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EA reportedly paid Ninja $1 million to stream ‘Apex Legends’

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That’s a large amount even for Ninja. He acknowledged to CNN in December that he was making $500,000 per month (more “on a good month”), but that’s split between Twitch, YouTube and sponsorships. This was twice as much for a single Twitch stream.

It’s not certain how much other streamers were paid, although the initial wave included prominent broadcasters like Shroud (Michael Grzesiek) and Myth (Ali Kabbani). Respawn’s Drew McCoy hasn’t been shy about the goal. He told Reuters in an interview that the team wanted a “day where you couldn’t escape Apex if you cared about games.” It’s a classic media blitz, just on live streaming services instead of TV.

Still, the amount shows just how important live game streaming has become, at least in the battle royale genre. Rather than opt for conventional media campaigns, companies are increasingly willing to spend millions ensuring their games dominate Twitch and similar services. That does raise concerns about streamers disclosing their payments (it’s not always obvious), but it won’t be surprising if this marketing tactic becomes more commonplace given how successful Apex has been.

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‘Overwatch’ healer Baptiste debuts on March 19th

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Baptiste, whose full name is Jean-Baptiste Augustin, is an ex-Talon medic who has fled to Haiti. The captain of his former team, who is sent to capture or kill him, details the healer’s traits in a personal log released by Overwatch.

“I know better than to underestimate Baptiste. I helped train him myself, and he was one of our best. I’ve never known a medic to be such a good shot, and his adaptability to new situations is a rare talent. All of us have seen our fair share of conflict, but Baptiste was built to survive. I swear he has the Devil’s own luck,” writes a Captain Cuerva in the teaser letter.

As a black man, Baptiste also brings more diversity to Overwatch’s crew of heroes. Overwatch creator Jeff Kaplan wrote that “multiple black characters were in the works” in response to a fan’s letter about the lack of black females on the game. All in all, the clever design, compelling backstory, and interesting kit of Overwatch’s 30th character will likely make Baptiste appealing to many gamers.



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US conducts criminal investigation into Facebook’s data deals

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Facebook acknowledged the investigation to the Times, stating that it was “cooperating with investigators” and was taking probes “seriously.”

The deals typically revolved around making it easier to fill out contacts, share content and otherwise integrate Facebook with devices and websites. There’s a concern that these deals weren’t always transparent to everyday users, though. Microsoft’s Bing deal mapped the friends of Facebook users without explicit permission, for instance. The FTC is believed to be negotiating a fine with Facebook over alleged violations of a 2011 privacy agreement, but not necessarily over those deals. Investigators may be using a criminal case to address concerns other agencies haven’t already covered.

Whatever the details, the investigation doesn’t bode well. Most of those deals have long since ended, and Mark Zuckerberg recently pledged to make a “privacy-focused” social network, but officials aren’t likely to care. As with Cambridge Analytica and other scandals, Facebook’s past is coming back to haunt it in ways that could have serious repercussions.

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Facebook helps you host viewing parties for live TV

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The company is testing the feature worldwide in Facebook Groups during certain sports events, including UEFA Champions League matches. It’ll eventually spread to “all kinds of live events and cultural moments,” Facebook said, citing award shows and premieres as likely candidates.

Facebook isn’t just catering to TV junkies today — it’s also courting music fans. If you attach a song to your profile, you can give visitors an option to listen to the full song on Spotify (see below). More music partners will be available in the “near future,” according to Facebook, so you might not be out of luck if you or your friends prefer other services.

It may seem unusual for Facebook to enable Watch Party for videos that aren’t even online, but this appears to be more about capturing your attention than making money. If you stay in a Facebook space while you’re watching the big game, you might be more likely to stay on the service for after-match discussions.

Facebook option to listen to profile songs in Spotify

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Microsoft’s Wireless Display app streams PC games to your Xbox

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In order to use the Wireless Display app, you’ll need to install the program on your PC and Xbox. Once installed, you’ll have the option to cast your computer, be it a game or anything else on your desktop, to your Xbox One. There are a number of different latency settings, including one specifically for gaming that should tone down any potential input lag issues.

It’s worth noting that the app doesn’t support keyboard and mouse input, so you won’t be able to stream to your Xbox while using standard PC controls. Last year, Microsoft introduced keyboard and mouse support for the Xbox One, so it’s entirely possible that may be an option while streaming content in the future.

Prior to adding Xbox One support, the Wireless Display app (previously called “Connect on Windows” was available to cast content between a PC and the Microsoft Surface Hub, making it a relatively niche service prior to the recent update. Xbox One support adds a significant amount of new functionality and instantly makes the app one of the most viable ways to play PC games on your Xbox.

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‘Hyper Light Drifter’ devs’ next game goes rollerblading across clouds

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The studio hasn’t discussed much else, including the game genre, plot, release date or platforms. If history is any indication, though, you’ll likely see Solar Ash launch on a variety of devices. This also isn’t as retro-looking as Hyper Light Drifter was. From initial appearances, it’s a full 3D title where HLD was a 2D, 16-bit-inspired nostalgia trip.

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Apple Music is on Amazon Fire TV

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Amazon Fire TV users already have a bevy of music options on their devices, including Spotify, Amazon Music, iHeartRadio, and more. But for Apple Music fans — who already enjoy streaming their playlists on their Echo devices — the addition of Fire TV is a nice perk.

Apple Music still falls behind Spotify and Pandora in terms of paid and unpaid users, but this partnership with Amazon could expand its reach. Apple Music, which launched in 2015, has 56 million subscribers worldwide. This is still just a fraction of Spotify’s vast user base, which tallies in at 87 million paid subscribers and 109 million on the free tier.

While Apple Music might be moving in on Spotify’s territory, the Swedish company isn’t taking it lying down. Spotify complained to the European Commission’s antitrust regulators about Apple’s 30 percent tax on purchases made through the App Store, which the company feels gives Apple an unfair advantage over other services. The tax essentially forces Spotify to choose between charging extra for its Premium service or losing some of its profit to Apple.

If you already own an Amazon Fire TV, you can activate the Apple Music app directly on your device. If the Apple Music skill is already activated on your Alexa app, you can play your tunes on Fire TV immediately.

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Legendary ASCII game ‘Dwarf Fortress’ is coming to Steam

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The Steam version doesn’t have a firm release date, and it’s likely “some months away.” You won’t have to worry if you still prefer the original, though. It’ll stick around as Dwarf Fortress Classic, and will continue to be available for free. This modernized version is more about expanding the audience than dragging the game’s look into the present day.

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Periscope details plan to cut down on spam and fake activity

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“We want to make sure this is clear as you may see an increase in enforcement actions taken on the platform — even actions taken on accounts that may be high profile,” stated Periscope in the post.

While Periscope launched a tool in 2016 that allowed viewers to report abusive or spammy comments, this new move seems more geared towards keeping users from artificially inflating their views or selling products on their platform. Fake engagement, mostly in the form of automated apps that dole out fake likes and fake comments, are a persistent problem for social media platforms. Back in November, Instagram started freezing accounts expected of using fake apps to boost followers. Facebook this month sued a group of companies that sell fake followers.

Periscope specified a wide range of behaviors that were in violation of its spam guidelines. This includes tactics to artificially inflate one’s presence on the platform, such as selling or buying followers. Creating broadcasts just to direct users to a link, sending repetitive chat messages, and reposting identical content are also among the banned behaviors. Posting misleading or “clickbait”-like titles in order to boost followers is off-limits as well.

Periscope won’t be relying on users alone to identify the slew of fake engagement on its platform. A representative for Twitter told Engadget that Periscope is in the midst of “developing ways to find spammy content without having to rely as heavily on users.”

Likes, follows, and comments are the social currency of an app like Periscope, and fake engagement has bogged down the platform for a while. The once popular streaming platform is losing users in droves as they flock to Instagram and Facebook, which both include livestreaming features. This new policy shift is the company’s strongest attempt to clamp down on inauthentic behavior on the platform, but it might be too late for it to make a difference in Periscope’s popularity.

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Sneaky deep sea robot will take pics of fish without spooking them

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It crucially won’t need much human intervention. Mesobot uses stereo cameras to identify target animals and can follow them around on its own. A 12-megapixel camera can take both pictures and 4K video, while a particulate sampler could collect DNA traces floating in the water. It could also study water traits like salt levels and dissolved oxygen.

Woods Hole expects Mesobot to be ready for testing in early 2019 (that is, very shortly), and could embark on its first real dive in the summer. When it does, it could provide a new level of insight into sea life hundreds or thousands of feet below the waves. Human divers can be extremely stealthy, but they can’t stay for very long — Mesobot could hang around long enough to discover behavior that people would otherwise miss.

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