Heena Sharma Blog

  Apple Inc said it plans to argue that it faces abundant competition in the market for video game transactions to defend itself against antitrust allegations by "Fortnite" maker Epic Games , the iPhone maker said on Thursday. Epic sued Apple last year in federal court in California, alleging the 15% to 30% commissions that Apple charges for the use of its in-app payment systems and Apple's longstanding practice of exercising control over which apps can be installed on its devices amount to anticompetitive behavior. The dispute arose after Epic tried to implement its own in-app payment system in the popular "Fortnite" game and Apple subsequently banned the game from its App Store. The case is to be heard in May in Oakland, California, by U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, who will have to rule on which notion of a "market" is the correct one for analyzing Apple's moves for signs of anticompetitive conduct. Read More

  Microsoft this year launched not one but two gaming consoles – the top-end Xbox Series X and a cheaper digital-only model Xbox Series S. The Xbox Series X is a premium gaming console that boasts the best of the company’s technological prowess, being the most advanced gaming console available in India at present. It is no surprise that the Xbox Series S pales in comparison to this high-tech model, but by no means is the affordable model incompetent. Instead, it seems just about perfect if you drop the comparison and just it as a standalone product. The Xbox Series S is the smallest Xbox ever made – merely 27.5cm tall, 15.1cm deep, and 6.5cm broad in the vertical position. Its petite form factor makes it stand comfortably next to a TV or a gaming monitor, even if there is not much space to accommodate anything else. Moreover, it can be placed in both vertical and horizontal positions. Therefore, you have the choice to stand it next to the screen or slide it under just like a sou...

Singapore’s newest billionaire is a former government employee who rode mobile sensation Free Fire into the ranks of the ultra-wealthy this week. The battle royale or fight-to-the-death title distributed by Sea Ltd. ranked among the five most downloaded games on the Apple and Google app stores for three straight quarters this year and has amassed $1 billion in adjusted revenue since launching in 2017. That propelled a tripling in Sea’s market value and the fortune of co-founder Gang Ye, a Carnegie Mellon University alum who’s worked for Wilmar International Ltd. and Singapore’s Economic Development Board. The 39-year-old joins fellow co-founder Forrest Li, whose larger stake in the fast-growing games-to-shopping company earned him a ten-digit fortune earlier this year. Ye, who moved to Singapore from China in the 1990s as a teenager and became a citizen shortly after his return from the US, has served as Sea’s chief operating officer since 2017. The executive holds an 8.4...

Facebook-owned Oculus on Tuesday said it is buying the studio behind hit virtual reality game " Beat Saber " as it looks to expand VR technology to wider audiences. Oculus, which makes Rift and Quest VR headgear, did not disclose financial terms of the deal to acquire Prague-based Beat Games. "Beat Games is joining us in our quest to bring VR to more people around the world," Oculus director of augmented and virtual reality content Mike Verdu said in a blog post. "Beat Games' accomplishments are already impressive, but Facebook and the Beat Games team know that there is so much more that can be done across VR, games, and music." Verdu assured players that the studio would continue to ship content and updates for "Beat Saber" on platforms where it is already available. In the virtual game, players use light sabers to slash oncoming, large cubes to the beat of music, sometimes twisting or ducking to avoid oncoming walls. ...

PUBG Corporation on Thursday announced that PUBG LITE , the free-to-play, low-spec adaptation of PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS, will be heading into Open Beta phase on August 8. During the initial eight month long Beta Test period, PUBG LITE expanded to over 80 countries. The start of the Open Beta period will mark the beginning of a new PUBG LITE season, which brings additional in-game content and the inaugural LITE PASS, which gives players the opportunity to complete in-game missions and unlock rewards as they level up the pass. "It's been quite a journey since we first launched and we are thankful to our players for the continued support," said Brady Choi, VP and Head of PUBG LITE at PUBG Corporation. "As we head into the Open Beta phase of PUBG LITE, we will continue to do our best to create engaging new content, and most importantly, a fun gaming experience." 4 VS 4 Match A new 4 VS 4 mode will be added to PUBG LITE on August 8. In this mod...