Tue. 09/22 – Quibi Is “Exploring Options”
Quibi is exploring its options, as they say. The Google Antitrust suit could come next week. Why do you have to return the entire Apple Watch if your wristband doesn’t fit? The CIA has a new plan to compete with Silicon Valley for talent. The SEC and OCC sign off on stablecoins. And the strategy behind Microsoft’s big play for Bethesda. Sponsors: Amazon.com/techmeme PayPal App Links: Quibi Explores Strategic Options Including Possible Sale (WSJ) Justice Department expected to brief state attorneys general this week on imminent Google antitrust lawsuit (Washington Post) PSA: New Apple Watch Owners Have to Return Entire Device for Ill-Fitting Solo Loop or Braided Solo Loop (MacRumors) A $50 Phone is Ambani's Weapon to Dominate India Telecom Market (Bloomberg) SEC, OCC Issue First Regulatory Clarifications for Stablecoins (CoinDesk) CIA’s new tech recruiting pitch: More patents, more profits (MIT Technology Review) You can now stream your Xbox One games to your Android phone for free (The Verge) Microsoft to Buy Bethesda for $7.5 Billion to Boost Xbox (Bloomberg) Microsoft to acquire Elder Scrolls, Fallout, other hit games in $7.5B deal for Bethesda Softworks parent (GeekWire) Watch a demo of Royole’s new folding phone, on sale today for roughly $1,500 (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
22 Syys 202016min
Mon. 09/21 – ByteDance Says It Won. Trump Says Not So Fast. TikTok Continues… For Now.
It looked like we had a TikTok deal the president liked. Then ByteDance went and pointed out they still had control. Now, I dunno where we’re at. Microsoft buys Bethesda. The founder of Nikola steps down in murky circumstances. And Amazon wants to use your Echo and Tile devices for a true Internet of Things network. Sponsors: Amazon.com/techmeme PayPal App Links: Trump Blesses Oracle’s TikTok Deal, Delays App Store Ban (Bloomberg) TikTok deal hit by confusion over who will own and control the app (FT) Judge halts Trump administration order banning WeChat from Apple and Google app stores (CNBC) Microsoft purchases Bethesda Softworks in industry-changing acquisition [Updated] (ArsTechnica) With $100M in funding, Playco is already a mobile gaming unicorn (TechCrunch) Nikola Founder Trevor Milton Resigns as Executive Chairman Amid Fraud Allegations (WSJ) Nikola’s chairman steps down, stock crashes following allegations of fraud (TechCrunch) Amazon details its low-bandwidth Sidewalk neighborhood network, coming to Echo and Tile devices soon (TechCrunch) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
21 Syys 202018min
Fri. 09/18 – WeChat Officially Banned On Sunday. TikTok Only Kinda Banned.
The Commerce Department officially has brought the hammer down. WeChat is banned on Sunday. TikTok banned on Sunday too, but it’s complicated. PayTM is banned from the Google Play Store in India. Facebook decides that Facebook is too toxic for its own workers to use. And of course, the weekend longreads suggestions. Sponsors: Fundrise.com/techmeme PayPal App Links: Trump to block downloads of TikTok, WeChat on Sunday (CNBC) Google pulls India's Paytm app from Play Store for repeat policy violations (TechCrunch) iOS 14 default app settings automatically reset to Mail and Safari after reboot (9to5Mac) Apple is making Shazam a bigger part of your iPhone (The Verge) Facebook is cracking down on groups that give health advice and promote violence (CNBC) Weekend Longreads Suggestions: Exclusive: The Billionaire Who Wanted To Die Broke . . . Is Now Officially Broke (Forbes) ‘Interactive entertainment is the standard bearer of the entertainment business’ (Protocol) Remote Work Is Killing the Hidden Trillion-Dollar Office Economy (Marker) Your Teenage Email Account Is a Lost Time Capsule (One Zero) Why the Apple II Didn’t Support Lowercase Letters (Vintage Computing And Gaming) This unheard Steve Jobs tape is part of an amazing trove of tech history (Fast Company) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
18 Syys 202021min
Thu. 09/17 – PS5 Details Revealed. But Good Luck Pre-Ordering!
We have the launch date and price for the Playstation 5. An update on the TikTok and WeChat situations. Why the Snowflake IPO was such a big deal, and such a big success. Red Ventures is affiliate marketing on steroids. And what if I told you the coolest new bit of gear that people got turned on to during the last Apple event was an office chair. But it is Jony Ive’s favorite office chair. Sponsors: Liftoff.to PayPal App MarketingPlay.com; email info@marketingplay.com Links: PlayStation 5 preorders: Sony reveals release date and price (VentureBeat) The PS5 will launch on November 12th for $499.99 (The Verge) Sony confirms PS5’s first-party launch lineup and free game upgrade plans for PS4 titles (The Verge) Oracle’s TikTok Bid Leaves Open Some U.S. Security Concerns (Bloomberg) Pro Rata Newsletter (Dan Primack/Axios) Snowflake IPO Spurs Flood of Wealth for Silicon Valley Elite (Bloomberg) ‘Helping people discover information’: How Red Ventures grew into a giant (Digiday) Sit Like an Apple Engineer in This 70s-Era British Office Chair (Gear Patrol) Subscribe to the ad-free feed and support the show directly! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
17 Syys 202016min
Wed. 09/16 – Facebook Unveils The Oculus Quest 2
Facebook unveils the Oculus Quest 2, as a part of its Facebook Connect (formerly Oculus Connect) event. Amazon Music gets podcasts. Spotify puts the Apple One bundle on blast. Developers have found yet another reason to get pissed at Apple. And AT&T is not only bringing advertising to HBO, they want to add ads to you phone as well. Sponsors: PayPal App ExtraHop.com/techmeme Links: Oculus Quest 2 delivers standalone VR with sharper 90Hz screens for $299 (Engadget) OCULUS QUEST 2 REVIEW: BETTER, CHEAPER VR (The Verge) Snowflake is largest software IPO ever (Axios) Amazon Music Joins Podcasting Fray (WSJ) Driver Charged in Uber’s Fatal 2018 Autonomous Car Crash (NYTimes) Spotify says Apple One bundle is a 'threat to collective freedom' (Apple Insider) Apple accuses Epic of ‘starting a fire and pouring gasoline on it’ in new Fortnite filing (The Verge) Apple surprised iPhone users with a next-day iOS 14 release. App developers are pissed. (Mashable) Exclusive: AT&T considers cellphone plans subsidized by ads (Reuters) AT&T Plans Lower-Priced Version of HBO Max With Advertising (Bloomberg) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
16 Syys 202017min
Tue. 09/15 – The Apple “Time Flies” Event
A full rundown of the Time Flies event from Apple. New Apple Watches, including an Apple Watch SE. Refreshed iPad, but redesigned iPad Air that is giving the iPad Pro a run for its money. An Apple Fitness+ subscription program. An Apple One subscription bundle. And meanwhile, Sony cuts PlayStation 5 production, we have a date for Google’s Pixel 5 launch and why it might actually be a good idea to put your data center at the bottom of the ocean. Sponsors: LiftOff.to PayPal App Links: Techmeme Headline Rundown of the Apple Event Sony Cuts PlayStation 5 Forecast by 4 Million Due to Chip Woes (Bloomberg) Sen. Hawley calls for US to reject Oracle’s TikTok deal (The Verge) We’re Heading Toward the Worst Possible Outcome on TikTok (Intelligencer) Google to launch Pixel 5, new Chromecast, and smart speaker on September 30th (The Verge) Microsoft pulls underwater data center back to the surface to assess benefits of deep-sea cloud (GeekWire) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
15 Syys 202016min
Mon. 09/14 – Has Oracle Saved TikTok (In The US)?
Has Oracle saved TikTok, in the US at least? Let me explain why it’s not actually buying anything, probably isn’t solving the security problem Microsoft says it would have, and China is keeping its hands on the algorithm. On a normal day, news of Nvidia buying ARM would have been the headline. Airtable is an interesting raise. And who has more pie on their face: OnePlus or US Customs agents? Sponsors: PayPal App BuyRaycon.com/tech Links: Oracle Wins Bid for TikTok in U.S., Beating Microsoft (WSJ) It’s Official- NVIDIA Acquires Arm For $40 Billion To Create What Could Be A Computing Juggernaut (Forbes) Verizon to Buy TracFone in Deal Valued at Up to $7 Billion (WSJ) Airtable raises $185M and launches new low-code and automation features (TechCrunch) Feds proudly announce seizure of ‘counterfeit Apple AirPods’ that are actually OnePlus Buds (The Verge) The LG Wing’s twisting screen offers a new spin on the dual-screen smartphone (The Verge) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
14 Syys 202022min
(Bonus) The TikTok Sales Saga With @Kantrowitz
The TikTok saga. It’s gonna end. Or it’s gonna happen. Or it’s gonna… something in the next few days. Will it be sold? Will it not be? Will it be banned in the US. There are so many angles here. So many interesting ways to tease out something that is unprecedented in the world of Tech. Alex Kantrowitz pinged me to talk about it and he’s a good dude to do so because he wrote a book about the big tech platforms, and, as we get into… this is so rare. A big up and coming platform that is just, for weird a-historical reasons, being offered up on a platter for the other powers that be to… maybe take over? I quoted Alex when he was at Buzzfeed for years. But as we discuss at the end, Alex has gone solo! Check out his newsletter Big Technology. Check out his podcast, Big Technology. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
12 Syys 202039min
