News of the Week; September 19, 2017

GAMES

1. Valve and Ubisoft fined for breaching consumer laws in France
2. Valve and Ubisoft fined for breach of French consumer law: Steam and Uplay latest storefronts caught up in European consumer rights violations
3. Washington State and 15 countries team up over video game gambling concerns  
4. 15 European gambling regulators unite to tackle loot box threat: Along with Washington State. 
5. 15 European regulators have come together to help tackle loot boxes
6. 15 countries and one US state team up to fight gambling in video games
7. International gambling regulators unite on skins gambling, loot boxes: Agencies from Spain, UK, France, Washington State, and a dozen more concerns about “blurring of lines between gambling and gaming”
8. Loot boxes in Belgium: Reports on criminal prosecution – but what does this mean?
9. Australian study warns of link between loot boxes and problem gambling
10. Australian investigation finds loot boxes are “psychologically akin to gambling”: Report suggests restricting sale of games containing loot boxes to players of legal gambling age
11. Loot boxes are “psychologically akin to gambling”, according to Australian study: Games with loot boxes should only be available to players of legal gambling age.
12. 343 FPS chief says no ‘real-money loot boxes’ in Halo Infinite
13. All Bets are On! Gambling and Video Games
14. Video Game Addiction Is Real And Professionals Aren’t Prepared To Help
15. Mobile marketplaces accused of publishing apps violating kids’ privacy laws
16. How Game Apps That Captivate Kids Have Been Collecting Their Data: A lawsuit by New Mexico’s attorney general accuses a popular app maker, as well as
    online ad businesses run by Google and Twitter, of violating children’s privacy law.
17. Tiny Lab, Google, ad companies accused of violating Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act: New Mexico lawsuit alleges companies illegally collected and tracked children’s personal information
18. Capcom shuts down Dead Rising developer Capcom Vancouver
19. Capcom closing Vancouver studio: Publisher confirms plans to consolidate major development in Japan after announcing $40 million expense on cancelled projects
20. Mobile game dev Outfit7 opens new Barcelona studio
21. Analysts doubt China will take six months to begin reapproving games
22. China may not need six months to start approving games again – analysts: Games are now able to go to market for one month
23. Take-Two CEO: U.S. gov’t needs to take a stand on China’s game trade
24. Barriers to China will come down – Zelnick: Take-Two CEO believes government will eventually allow Western game publishers unfettered access to the market, criticizes US government for unequal trade restrictions
25. China’s console market might be small, but it’s starting to take shape
26. Game streaming’s latency problems will be over in a few years, CEO says
27. Streaming, subscriptions won’t be game changers – Take-Two: CEO Strauss Zelnick believes tech will accelerate adoption of cross-platform play, but won’t fundamentally alter the Grand Theft Auto publisher’s business
28. Rockstar is bringing an open-world online mode to Red Dead Redemption 2
29. A Benchmark Of Sorts: Steam’s First Fully Uncensored Adult Novel-Game To Be Released In Coming Weeks
30. Steam’s uncensored adult game Negligee isn’t available in every country
31. First uncensored adult game on Steam pulled from sale in 28 countries: “The fact is, these restrictions are the downside of being the poster child for the first fully uncensored adult game on Steam,” says developer Dharker Studios
32. Disney shuts down Star Wars: Rivals following soft launch
33. Boss Key’s multiplayer shooter LawBreakers has officially shut down
34. Tattoos, Video Games & Copyright Law: Beauty May Only Be Skin Deep … But Does Copyright go to the Bone?
35. Ninja Becomes First Gamer To Cover ‘ESPN Magazine’, Says He’s Making Seven Figures Monthly
36. eSports Milestone: Pro Gamer Ninja To Be The First Pro Gamer Featured On ESPN Magazine Cover
37. The need for visible women in esports: Hearthstone pro Cordelia Chui and League of Legends team manager Amy Snowdon talk about the problems with trying to fit in
38. Twitch appoints first-ever head of diversity and inclusion
39. Twitch hires new head of diversity and inclusion: Streaming giant also adds CFO and Chief Human Resources Officer
40. TwitchCon Bulks Up Security Measures Following August Shooting At ‘Madden’ Tournament
41. Twitch Hires Former Vimeo Exec Katrina Jones As First Head Of Diversity And Inclusion
42. NPD: Madden NFL 19 scores while Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 returns – Nintendo Switch sales remain strong, though still must work to catch PS4’s year-to-date lead
43. You can now share your Switch game downloads across consoles
44. Nintendo will erase cloud saves once Switch Online subscription ends
45. Assassin’s Creed for Switch adopts pay-as-you-play pricing in Japan
46. Switch owners in Japan are getting a “cloud version” of Assassin’s Creed Odyssey: Ubisoft follows the streaming model adopted by Capcom for Resi 7, selling daily and full-game passes for its upcoming blockbuster
47. Nintendo Switch cloud save data disappears if you cancel subscription
48. Nintendo details 2019 line-up for Switch – but why so early?: Latest Nintendo Direct showcases loads of games, answers loads of criticisms about Switch lineup
49. Nintendo tries bundling Switch with a F2P game: Fortnite
50. Switch’s replica NES controllers only work with emulated NES games
51. Stormy Daniels Says Donald Trump Has “A ____ Like The Mushroom Character From Mario Kart”
52. New NES controllers headline announcement-filled Nintendo Switch presentation
53. Nintendo Switch NES controllers will be Online Service-exclusive: Joy-Cons designed to look like classic controllers are dedicated to NES games that come with the service
54. Nintendo requires online subscription to purchase Switch NES controller
55. Nintendo introduces Fortnite Switch bundle with V-bucks included: Console bundle is the same price as system alone, includes in-game currency and exclusive cosmetics
56. Pokemon Go and the potential of seasonality: Major changes to Niantic’s mobile AR game helped its popularity to surge over the summer, suggesting a new model developers could consider adopting
57. Niantic rolls out suggestion system for new Pokémon Golocations
58. Check out the pitch documents for the original Pokemongames
59. Ubisoft details its blockchain-powered game HashCraft
60. Ubisoft reveals HashCraft, a secret new blockchain game
61. Riot Games Says It Wants To Clean Up Its Mess, But The People Who Made It Are Still There
62. Ex-Riot devs net $2.5M to help launch new LA studio Singularity 6
63. Singularity 6 hopes to dominate a lack of competition:
64. PlayStation is the third most-recognized brand in the UK:Nintendo and Xbox at 11 and 17, respectively; Apple takes top spot
65. Sony making mini-console debut with PlayStation Classic
66. Sony Just Announced The $100 PlayStation Classic Console
67. Sony Is Making A Playstation Classic, And You Can Already Order It
68. Sony to launch PlayStation Classic on December 3: Mini version of the classic console will be pre-loaded with Final Fantasy VII, Jumping Flash, Ridge Racer Type 4, Tekken 3, 16 other games
69. Sony joins the classic-console fray with $99 PlayStation Classic on Dec. 3
70. Sega pushes Mega Drive Mini to 2019: Japanese publisher is rethinking the retro console’s design ahead of simultaneous global launch
71. Interplay co-founder Brian Fargo wants to buy back the studio
72. Brian Fargo wants to buy back Interplay: Fargo will attempt to acquire the company he co-founded in 1983 if Bard’s Tale IV hits sales target
73. Treyarch bosses explain decision to drop single-player campaign from Black Ops 4
74. Skillz doubles revenue run-rate once more to $400 million: 5,000 new developer partners fuel growth over five-month period
75. Making a retro indie game stand out from the crowd
76. Deep Rock Galactic and the advantages of open development
77. How do you evaluate a mobile game’s profit potential?
78. Video: UX expert helps explain why Fortnite is such a success
79. ‘Fortnite’ Is Not YouTube’s Most Popular Game
80. The standalone YouTube Gaming app is essentially being absorbed into YouTube
81. YouTube To Shutter Gaming App In 2019, Unveils Revamped Gaming Hub On Flagship Site
82. YouTube will close YouTube Gaming, move it all to the main site
83. YouTube Gaming migrates to main YouTube hub: Separate website, app to shut down by March 2019; features implemented on YouTube main
84. Apple, Kabam veterans form new indie publisher Rogue: Label will publish mobile games with a focus on highly detailed, optimized experiences
85. Keywords marks a strong six months with two new acquisitions: Trailer Farm and SoundLab join the rapidly growing firm as H1 revenue and profit rise 70 per cent
86. Wargaming opens new UK studio to develop free-to-play MMO game
87. Wargaming opens UK studio for new MMO: Studio to lead the development of a new free-to-play IP
88. Telecoms giant Sky forms new mobile studio with The Walking Dead producer
89. Sky partners with The Walking Dead producer for joint mobile venture: Skybound Stories to develop narrative-driven experiences out of new and existing IP
90. Remedy Entertainment is adapting Alan Wake into a television series: Material from unfinished sequel will serve as inspiration for the show, says game creator Sam Lake
91. Why some devs partner with investment funds over publishers
92. Aaryn Flynn joins Improbable: Former BioWare GM talks about getting his head in the clouds and building a new studio from scratch in downtown Edmonton
93. The Comic Book History Behind the New Spider-Man Game’s Unlockable Suits
94. Blog: The story of Turkey’s video game pioneers
95. Blog: Understanding the design of the ‘magic circle’
96. Why do gamers still buy physical games?: We teamed up with GameTrack to ask them
97. UKIE: Only 19% of parents set and enforce screen time limits for their children – Digital School House report finds just 44 per cent of parents talk to their children about online safety`
98. Writing the video games of the future: ArenaNet narrative designers Aaron Linde and Alex Kain discuss VR, and what they see as the future of interactive storytelling
99. Sony applied for a patent on a simulation sickness-detecting VR headset
100. Rovio has an AR Angry Birds game coming to Magic Leap One
101. Blog: Why I love physics-based games
102. Blog: Bloom’s taxonomy of game reviews
103. Video: A how-to guide for Muslim representation in video games
104. Blog: How does video game localization work in 2018?
105. Warren Spector shares how to find personal success in the game industry

DIGITAL

1. SCC rules for ISPs in ‘test case’ for copyright infringement litigation costs
2. Rogers Wins in Supreme Court of Canada (Howard Knopf) 
3. Rogers v. Voltage – My comments today September 14, 2018 on CTV (Howard Knopf)
4. Supreme Court of Canada on Copyright Notices: Identification of IP Address “Not Conclusive of Guilt” (Michael Geist)
5. Notice the Difference?: Supreme Court Rules ISPs Can Be Compensated for Copyright Costs (Michael Geist)
6. Supreme Court of Canada Rules on Obligations of ISPs Under Notice and Notice Regime – Copyright Owners Have to Pay (Something) to Play
7. In Cyberwar, There Are No Rules: Why the world desperately needs digital Geneva Conventions.
8. EU approves controversial Copyright Directive, including internet ‘link tax’ and ‘upload filter’: Those in favor say they’re fighting for content creators, but critics say the new laws will be ‘catastrophic’
9. EU Continues To Kill The Open Web: Massive Fines For Sites That Don’t Censor Within An Hour 
10. EU Approves Controversial Copyright Reform, Could Force YouTube And Other Platforms To Remove All Copyrighted Content
11. European Parliament adopted its position on the controversial Copyright Directive
12. Guy In Charge Of EU Copyright Directive Claims He Didn’t Know What He Voted On, Needs To Fix Things
13. Thanks To ISP Bahnhof, We Know Just How Crazy Copyright Trolling In Sweden Is Getting 
14. Google, Facebook Dealt Blow by EU Lawmakers on Copyright
15. Google Fights In EU Court Against Ability Of One Country To Censor The Global Internet
16. Google’s Chinese Search Engine Will Censor Results, Provide Gov’t-Approved Pollution Data
17. Google, Facebook, Twitter face EU fines over extremist posts
18. British cave explorer sues Elon Musk for defamation over “pedo guy” tweets
19. Racism and anti-Semitism surged in corners of the Web after Trump’s election, analysis shows
20. Donald Trump Jr. Posts Fake Letter to Instagram Mocking Woman Allegedly Assaulted by Supreme Court Nominee Brett Kavanaugh 
21. 3D-Printed Gun Activist Cody Wilson Charged With Sexual Assault of a Child [Updated]
22. Judge orders Cody Wilson’s arrest, but he skipped his return flight from Taiwan 
23. Lawmakers: Deepfakes Could “Undermine Public Trust” in “Objective Depictions of Reality” 
24. Is content validation the next growth industry?
25. Memetic Tribes and Culture War 2.0
26. Leaked 2016 video will fuel conservative worries about Google bias
27. Let’s Be Very Clear About What Breitbart’s Leaked Google Video Shows
28. Where in the World Is Larry Page?: While Alphabet faces existential challenges, its co-founder is exercising his right to be forgotten.
29. The case against a right to be forgotten 
30. How Regulating Platforms’ Content Moderation Means Regulating Speech – Even Yours.
31. UK MP Thinks Secret Online Groups Are The Root Of All Evil Online, Promises To Regulate ‘Large Online Groups’
32. White House Potentially Exploring Executive Order On ‘Social Media Bias’
33. Actual Research On Political Bias In Search Results Would Be Useful, But So Far It Doesn’t Show Anything
34. Media Manipulation, Strategic Amplification, and Responsible Journalism
35. Can Trusted Brands Beat ‘Fake News’?
36. Media Planners Battle The Bots 
37. It’s hard to sue a robot: product liability considerations and AI in Canada
38. Roca Labs’ Anti-Review Clause Violates FTC Act–FTC v. Roca Labs (Eric Goldman)
39. Mumford & Sons beware! An AI can now write indie music
40. No proof blind plaintiffs aware of arbitration clause, so discrimination class action proceeds in court 
41. Amazon on Track to Be No. 3 in U.S. Digital Ad Revenue but Still Way Behind Google, Facebook
42. Amazon looking into claims that employees delete bad reviews for cash
43. Amazon is testing a shopping site called Scout that recommends furniture and women’s shoes based on your likes
44. Amazon’s Antitrust Antagonist Has a Breakthrough Idea: With a single scholarly article, Lina Khan, 29, has reframed decades of monopoly law.
45. Amazon’s Antitrust Paradox (Lina Khan)
46. Why Roku isn’t afraid of competition from Apple, Google and Amazon
47. ACLU, Labor Union, Allege Facebook’s Ad Targeting Discriminates By Gender
48. Facebook is letting job advertisers target only men
49. Can Mark Zuckerberg Fix Facebook Before It Breaks Democracy?
50. Facebook Watch Unveils Trailers, Launch Dates For Shows Starring Kim Kardashian, Catherine Zeta-Jones
51. Facebook Watch Debuts Odell Beckham Jr. Docuseries ‘I Am More’
52. Linus Torvalds apologizes for years of being a jerk, takes time off to learn empathy
53. Sorry, Sony Music, you don’t own the rights to Bach’s music on Facebook
54. YouTube Kids now comes with stronger parental controls
55. YouTube Kids App Unveils New Feature Aimed At Preteens
56. With 70% Of Viewership On Mobile, YouTube Is Finally Rolling Out Vertical Video Ads
57. YouTube Greenlights Doc About LGBTQ+ Pride, Starring Raymond Braun
58. The 9th Most-Viewed YouTube Channel On Earth, ‘Little Baby Bum’, Has Been Acquired
59. Videos Of ‘Marvel’s Spider-Man’ Game Will Be Restored After Content ID Mix-Up Caused Takedowns, YouTube Says 
60. Should YouTube Change Its Algorithm To Promote Library Content And Avoid Creator Burnout?
61. H3h3productions Returns To YouTube After Three-Month Absence With Frank Chat About Burnout
62. YouTube Premium Launches French Originals
63. YouTube May Soon Give Its Premium Content A Temporary Trip Outside The Paywall 
64. YouTube Premium Continues International Push With New French Originals 
65. YouTube Viewership On TV Sets Has Nearly Doubled Year-Over-Year Across Europe
66. Rapper Wiz Khalifa Launches YouTube Channel For 5-Year-Old Son Sebastian 
67. YouTube Opens $5 ‘Channel Memberships’ Feature To Creators With More Than 50,000 Subscribers
68. Following Go90 Shutdown, Former Content Partners Seek Distribution On YouTube, Netflix
69. Inside Netflix’s high-stakes quest to win Best Picture 
70. Creator Couple Lauren Riihimaki and Alex Wassabi Are Taking Time Apart 
71. Snapchat To Let 20 Publisher Partners Repurpose — And Monetize — User-Generated Snaps
72. Hulu Reaches For The Stars With New Ad Strategy To Complement Original Space Show ‘The First’ 
73. UK’s CMA Launches Investigation into Social Media Influencers – UK, US and Canadian Perspectives
74. Insights: How Influencers And Brands Can Avoid Follower Fraud 
75. Barstool Sports’ new pizza app gets 175,000 downloads in a month
76. Snapchat Will Let Media Partners Aggregate, Monetize User Posts: Initial partners include CNN, NBC News, NowThis, Hearst, Viacom, Overtime, Refinery29, Jukin Media
77. Snap’s users are leaving in waves and may be causing their friends to follow
78. In Emmys First, Netflix Ties With HBO For Most Wins, Lifting Streamer’s Stock This Morning
79. Netflix finally tied with HBO for total wins at the 2018 Emmys: Spending money on content works
80. ‘Insatiable’ Is Back For More — Netflix Is Giving The Massively Polarizing Series A Second Season 
81. IMAX In Talks With Netflix, Amazon To Distribute Original Films, CEO Says
82. How Disney’s Netflix Rival Will Actually Work
83. Fan-Favorite Villain Loki, Avenger Scarlet Witch To Get Their Own Live-Action Series On Disney’s Streaming Platform
84. General Motors activates OnStar Crisis Assist for Hurricane Florence
85. California Eyes Questionable Legislation In Bid To Fix The Internet Of Broken Things
86. Authors’ viral Twitter thread is now a horror film starring Alyson Hannigan 
87. Twitter Announces 50 New Video Content Deals To Complement Local TV Programming
88. Periscope Adds Audio-Only Option So Creators Can Stream Off-Camera
89. Conan O’Brien’s complete late-night TV archive will be posted online in January [Updated]
90. Fake-cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme lands creator in prison
91. John Deere Just Swindled Farmers Out Of Their Right To Repair
92. The Competition Bureau weighs in on restrictions faced by online eyewear retailers
93. Review: Mega-hit boardgame Scythe goes digital on Steam
94. Social Media and Its Effect on Your Case – Is Private Really Private?
95. Apple repays €14B in “illegal aid” to Ireland, so EU drops court case
96. The iPhone Franchise
97. Apple Magically Makes the Notch Disappear
98. iOS 12 on the iPhone 5S, iPhone 6 Plus, and iPad Mini 2: It’s actually faster!
99. Yes, You Can Own the Movies You Buy from Apple, Kinda
100. Apple Didn’t Delete That Guys iTunes Movies, But What Happened Still Shows The Insanity Of Copyright
101. An Oral History Of Apple’s Infinite Loop
102. How Streaming Is Erasing The History Of Mixtape Rap Producers Like DJ Drama: We Talk To Mixtape Heroes About Being Left Behind By Spotify
103. What on Earth Makes a $1,200 Graphics Card Worth It? 
104. Text Messages and Binding Contracts
105. Congressional Research Service Reports Now Officially Publicly Available
106. New bill would finally tear down federal judiciary’s ridiculous paywall 
107. Surprise: Bill Introduced To Finally Make PACER Free To All

CREATIVITY

1. Compromising on Culture?: Why a Blanket Culture Exception in NAFTA is Unnecessary (Michael Geist)
2. CBS CEO Moonves’ ouster is a too rare case
3. Hollywood Chamber Of Commerce Trademark Bullies Kevin Smith’s Podcast Over Hollywood Sign
4. Senate passes copyright bill to end 140-year protection for old songs
5. Music Modernization Act Passes in Senate With Unanimous Support
6. Senate passes Music Modernization Act: The House must approve the bill once again before it’s signed into law by President Trump
7. Compromise Music Modernization Act Will Bring Old Sound Recordings into The Public Domain, Tiptoe Towards Orphan Works Solution
8. How intellectual property rights can protect fashion products in the UK: now and post-Brexit
9. The Outline and the curse of media venture capital
10. Advertising for E-Cigs – Concerns about Targeting Children 
11. Court: Trump’s ‘Get ‘Em Out’ Order Directed At Campaign Rally Protesters Is Protected Speech
12. Blog: Using austerity as a creative tool
13. The Power Of Live: Global Live Music Fan Study
14. How the Grateful Dead Changed Live Music Forever
15. Hollywood’s New Golden Age: The cast and crew at this LA retirement home are in their twilight years, but the show must go on.
16. People Are Zapping Their Brains to Boost Creativity. Experts Have Concerns.
17. Why Curiosity Matters: New Research Shows That Curiosity Is Vital To An Organization’s Performance – As Are The Particular Wa In Which People Are Curious And The Experiences They Are Exposed To.
18. Startups are giving writers and filmmakers more ways to make it in Hollywood

MEDIA, COMMUNICATIONS & NET NEUTRALITY

1. Court Rules FCC Must Release Records That Could Explain Fraudulent Net Neutrality Comments
2. Judge: FCC can’t hide records that may explain net neutrality comment fraud
3. Ajit Pai calls California’s net neutrality rules “illegal”
4. Ajit Pai Whines About California’s Net Neutrality Effort, Calls It ‘Radical,’ ‘Illegal’
5. Scott Wiener Paints Ajit Pai as Telecom Shill as California Net Neutrality Fight Escalates
6. Charter negotiating with NY to avoid being kicked out of the state
7. The Nation’s Second Biggest Cable Company Probably Won’t Get Kicked Out Of New York State After All
8. Despite data caps and throttling, industry says mobile can replace home Internet
9. Google Fiber’s ‘Failure’ Succeeded In Shining A Light On Pathetic Broadband Competition
10. AT&T and Verizon want to manage your identity across websites and apps
11. AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile & Sprint Want Even Broader Access To Your Personal Data
12. For Wireless Giant Verizon, The Media Business Is A Distraction At Best
13. AT&T Boss Writes Script for HBO: More Data, More Money – Randall Stephenson wants to use customer data to help WarnerMedia pick projects, challenge internet giants 

 SURVEILLANCE & PRIVACY

1. Russians tried to hack Swiss lab testing samples from Skripal attack
2. WikiLeaks founder sought Russian visa in 2010, per AP report
3. Russian man pleads guilty, admits he ran notorious Kelihos botnet
4. Mirai botnet creators praised for helping FBI, won’t serve prison time
5. European Court Of Human Rights: UK Surveillance Revealed By Snowden Violates Human Rights
6. Another Batch Of FISA Court Docs Confirms The NSA Frequently Abuses Its Collection Powers 
7. Federal Court Says NSA PRISM Surveillance Good And Legal Because The Gov’t Said It Was Good And Legal
8. State Cops Accidentally Out Their Surveillance Of Anti-Police Groups With Browser Screenshot
9. Bay Area transit system approves new surveillance-oversight policy
10. Congress Fails To Include A Single Consumer Advocate In Upcoming Privacy Hearing
11. NewEgg cracked in breach, hosted card-stealing code within its own checkout
12. Privacy Laws North of the Border: a Primer

Jon