Stuff Worth Knowing for the Week of December 26, 2022
Microsoft talks back to the FTC, TSMC moves to 3nm, and Sherlock Holmes goes public domain.
Welcome back to Stuff Worth Knowing! Each week, I'll round up news related to tech, video games, film, television, anime, and more. At the end of each newsletter, there will be a section called On The Calendar, which will include some of those notable dates that are near-term. Oh, and I also launched my Patreon, SavePhile, where my more thoughtful musings on any topic will go.
Time to close out 2022! It's been an uneven year personally, but a lot of newsworthy things happened for everybody else. Of course, "newsworthy" can stretch anywhere from "amazing new product that will revolutionize the world" to "executives cut half the workforce ahead of the holidays." Hopefully, your life has been filled with the former. Here's this week's news. Luckily, it's a light week.
Oh, and a Happy New Year to you all!
Video Games 🎮
Microsoft Files Responses to FTC and CMA Over Activision-Blizzard Acquisition
Two weeks ago, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) decided to stand in the way of Microsoft's $68 billion acquisition of Activision-Blizzard, filing a legal complaint against the deal. Microsoft has vowed to fight for the acquisition in court and as part of that move, it filed a legal response to the FTC's complaint.
The response is strongly worded. "Microsoft denies each and every allegation
contained in the Complaint," it states. "Ultimately, the Commission cannot meet its burden of showing that the transaction would leave consumers worse off, because the transaction will allow consumers to play Activision’s games on new platforms and access them in new and more affordable ways. The relief sought in the Complaint should be denied."
Microsoft contends that the FTC Commission violates Article II of the U.S. Constitution and the separation of powers, since the Commission itself has "significant executive power". (Okay? What?) The company also states that the Commission's procedures violate its right to due process under the Fifth Amendment. Microsoft's lawyers are asking for the complaint to be dismissed "in its entirety with prejudice."
Microsoft also filed a response to the UK Competition & Markets Authority, which released its first regulatory report on the acquisition in October. In this second response, Microsoft contends that Sony operates from a dominant position in the gaming market and the merger would provide more competition by giving Microsoft a slight leg up. "The Merger is fundamentally pro-competitive because it increases competition in a market long dominated by Sony," it says in the opening statements.
Microsoft points to Sony's strong slate of "iconic first-party franchises" and the latter's tendency to get other console exclusives from third-party publishers and developers. In section 3.67 of the response, Microsoft states that Sony has several agreements with third-parties that exclude Xbox releases, including "Final Fantasy VII Remake (Square Enix), Bloodborne (From Software), the upcoming Final Fantasy XVI (Square Enix), and the recently announced Silent Hill 2 remastered (Bloober team)." Sorry to anyone hoping to play those games on Xbox.
The rest of Microsoft's response to the CMA goes to great pains to downplay the importance of Call of Duty in the gaming market. The first four pages are about the shooter franchise alone, stating that "Call of Duty gamers are neither ‘special’ nor ‘unique’ in terms of either their spending or user engagement as compared to gamers that favor other popular franchises." This is largely true, but it's interesting to see Microsoft spend $68 billion to acquire Activision-Blizzard and then spend months downplaying the company's offerings.
Why It's Worth Knowing: Despite Microsoft's protests on the matter, the company acquiring Activision-Blizzard would be somewhat of a sea change in the gaming industry. The latter company is one of the major unaligned gaming publishers, including Take-Two, Ubisoft, and Electronic Arts. (Embracer Group, Tencent, and NetEase are quickly growing to stand alongside the rest.) While any of them may be acquired or merged in the future, some regulatory scrutiny is needed.
At the very least, the FTC and CMA should push back to make sure the deal isn't wholly anti-competitive. I find myself sympathetic to Microsoft's arguments, but that's only because I sort of trust Phil Spencer, but there's no real guarantee the head of the Xbox division will remain sympathetic in the future.
Tech ⌨️
TSMC Starts Mass Production of 3nm Chips
This is an important story this week, but it might need a bit of explanation for the uninitiated. (Think of it like getting the "Why It's Worth Knowing" section ahead of time.) Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) is the company behind most of the hardware you use each and every day. Chips make technology run, including desktop PCs, laptops, gaming consoles, smartphones, and smartwatches, and TSMC is one of the main suppliers of those chips. TSMC's current clients include Apple, AMD, Intel, Nvidia, ARM, and Qualcomm.
This week, TSMC announced that it was beginning mass production of 3 nanometer (3nm) chips. Generally, as the process node becomes lower in number — this isn't tied to any actual size, mind you — the chips increase in processing speed while also being more energy efficient. As an example, Apple's M2 system-on-a-chip (SoC) is built on the 5nm process, while AMD's Ryzen 7000 processors are combinations of 5nm and 6nm processes. TSMC switching to 3 nm means better processors for future technology.
Supplying so many chips is why TSMC is expanding its foundries to other regions outside of its home region of Taiwan. The company is building a new plant in Arizona and earlier this month TSMC said it's planning to invest $40 billion in the facility. Apple and Nvidia's CEOs both attended the factory's opening ceremony. "We work with TSMC to manufacture the chips that help power our products all over the world. And we look forward to expanding this work in the years to come as TSMC forms new and deeper roots in America," said Apple CEO Tim Cook at the ceremony. The Arizona factory won't actually be operational until 2024. (TSMC is also eyeing a European plant in Germany.)
All this expansion is about addressing future demand, but some reports have major vendors slashing their chip orders for 2023. According to DigiTimes (translated via Tom’s Hardware), continued COVID lockdowns, economic turmoil, and reduced demand for computer hardware have most of TSMC’s clients lowering overall orders. The cuts started in Q4 2022, but should stretch into the first or second quarter of 2023. And chip fabrication isn’t easy to slow down and spin up again, meaning TSMC will likely make the chips and hold them for future orders.
Regardless, TSMC’s more efficient chips will also be key for upcoming technology related to our next news item…
Meta Acquires Smart Glasses Company Luxexcel
In last week's On My Mind section, I noted that Meta Chief Technology Officer Andrew Bosworth wrote all about the company's future without mentioning the metaverse once. Instead, there was a stronger focus on augmented reality. A recent acquisition pushes the company further in that direction.
According to TechCrunch, Meta has acquired Luxexcel, a smart eyewear company located in the Netherlands. The company originally 3D printed prescription lenses, but in the past few years it added the ability to print smart glasses as well. Meta is currently testing augmented reality glasses under the name Project Aria and it's rumored that Luxexcel has been helping with that project.
This acquisition follows a story from The Information earlier this year, stating that Meta was pulling back on its AR glasses a bit. Its first set of commercially-available glasses were scheduled to launch in 2024, but the report states the product will be used for demonstration purposes. Instead, Meta is moving its effort to Artemis, the second-generation version of the glasses.
Why It's Worth Knowing: Every major tech company is searching for the platform of the future. I don't think that virtual reality is the one, as the closed nature of VR is at odds with how people interact with technology in general. Augmented reality is a bit closer in my opinion, moving existing information from your smartphone or smartwatch to a new hands-free display. Given the Meta Quest Pro and Meta's own statements about the future, my guess is the company is moving in that direction as well.
This Week In Twitter: Server Errors and Impending Evictions
It was another light week for Twitter. On the evening of the 28th, Twitter users started reporting errors accessing the site. According to the New York Times, the service problems mainly affected desktop clients. It was only a few hours of interruption, but it was enough to cast some doubt on the stability of Twitter under Musk.
What could've led to the server problems? Well, it could've been Musk and company shutting down one of Twitter's data centers in Sacramento, California. That happened on Christmas Eve, as Musk struggles to cut costs at Twitter.
The data center shutdown is only one of the many ways Musk is attempting to save money. According to the New York Times, the company has stopped paying rent on some office spaces and several services. Twitter's Seattle office is closing, as the company is behind on rent and facing eviction. Apparently, some employees are also bringing their own toilet paper into the office, as Musk has cut janitorial and security services.
The NYT asked for comment on their report, but Musk cut the communications team already. Oh well.
Amazon Tests Drone Delivery in California and Texas
Amazon cut back heavily on its Alexa group this year, but that doesn't mean the internet retail giant has decided not to explore alternate aspects of its business. According to Ars Technica, Amazon has started delivering some items by drones in two test regions: Lockeford, California and College Station, Texas. Amazon has been working with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to obtain permission to operate in both regions.
The service, Amazon Prime Air, has been struggling to get off the ground for some time now. According to a report from Bloomberg earlier this year, the Prime Air program has been hurt by high employee turnover and safety issues, including a number of drone crashes. (The drone itself weighs 80 pounds.) One crash during testing in June 2021 put the program on the radar of federal regulators, after a drone failed and caused a brush fire.
Amazon's drones are meant to deliver packages of up to 5 pounds, at distances of 7 miles out from the delivery center. In the test regions, the drone will fly into a customer's backyard to drop off packages. The company says that the 5-pound limit covers 85% of the packages it delivers each year.
Why It's Worth Knowing: Founder Jeff Bezos has been promising drone delivery since 2013. Amazon is among a number of other retailers and tech companies trying to get their own drone services off the ground, including Alphabet's Wing and DroneUp's Walmart service.
The problems with drone service are many, including weather, air traffic in delivery locations, and how to properly drop off packages once they've reached their delivery location. That's before you get to customers themselves; according to a Morning Consult survey, 57% of customers have little or no trust in drone delivery. Those feelings are mirrored by actual Lockeford residents, according to a Washington Post story.
Everyone wants to live in the future with drones dropping packages at their doorstep, but reality is still getting in the way.
Film, Books, and More 🎞️📚
Making a slightly different category this week for a single news item.
Sherlock Holmes, Metropolis, and More Enter Public Domain on January 1, 2023
On January 1, 2023, a large number of copyrighted works published in 1927 will become public domain. This means that others can copy and build upon the ideas and characters contained in those works. The Duke Center for the Study of the Public Domain has a full list of works entering public domain on January 1.
Notably, there's The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes, which is the final short story collection following the famous fictional detective. This means anyone can use any aspect of the original character without paying the Doyle estate a single cent. Other interesting works include Fritz Lang's film Metropolis, Alan Crosland's The Jazz Singer, and the original recording of Irving Berlin's Puttin' on the Ritz.
Why It's Worth Knowing: Copyright protection is a worthwhile thing, allowing current authors to profit off their current work. But copyright should eventually end, especially long after the death of the original author. Public domain is a space for other creators to play within, allowing them to remix older ideas and characters into something new. It'll be interesting to see what people do with these works in the future.
On My Mind 🧠
This section is where I can highlight statements or moments that aren't entirely newsworthy, but still interesting.
Glass Onion's Miles Bron Isn't Based on Elon Musk: Glass Onion is another excellent Benoit Blanc romp from writer-director Rian Johnson. The case in the new film revolves around tech billionaire Miles Bron, played by Edward Norton. Some have pegged Bron as a direct reference to Elon Musk, but Johnson himself says that's not the case in an interview with Wired.
"There’s a lot of general stuff about that sort of species of tech billionaire that went directly into it. But obviously, it has almost a weird relevance in exactly the current moment. A friend of mine said, “Man, that feels like it was written this afternoon.” And that’s just sort of a horrible, horrible accident, you know?"
GSC Game World is Still Making S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl, Despite Being in a Warzone: I'm honestly surprised and impressed by GSC Game World. The developer is based in Ukraine, a region currently under attack by Russian military forces. The official S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Twitter even acknowledged this in a recent tweet. I couldn't develop a game at all, let alone in wartime. Despite all of this, GSC Game World released a new trailer for its upcoming game, and it looks fantastic.
Librarians Ahead Turning to TikTok To Reach Teens: Look, libraries are super cool, allowing you to check out books, movies, games, and more for absolutely free! But not everyone thinks of their local library all the time. (Except to try and ban LGBTQ+ books?) According to this story in the New York Times, librarians are carving out a corner of TikTok to reach out to young readers. I'm still trying to figure out TikTok myself, but I think this is good news? According to Emily Drabinski, the president-elect of the American Library Association:
“We have this misconception that libraries are antiquated and not on top of tech trends. It is our job to select, acquire, describe, make accessible and circulate preserved knowledge. That’s the whole project. So as technology changes the ways things are circulated, we change with it.”
Avatar Way of the Water Reaches $1 Billion Worldwide in 14 Days: That's pretty much it. That's rather fast. In fact, it makes it the sixth-fastest film to reach the milestone, behind Avengers: Endgame, Avengers: Infinity War, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Spider-Man: No Way Home, and Jurassic World. Don't have much else to add. I haven't seen it yet. Probably gonna land around $1.8 billion worldwide.
That’s good news, as Cameron noted that the film was expensive to make in an interview with GQ:
The Way of Water was expensive to make—How expensive? “Very fucking,” according to Cameron, who told me he’d informed the studio that the film represented “the worst business case in movie history.” In order to be profitable, he’d said, “you have to be the third or fourth highest-grossing film in history. That’s your threshold. That’s your break even.”