‘Pokémon Go’ Delayed in Japan Due to Leaked McDonald’s Sponsorship Details
Niantic has decided to postpone the launch of Pokémon Go in Japan today, due to an unexpected email leak that revealed details about the company’s rumored sponsor partnership with food chain McDonald’s. A source close to the company confirmed the delay to TechCrunch, referring to a specific email chain between Pokémon Go’s creators and McDonald’s as the reason behind the move.
The two companies — in addition to The Pokémon Company and Nintendo itself, presumably — believed that the all-but-confirmed launch of Pokémon Go in the country would create a hype that “would overload the game” for a lot of its players, not just within Japan. The creators of Pokémon Go now hope that a restructured, less publicly expected launch will prepare the game’s servers for an influx of players in the country that will undoubtedly be quite high.
When Pokémon Go does launch in Japan, it will be the first territory to introduce sponsored retail partnerships, which aim to lure players to restaurants like McDonald’s in order to generate revenue for both Niantic and the corporate food chain. According to these sources close to the launch, all 3,000 McDonald’s locations in Japan will be turned into gyms where players can battle opposing teams to take over the location, or train their Pokémon with teammates if they’ve already conquered the gym. It’s unclear if any locations will be PokéStops instead of gyms.
The debut of Pokémon Go in Japan is now said to be “imminent,” with a report from Nikkei suggesting the new launch date could be as soon as tomorrow, July 21. Over the weekend, the game launched in Canada and 26 countries across Europe, and it’s already been available in the United States, Australia, and New Zealand. Japan will mark its first launch in Asia, with an expected rollout to other countries in the region in the coming weeks.
Thanks to Pokémon Go’s success, Nintendo’s market value has more than doubled since the game launched earlier in July. The company is now worth $42.5 billion, and it even broke the single-day trading record in Tokyo last Friday when $4.5 billion worth of stock was traded. Nintendo’s new valuation now puts it ahead of Sony, which has a market cap sitting around $40 billion.
Tag: Pokémon GO
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Canon’s New MAXIFY Printers Support AirPrint on Mac and iOS
Canon has announced that its series of five new MAXIFY inkjet printers support AirPrint, including the MB5420, MB5120, MB2720, MB2120, and iB4120 models.
AirPrint enables wireless printing from iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and Mac without having to install additional software or drivers. The technology is supported by dozens of printers sold by Brother, Canon, Dell, Epson, HP, Lenovo, Lexmark, Panasonic, Ricoh, Samsung, Toshiba, Xerox, and other manufacturers.
Canon’s MAXIFY lineup of all-in-one printers are designed for home or small office use, with built-in copying, scanning, and faxing capabilities alongside cloud-connected features through the free Canon PRINT app. The all-new printers retail for between $149.99 and $399.99 on Canon’s website based on U.S. pricing.
Tags: Canon, AirPrint
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Sony Xperia X Performance now available from Unlocked-Mobiles
If you’re looking at channels to purchase the Sony Xperia X Performance, you’re also in luck should you shop at Unlocked-Mobiles in the UK. The retailer has just shared with us that stock for the X Performance is now available for shipping. Priced at £599.98 (including VAT), this premium handset packs a punch and will be more than capable of handling anything you throw at it.
Available in black, the Xperia X Performance comes with LTE support, a 5-inch 1080p display, 3GB of RAM, 32GB of internal storage, Snapdragon 820 processor, 23-MP main shooter to capture those moments, and a 2700mAh battery. As an added bonus, the device is SIM-unlocked, meaning you’ll be able to throw a SIM card from any network in the UK.
See at Unlocked Mobiles
BBC’s new hub app brings together all your favorite content
The BBC has launched a new app for iOS and Android that acts as a hub to bring together online iPlayer content, weather forecasts, recipes and more all in one place. While a myBBC account is required so the BBC can more conveniently track your use of the new app, it serves as your new centralized hub for all things BBC. Whether you’re wanting to catch-up on your favorite original series or wish to check out tomorrow’s forecast, you can do all this with BBC+.
As noted by the BBC in its own coverage, the corporation hopes the launch of BBC+ will help avoid a situation where consumers become confused with multiple apps for different types of content. This isn’t the only move the BBC has made to consolidate content into a single offering. The corporation recently shut down BBC Newsbeat and moved all content to the BBC News umbrella. When firing up the BBC+ app for the first time, you’ll be asked to choose at least three topics from a rather lengthy list.
This enables the app to curate an “at a glance” geed that will help keep you in the loop without requiring multiple menu entries to find content covering numerous topics. The myBBC connection brings with it a few neat features, one being the ability to save tracks heard on shows that can be listened to at a later date. Head to the Play Store to download BBC+ and let us know your thoughts in the comments!
Sky Kids app now has offline viewing to help with school holidays travelling
Sky Kids for Android and iOS now offers offline viewing. You can download the shows and films available on the application to keep children entertained over school holiday trips and beyond.
Customers with either a Sky Go Extra, Sky Multiscreen or Sky Q subscription can download programmes for their kids to watch when there is no internet connection.
These include series from Nick Jr, Boomerang and Cartoon Network, including Top Cat, Paw Patrol and Adventure Time.
Of course, parents with the above accounts can already download children’s programming on the Sky Go application itself, but Sky Kids puts all that content in a neat and handy place. It also presents it in a format that youngsters will appreciate and find easier to navigate.
- Sky Kids app ‘Buddies’ bring TV and on demand fun to the little ones
- Sky Q features coming to Sky+, here’s what to expect in Homepage refresh
In addition to offline viewing, the Sky Kids app now also includes a Sleep Mode feature. The app can be set to turn off when it has been used for a set amount of time. It will warn a child five minutes before closing down.
The app is available on Google Play and the iTunes App Store and will work over 3G and 4G connections, as well as Wi-Fi. It can be used by any Sky customer with a Sky Family or Variety bundle. However, downloads are only available to those with Sky Go Extra, Sky Multiscreen as well.
Sky Q customers can use all features of the app.
At internetmatters.org parents can find all the advice they will need to keep their children safe online. Designed specifically for parents, the site offers a wealth of up-to-date, unbiased information and advice about how to deal with online safety. Parents can learn about the latest issues and technologies, get great tips on how to talk about online safety with their children and get the best advice on dealing with issues and taking action. Created with experts, Internet Matters provides detailed information, but also signposts to best-in-class resources from individual expert organisations. Our goal is to ensure parents can always access the information that they need, in a format that is clear and concise.
Microsoft gives Groove for iOS and Android a facelift
Microsoft’s Groove apps for iOS and Android weren’t quite as good as the Windows version, but this update was designed to change that. The company has given its music apps for both platforms a facelift that makes them look more like their Windows counterpart. It also bundled a handful of new features with it. The apps now have an Explore view listing the most popular songs, and they now take on a higher resolution when scaled up on big phones. Microsoft also promises faster downloads for offline playbacks and various improvements.
By the way, don’t be alarmed if your app starts rebuilding your collection from scratch after installing the update. Microsoft support engineer Ellen Kilbourne says the changes are so big, their database “must be rebuilt in order to move forward.” It will only take a minute or two anyway — you can start using Groove as usual after it’s done.
Via: The Digital Lifestyle
Source: Microsoft, iTunes, Google Play
Sky Kids app lets you download shows for the open road
It’s hot and you still have another few hours on the road. The kids are starting to fidget and have already grown tired of Minecraft: Pocket Edition on their iPads. What to do? Well, if you’re a Sky subscriber, there’s always Sky Kids. The child-centric streaming app launched in March and is getting a handy new feature today — offline playback. So before you set off in the car, you can download a bunch of episodes (or seasons) to keep them entertained. The catch? You’ll need a Sky Go Extra or Sky Multiscreen account. Otherwise, you’re still reliant on Wi-Fi, 3G and 4G streaming.
Source: Sky
Uber will use high-res satellite imagery to improve pickups
Uber will soon use high-resolution satellite imagery from DigitalGlobe to help drivers find passengers. According to a press release from DigitalGlobe, the ridesharing company will use its satellites “to help identify and improve pickup and drop-off locations.” Uber recently bought mapping company deCarta and is using Microsoft’s Bing vehicle imagery tech, so the DigitalGlobe deal will further extend its mapping efforts.
DigitalGlobe was the company that convinced the US government to lift its image resolution restrictions on private satellites. Shortly after, it launched its WorldView-3 constellation that can detect images as small as 12 inches (30cm) across. It can also scan short-wave infrared frequencies, letting it see forest fires through smoke that would block other satellites, for instance.
There’s no mention of Uber’s ambitious self-driving vehicles in relation to the high-resolution imagery, but mapping is clearly key to the program. And unlike Google Maps or other sat views, DigitalGlobe can provide current maps with more detail than other private systems.
Uber has been criticized for misusing its “God View” to secretly follow clients, but now lets you opt out of any tracking. It’s unlikely that the DigitalGlobe tech could be used to track anyone, given that you’d need to rent a satellite for a fixed period, which is bound to cost a fortune. With Uber’s recent, possibly illegal efforts to dig up dirt on lawyers suing it, however, the company’s shown it’s not afraid to explore questionable options.
Via: Gizmodo
Source: DigitalGlobe
Pluto stamp earns world record for traveling 3 billion miles
“Pluto: Not Yet Explored” is the envy of all stampkind. It has officially earned a Guinness World Record for the farthest distance traveled by a postage stamp after journeying for 3.26 billion miles aboard the New Horizons. NASA stuck it aboard the probe when it took off in 2006 but has since issued new ones celebrating the spacecraft’s successful exploration of the dwarf planet.
The “Pluto – Explored!” series features an image of the probe itself and a photo it took of the celestial body that shows its famous heart-shaped region. Cute, but they still got nothing on that one lucky piece of paper that’s now on its way to Kuiper Belt object 2014 MU69. By the time it reaches the icy rock that might be one of the oldest objects in our solar system, the stamp would have added a billion more miles to its journey.
While it took almost a decade for the stamp to reach Pluto, it still got there at an incredible speed: New Horizons went past the moon within nine hours, whereas the Apollo 11 took three days to get to its destination. Guinness World adjudicator Jimmy Coggins said that if the Pony Express tried to deliver a letter to a destination 3 billion miles away, “they would be swapping ponies out for the next 47,000 years…”
Via: Space
Source: USPS, NASA
Deezer Music Streaming Service Launches Nationwide in the U.S.
French music streaming service Deezer officially opened its doors to the U.S. market on Tuesday, meaning for the first time, anyone in the States can sign up for a $10-a-month subscription.
Previously the service was only available to U.S. customers if they owned a Sonos system and paid $20 a month for Deezer Elite, or if they signed up to promotion deals through Bose and Cricket Wireless.
A Deezer Premium+ subscription offers similar features to Apple Music and Spotify, such as unlimited streaming of its 40 million-track library, machine-generated and human-curated playlists, offline listening, and access to music lyrics. Over 40,000 podcasts and radio stations (including personalized station service Flow) are also included.
Deezer offers an ad-supported free tier in other countries, but users in the U.S. only have access to the paid tier. A 30-day free trial is available however.
iOS users can avoid the App Store surcharge for signing up to the service through the Deezer app ($12.99 per month) by visiting the website instead, where the Deezer Premium+ 30-day trial is also available. Users then pay $9.99 a month and can cancel anytime. The Deezer Elite high-definition service remains exclusive to Sonos speaker owners.
Deezer currently has over 6 million users worldwide, about half that of Apple Music and around a fifth of Spotify’s total paying customers. The service will also have to compete with the likes of Tidal and Google Play, as well as online radio station Pandora, which currently has over 80 million free monthly listeners.
Tag: Deezer Music
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