You know what you need to do.

And talking of security improvements here's one that Samsung might include with the Galaxy S11 that could leave the Apple iPhone 11 eating dust.

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https://www.forbes.com/sites/daveywinder/2019/10/09/samsung-issues-critical-galaxy-and-note-warning-for-40-million-users/

2019-10-09 05:23:37Z
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Blizzard strips pro gamer of tournament earnings after his support for Hong Kong protests - CNBC

A group of friends playing Hearthstone at Blizzcon.

Noah Smith | The Washington Post | Getty Images

Activision Blizzard suspended a professional player from an esports tournament and stripped him of his earnings after he made a statement over the weekend in support of protests in Hong Kong.

In a post-match interview on the Taiwanese stream of Blizzard Entertainment game Hearthstone, Chung "Blitzchung" Ng Wai wore a gas mask and goggles and appeared to shout a slogan often associated with Hong Kong protesters: "Liberate Hong Kong, revolution of our time."

On Saturday, a ban on face masks went into effect after Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam invoked emergency powers. The global financial center has been slammed with four months of protests, which periodically degenerated into violence. The destruction of property and infrastructure has taken a toll on the embattled city and its trade-reliant economy, which has already taken a hit from the ongoing U.S.-China tariff fight.

In a statement to esports blog Inven Global, Chung said that the incident "was just another form of participation of the protest that I wish to grab more attention."

"I know what my action on stream means. It could cause me lot of trouble, even my personal safety in real life. But I think it's my duty to say something about the issue," Chung said in a statement to Inven Global.

Chung's comments during the stream sparked swift action from Blizzard, a subsidiary of Santa Monica, California-based Activision Blizzard.

"Effective immediately, Blitzchung is removed from Grandmasters and will receive no prizing for Grandmasters Season 2. Additionally, Blitzchung is ineligible to participate in Hearthstone esports for 12 months beginning from Oct. 5th, 2019 and extending to Oct. 5th, 2020. We will also immediately cease working with both casters," Blizzard said in a Tuesday statement.

The game publisher said Chung violated its competition rules, emphasizing that it was "individual behavior which does not represent Blizzard or Hearthstone Esports." As a result, Blizzard said it took down video replay of the match, during which Chung shouted the protest slogan.

"While we stand by one's right to express individual thoughts and opinions, players and other participants that elect to participate in our esports competitions must abide by the official competition rules," the firm said.

Activision Blizzard's Nasdaq-traded shares dropped 2.31% in Tuesday's session amid a wider market selloff. They edged into a further decline in extended trading.

Blizzard said Chung violated the following rule:

Engaging in any act that, in Blizzard's sole discretion, brings you into public disrepute, offends a portion or group of the public, or otherwise damages Blizzard image will result in removal from Grandmasters and reduction of the player's prize total to $0 USD, in addition to other remedies which may be provided for under the Handbook and Blizzard's Website Terms.

U.S. politicians weighed in on the issue, with Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., saying in a Tuesday tweet: "Recognize what's happening here. People who don't live in #China must either self censor or face dismissal & suspensions."

Chung's suspension comes after a similar incident rocked the NBA, highlighting the challenges foreign companies face while operating within the world's second largest economy. As businesses look for opportunity in China, they often can't risk upsetting the country's autocratic government.

Chinese state media and tech juggernaut Tencent have announced suspensions of NBA preseason games in China following a since-deleted tweet by Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey where he showed support for the anti-government protests in Hong Kong. Morey quickly drew strong criticism in the world's second largest economy. The NBA is China's most popular sports league.

— Reuters and CNBC's Arjun Kharpal contributed to this report.

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https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/09/blizzard-strips-gamer-of-earnings-after-support-of-hong-kong-protests.html

2019-10-09 04:36:42Z
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Selasa, 08 Oktober 2019

Sony confirms PlayStation 5 name, holiday 2020 release date - The Verge

Sony has confirmed that its next-generation console will be called the PlayStation 5, and it’ll be out next year, launching in time for “Holiday 2020.”

The company also announced several changes that it’ll be making to the controller on the PS5. Chief among those is replacing the current rumble technology that Sony has been using since the original PlayStation for new haptic feedback technology that it promises will offer a “broader range of feedback.”

The other big change that Sony is talking about today is a technology it’s calling “adaptive triggers,” which will go in the primary R2/L2 triggers on the PS5’s controller. According to Sony, developers will be able to “program the resistance of the triggers,” giving the example that you’ll be able to “feel” the increased tension as you draw back a bow or force you to push down with extra pressure if you’re driving through rough terrain. It sounds pretty similar to a Microsoft patent from earlier this year, which detailed a similar trigger system for a future Xbox controller (although it’s unclear if Microsoft is planning to incorporate it in its next-gen Project Scarlett hardware).

Wired got a hands-on preview with a prototype PS5 controller, which it notes looked “an awful lot like the PS4’s DualShock 4,” although Sony isn’t confirming if it’ll call it the DualShock 5 just yet. Wired also confirmed that the PS5’s controller will finally be making the jump to USB-C, as well as other refinements like a larger battery and improved speakers.

In an interview with Wired, Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan and PS5 system architect Mark Cerny gave some additional details about the upcoming hardware. “There is ray-tracing acceleration in the GPU hardware,” Cerny said, clarifying the company’s original announcement of ray-tracing support and allaying concerns that Sony might resort to software tricks to manage it.

The Wired interview also confirms that the PS5 will use standard 100GB Blu-ray discs — Sony had previously confirmed that the console will offer a disc drive — but all games will have to be installed to the internal SSD this time around.

That super-fast SSD is still the biggest update that Sony is showing off, and it says that the installation requirement is due to the speed difference between the optical drive and the internal solid-state one. Sony does promise that the SSD’s improvements to how it reads data means that games will be able to take up less space, though, which should help soften the blow for the mandatory installation requirements. Sony will also let developers break up the installation of their games — say, by installing just the multiplayer components or just the single player campaign — on the PS5.

Also new on the PS5 is a “completely revamped user interface,” that will show off far more detailed social features on the home screen. Sony promises that you’ll be able to see (and launch directly into) specific features of a game, like a single-player level or multiplayer match, directly from the home screen, instead of first having to launch the game and then navigate in.

All this information joins the existing details that Sony has already revealed earlier this year, like the eight-core CPU (which will be based on AMD’s third-gen Ryzen line) and custom GPU based on AMD’s Radeon Navi hardware, “3D audio”, the support for 8K gaming (as well as for 4K gaming at 120Hz), a much lower power consumption option, PS4 backwards compatibility, and that ultra-fast SSD.

There’s still a lot we don’t know, of course, like how much storage Sony will be offering (a question that becomes far more important with mandatory game installation), what kind of VR options there’ll be, or even what the actual hardware will look like or cost. But with the new holiday 2020 release date, it likely won’t be too long before Sony starts giving some answers to those questions, too.

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https://www.theverge.com/2019/10/8/20904351/sony-ps5-playstation-5-confirmed-haptic-feedback-features-release-date-2020

2019-10-08 12:22:58Z
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'Fortnite' company may face class-action lawsuit over claims game as addictive as cocaine - Fox News

The maker of Fortnite may face a class-action lawsuit in Canada after two parents of teenage sons alleged last week the company purposely designed the multiplayer video game to be as addictive as cocaine, according to reports.

16-YEAR-OLD WINS $3 MILLION PLAYING 'FORTNITE'

The Montreal-based law firm, Calex Légal, filed a motion in Quebec Superior Court Thursday on behalf of two parents who approached the firm separately about their 10- and 15-year-old sons, who they claim developed a severe dependence on the game, USA Today reported.

The suit, which has yet to be approved by the court, seeks to hold the U.S.-based video game publisher Epic Games Inc., as well as its Canadian affiliate based in British Columbia, accountable for using psychologists and statisticians “to develop the most addictive game possible.”

“The addiction to the game Fortnite has real consequences on the lives of players, many of whom have developed problems such that they do not eat, do not shower and no longer socialize,” the lawsuit states. “Moreover, rehabilitation centers specifically dedicated to addiction to Fortnite have opened all over the world, particularly in Quebec and Canada, to treat people for addiction.”

Calex Légal attorney Alessandra Esposito Chartrand told the Canadian Global News that the lawsuit stems back to the same legal basis as a Quebec Superior Court ruling in 2015 that determined tobacco companies were responsible for disclosing the health risks of using their products. The lawsuit also noted that the World Health Organization last year declared video game addition, or “gaming disorder,” a disease. The game is free to use but requires players purchase virtual currency to buy accessories and other add-ons for their virtual players.

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“The defendants used the same tactics as the creators of slot machines, or variable reward programs, (to ensure) the dependence of its users,” the lawsuit, which was translated from French, alleges. “Children are particularly vulnerable to this manipulation since their self-control system in the brain is not developed enough.”

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https://www.foxnews.com/tech/fortnite-video-game-lawsuit-addictive-cocaine-canada

2019-10-08 11:08:14Z
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