partnerships
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OpenAI wants to work with organizations to build new AI training datasets
OpenAI is launching an initiative to partner with private and public organizations to collect datasets it can use to train its AI models.
Samsung's Tizen OS is coming to other brands' TVs
Last week LG announced that it would allow third-party TV manufacturers to use its webOS platform and now Samsung is following suit.
Cox and Verizon Wireless join forces, launch service bundles in Oklahoma
It's a moderately good day to be an Oklahoman. Wireless subscribers living near Oklahoma City or Tulsa will be among the first to reap the benefits of a new collaboration between Cox Communications and Verizon Wireless that bundles services from both companies, letting customers sign up for packages that include video, internet and voice services from Cox, and wireless service from VZW at a discounted rate. They'll also be eligible to receive debit cards valued at $100-400 if they make the switch to a co-sponsored bundle. You can head over to select retail outlets from either company to sign up, or hit up the source links past the break for more info.
Withings WiFi scale syncs weight with BodyMedia site, won't let you hide from the truth
Are you using a Withings WiFi Body Scale to monitor your weight-loss efforts? Are you also using a BodyMedia FIT Armband to track your activity and calories burned? Get ready for a body-stat explosion, because now you can pair the two devices to streamline all that info on your progress. Instead of manually entering your weight into the BodyMedia activity manager, just step on the Withings scale and it will be imported into your BodyMedia online dashboard via WiFi. That's all well and good, but it reminds us an awful lot of Fitbit, which sells a less-expensive body scale that integrates with the company's wearable fitness trackers. The full Withings / BodyMedia press release is after the break, but shouldn't you be out running or something?
Facebook to launch in-browser video chat powered by Skype?
Microsoft's $8.5 billion acquisition of Skype hasn't closed yet, but it looks like Redmond is already working behind the scenes to make the service even more ubiquitous. According to an anonymous source interviewed by TechCrunch, Facebook is going to introduce video chat next week, and that service will be powered by none other than Skype. And while the service will be browser-based, it's also said to include a desktop component. We'd say none of that sounds too fantastical -- video calls would be a logical extension of Facebook chat, and let's not forget about the $240 million Microsoft invested in the site back in 2007. What's more, Facebook sent out invites for an event next week, where Mark Zuckerberg was clear the outfit would unveil a new product from its Seattle team. That's in Microsoft's backyard, of course, the invites themselves have chat icons on 'em, and, most tellingly, that Seattle office has been snapping up engineers specializing in desktop software. All told, that adds up to a likely true story to us, but we won't know for sure until the long, beachy weekend is through.
Toyota to launch social network for people who like to befriend car dealerships
Man, social networks have taken on a loose definition as of late, haven't they? Toyota just announced plans to launch one for its customers, and while our initial reaction was an eye-roll and sighs of "what the world needs now," the truth is that it's really just a system that uses Twitter and Facebook to let you know when something's amiss. Dubbed Toyota Friend (and built on Salesforce.com's private Chatter network), the service will dish up battery power warnings to electric vehicle owners, along with maintenance tips -- advice that can pop up on phones, tablets, and "other advanced mobile devices." In addition to their friendly neighborhood car dealerships, folks can befriend other cars and the friends and family who own them, though it's unclear from the press release below why you'd care. (Okay, we suppose if we had a teenage driver we might want to know if they were about to break curfew.) If that all sounds like bunk, you probably won't get a test drive soon, anyway -- the service is slated to launch in 2012, in Japan, and, initially, for electric and hybrid vehicle owners only.
Nintendo 3DS to get free WiFi access in Best Buy stores, Best Buy hopes you'll buy stuff
Man, Best Buy really wants you to step foot in its stores. The company just announced a deal with Nintendo whereby 3DS owners will get free WiFi access in more than 1,000 of the company's stores starting on June 7th -- not quite Sam's Club-style, but it's a start. And with that connection, dubbed SpotPass, people will have access to special, downloadable content such as gaming extras and movie trailers. So come June, get ready to drive down to your local Best Buy -- no pressure to buy anything once you're inside, of course. Don't have a 3DS? You can pick one up for a suggested retail price of $249.99. Don't like purchasing things? Well, you're no fun at all.
Take-Two: 'Portfolio balancing' drove GTA IV DLC delay, partnerships possible
In the same conference call that gave us this head scratcher, Take-Two reps tap danced over a number of other issues, including their official reason for delaying GTA IV's hotly anticipated DLC, as well as any potential partnerships that may be lurking on the horizon.Regarding the company's resolution to keep the GTA IV downloadable content out of players' hands until sometime between November 1 of this year and January 31, 2009, Take-Two's Strauss Zelnick calmly stated that the decision was based on "portfolio balancing," and that the delay was "not based on development issues." Even as our hearts ached for additional Liberty City shenanigans, Take-Two reps on the call remained enthusiastic, and for good reason, given that during the last quarter the GTA brand made up an impressive 78% of the firm's total publishing revenue.
SOE's John Smedley weighs in on Gods and Heroes, lessons from Vanguard
GamesIndustry.biz continues its week of MMO-related features, discussing the role of partnerships in the business. Sony Online Entertainment has obviously had a number of notable relationships, and company president John Smedley offered up some time to comment on their history with business partnerships. As has often been the trend in recent years, Mr. Smedley talked heavily about the lessons the company has learned through hard knocks and rough launches. One of the reoccuring themes in GI's discussion with the CEO is what can be taken away from Vanguard's horrible launch early last year.Smedley makes no bones about that situation, saying that the company was being "run into the ground", but also noting that the game is now doing very well. He also spends some time talking about their relationship with Perpetual Entertainment and their stillborn collaboration Gods and Heroes. "Behind the scenes ... they were putting on a brave face to customers, but we were giving them advice all the time - which was ignored. At some point you get to this point in development ... in fact with Perpetual that was a direct result of the learnings we got from Vanguard - at one point they wanted to try and put the thing out early, and we said 'Look, we're not interested - we don't care if we lose money, but if you put this thing out there, users are going to hate it, and it's going to be a bad release.'" Also check out the interview for more on the in-development Indian title Ramayan, the changing MMO marketplace, and SOE's role in the future of the genre.
AOL, HP extend search partnership to worldwide PCs
Because we know just how much you like to know exactly whose crapware you'll be removing from your next store-bought desktop or laptop, this is a just a quick heads-up that HP customers worldwide can soon expect to be confronted with portals, toolbars, and default search settings courtesy of AOL (which also happens to own Engadget parent network Weblogs Inc.). Since it was almost exactly a year ago that HP made a similar deal with Yahoo, we can only assume that AOL has pushed its rival off of HP machines altogether, extending its current agreement to provide only the co-branded portal for domestically-sold rigs. Perhaps the best news here is that for those folks who haven't bought a PC in several years, the pre-loaded AOL software may provided a much-needed connection back to the days of dial-up in this scary new world of broadband, Vista, and MySpace.
It's official: YouTube and Verizon ink deal
Well folks, we told you just over three weeks ago about "advanced talks" between Verizon and YouTube, and it looks like as of today, the two lovebirds have just tied the knot officially. with their joint service will launch next month. However, there are a couple of points to take stock of: first, it's exclusively on Verizon, which means it's going to run on V CAST -- costing you an extra $15 a month, that is, assuming you have a V CAST-capable handset. (According to one analyst, Roger Entner, only about 10 percent of Verizon's 20 million users with such phones have signed up for the service so far.) Second, Verizon's exclusivity is only going to be for "a short time," and it's more than likely that T-Mobile, Sprint, Cingular and friends have already been knocking at YouTube's door. Third, as you probably know, YouTube is a two-way street (you know, that whole "user-generated" thing we've been hearing so much about) and as such, Reuters is reporting that you'll be able to post videos directly from your handset with the use of a "five-digit short code instead of an email address." Finally, the Mercury News points out that you won't have access to all of YouTube, just what Verizon decides that you'll want via its proprietary YouTube channel. So that means you can probably forget about catching episodes of "Ask A Ninja" on your bus ride home. Still, diluted YouTube is better than no YouTube; we can almost hear thousands of freshly-bought VX9900s flipping open to check out the content already.Read - ReutersRead - San Jose Mercury News
Another win for TiVo: Cox partnership pans out
We love it when a plan comes together. You may remember how a few months back we reported that Cox Communications sent a questionnaire to its (non-cable) customers asking them if a TiVo-powered DVR service would convince them to make the switch from satellite; well apparently the response must have been a resounding "yes!", as the two companies have officially announced a partnership that will enable Cox subscribers to gain all of that TiVo goodness with little to no effort on their part. Beginning sometime in the first half of next year, Cox digital cable customers with DVR service will have the option of downloading TiVo software directly to their existing set-top boxes -- no aggravating service calls required. It seems like everything is going right for TiVo these days: they've got Comcast and Cox under their belts, the Series 3 box almost out the door, a shiny new Emmy to flaunt, and a courtroom victory against Echostar that (assuming it holds up) will make investors very happy. TiVo Deathwatch, be gone, and let the TiVo House Party commence!
Kodak digital cameras to be manufactured by Flextronics
In a move probably intended to placate investors after a disastrous second quarter -- recently-reported net losses of $282 million were even higher than expected -- Kodak has announced that it will shift the manufacturing of its digital cameras over to Singapore-based Flextronics International. Although Kodak will continue to "develop the high-level system design, product look and feel, and user experience" of the cameras, Flextronics will acquire most of the company's Digital Product Center in Japan, and will be responsible for the assembly, production, and testing of the entire lineup. As part of the deal -- which Kodak hopes will help bring products to market more quickly as well as control costs -- about 550 of its employees will be transplanted to Flextronics facilities in China. While Kodak is currently the number one seller of digital cameras in the US, it's been difficult for the company to make the transition from film, with 100,000 workers having lost their jobs since 1988. Assuming that the requisite conditions are met and regulators give the thumbs up, the two companies plan to seal the deal before the end of the current quarter.[Via LetsGoDigital]
Pioneer ejects DVD recorder business
The invisible hand of capitalism has pushed yet another major electronics manufacturer from one of its traditional businesses, as declining profits and product commodification have convinced Pioneer Corp. to drop out of the DVD recorder game. Japan's Nihon Keizai Shimbun is reporting that its recording division's recent cash hemorrhaging has convinced the company which "pioneered" the commercial burner to cut its losses and form a strategic partnership with Panasonic-parent Matsushita, whose next-gen optical disc technology may help Pioneer succeed in the decidedly less-crowded Blu-ray recorder market. Pioneer will now begin to shift its focus to its more profitable in-vehicle electronics division, which is responsible for many of the popular navigation and in-dash entertainment products on the worldwide market.
