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Apple confirms its launch TV+ series will return for second seasons
Wondering how things are going for Apple TV+ after its first week? Officially, the company informed industry outlets like Variety and Deadline that all four of the scripted shows it launched with last week have been picked up for a second season. While The Morning Show is already in production on season two, The Hollywood Reporter indicated that See, Dickinson and For All Mankind had quietly been picked up months ago also, prior to Apple's confirmation this week, while Dickinson star Hailee Steinfeld noted the openness of the secret, tweeting season two has been underway "for months."
Early Apple TV+ reviews show a lineup lacking hits
With Apple TV+ set to launch this Friday, initial reviews for the original shows that will premiere alongside the platform have come out. And it's probably safe to say Apple won't be happy with how things have turned out so far.
Apple orders sci-fi drama from 'Hunger Games' director
Apple is pulling out all the stops when it comes to landing original shows. Deadline has learned that the tech firm has ordered an "epic, world-building" sci-fi drama series that would not only be written by Steven Knight, the creator of British crime drama Peaky Blinders, but would be directed by The Hunger Games' Francis Lawrence. It's not known who would star or even how long the initial run would be (it'll "likely" consist of eight episodes), but it would come from the same scripted series unit that gave Apple the Octavia Spencer thriller Are You Sleeping?
SEE buys Planet Calypso for $6 million, talks with Massively for an encore
For $6 million you could buy a heck of a lot of tacos -- or one virtual planet. Wisely, SEE Virtual Worlds went the latter route, snapping up Planet Calypso from MindArk and saving itself massive heartburn. The sci-fi-themed Planet Calypso operates under the umbrella of Entropia Universe and boasts 950,000 registered accounts since coming online in 2003. As part of the deal, SEE Virtual Worlds also acquired all of the assets of First Planet Company, a former subsidiary of MindArk, which has been transformed into SEE Digital Studios. Under this reorganization, SEE Digital Studios is now responsible for developing and operating Planet Calypso, Planet Michael and Universal Monsters. The company is expected to hire on additional team members for these projects. Fresh from the champagne celebration, SEE Virtual Worlds President Corey Redmond sat down with us to discuss this deal and the future of these three titles. Hit the jump to boogie with Michael Jackson, scream in terror at the Wolfman, and navigate the economy of virtual worlds.
Goodbye Eidos, hello Square Enix Europe
Eidos is now merely a memory, much like Midway, Brash and Atari ... what do you mean Atari is still around!? Anyway, Square Enix announced today that the Eidos reorganization is complete and the company has been reborn as Square Enix Europe, which we still haven't come up with a clever nickname for: Le SquEnix? Der Europa Enix? SEEurope? Eh, still working on it.SEE will oversaw watch over development studios Crystal Dynamics, IO Interactive, among others, but the company brand will show up on the box as either Square Enix, Eidos or Taito. Bon Voyage, Eidos (the company), may you find peace in the afterlife. Now, can we talk about how positive you all are that Atari still exists?Update: Noted the brand "Eidos" still exists, even if the company doesn't.Source: Square Enix Europe press release [PDF link]
NTT DoCoMo's eye-controlled music interface evolves at CEATEC (video)
NTT DoCoMo's R&D labs are amongst the busiest in the world, and here at CEATEC the company is showing off a development that it has had in the oven for quite some time. The difference now? Elegance. The eye-controlled music interface that we first spotted in mid-2008 is being showcased yet again here at the Makuhari Messe, but instead of having a short straw-drawing employee stand around with an absurd amount of headgear on, this year's demonstrator was equipped with little more than a special set of earbuds, a few cables and a swank polo. Put simply, the contraption watched subtle changes in eye movements and altered the music accordingly. A look to the right moved the track forward, while a glance to the left went back a track. The demo seemed buttery smooth, but there's still no telling when this stuff will go commercial. Still, progress is progress, and there's a video after the break showing as much. %Gallery-74737%
NTT DoCoMo testing out eye-controlled music interface
If you're scouting the strange, the weird and the weirder, you'll find plenty to get absorbed in over at the research facilities of NTT DoCoMo. The Japanese giant is at it once more, but this time the invention is actually somewhat down to Earth. It's mission? To create a method for easily controlling a music interface (on a PMP or cellphone) with just your eyes. By rolling one's eyes and jerking them from side to side, the outfit is hoping to have the corresponding music player change tracks and get louder / softer. If you're not exactly keen with freaking out fellow citizens on the street with completely erratic eye movements, you may also appreciate a similar technology it's working up which can detect a user's finger tapping to achieve to same goal. Of course, said technology would be halfway useless on the smash hit-packed ZVUE Journey (no way you're bypassing any of those tracks, son), but we guess you could check out your toes every now and then to keep from constantly staying at 11.[Via ShinyShiny]
GM designing car windshield that does the looking for us
Apparently not everyone at General Motors is toiling away in an attempt to get the Volt ready for its 2010 debut, as another sector of the outfit's R&D division is busy creating a windshield that will, at its core, enable us to stop running stuff over. The futuristic glass would utilize lasers, sensors and cameras in order to help drivers see the road's edge better, recognize obstructions and enhance things ahead of us so we'll theoretically react faster. Truth be told, the device is being designed with older drivers in mind, though we don't see why younger motorists won't benefit all the same. Unfortunately, it sounds as if you'll have to keep those toothpicks in your eyelids for a few more years, but at least we're one step closer to full-on autopilot.
