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Microsoft is accusing Google of funding a proxy campaign designed to discredit it in the eyes of regulatory authorities and policymakers in the European Union and beyond. In a blog post penned by Rima Alaily, the companys deputy general counsel, Microsoft claims the search giant has gone to great lengths to obfuscate its involvement, funding and control of the Open Cloud Coalition, a group of cloud service providers, industry leaders and stakeholders that says its committed to advocating for a fair, competitive, and open cloud services industry across the UK and EU. According to Microsoft, Google hired a lobbying agency in Europe to create and operate the organization, and recruited a handful of European cloud providers to appear as the public face of the soon-to-launch campaign. The company says that Google plans to present itself as a backseat member of the Open Cloud Coalition, rather than its leader and primary funder. As one example, Microsoft points to a recruitment document (PDF link) that makes no mention of the groups claimed affiliation to Google. It also notes the involvement of Nicky Steward, who co-wrote a complaint against Microsoft and Amazon Web Services as part of the UKs ongoing antitrust investigation into the cloud services market. It remains to be seen what Google offered smaller companies to join, either in terms of cash or discounts, Microsoft says. It adds that one of the cloud providers Google approached about joining the Open Cloud Coalition claims that the company will direct the group to attack Microsofts cloud computing business in the European Union and the United Kingdom. Engadget was unable to independently verify Microsofts claims. "Weve been very public about our concerns with Microsofts cloud licensing. We and many others believe that Microsofts anticompetitive practices lock-in customers and create negative downstream effects that impact cybersecurity, innovation, and choice, a Google spokesperson told Engadget, and pointed us to four separate blog posts on the matter. As for why Google would potentially go to the extraordinary lengths of funding an astroturf campaign, Microsoft points to the recent uptick in regulatory scrutiny of the companys search, advertising and mobile app store businesses. By Microsofts count, Google faces at least 24 antitrust investigations globally, including a Department of Justice probe that could see the potential break up of the company. Never in the past two decades have Googles search, digital advertising, and mobile app store monopolies faced such a concerted and determined threat as they do today. Alaily writes. At a time when Google should be focused on addressing legitimate questions about its business, it is instead turning its vast resources towards tearing down others. It is disappointing that, with the foundation of their business facing jeopardy, they have sought to bolster their cloud computing service Google Cloud Platform by attacking ours. The accusations come after Google had reportedly attempted to derail an antitrust settlement Microsoft had negotiated with the Cloud Infrastructure Services Providers in Europe (CISPE). In July, Bloomberg wrote that Google had offered the group 470 million to go forward with litigation against its rival, an overture CISPE ultimately rejected. As revenue growth from digital ads has slowed for Google in recent years, the company has increasingly turned to the cloud market to pick up the slack. In 2023, Googles cloud business broke even for the first time. More recently, the unit generated a $900 million profit in the first quarter of this year.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/microsoft-accuses-google-of-secretly-funding-regulatory-astroturf-campaign-203804594.html?src=rss
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Youre about to get another shot if you missed Sonys brief pre-order window for its 30th anniversary PS5 console. The retro-themed hardware sold out in a flash on its initial September 26 pre-order period, leaving fans fuming at Sonys predictably frustrating order process. An alert on Sonys product page (via Kotaku) says the second go-round will happen on Tuesday, October 29, at noon ET. The limited-edition consoles and accessories have a throwback skin reminiscent of the OG PlayStation, which launched in Japan in 1994. That includes a sleek gray color scheme that gives the old-school Playstation logo room to really pop. Sony The message (Please check back on October 29th from 9 AM PDT) only appears on the 30th Anniversary product pages for the $500 PS5 Slim Bundle and $80 DualSense controller. Unfortunately, no such message appears on the throwback PS5 Pro bundle or PlayStation Portal product pages. Assuming only the Slim bundle is available, this will be your second (and perhaps last) chance to get the cheaper of the two consoles. It includes the digital (no disc drive!) PS5 Slim, a standard DualSense controller (also themed for the occasion), a retro cable connector housing, PlayStation-shaped cable ties and a vertical stand. Oh, and there are some extra goodies like a sticker, poster and PlayStation paperclip, which we can only imagine will b sold for three figures on eBay after the bundle arrives on November 21. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/playstation/youll-get-another-chance-to-pre-order-the-retro-themed-ps5-on-tuesday-202504921.html?src=rss
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Folks in the European Union finally know when Apple Intelligence will be available on their mobile devices. Apple told EU users on Monday that its AI suite will arrive in April 2025. The first Apple Intelligence features, including Writing Tools and AI notification summaries, are now available for English speakers elsewhere. Apple announced the EU release date in a press release for the European Union (via 9to5Mac). Translated from Italian, the news post reads, In April, Apple Intelligence features will begin to be distributed to iPhone and iPad users in the EU. The article notes that the first wave of Apple Intelligence is already available for EU users in macOS Sequoia 15.1. Thats because Apple used the Digital Markets Act (DMA) as its rationale for delaying its EU AI. In this case, the regulations only affect iPhone and iPad software, not macOS. On Monday, Apple also confirmed that its AI suite will be available in more languages in April and throughout the year through a software update. These include Chinese, Korean, French, Japanese, English (India), English (Singapore), Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, German and Vietnamese. In December, Apple Intelligence will become available in English variants for Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa and the UK. Apple Intelligence is getting a tiered rollout. Todays first batch in iOS 18.1 (for those outside the EU) includes Writing Tools, live transcriptions, notification summaries and more. iOS 18.2 and macOS Sequoia 15.2 will bring additional features like ChatGPT integration, Genmoji, Visual Intelligence and Image Playground. That software is currently in beta and is expected to arrive with an official release in December. The only catch is youll need a compatible device. On iPhone, thats limited to the iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max and the iPhone 16 series. M-series iPads, Macs, and the new seventh-gen iPad mini are also supported. Update, October 28 2024, 4:09PM ET: This story has been updated to correct the timeframe of the release of Apple Intelligence in more languages, clarifying that it's coming "in April and throughout the year" and not just "in April."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/apple-intelligence-is-coming-to-eu-iphones-and-ipads-in-april-191028410.html?src=rss
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