The South Korean unit of tech giant Google is considering lowering its planned commission rate for in-app purchases, lawmakers said on Tuesday, amid complaints from local software developers over steep commission costs.
According to lawmakers from the parliamentary committee on science and technology, Google Korea representatives have told committee members that they were persuading the company headquarters to lower its planned 30 percent commission on in-app purchases.
Google has announced a plan to newly introduce the 30 percent commission to all in-app digital goods purchases in South Korea later this year.
Company representatives did not share further details, lawmakers added.
A recent government projection showed that Google’s new commission policy would lead to an increase in app store costs for South Korean developers by more than 150 billion won (US$136 million).
The new billing policy has met fierce opposition from local tech groups and politicians, while some South Korean lawmakers have called on Google to reduce the commission rate, reports Yonhap news agency.
Buoyed by renewed surge in the demand for smartphones and rising device costs may push the local smartphone market beyond the record Rs 2-trillion mark in 2021. While disruptions from the Covid-19 pandemic led to the market size shrinking for the first time last year, in 2021, the market is expected to touch unprecedented levels — both in terms of volume and value.
In 2020, the local market recorded a fall in the number of units shipped, as shortage in supply of components and the lockdown brought the market to its knees during the first half of the year.
“Stay-at-home mandates, remote learning, travel restrictions, and manufacturing shutdowns led to a sluggish first half (shipments declined 26 per cent year-on-year, or YoY),” observed the International Data Corporation (IDC).
IDC is the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and events for the information technology, telecommunications, and consumer technology markets.
Total shipments recorded its first fall — declining 2 per cent to 150 million units, from 153 million in 2019.
However, it is the fall in the average selling price (ASP) of handsets that impacted the market size more than the fall in volume numbers.
According to estimates, the ASP for smartphones last year came down 5 per cent YoY to Rs 11,200. Since their introduction in the market in 2010, ASP for smartphones before 2020 have never recorded a fall in the Indian market.
Resultantly, in 2020, the total market size shrank to Rs 1.68 trillion, from Rs 1.77 trillion in 2019.
According to experts, a poor economic outlook played a key role in this decline.
“Mass-market consumers were less inclined towards upgrading their handsets. Most of the volumes were driven by purchases that were absolutely imperative,” said Navkendar Singh, research director at IDC.
Salary cuts, job losses, and subdued consumer sentiment — a large section of consumers opted for cheaper options that were just enough to serve the purpose. It was a major paradigm shift from the earlier trend where mass-market consumers were driving ASP up, even as they were willing to spend more on smartphones as a lifestyle barometer.
In 2021, however, with a significant jump in ASP and higher volumes, the market is estimated to touch Rs 2 trillion. From its previous high of Rs 11,600 in 2019, the ASP for smartphones is now estimated to breach Rs 12,300.
LG Electronics said on Wednesday its smart TV platform will be used by other TV makers this year as the company eyes boosting its software capability.
LG said some 20 TV manufacturers, including RCA, Konka and Ayonz, will release TVs installed with its webOS platform.
To attract more TV brands using its smart TV platform, LG said it has also signed partnerships with streaming giants like Netflix, YouTube and Amazon, as well as remote controls solution provider Universal Electronics Inc.
The world’s top OLED TV maker hopes the latest move helps the company generate profits and reinforce its presence in content and software services.
LG Electronics said webOS’ openness, easy accessibility and user-friendly interface will attract more TV makers and that it will actively support content and broadcasting services to expand the ecosystem of its smart TV platform.
In recent years, LG Electronics has been trying to upgrade its software capabilities in the TV business, reports Yonhap news agency.
Last month, it acquired U.S.-based TV data analysis startup Alphonso Inc. so that it can offer enhanced and customised services to users of its smart TVs and streaming platform.
According to market researcher Omdia, smart TVs accounted for 84.8 per cent of total TV shipments last year. The portion is expected to top 90 per cent in 2024.
Google Maps is now getting a full-fledged dark mode on Android, the feature has been in testing since September 2020.
“These days, we are all experiencing a bit of screen fatigue. With the dark themes in Google Maps soon expanding to all Android users globally, you can give your eyes a much-needed break and save on battery life,” the company said in a statement on Tuesday.
Once your Google Maps has been updated, you can turn it on for your entire phone by heading to Settings > Theme and pick Always In Dark Theme.
The company also introduced some updates to Android Auto. In addition to custom wallpapers, Android Auto is now going to feature games as well.
For longer drives, you and your passengers can stay entertained with voice-activated games like trivia and “Jeopardy!”. Just say, “Hey Google, play a game” to get started.
Android Auto is also getting a split-screen feature that will put Maps side by side with media controls,
Google is also rolling out Password Checkup to Android to help alert you about potential leaks or data breaches that may have exposed your existing passwords to hackers.
BlueStacks, the world’s largest Android gaming platform for PCs and Macs, is bullish on India and with over 2 million games across numerous developers, the company is revolutionising the way Android gaming is taking shape in the country, a top executive said on Monday.
BlueStacks has over 500 million users globally across more than 200 locations.
“India is an extremely large mobile gaming market for us. Last year, the pandemic drove a surge of gamers across the world, including India, which saw a near 100 per cent jump in user base,” Rosen Sharma, CEO BlueStacks, told IANS in an interview.
A typical BlueStacks user is spending an average of 5 hours playing mobile games every day.
According to Sharma, the gaming eco-system in India is majorly driven by mobile games.
“With developers coming out with bigger and heavier games, more mobile gamers will play in interruption-free environments and migrate to PC-based platforms. Mobile games are not designed for long gameplay,” he noted.
Founded in 2011 by Sharma, Jay Vaishnav, Harvinder Sawhney and Suman Saraf, BlueStacks has a global team of over 400 people.
BlueStacks, that has crossed 1 billion downloads, has launched BlueStacks 5 (Beta) update that promises a 40 per cent reduction in RAM usage.
Microsoft and European media groups on Monday urged EU regulators to require online platforms to seek arbitration in disagreements over how to share revenues with news publishers, a sticking point in the spat between Facebook and Australia.
The EU’s 2019 overhauled copyright rules, which force Alphabet unit Google and other online platforms to sign licensing agreements with musicians, authors and news publishers to use their work, are not sufficient, Microsoft and the publishers said.
“This initiative is a logical next step,” Microsoft Vice President Casper Klynge said, adding that the company already shares revenues with publishers via its product Microsoft News.
Facebook last week imposed a news ban in Australia in protest against a forthcoming law that would require online platforms to reach deals to pay news outlets for content, or agree on a price through arbitration.
The call by Microsoft, the European Magazine Media Association, European Newspaper Publishers Association, European Publishers Council and News Media Europe comes as EU lawmakers limber up for talks with the European Commission and EU countries on rules to rein in US tech giants.
Samsung Galaxy F62 on Monday goes on sale in India at Samsung online store, Flipkart, Reliance Digital, My Jio retail stores, and select offline stores. Launched last week, the smartphone comes in 6GB and 8GB RAM variants, both with 128GB on-board storage, priced at Rs 23,999 and Rs 25,999, respectively. As part of launch offers, the Galaxy F62 gets up to Rs 2,500 cashback on ICICI Bank cards and equated monthly instalment transactions. Besides, Reliance Jio users get benefits worth up to Rs 10,000 on the purchase of the Galaxy F62. The benefits include Rs 3,000 cashback on recharge discount coupons and Reliance partner brand coupons of Rs 7,000.Samsung Galaxy F62: Specifications
The Galaxy F62 sports a 6.7-inch super AMOLED Plus screen of fullHD+ resolution and 60Hz refresh rate. It is an infinity-O screen with centre-aligned punch-hole accommodating the phone’s 32-megapixel front camera sensor. The screen is protected by Gorilla Glass 3. The smartphone is 9.5 mm thick and weighs 218 grams.
Powering the smartphone is the Exynos 9825 system-on-chip, which is the same mobile processor that powered Samsung’s 2019 flagship smartphones in the Galaxy Note 10 series. The processor is paired with 128GB on-board storage and up to 8GB RAM. The phone boots Android 11 operating system-based OneUI 3.1 user interface. The Galaxy F62 support Samsung Pay (NFC) for offline payments through credit and debit cards on NFC enabled point-of-sale (PoS) machines.
The Galaxy F62 features a quad-camera system on the back, featuring a 64-megapixel (Sony IMX 682) primary sensor, a 12MP ultra-wide-angle sensor, a 5MP macro sensor, and a 5MP depth sensor. Like the company’s flagship smartphones, the Galaxy F62 camera is complemented by Samsung’s ‘Single-Take’ feature, which captures up to 14 different shots in multiple format through all available optics in a single go. On the front, the phone has a 32MP camera sensor for selfies, videos and face-unlock mechanism. The front camera on the Galaxy F62 supports 4K resolution video recording.
The pandemic has laid bare the deficiencies in the cloud infrastructure, security and network architecture capabilities of businesses, hindering their ability to adapt and remain agile. It has forced a cultural mindset shift, with global organisations adapting their agility plans from recovering infrastructure and applications to getting office-based workers working from home.
Despite this uncertainty, it has provided a significant opportunity to accelerate digital transformation initiatives.
An NTT report on cloud technology says about 89 per cent of Indian businesses agree that the pandemic has forced their business to rely on technology more than ever before.
The report, which conducted research with 950 decision-makers in 13 Asia Pacific countries, including India, says hybrid cloud is now seen as critical to data-driven processes and real-time decisions, both now and in the future.
The SamsungGalaxy S21 Ultra (review) is an impeccable smartphone but it is expensive. This brings us to the next best in the series, the Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus. Priced Rs 81,999 onwards, the Galaxy S21 Plus is a toned-down model if you compare it with the Ultra. But it does not compromise on the key parameters that define the Galaxy S21 series. It boasts 5G network support, an AMOLED screen of 120Hz adaptive refresh rate, triple rear cameras capable of recording videos in up to 8K resolution, Dolby Atmos-powered stereo speakers, IP68-rated for water and dust resistance, and a big-capacity battery with fast-charge support. The Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra gets you the best. But can the same be said for the Galaxy S21 Plus overall? Let’s find out.Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus: Design
The Galaxy S21 Plus is designed on the same blueprint as ther Galaxy S21 series smartphones. It has minimal design with comfortable ergonomics for ease of use. It has a premium glass-metal construction with Gorilla Glass Victus protection on the front and back. Starting with the rear profile, the phone comes in three colour options – phantom violet, phantom silver and phantom black. The phantom silver variant (review unit) has a reflective frosted glass cover on the back that bends inwards from the sides to meet the frame. Speaking of the frame, it is made of metal and extends around the rear-camera module. With frame engulfed, the otherwise protruding rear camera module looks part of the overall package and not a disarrayed unit slapped on the phone.
Samsung has officially started bringing the One UI 3.1 update to Galaxy S20 Series, Note 20 Series, Z Fold2, Z Flip devices and several 2019, 2020 Galaxy A-series models.
The latest update is rolling out to various regions in the UK, Europe(like Austria, Germany), and South Korea, reports GizmoChina.
The latest One UI 3.1 update from Samsung primarily focuses on camera-centric features. The update includes an upgraded Single Take feature, Eye Comfort Shield, Object Eraser tool, improved touch autofocus, and auto-exposure control.
Samsung also points out that this update will bring additional features that debuted on the Galaxy S21, S21+, and S21 Ultra to older devices.
One UI 3.1 features improved touch autofocus and autoexposure controller, making adjusting the focus and brightness of photos easier.
One UI 3.1 also introduces the new Multi Mic Recording feature, which, when in Pro Video mode to simultaneously record audio through both phone and a connected Bluetooth device such as Galaxy Buds Pro, Buds Live and Buds+.
However, Samsung has not brought the Google Discover, Google Messages to the devices with this update.
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