Over the past few generations we have seen Microsoft move away from physical media, instead opting to push for an all-digital future. It seems Xbox’s lack of a physical presence has had an impact on sales, with just 10% of all physical media being spent on Xbox. As reported by …
Read More »AMD surprise launches Ryzen 5 5600X3D processor for $229
We weren't expecting an AMD CPU launch today and yet, one has appeared out of thin air. Today, the Ryzen 5 5600X3D CPU has been officially announced and will be extremely rare, with only one production run planned.
Read More »The PlayStation 5 continues to break Sony sales records
After a somewhat slow start due component supply issues, Sony announced at the beginning of the year that PS5 consoles should no longer be in short supply. We have seen this pan out, with the console sales skyrocketing over the past few months. Now, it has been revealed that last …
Read More »Report claims FTC may sue to block Xbox/Activision-Blizzard merger
Politico previously reported that the EU would enter a phase 2 investigation into the Xbox Activision-Blizzard merger. Now, the site is reporting that the FTC is planning on filing a lawsuit against Microsoft to block the merger. The FTC has been stricter on anti-trust cases recently. The commission previously filed …
Read More »Sony unveils PlayStation Store’s most downloaded games of 2021
Now that 2021 has come to an end, Sony has detailed the PlayStation Store's top downloads of the past year. Of course, there are plenty of games on this list that we'd expect to be among the most downloaded games of the year, but there are still a few surprises among …
Read More »US law proposal aims to ban scalper bots following massive shortages of consoles, PC parts and toys
Over the last year, we've seen a sharp rise in scalping, with many utilising bots to snatch up stock for graphics cards, game consoles and everything in between before regular customers have a chance to make a purchase. This in turn leads to artificially inflated prices, with massive profit margins …
Read More »The FTC has ‘expressed concerns’ over Nvidia’s Arm acquisition
It has been over a year since Nvidia first announced plans to acquire Arm in a $40 billion deal, but over the course of 2021, red flags have continued to be raised. Whether or not the deal should be allowed to go through is currently the subject of investigations around …
Read More »Google faces US anti-trust lawsuit over Play Store policies
Google has faced plenty of anti-trust complaints over the years, with most recent cases centring around the Google Play Store and its policies for app developers. Now, an antitrust lawsuit is being levied against Google, backed by 36 US states, including Washington DC. The lawsuit takes aim at Google's policy …
Read More »Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is the second-best selling game of the past 12 months
When Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order first launched, many fans celebrated the title for being an action adventure title with a focus on fun gameplay and a single player story. It is no surprise therefore that the game sold well. What may come as a surprise however is the fact …
Read More »The US Department of Justice begins antitrust legal battle against Google
Google has faced antitrust allegations all across the world, facing cases in Europe, Asia and other territories. Now, the US Department of Justice is also aiming at Google, filing a new antitrust lawsuit. The US DOJ says Google has an unfair monopoly over search and search-related advertising. Android is also …
Read More »TSMC to build and operate a fab in the United States
Things change fast in the world of technology. On May 11 it was reported that the Trump administration had reached out to several semiconductor manufacturers to discuss the possibility of building a chip plant in the US. Now, just four days later, TSMC has announced that it's planning to build and …
Read More »Future chip plants could be built in the US
Over the last few years we've heard a number of tech-related news stories emerge from the Trump administration, including Huawei being added to the US' blacklist. Now, the administration is conducting negotiations with semiconductor companies about building chip factories in the United States, according to reports from Wall Street Journal. …
Read More »Apple, Samsung, Microsoft and more targeted for allegedly infringing touchscreen patents
A company known as Neodron recently filed complaints with the US International Trade Commission alleging that many top smartphone and tablet makers are infringing on touchscreen patents. A series of lawsuits have been filed, targeting the likes of Apple, Samsung, Microsoft, Asus, LG, Sony and more, in an effort to gain …
Read More »PS4 and Xbox One hardware sales seeing ‘sharper than expected’ decline
While we have been expecting next-gen consoles to arrive in 2020 for a long time, we did not expect such early announcements from both Sony and Microsoft. The next-gen Xbox and PlayStation consoles were confirmed in late 2019 and it would seem these early reveals are having a pretty major …
Read More »Proposed video game console tariffs shelved as US-China trade talks make progress
Back in June 2019, Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo banded together to warn the US government against its proposed tariffs on video game consoles manufactured in China. It was estimated that rising costs would cost the games market $350 million per year, while also leading to increased pricing for consumers. Since …
Read More »Apple defends iPhone encryption once again during Senate committee hearing
Apple's encryption method for the iPhone has been the subject of much debate for the US government, with agencies begrudging the fact that they can no longer break into iOS devices with ease during investigations. So far, Apple has been doing a good job of defending its customers' right to …
Read More »Microsoft granted license to sell software to Huawei once again
Earlier this year as the trade war between the US and China continued to escalate, many US companies were barred from trading with Huawei. Over the last couple of months, US companies have slowly been granted licenses to sell to the China-based device maker once again, with Microsoft now being …
Read More »2019 is the best year ever for fighting games
The NPD results for the month of October were released recently. Alongside the list of the month’s best selling games however, was the reveal that 2019 has been the best year for fighting games in the history of the NPD, beating out the previous record year of 2015 by 11%. …
Read More »Modern Warfare becomes best selling game of the year in 6 days
The NPD results for October have been released, giving us an insight into how the video game market performed last month in the US. Unsurprisingly, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare took the top spot as the best selling game of the month. Perhaps more surprising, however, is the fact that …
Read More »Sony is shutting down its PlayStation Vue streaming service as profitability slips further away
The PlayStation 4 has officially become the world's second highest selling home console to date, with more than 102.8 million units sold worldwide. Unfortunately, this level of popularity didn't translate to a best selling subscription service, with PlayStation Vue generating continuous losses for Sony. With that in mind, it shouldn't …
Read More »Huawei reports strong sales despite US ban
Despite being added to the US Entity list in May, effectively banning all US companies from trading with Huawei, the Chinese tech giant appears to be doing just fine. While the future of US-Huawei relations seems to be uncertain, the company hasn’t been resting on its laurels. Huawei has reportedly …
Read More »The US President and other politicians pin recent mass shootings on violent video games
The violent video game debate has sprung up again this week, although notable members of the industry have been speaking out against recent comments from politicians.
Read More »Nintendo to move a portion of Switch production out of China as increased US trade tariffs loom
A few weeks ago, reports indicated that Nintendo was starting to move some of its Switch console production out of China in order to lessen the impact of the US's trade tariffs. Many other tech companies have been in touch with the US government in an effort to stop these …
Read More »Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo band together to warn US gov against increased China tariffs
Many major tech companies have been contacting the US government regarding its proposed tariffs on products manufactured in China. Up to this point, we have mostly been hearing from PC hardware and OEMs like Apple, Intel etc. Today, Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo released a joint letter regarding these tariffs, strongly …
Read More »Apple urges US government not to expand China trade tariffs
Last week we learned that Apple was looking to move as much as 30 percent of its production out of China and into Southeast Asia in an effort to minimise the financial impact of the US government's new trade tariffs. Now, Apple has officially addressed the current situation between the …
Read More »Apple reportedly looking to move up to 30 percent of production out of China
Discussion around the strained relationship between the US and China is continuing this week. Some of tech's biggest companies are concerned about the Huawei ban, meanwhile others are starting to look at moving production out of China to avoid tariffs. Last week we talked about Nintendo Switch production moving out …
Read More »The US charges WikiLeaks founder under the Espionage Act
Back in April, WikiLeaks founder, Julian Assange, was pulled out of the Ecuadorian embassy in London and arrested by British police. Since 2012, the UK has had a warrant for Assange’s arrest due to breaking bail conditions. At this point, Assange has been sentenced to 50 weeks in Jail but …
Read More »Intel, Qualcomm, Microsoft and more could lose revenue due to US crackdown on Huawei
The trade war between the US and China is going to be a double-edged sword for many tech companies.
Read More »British security is reportedly equipped to handle perceived Huawei 5G concerns
Huawei’s 5G efforts have been marred with security concerns as of late, with the US most recently pressuring its allies into banning the company from network infrastructures. It doesn’t seem as though the UK agrees, as British Intelligence determines any potential threat can be managed. While things have been relatively …
Read More »Seasonic announces US pricing changes
At the moment, the US is embroiled in a trade-war with China, with new tariffs set to come into play. This is going to have a knock-on effect for the tech industry, as these tariffs will drive up prices for companies doing business with manufacturers in China. We are starting …
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