Google this week targeted the upcoming iPhone 17 in an ad for the Pixel 9 Pro, mocking Apple’s design plans and suggesting that Apple often copies Android features. The iPhone 17 isn’t released, of course, so Google’s ad is based on rumors that the iPhone is going to get a horizontal camera bar at the […]
Read MoreIt has cost Epic Games more than $100 million to challenge Apple’s App Store rules in the ongoing Apple vs. Epic Games legal battle, Epic CEO Tim Sweeney said today in an interview with Business Insider.
Sweeney said that Epic Games has paid “legal bills” in excess of $100 million, but that the dispute has cost the company a lot more.
But if you look at lost revenue, that’s another story. We can’t predict exactly how much we would have made on iOS, but in the two years that we were on the platform, Fortnite had made about $300 million on iOS. So you could have projected hundreds of millions of dollars of lost revenue as a result of the fight.
Sweeney went on to say that one could “easily imagine” that the total cost to Epic Games was a billion dollars or more based on lost revenue from iOS users, and lost revenue from people who didn’t play because their friends on iOS weren’t able to play.
While Epic Games largely lost its court case against Apple when a judge found that Apple did not have a monopoly, Epic Games scored a win because Apple was forced to drop its anti-steering App Store policies.
As part of the Epic Games vs. Apple legal battle, Apple was given an order to allow developers to direct customers to purchase options outside of the App Store. Apple was able to put off implementing the functionality for several years, but in 2024, did so in a way that still involved fees.
Just last week, the judge overseeing the Apple vs. Epic Games legal fight said that Apple was in contempt of court for failing to properly comply with the injunction. Apple was ordered to immediately implement new U.S. App Store rules allowing developers to add links to external websites where customers can make purchases. Apple is not allowed to collect commissions for purchases made using these links, nor can it control the look of the links or buttons that developers use.
Apple is appealing the decision, but in the meantime, it’s a win for developers, and a win that was funded by Epic Games. Sweeney said last week that Epic Games would be bringing Fortnite back to the iOS App Store in the U.S. as a result of the ruling, and in the interview with Business Insider, he said that Fortnite would be taking advantage of Apple’s new policies “later this week.”
Apple banned Epic Games’ U.S. developer account, but the company has an account in Sweden that it will use to bring Fortnite back to the U.S. App Store. Sweeney said that he would be “very surprised” if Apple “decided to brave the geopolitical storm of blocking a major app from iOS.” He confirmed that Epic Games has informed Apple of what its plans are, so Apple is presumably aware that Fortnite will soon be submitted to the U.S. App Store.
Later this year, Epic Games also plans to launch Epic Games Store Webshops, a feature that will let developers launch digital storefronts that are hosted by the Epic Games Store. Webshops will be free for developers making under $1 million annually per app, and for bigger developers, Epic will collect a 12 percent fee.
This article, "Epic Games Has Paid Over $100 Million in Legal Fees to Fight Apple's App Store Rules" first appeared on MacRumors.com
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Read MoreGoogle today said that it’s adding a new “Simplify” feature to the Google app for iOS, with the addition aimed at making search results easier to understand.
Google says that Simplify is meant to help users understand “jargon” or unfamiliar technical concepts, including medical words that the average person would not know, and technical terms. It uses AI to make “dense text on the web” simpler to comprehend without the user having to leave a website to do more research.
To use Simplify in the Google app for iOS, users can select any complex text on a webpage and then tap on the “Simplify” icon to see a new, simpler version.
Simplify uses a prompt refinement approach that was developed by Google Research, taking advantage of Gemini to make complicated text more digestible without losing key details. In a research paper, Google said that users selected to test the feature were better able to understand complicated medical, financial, legal, and technical websites when queried after using the Simplify feature.
This article, "Google Search App Can Now 'Simplify' Complex Search Results" first appeared on MacRumors.com
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Read MoreGoogle today said that it’s adding a new “Simplify” feature to the Google app for iOS, with the addition aimed at making search results easier to understand. Google says that Simplify is meant to help users understand “jargon” or unfamiliar technical concepts, including medical words that the average person would not know, and technical terms. […]
Read MoreSamsung this month will begin supporting a new peer-to-peer Tap to Transfer feature through the Samsung Wallet, providing another way for users to tap their smartphones together to send one another cash without the need for an app.
Tap to Transfer is similar to Tap to Cash, a feature that Apple introduced in iOS 18, and Apple’s Tap to Pay on iPhone. With Tap to Cash, Apple users with an iPhone or Apple Watch can send or receive Apple Cash by holding two devices next to each other. The transfer happens using NFC, and no personal information like phone number or email is shared.
Tap to Pay on iPhone is an option that allows independent sellers, small businesses, and larger merchants to use an iPhone as a contactless payment terminal to accept payments from other iPhone users, debit and credit cards that support tap payments, and other digital wallets. Tap to Pay on iPhone does still require a payment app like Shopify, Square, or Clover, but Tap to Transfer from Samsung does not.
Samsung’s Tap to Transfer option lets Samsung users quickly send payments to anyone with a debit card that supports tap features, even if that debit card is stored in another digital wallet like Apple Wallet. As long as the Samsung user has a Samsung Wallet with an eligible Visa or Mastercard debit card, they can send money over NFC to another person without a Samsung Wallet.
Through Samsung’s collaboration with Visa and Mastercard, you can use a debit card stored in your Samsung Wallet to send money to friends and family members’ bank accounts without needing to download an additional app. Instead, Samsung Wallet uses NFC technology to connect to the recipient’s debit card stored in their digital wallet. Plus, you can even transfer money to people without a digital wallet as long as they have a physical debit card with tap-to-pay capabilities.
With Tap to Transfer, a Samsung user can easily send payments to anyone, including an iPhone user, but there is no equivalent feature for an iPhone user to send a payment to a Samsung user because Apple Cash is more limited, and Tap to Pay on iPhone requires a secondary payment service.
Samsung users will also be able to tap two Samsung devices together to send payments, similar to the iPhone’s Tap to Cash option.
This article, "Samsung Gets New 'Tap to Transfer' Option That Works for Sending Payments to iPhone Users" first appeared on MacRumors.com
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Read MoreRockstar Games continue d’entretenir l’attente autour de Grand Theft Auto VI alias GTA 6 en publiant 70 nouvelles captures d’écran issues du jeu. Cet article GTA 6 : Rockstar dévoile 70 nouvelles images a été publié en premier par GinjFo.
Read MoreThe United States Justice Department wants Google to make major changes to its ad business in order to restore competition, with the government suggesting that Google divest both Ad Exchange (AdX) and Ad Manager (often referred to as DFP). The DoJ made the recommendation in an updated filing submitted as part of its ongoing antitrust […]
Read MoreApple today seeded the release candidate version of iOS 18.5 to developers and public beta testers, giving us a look at the final version of the update that will be provided to the public next week. With the release candidate, Apple provided release notes, so we have a more complete look at the new features […]
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Samsung is rumored to be unveiling the Galaxy Z Fold7 and Galaxy Z Flip7 in early July, and they might be joined by the Galaxy Z Flip7 FE (sometimes referred to as just the Flip FE). Today a new leak brings us the Flip7 FE’s specs along with its projected pricing. So, the phone is said to come with a 6.7-inch internal folding screen of the LTPO Super AMOLED 2X variety, with a 120 Hz refresh rate. The cover display is identical to that of the Galaxy Z Flip6, measuring 3.4″ diagonally. The Flip7 FE is allegedly powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 SoC, paired with 12GB of RAM….
Read MoreApple today announced it has renewed two acclaimed comedy series, with Trying and The Studio each set to return for an additional season on Apple TV+.
Trying is a feel-good series that follows British couple Nikki (Esther Smith) and Jason (Rafe Spall), on their journey to adopt a child and beyond. The series has achieved an average score of 95% from critics on Rotten Tomatoes, and a 93% score from the public. The series will be returning for a fifth season, but a timeframe was not disclosed.
The Studio is a satirical series about Hollywood’s film industry. In it, Seth Rogen stars as Matt Remick, the newly-appointed head of the embattled Continental Studios. The show’s first season is still underway, with three episodes remaining, and now it will be returning for a second season at some point in the future. The Studio has a 93% critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes, but its audience score lags behind at a respectable 70%.
Apple TV+ still lacks mass appeal compared to some other streaming services, but many of the original series available through the service are highly rated. In the U.S., Apple TV+ costs $9.99 per month, or $99 per year. Apple TV+ can be accessed through the Apple TV app on a wide variety of devices, and on the web at tv.apple.com.
This article, "Two Highly-Rated Apple TV+ Series Renewed" first appeared on MacRumors.com
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