Posts Tagged: lead

Google is following Apple’s lead by adding new developer fees in the EU

Yesterday Google outlined the changes it will make to comply with the EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA) that goes into effect starting today. One important detail it left out, however, was whether it would charge developers who directed users outside the Play Store to sideload apps — and if so, how much. 

Now, Google has revealed that it will indeed charge developers even if they don't use the Play Store, just like Apple did with the App Store. Per new details found in the Play Console help section, the company will charge two new fees: 

  1. An initial acquisition fee of 10% for in-app purchases or 5% for subscriptions for two years. This represents the value Play provided in facilitating initial user acquisition.

  2. An ongoing services fee of 17% for in-app purchases or 7% for subscriptions. This covers ongoing Play services like parental controls, security, fraud prevention, and app updates.

Developers can opt out of ongoing fees after two years if users agree, but ongoing Play services will no longer apply. "Since users acquired the app through Play with the expectation of services such as parental controls, security scanning, fraud prevention, and continuous app updates, discontinuation of services requires user consent as well," Google stated.

Google included the following chart to show how the fees will apply to a hypothetical "Fantastiq App": 

Google is following Apple's lead by adding new developer fees in the EU
Google

With this, Google is taking a similar approach to Apple, which reduced App Store commissions but introduced new fees. Namely, Apple tacked on on a new 3 percent “payment processing” fee for transactions that go through its store. And a new “core technology fee” will charge a flat €0.50 fee for all app downloads, regardless of whether they come from the App Store or a third-party website, after the first 1 million installations.

Google is justifying the fees by touting the value it provides in the Android ecosystem: "Play's fees support our investment in Android and Google Play and reflect the value provided by Android and Play, including enabling us to distribute Android for free and provide the continuously growing suite of tools and services that help developers build successful businesses, all while keeping our platforms safe and secure for billions of users worldwide."

Epic CEO Tim Sweeney already blasted Google's post about DMA compliance yesterday, before the new fees were even made public. "Google announced its malicious compliance plans for the European DMA law… it looks like their illegal anti-steering policy will be replaced by a new Google Tax on web transactions. We'll likely soon learn how he and other developers react to the new fees. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/google-is-following-apples-lead-by-adding-new-developer-fees-in-the-eu-064618768.html?src=rss
Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics

Valve warns that AMD’s anti-lag feature can lead to Counter-Strike 2 bans

Valve has warned Counter-Strike 2 players that AMD’s latest graphics driver could get them banned. The problem lies in AMD’s Anti-Lag+ feature, which triggers the Valve Anti-Cheat (VAC) system, duping it into mistaking the driver’s low-latency mode for cheating.

The problem lies in Anti-Lag+ intercepting and redirecting Dynamic Link Library (DLL) functions. VAC views DLL reroutes as cheats (in other cases, they often are), which could lead to getting booted from Counter-Strike 2.

A Reddit thread about the issue claims “many players” have reported receiving VAC bans from using the latest AMD driver (23.10.1). “It seems that VAC is banning everyone BUT the cheaters,” quipped u/Volfong in the thread. “Can confirm I got banned today and Anti-Lag+ was turned on,” wrote u/trkemrasr. “They better reverse this shit quickly.”

Valve plans to do just that. “Once AMD ships an update we can do the work of identifying affected users and reversing their ban,” the publisher posted on X (formerly Twitter).

Until the problem is resolved, Valve recommends turning off Anti-Lag+ in the graphics card settings. If you haven’t changed the default, you can disable Anti-Lag+ with the hotkey of Alt+L. You can double-check the shortcut’s setting by opening AMD Radeon Software, clicking on the gear icon and choosing Hotkeys from the sub-menu. Selecting the existing hotkey for Anti-Lag+ allows you to customize it.

Engadget has contacted AMD for comment and will update this article if we hear back.

Counter-Strike 2 launched in September after months of hype. The update, which replaced Counter-Strike: Global Offensive on Steam, adds upgraded graphics and maps alongside more realistic smoke. The game uses Valve’s Source 2 engine for improved lighting, clearer textures and updated geometry. You’ll need a somewhat modern Windows machine to play it as Valve says it has no plans to bring the sequel to macOS or older PCs.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/valve-warns-that-amds-anti-lag-feature-can-lead-to-counter-strike-2-bans-210239729.html?src=rss

Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics

Samsung taps a former Mercedes-Benz designer to lead its mobile design team

Samsung’s mobile division has a new design chief. On Friday, the company announced the appointment of Hubert H. Lee to head up its Mobile eXperience (MX) Design Team, the unit responsible for designing some of Samsung’s most visible products, including its flagship Galaxy S series phones. Lee joins the electronics giant after a stint as the chief design officer of Mercedes-Benz China, a position that saw him lead the automaker’s design teams in China and the US. “His unique and visionary perspective will help shape the look and feel of Galaxy, building on the distinct design ethos that users know and love,” Samsung said.

It will probably be at least a year before we see Lee start to leave his mark on Samsung’s products. Prelease leaks of the company’s next Galaxy S series phones suggest they’ll look a lot like their Galaxy S22 predecessors. What’s more, with the way smartphone development timelines work, Samsung has likely already settled on a design for its 2024 flagship. Even then, don’t expect dramatic changes; from a design standpoint, phone companies have played it safe for more than a decade. Still, Lee could push for small but meaningful tweaks to Samsung's design formula — much like Evans Hankey did at Apple after Jony Ive's departure


Engadget is a web magazine with obsessive daily coverage of everything new in gadgets and consumer electronics

‘The Last of Us’ lead Neil Druckmann becomes Naughty Dog co-president

Naughty Dog has a new co-president, and it’s the creative director behind some of its most popular titles. The company has announced that Neil Druckmann, who led the development for The Last of Us franchise as well as for Uncharted 4, has been promot…
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Microsoft says Apple’s game streaming policy will lead to ‘a bad experience’

Earlier today, Apple revised its App Store guidelines to give companies such as Microsoft and Google a way to offer their video game streaming platforms on iOS, but did so with a major caveat. Apple said those companies could release catalog-style ap…
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Hitting the Books: Did the advent of the first desktop computer lead to murder?

Welcome to Hitting the Books. With less than one in five Americans reading just for fun these days, we've done the hard work for you by scouring the internet for the most interesting, thought provoking books on science and technology we can find and…
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AI-guided material changes could lead to diamond CPUs

Scientists know that you can dramatically alter a crystalline material's properties by applying a bit of strain to it, but finding the right strain is another matter when there are virtually limitless possibilities. There may a straightforward solut…
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Apple hires former Samsung exec to lead its battery division

Apple has poached the head of Samsung's battery division to lead its own battery development efforts. Cupertino hired Samsung SDI's Soonho Ahn to become its Global Head of Battery Developments, Bloomberg has reported after spotting the major career m…
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Molecule-level ‘CT scans’ could lead to faster drug discovery

Scientists like to use x-rays when determining chemical structures to develop drugs, but it's an agonizingly slow process. As they need large, pure crystals, it can take weeks or even years to produce something big enough for studying. However, th…
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Mixed-gene French grapes may lead to cheaper, safer wine

French wineries have to use a lot of pesticide to keep their grapes healthy, and that's both expensive and costly — a problem when some countries don't have those problems. The country might just have a solution, though. Researchers at France's In…
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Hilton data breaches lead to $700,000 penalty

The attorneys general of New York and Vermont both announced today that their joint investigation into two Hilton data breaches has resulted in a $ 700,000 penalty and a promise to strengthen security. In February of 2015, Hilton was made aware of a c…
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EPA findings should lead to caps on aircraft emissions

It's no secret that aircraft contribute to harmful emissions like road-going vehicles, and the Environmental Protection Agency is one step closer to keeping that pollution in check. It recently finalized findings showing that some aircraft produce a…
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These graphene-based nanobots suck up lead contamination to clean our oceans

These three-layered nanobots are a triple threat: Their graphene oxide exterior absorbs lead, their nickel middle allows researchers to control their movement via a magnetic field, and a coating of platinum on the inside functions as an engine

The post These graphene-based nanobots suck up lead contamination to clean our oceans appeared first on Digital Trends.

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Samsung follows Apple’s lead, updates its Android browser with ad blocking

Ad blocking is no longer a luxury for just iPhone users. Samsung rolled out an update to its Android browser today, giving it the ability to block ads using third-party apps such as Adblock Free.

The post Samsung follows Apple’s lead, updates its Android browser with ad blocking appeared first on Digital Trends.

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Russian scientist claims injections of 3.5 million-year-old bacteria lead to longer life

After discovering a 3.5 million-year-old bacteria in Siberian permafrost, Russian scientist Dr. Anatoli Brouchkov thinks it might be the key to achieve eternal life. He’s so confident, he’s already injected himself with it.

The post Russian scientist claims injections of 3.5 million-year-old bacteria lead to longer life appeared first on Digital Trends.

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