 This 10th year of Daily Tech News show is made possible by it's all listeners. That's you. You're listening. Thank you. Maybe you're Justin Zellers or Peppergeese or Carmine Bailey or brand new patrons. Alex Legala and Vladimir. Yeah. On this episode of DTNS, Google opens up the play store. Tom Tom puts AI in your car and this was not the year of VR, but maybe next year will be saying there's a chance. This is the Daily Tech News for Tuesday, December 19th, 2023 in Los Angeles. I'm Tom Merritt and from Studio Brands, Bank and News, Arlene. And I'm the show's producer, Roger Chang, for my saying. Roger was so stunned by your amazing new studio that he was speechless there for a second. Well, you know, there is work yet to be done in the new studio. We need a name, but otherwise, we are very happy to be here. And happy to be back on the show. Yeah, it's good to have you back. Let's see what quick hits are like in this new studio. Let's figure it out. Bloomberg sources say Apple is working on changes to the algorithms that calculate blood oxygen levels on the Apple Watch. The hope is to use a software update to avoid accusations of infringing on patents by Massimo. Monday, we told you that Apple will end all of its own Apple Watch sales by December 25th in order to comply with an International Trade Commission ruling on violation of two patents. But the patents mostly refer to hardware operations, such as how light is emitted on the skin to measure measure blood oxygen. Apple thinks it can work around that with software, although Massimo has said Apple's hardware needs to change if it doesn't want to pay to license the patents. In the meantime, third parties can continue to sell Apple Watches as long as they are in stock and the Apple Watch SE can continue to be sold. Hey, remember that Windows bug that automatically installed the HP Smart App after renaming all of your printers to be HP laser jets? That was two weeks ago that Microsoft acknowledged it. I think it's longer that it's actually been around. Finally, Microsoft has a fix. This weekend, it released a Microsoft printer metadata troubleshooter tool, which will uninstall the HP printer app and restore your model information and icons to their correct identities, removing the HP laser jet info. If you're an admin in an enterprise situation, you can run it for all your clients and individuals can get it from the Microsoft Download Center. And then you have to run it from the command line with admin privileges. Comcast disclosed details about threat actors who reached one of its Citrix servers back in October, which included customer sensitive information for quite a few people. In fact, 35,879,455 people from its its XFINITY product systems. Comcast says the scope of the customer data taken included user names and hashed passwords. Some customers information such as names, contact info, last four digits of social security numbers, dates of birth, and secret questions and answers to those questions were also taken. Comcast started asking users to reset their passwords as they log in last week and has also started notifying users that their data has likely been compromised. Malicious actors have published internal data from insomniac games that the Spider-Man game folks, including its upcoming game release schedule and even some gameplay from the upcoming 2025 Wolverine release. The data also mentions a third Spider-Man game. We probably could have guessed that a Venom game, a new Ratchet and Clank title. The attackers had apparently demanded 50 Bitcoin to prevent the release and insomniac didn't pay. So now it's out there. OpenAI created a new safety advisory group designed to fend off the threat of harmful AI and can override open AI's own technical teams. So the advisory group makes its recommendations directly to the leadership team, although OpenAI's board retains veto power. The company also updated its preparedness framework with the main purpose of showing a clear path for identifying, analyzing and deciding what to do about catastrophic risks inherent to models the company is still developing. Yeah, adding more layers of bureaucracy. That's how we keep ourselves safe. All right, let's talk about this big news today from Google. Google settling down. Yeah, so Google has settled a lawsuit brought on by 37 US attorneys general led by Utah to pay $700 million and make four changes to its app store. So 70 million will go to a fund for all 50 states that includes DC, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. The other 630 million dollars will be distributed among users, depending on how much you spent in the play store between August 16th, 2016. And September 30th of this year, you'll get at least two dollars. And in some cases, you'll get more than that. Yeah, everybody gets two bucks. And I would like mine to be in a two dollar bill. I would like mine to be two thousand dollars. I don't think you spent enough on the play store. Did you? Oh, maybe you did. I don't know. No, no, no, no. But maybe you did. So maybe I yeah, I'm only going to get the two bucks. I used the play store, but I didn't spend much. Here are the four changes that Google is going to make to Android as a result of this settlement to try to make everybody happy. They will make it easier to install and use third party app stores. You can install third party app stores right now, but it's a little complicated. So they say they're going to streamline that so that it won't be so difficult for people to do it if they want. They'll also allow users to download apps directly from a website without needing to go through an app store. You'll still get a pop up saying like, hey, downloading stuff from other websites can be dangerous. So you're sure about this place, but you you'll be able to get it directly, which is not something you can do now. Third of the four things, they will let developers offer an alternative payment option alongside Google Play to US users through something they've been testing called the user choice billing system. So this is still Google's own system. This isn't just saying everybody can use whatever payment system they want. You have to go through this billing system and Google takes 26 percent of the payment rather than 30 percent of the payment. So there's, you know, a slight benefit to doing that way. And fourth of the four things they're going to do, let developers mention other subscription offers to lower cost options available at other app stores or the developer's own website. So you right now you're not allowed to refer to that stuff. This is something that Apple is going to face, probably having to do based on their version of the Apple Epic lawsuit. But but Sarah, these things are are good compromises. I don't think they're enough to make Epic stop suing Google. At least Epic has said it is not enough. Probably not. That said, I think that, you know, we were we're in the era now where it's like, OK, these these app stores have been way too locked down for the developer community. And, you know, you know, Epic versus Google versus Apple, you know, that that is almost neither here nor there for for for most of the development community. I think I think what Google is is conceding on is is is really good. You know, it's it's exactly what Apple has had to do. You know, going from 30 percent to 26 percent. OK, not like a super big concession there. But but just to be able to let the let the the the ecosystem thrive is is is a good thing. Yeah, these are good. I I'm not I don't disagree with you. Epic wants more. They want more damages. So seven hundred million is what's getting chopped up here. Epic is suing for ten point five billion. So that's quite a bit more. And they think the twenty six they probably won't get ten point five billion, but they'll get more than seven hundred million if they win and they keep going. They also want that twenty six percent to be lower. So, you know, that's another thing that they want to push on is like you should allow us to use our own payment system without taking anything. Google and Apple's arguments in those cases is we are still maintaining the operating system. We're still maintaining the platform. So even though you're not going through our payment system, you should pay us something if you're getting listed in our store and we have to maintain the store, etc., etc. Granted, if there's a third party app store, Google won't make you pay the twenty six percent because you're not going through that this is only for for apps that want to be listed in the Google Play Store. So Epic thinks that should be that should be cheaper. They probably think it should be zero percent and they want complete freedom to design and message their alternate payment payment options, which Google is not giving developers here. Certainly not through the Google Play Store. So I don't know, allowing users to download apps directly from a website to me is a huge step. That is something I've wanted to be able to do on my phone just like I do on my laptop for a long time. So I'm I'm excited for that one. Well, let's talk about what you want in your next car, Tom. So navigation platform Tom Tom announced it has partnered with Microsoft to offer a generative models in its automobile software. Tom Tom says you'll be able to speak naturally to the software to control things like navigation, car system control, window control, other infotainment system controls, et cetera, et cetera. The system uses open AI's LLMs, Azure cognitive services and Microsoft's multi model Azure Cosmos DB. Tom Tom's open modular digital cockpit software will include this and other automakers can also include it under their own software brands. Yeah, so this we have voice control in cars already. Don't don't get us wrong. We're not trying to position this as like the brand new thing. Even Tom Tom has voice control. But what's new here is using open AI large language models. We hesitate to say chat GPT because we don't know is it would they we don't know if it's GPT for GPT 3.5 or maybe some other model. It's taking advantage of Microsoft's implementations, not open AI. So it could be some spin on it. Obviously, they're doing Azure Cosmos DB, which is multimodal. So that allows you to do some image sensor input, another sensor input from the car. But Sarah, I I would love to be able to just not have to think about how I'm saying something, but be able to say like, hey, play my audio book from Audible right now and have it know like, oh, you mean the most recent audio book. Let me launch that for you and start playing it without, you know, without having to go smart speaker. Oh, yeah, Audible to play when. Oh, what was the book? I was reading his name, et cetera, et cetera. I mean, listen, I use car play in my car now, you know, because my car is compatible and I'm used to talking. I mean, in this case, it's Siri, because I'm on iOS. I know how to ask for things that I know the car can do. The car can't roll down my windows for me. That was like one of the things where I was like, whoa, I never even really thought about that. I never thought about the, you know, yes, hardware based. I can push a button and my window goes down or goes up type thing. Yeah, but I never really thought about the idea that I can just say, hey, I'm hot and rolled on the windows, you know, or turn on the AC or, you know, a variety of things that I am used to doing that in my home because I like to talk to my smart speakers. You know, and there's another, quite a thing, quite a few things that I can do because of that, but in my car, it's always been pretty limited. You know, it's like I can play a podcast. I can maybe, it's really just sort of entertainment stuff, info entertainment stuff, but when that turns into a, oh, I can, you know, I don't know, change the settings, the heat settings in the car. That's cool. I mean, you're not going to be able to be like, hey, turn on my, turn my car on and off or, you know, make make the, you know, me go to 90 miles per hour type thing. There are certain things, obviously, that it's not going to be able to do. But a little bit more of that just sort of natural, like, hey, I'm feeling, you know, a little cold, maybe turn on the, you know, turn on the foot heater type thing. That kind of makes the car more like a smart home. And I've never really had that before. Yeah. And you can do all of that stuff right now. CarPlay may not be able to do it, but there are certainly ways you can say, like, you know, a GM smart speaker adjust the heat to 70 degrees. What Tom Tom's doing is beyond that, right? They're saying, we're not only going to like tap in all this stuff and we'll see if they do. Remember, Tom Tom's just making the software capable of doing it. That doesn't mean every car maker is going to implement all of this, but they might implement part of it. And the big advantage is not what it can do, what it can control. The big advantage is how you say it, because it's going to be able to understand you without you having to phrase things exactly. And when I'm driving and I'm paying attention to the road and watching around for cars and making sure that that guy in the Lamborghini is not going to like run into me as he speeds around all the traffic. I'm going to want to not have to think about how to properly phrase something. I want to be able to just say it in natural language. That's what they're promising. I don't know. Do you think they'll be able to deliver on that? I don't know. I'm happy to test it. I spend a fair amount of time in my car. So yeah, I think this is car, house, a variety of places. We have those of us who care about talking to our smart home devices. We have gotten used to being, you know, this is how you have to say it to make the thing do the thing. And that's not the end of the world. But to just sort of be like, oh, I'm in a bad mood, you know, and the car would be like, gotcha, you know, you need the AC on a little bit. I don't know. I don't even really know, you know, how it's going to play out. I'm able to say, like, it's too warm in here. Can you make it a little cooler and have it know, like, oh, let me try just going down two notches without having to, like, say, reduce cooling by two percent or whatever it is that you want to say. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah. And I mean, I feel like I'm we're getting there with a lot of smart devices. You know, for example, I added some stuff to my grocery list the other day. And it's like, I used to have to say it just so, you know, and now it's like, it's getting smarter, you know, I can kind of just like flippantly be like, I need Brussels sprouts and they're like, gotcha. Maybe that's a prediction for the coming year is that we are finally going to see these models show up in the Echo in the Google Home in a way that you can feel, right? And they are all been saying they're coming. And Apple's saying it's coming to Siri, too. But if it's coming to Tom Tom, if it's if it's coming to Tom Tom's digital cockpit platform, which lots of car users can use, that means it's going to show up in cars when you didn't expect it, right? Because you're not using CarPlay or AndroidPlay, you're using probably some branded platform made that looks like it was made by the car manufacturer, but it's actually running on Tom Tom's digital cockpit. Yeah, exactly. Exactly. Well, folks, we had a great conversation with one from Android Faithfully yesterday, and several of you wrote in and were like, Oh, I loved having her on the show, have her on a bunch. We will. But you can also hear her more often if you listen to Android Faithful. Every week, Android aficionados, Ron Richards, Twin Tweedow and Jason Howell bring you the latest Android news and information. You can watch it live Tuesdays at 8 p.m. Eastern, 5 p.m. Pacific at youtube.com daily tech news show or subscribe and get it right there in your podcatcher at androidfaithful.com. It's time to check in on the state of VR and AR. It makes it sound like, you know, everybody knows it's on the calendar. December 19th, that's every year when we check it on the state of VR and AR. But the reason we're doing it is Cercana Research came out with an estimate of VR sales, VR and AR headset sales in the US estimating they fell almost 40% as of November 25th. Now, granted, that doesn't take into account the whole holiday season. So maybe that won't be quite so bad once they add in December. But it's still much more than the 2% it fell in the last year. So we've had two bad years of VR and AR headset sales put it this way. They were selling better in 2021 than they are now. The four hundred ninety nine dollar MetaQuest three was an exception. It kept that fall from being worse. Sales of headsets from October and November were up 42% over the same period last year. And that is almost entirely due to the MetaQuest three. There was no strong headset released the rest of the year. The next best would be the Sony PS VR 2. But that did not pick up a lot of market share. So we are no longer in early days, Sarah. It's it's middle days. We're we're we're in the we're in the noon time of VR and AR now. And yet we've got news of a couple of new sensors from Samsung, a time of flight sensor and a shutter sensor that will probably go into Samsung mixed reality headset. We obviously have the rumors that Apple's getting ready and train in their people in the store to sell the Apple Vision Pro for thirty five hundred January, perhaps, perhaps, certainly in Q one. So my question that I thought we should kick around is, yes, VR is coming off two very bad years headset sales wise. Is it about to turn around? You know, I think I think the. If I have to be honest, Apple's you know, we appreciate what I'm going to be. OK, I'm not going to lie to y'all. Apple's Vision Pro thirty five hundred dollars expected first quarter of this year, perhaps January, this year, meaning 2024. But, you know, maybe maybe even if that that slides a little bit, this is a big deal. However, this is not a consumer product. It's a developer product. It is something that is extremely expensive. This is not something you just casually pick up at Best Buy type thing. Now, what you have in the VR and AR world right now is a variety of options. I am a quest enthusiast. I have been for some time at the same time over the you know, over the last and even on the show, even with all y'all, but over the last few years, as as much as I've been really kind of, you know, gung-ho and bullish about VR, I can't really get people on board with it. You know, where I'm like, it's just the one, you know, it's the one app. It's the one app. It's so fun. All you have to do is just try it out. And people go like, I don't want to do that. There's something about VR that is hard for people to get on board with. And I still think to this day, it's because if you haven't tried that killer app, you just don't care. You don't want to. What is that killer app? What's that one app? Well, for me, it's supernatural because it's a fun VR exercise app that makes exercising fun. That's my killer app. But but but I I never cared about VR until I found this one app where I was like, oh, wait a second, this is really fun, really, really fun. You know, I've got friends Tom, I think you're part of that group, you know, who get together and play miniature golf together. You know, there are all sorts of ways that VR actually does bring people together or at least brings you into a fun world that you could not experience otherwise. I am very in, you know, I'm I'm all in on VR. However, I really I have to say it is just not a thing that you can you can kind of like casually say to somebody like, hey, you should, you know, get into this. People go, what? I have to put something in my face. You know, all of that stuff is still the same. You know, like sort of all you have to do is wear this slightly heavy thing on your face so you can't see and then exercise. Like it's just not I know I know it's fun, but it's it's a hard sell to get people to get over the top and even if even if it's not an exercise thing, you just have a lot of people being like, I don't know, I don't want to do that. I mean, you know, maybe I have, you know, I have eyeglasses issues. You know, putting something on my face like that all is very, very. That's fair. Yeah. But but yeah, we are we are going to get into an era when Apple releases the Vision Pro where the conversation is going to change. I don't know exactly how. Well, that's the question. Right. How? How is it going to change? Because what Apple? What does Apple usually do? Let's take tablets. Tablets were like this. Tablets had been pushed by Microsoft. Maybe they sold a few and then they declined and they declined and nobody wanted them. And everybody said, why would I want to tablet? Then Apple came out with the iPad. And what they did with the iPad is made it look fun. They made it look like something you'd want to try and they made you feel like you were missing out if you didn't have one. That's what they need to do with the Vision Pro. Nobody looks at the Quest 3 and thinks, man, I'm missing all the fun. You know, it's just it's just not a thing that you see people do. And maybe we could try to figure out why. But it's just true. Apple's good at making things look really fun, look really cool, make you feel like you're missing out. And even if they don't get a bunch of people to spend $3,500, they will make people wish they could spend $3,500 if they do this right. But I don't know. Maybe they want this time. But that's usually what Apple does. One of, yeah, yes, definitely true. I mean, thirty five hundred dollars like come on. You know, like a Mac Pro like that. That's what we're talking about. The halo effect of that, if they do it right, is everybody, man, I wish I could get a Vision Pro, but I can't afford it. I guess I'll buy a five hundred dollar Quest 3, because at least I can afford that and feel like I have something. Well, in a sense where they wouldn't do that now, start the whole deal. And that I think is what's going to be the most interesting thing. Apple will say we invented VR, you know, like we're the best, we're the coolest. That's what Apple does. Everyone knows that's not true. But maybe it does jumpstart a whole ecosystem that is, you know, it's been around, but it has been languishing. Yeah, no, it's it's it's almost 10 years since the Oculus Rift, right? Like this is not early days. I wasn't even joking about that earlier. So I do think I know this isn't our prediction show. We'll do that at the end of the month. But I do think that this will be the last year of decline of VR headsets. I think we will see them at least flatten out next year. I don't think Apple's thirty five hundred dollar headsets going to do it as far as turning things around. But it might, like you say, have that halo effect and and spark some interest in in the situation. And then you've got like bite dance canceled its next version of the Pico because it wants to make something more like the Apple Vision Pro. Samsung's coming with its mixed reality headsets. So we're going to get more of that kind of stuff. All right, let's check out the mailbag. Let's do it. Jeff and Knoxville, Tennessee wrote in and said on Monday's Quick Hits, you mentioned the rollout of fiber internet by the Knoxville utility board. Although I live slightly outside their service area. I can report it's done exactly what you would expect in terms of bringing competitive pricing to the area. I currently have one gigabyte gigabit fiber from a smaller telecom for sixty dollars a month. And my power company, which services a much more rural area, is in the process of completing their fiber rollout in response. And the next few months, I may have access to at least two different gigabit fiber providers from my home. Oh, Jeff, so we're moving to Tennessee is what. Yeah, but speak of the halo effect, right? That's what Jeff's describing is he's like, I'm not even in the area where they've rolled out the municipal fiber and it's already caused me to get fiber from other sources who were like, well, we better start offering it or or we're going to be out of luck. So that's awesome. Thank you, Jeff. And I love that we get a little on the ground report from somebody in Knoxville. Indeed. Patrons, stick around for the extended show, Good Day Internet. If you support this show directly, you not only get an ad free feed, you get more show. And Sarah and I are going to talk about the tech we want in twenty twenty four, what we're excited about, what we're hoping for. So stick around for that. Just a reminder, you can catch our show live Monday through Friday four p.m. Eastern twenty one hundred UTC. And you can find out more at daily tech news show dot com slash live. We will be back doing it all again tomorrow. Scott Johnson joining us talk to you then. 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