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The Engadget Podcast Ep 24: The Biggest Lie
Senior editors Edgar Alvarez and Devindra Hardawar join host Terrence O'Brien to discuss the biggest stories of the week, including Facebook's Journalism Project and the Emoji takeover of Monopoly. Then they'll talk about Volkswagen's massive settlement and pending indictments. Plus they'll try to recap Dieselgate without messing up the timeline.
You can vote for emoji to replace the current Monopoly tokens
Hasbro is no stranger to taking votes on new Monopoly tokens, but this time around everyone's favorite tiny images are among the options. Between now and January 31st, you can select which of the 56 new game pieces you would like to see make the cut. Yes, you can vote for any of the current tokens to remain or replace them entirely as you make your picks for the final 8. The company plans to announce the results of the public vote on World Monopoly Day that takes place on March 19th.
AT&T and Time Warner have a plan to dodge merger review
AT&T has indicated how it may avoid FCC scrutiny over its proposed $85.4 billion Time Warner merger. At issue are Time Warner's FCC broadcast licenses -- if were to transfer them to AT&T, that would require FCC approval. However, in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), AT&T said "it is currently anticipated that Time Warner will not need to transfer any of its FCC licenses ... after the closing of the transaction."
Comcast sues Nashville over law that helps Google Fiber
The Google Fiber team isn't having a good week. Comcast has filed a lawsuit against Nashville in a bid to overturn a city law, One Touch Make Ready, that was primarily designed to help speed Google's fiber optic rollout. Much as with an AT&T lawsuit filed in September, Comcast maintains that AT&T-owned poles fall under the jurisdiction of the FCC, not the city -- Nashville can't let internet providers add their own wires without having AT&T move wires first, the cable giant says. The suit also claims that the city's Metro Council isn't allowed to regulate poles owned by Nashville Electric Service, and that the law violates Comcast's contracts with both pole owners.
Broadband fears prompt Europe to take a big step backwards
Regulators in Europe are considering axing regulations around broadband services in order to foster investment in new fiber optic networks. Reuters claims to have seen an as-yet-unpublished document in which officials ponder relaxing rules surround infrastructure sharing. Currently, companies that install fixed-line broadband to homes are obliged to rent access to other businesses at a fair price. But those firms are aggrieved, saying that the fees aren't enough to justify the initial investment.
Google reportedly faces a record antitrust fine in Europe
It's growing increasingly likely that Google will face European Union fines for allegedly abusing its dominance of internet search, but just how big will the penalty be? Huge, if you ask the Telegraph's sources. They claim that the European Commission expects to fine Google "in the region of" €3 billion ($3.4 billion) -- that's an all-time high for an EU antitrust payout, and far larger than previous record-setter Intel (which paid the equivalent of $1.4 billion). The massive sum would reflect the length of Google's perceived abuse, and might even "make an example" out of the company for supposedly implementing changes that made it even harder for competitors to get noticed in search results.
Judge blocks Staples and Office Depot merger
Last year around this time, Staples announced that it had purchased Office Depot, in a deal that would have created one enormous outlet for office supplies, computers, 3D printing services and more. However, US regulators thought the new company would be too enormous, and convinced a court to kill the merger on antitrust grounds. US District Judge Emmet Sullivan ruled that the acquisition "will substantially impair competition," especially to business customers, and that blocking it was "in the public interest."
Monopoly money is no more in the new Ultimate Banking edition
Hasbro has released a new edition of Monopoly called Ultimate Banking, that should help keep familial infighting to a minimum. Instead of paper money, which can easily be laundered or stolen when you aren't looking, this new edition uses debit cards. It also does away with the easily-corrupted Banker position, replacing the human with an electronic card reader (aka an ATM).
Russia finds that Google is abusing its mobile dominance
Remember how Russian search firm Yandex claimed that Google was abusing its lead in mobile by making Android phone makers pre-install some Google apps, and precluding some third-party apps? Well, Russia agrees. The country's anti-monopoly regulator has determined that Google's app policy violates national competition law. The exact penalty won't be decided until sometime after September 28th, but Google will at least have to alter its approach to apps. It may also have to cough up as much as 15 percent of its Russian revenue from 2014.
Daily Roundup: NASA engineer Annie Easley, a new View-Master and more!
Get caught up on today's news in the latest edition of the Daily Roundup. Learn about Annie Easley, an African-American woman who helped make early spaceflight possible, go hands-on with us as we take Mattel's View-Master for a spin and find out how the UK plans to test autonomous vehicles. All that and more can be found past the break.
Hasbro wants you to help design a new Monopoly board
In a world where most people chill out with Minecraft and Candy Crush, it's hard to get excited about a board game. Perhaps that's the point however, since Hasbro is hoping that we'll get misty-eyed with nostalgia about the family arguments that ensue from playing Monopoly. The game's 80th birthday is rapidly approaching, and so the company is teaming up with Buzzfeed to ask the denizens of the internet to help design the next version of the game.
Qualcomm will pay $975 million in anti-monopoly fines to China
It looks like Qualcomm has more troubles than just possibly losing Samsung as a customer: the firm is paying out nearly $975 million (over 6 billion Chinese yuan) in fines to the Chinese National Development and Reform Commission as a result of the NRDC's anti-monopoly investigation. Furthermore, Qualcomm has agreed to not contest China's legal decisions and has to give current OEM customers the chance to renegotiate their contracts in light of new, mandated price adjustments. Oh, as well as a few more concessions...
Netflix asks FCC to stop Comcast/TWC merger citing 'serious' public harm
As it promised, Netflix has filed a petition to the FCC demanding that it deny the proposed merger between Comcast and Time Warner. The 256-page document claims that it would result in "serious public interest harm," and no discernible public benefit -- two red flags for regulatory bodies. Netflix cited several examples of harm already inflicted on it by Comcast or Time Warner Cable. For one, Comcast has used network congestion as an excuse to "shift Netflix traffic to paid interconnections," It also argued that data caps have been used as a tactic to deter consumers from third-party streaming companies like Netflix or Hulu.
Choose your first starter again in Pokemon Monopoly
If you're going to start fights with friends and family members over imaginary property and play money, you might as well get a gameboard that recalls something you can consistently enjoy. As the Toy Fair International 2014 foretold, a Pokemon Monopoly Kanto Edition is now available for pre-order from GameStop, with the trip down memory Route lane priced at $45. Players will have to revisit the series' most important question: Bulbasuar, Squirtle or Charmander? Pikachu, Eevee and Jigglypuff are also available business tycoons, but why pass up an opportunity to stir up old starter Pokemon-related rivalries while playing a relaxing game of Monopoly? Judging by GameStop's listing, your financial type Pokemon battles can begin on October 1, the date you can first encounter Pokemon Monopoly in the wild. Of course, this assumes you've lost enough pieces from your 1999 edition of Monopoly: Pokemon Edition to render it unplayable. [Image: USAopoly]
Assassin's Creed Monopoly to prowl store shelves in Europe
If it's popular enough, getting your preferred series printed on a Monopoly board seems like a matter of "when" rather than "if." Fans of the Mass Effect and Legend of Zelda series have had cause for celebration within the past few years, but now aspiring Assassins can jump for joy – er, rejoice in a subtle, non-identifying manner. European outlet Toy Art has begun taking pre-orders for an English version of Assassin's Creed Monopoly, which is priced at €52 ($70) and listed to be available this November. Details are scarce in Toy Art's listing, but it would be fair to expect the Monopoly experience that's turned Sunday afternoons into heated, relationship-testing events for decades: rolling dice, building properties up to bankrupt friends, surprising opponents with death-from-above wrist blades ... hmm, maybe AC: Monopoly won't be quite the same as previous iterations. [Image: Ubisoft]
Do not collect 200 rupees in Monopoly: The Legend of Zelda
You know, when we were kids playing Monopoly, all we had to choose from were the thimble, shoe, top hat, car, wheelbarrow, dog and battleship, and cousin Johnny always took the battleship! Hmph! Well, kids today won't have to suffer such indignities thanks to USAopoly, the company behind custom versions of classic board games; they're releasing Monopoly: The Legend of Zelda Edition, complete with way cooler player tokens. Customers who pick up this special version of Monopoly will be able to choose from such Zelda series staples as the Bow, Hookshot, Boomerang, Triforce and Hylian Shield to represent their progress. If you're picking up the board game from GameStop, you'll also be able to choose the Ocarina of Time. The GameStop edition also comes with six "Power Cards" to tweak gameplay and a Hyrule map lithograph, all packaged inside an exclusive square box. A GameStop pre-order page for Monopoly: The Legend of Zelda Edition lists September 15 as a release date. If nothing else, it might not be a bad way to pass the time until Hyrule Warriors hits shelves on September 26. [Image: USAopoly]
China investigates Microsoft over monopoly worries
Microsoft just can't catch a break from China these days. The country's State Administration for Industry and Commerce (SAIC) has raided Microsoft offices in four cities over concerns that the company may be violating anti-monopoly laws. While the government isn't going into great detail about the raids, it's linking the investigation back to companies' complaints about "compatibility issues" with Windows and Office -- shades of Microsoft's EU antitrust woes, anyone?
Zelda and Pokemon Monopoly unveiled at Toy Fair, start family fights in 2014
Do not pass "Go," do not collect 200 rupees, go straight to Kakariko Village jail. Tough luck, draw a Chance card. Oops, you've picked up the Pokeball Maintenance card. Pay the bank a cool 500 Pokedollars, chump. These and other friendship-ending, family-rending frustrations can all be yours when USAopoly drops The Legend of Zelda and Pokemon Monopoly boardgames on the general public in 2014. Announced at Toy Fair International 2014 in February, USAopoly will extend its vast empire of licensed Monopoly boardgames with two of Nintendo's most recognized franchises. Both boards will cost $45. The Pokemon board is specific in its selections for Boardwalk and Park Place proxies, sticking to the Kanto region Pokemon Leaf Green and Pokemon Fire Red. On the other hand, The Legend of Zelda Monopoly is a blank slate, as USAopoly hasn't said whether or not it will be tied to a specific game in the series. While Nintendo's done more in recent years to draw continuity between Zelda games, they still vacillate in tone and aesthetic. Wind Waker Water Works next to the Twilight Princess Electric Company would look pretty freaky. These will be the second and third Nintendo-based Monopoly sets out of USAopoly, following up from the more general Nintendo Collector's Edition board that came out way back in 2006. How dated is that board? It's got placeholder art of Slippy from Star Fox Assault on it. A 2014 update is probably smart. Monopoly isn't the only Parker Brothers classic getting some Nintendo loving. There will also be a Connect 4 Super Mario Bros. set this year. How are people supposed to know they won if the pieces are all gold coins, though? And there are only seven red coins in every stage, so balance is impossible! Someone didn't think this through properly. [Images: USAopoly]
The Daily Grind: Should you be able to resell your digital downloads?
Gamasutra recently reported on a German consumer advocacy group that has a bone to pick with the game industry's largest digital distributor. VZBV has gone to court over a complaint against Valve which stems from the software giant's stance against digital resales. Valve's Steam platform doesn't allow users to sell previously purchased games, and VZBV says that similar policies will harm digital distribution over the long-term "as users realize more fully the implications of having their content tied down to a single digital platform." It can be argued, though, that the industry-wide shift to digital is predicated on the desire for more control over end users and the desire to kill used game sales, so it will be interesting to see Valve's response to this and other similar challenges that may surface in the future. What say you, Massively readers? Do you think you should be able to resell your digital games? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
World of Warcraft Monopoly now on major sale
Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hannukah, Winter Veil, or something else, you're probably looking to give that special someone something around this time of year. Amazon.com has just unveiled a major sale (65% off!) on the World of Warcraft Monopoly board game, dropping the price down to a cool $14 for U.S. customers. If you want some more info, we previously covered the currency (gold! Pass Go, collect 200g!) and the spaces on the board. Our parent site Joystiq also has a full set of unboxing pics.
