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Microsoft hires Apple’s former wireless tech chief for its hardware division
Ruben Caballero, a former Apple executive, has joined Microsoft as corporate vice president for hardware design and technology.
VP Pence wants US astronauts back on the Moon by 2024
Apparently, plans to put US astronauts on the Moon by the late 2020s weren't ambitious enough. Vice President Pence announced at the National Space Council that the US now planned to return people to the Moon by 2024, about four years earlier than expected. He argued that the US "must remain first in space" this century for the sake of the economy, national security and writing the "rules and values of space" by establishing a more permanent presence.
Atlus elects to publish non-Kickstarted Citizens of Earth
Atlus announced plans to publish Citizens of Earth, a quirky RPG that follows the Vice President of the World on his quest to investigate the bizarre happenings in the town. Developed by Eden Industries, Citizens of Earth fell short of its $100,000 CAD ($91,600 USD) goal on Kickstarter in October 2013, raising just $36,875 CAD ($33,778 USD). The modern RPG takes after popular SNES classic Earthbound, with its humorous approach to world-saving adventures and includes recruiting mechanics in line with the Pokemon and Suikoden series. The Vice President brings "regular characters into the spotlight as heroes" for them to do his dirty work in battle, continuing their day jobs when not engaged in combat. The game includes 40 citizens, though ambitious fans are encouraged to enter a contest by Friday, April 18 on Atlus' site to create the 41st one for the game. Citizens of Earth is in development for PS4, Vita, 3DS, Wii U and PC and is expected to arrive on each platform's digital channels in North America and Europe in September 2014. [Image: Atlus]
Stardock appoints Derek Paxton VP of games division
Derek Paxton has been promoted to Vice President of Stardock Entertainment, the company has announced today. Paxton, a prominent Civilization 4 modder and Firaxis Games consultant before joining Stardock as a lead designer in 2010, will take charge of the games division and oversee all games development from here on out at Stardock. A few months back, Stardock announced it was pursuing a Star Control reboot. Star Control, which was auctioned off by Atari in July, is a space combat series created by developer Toys for Bob in 1990 about two alien alliances locked in a brutal war. Stardock will announce its next slate of games this October, when the company celebrates its 20th anniversary. We anticipate news of the new Star Control will be among them.
Senior VP Bob Mansfield removed from Apple's leadership page (updated)
It could mean nothing, but it could mean everything. As of this morning, Bob Mansfield was still a senior vice president at one of the world's most iconic technology firms. As of now, his leadership bio is nowhere to be found on Apple's official web presence. If you'll recall, Mansfield has had an interesting couple of years at Apple. In June of 2012, he abruptly announced that he was retiring. A couple of weeks later, he publicly addressed mounting criticism regarding Apple's computers and their relationship with EPEAT, seemingly putting the kibosh on said retirement. A few weeks following that, Mansfield actually got a promotion, with his responsibilities growing once again during the executive shakeup of October 2012. It's unclear if someone accidentally deleted the profile of one of Apple's most important figureheads (read: unlikely), or if Mr. Mansfield truly has stepped aside, but we'll be reaching out to Apple in hopes of clarifying things. Update: Reuters' Poornima Gupta is reporting that Mansfield is "no longer with Apple's executive team, but will remain at Apple working on special projects reporting to Tim Cook."
Vice President Biden reiterates need to research violent video games
On January 16, President Obama asked Congress to approve a $500 million plan with the goal of suppressing gun violence, including measures to limit magazines for military-style assault weapons to 10 rounds, making universal background checks mandatory for gun buyers and adding resource officers to schools that want them. Obama asked for $10 million for the Centers for Disease Control and other agencies to research the causes of gun violence, specifying "research into the effects that violent video games have on young minds."On January 24, Vice President Joe Biden held a "Fireside Hangout" to field questions about the proposal, noting again that there was no relevant research into the effects of violent video games on human behavior."There is no hard data as to whether or not these excessively violent video games in fact cause people to engage in behavior that is antisocial, including using guns," Biden said. He mentioned a study from the American Academy of Pediatrics that concluded that children watching three to six hours of video games can lead to aggressive behavior – the study didn't extrapolate to violent behavior, however."So I recommended to the President that we do significant research," Biden said. "Let CDC, let the National Institute of Health, let these people go out and look at the pathology that's behind this, if there is a pathology related to gun violence. We shouldn't be afraid of the facts."
Obama signs executive orders to curtail, research gun violence [Update: ESA responds]
President Barack Obama signed 23 executive actions today with the goal of suppressing gun violence and researching the effects of violent media on young minds. The actions supplement a proposed $500 million program to curtail gun violence, including implementing a universal background check for gun buyers, restoring a ban on military-style assault weapons and limiting magazines to 10 rounds, and developing emergency preparedness plans.Obama mentioned video games once during the conference, asking Congress to provide $10 million for the Centers for Disease Control and other scientific agencies to research the causes of gun violence."While year after year, those who oppose even modest gun safety measures have threatened to defund scientific or medical research into the causes of gun violence, I will direct the Centers for Disease Control to go ahead and study the best ways to reduce it," Obama said. "And Congress should fund research into the effects that violent video games have on young minds. We don't benefit from ignorance. We don't benefit from not knowing the science of this epidemic of violence."Obama's recommendations come after Vice President Joe Biden led a task force to investigate various industries and angles of curtailing gun violence, following the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Connecticut last month. He met with leaders in the video game industry, including EA's John Riccitiello, as part of his information-gathering tour."While there is no law or set of laws that can prevent every senseless act of violence completely, no piece of legislation that will prevent every tragedy, every act of evil, if there is even one thing we can do to reduce this violence, if there's even one life that can be saved, then we've got an obligation to try it," Obama said.A summary of Obama's recommendations include the following steps: strengthen the background check system to keep guns out of the hands of criminals, help schools to hire more resource officers if they want them, develop emergency preparedness plans, clarify options that mental health professionals have for reporting threats of violence (acknowledging that those with mental health issues are more likely to be victims of violence rather than perpetrators), enacting a universal background check for anyone trying to buy a gun, restore a ban on military-style assault weapons and enact a 10-round limit on magazines, have Congress support severe punishments for criminal gun buyers and sellers, and placing more police officers on the streets.Obama ended the conference by signing the executive orders, emphasizing the responsibility of Congress to enact his recommendations.
Vice President Joe Biden to games industry: 'You have not been singled out' on gun violence
Vice President Joe Biden met with leaders and researchers in the video game industry on January 11 to discuss gun violence and the impact entertainment may have on consumers' real-world actions. Biden was charged with leading a task force to gather input from members of the gun violence debate following the school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, in December.The above video shows Biden's opening remarks, seated next to EA CEO John Riccitiello and president of the Electronic Software Association, Michael Gallagher."We know this is a complex problem," Biden said. "We know there's no single answer and, quite frankly, we don't even know whether some of the things people think impact on this actually impact on it or not." He put a hand on Riccitiello's shoulder. "I want you to know you have not been 'singled out' for help, but we've asked a whole lot of people."Those people included the law enforcement community, physicians and medical authorities, at-risk and child advocacy groups, domestic violence prevention groups, legal and justice organizations, civil rights groups, youth organizations, gun safety and advocacy groups, educators and parents, the mental health community, sportsmen organizations, the NRA, retailers, film organizations and the one Biden found the most interesting, an inter-faith group. Biden's tour will conclude in a meeting with President Barack Obama on January 15, where they will discuss his findings with the goal of curtailing gun violence in the future.Prior to the meeting, gaming groups such as the International Game Developers Association and Electronic Consumer Association sent open letters to Biden expressing their positions. The IGDA specifically called for Biden to explore both the positive and negative effects of imaginary violence and warned against the type of censorship that "did irreparable damage" to the comic book industry in the 1950s.
The VP debate on Xbox Live: Who won the battle for our hearts
The vice presidential debate, featuring democrat and current VP Joe Biden and republican Paul Ryan, hit US airwaves on October 11, streaming online, airing on television and playing through Xbox Live for Gold subscribers. More than 800,000 individuals answered the polling questions posed by the Xbox Live team, with more than 30,000 responses to each one. Questions considered subjects such as religion's role in government, who is better prepared to be vice president, how truthful Biden and Paul appeared, and of course, who won the debate.For religion, 70.1 percent of Xbox Live Gold respondents do not consider a candidate's religion when voting, Major Nelson reports. Biden is viewed as better prepared to step in as VP, grabbing the nod from 53.7 percent of undecided voters, compared with Ryan's 21 percent. Swing voters also found Biden more truthful, with 72.2 percent of the vote. Biden "won" the debate, according to undecided Gold members, with 44.1 percent, compared with Ryan's 22.9 percent.Xbox Live has two new Election 2012 partnerships in the works, with BBC and Comedy Central, bringing clips from The Daily Show and The Colbert Report, because those comedy shows are where we all get our news from anyway. The next Xbox Live Election 2012 event is the presidential town hall debate on Tuesday, October 16.Now let's all cool off with a little songified VP debate.
PSA: US vice presidential debate on Xbox Live at 9pm ET tonight
Whether you're in it for some free Halo armor or to participate in our nation's democratic process, tonight is the second in a series of four debates leading up to the 2012 presidential election. Following the first debate between Republican nominee Mitt Romney and President Barack Obama, Romney's running mate Paul Ryan and Vice President Joe Biden go head-to-head this evening.Starting at 9pm ET tonight, you'll be able to tune into the Vice-Presidential debate through the Election 2012 hub on Xbox Live. The same interactive features from the last debate will also be available, including live voting through the app and suggesting questions through Twitter with the #XboxPoll hashtag.
Apple promotes pair of execs to Senior VP level, Bob Mansfield to hang around after all
It's a day of upheaval in the boardroom at Apple -- in the good sense. Remember how Hardware Engineering Senior VP Bob Mansfield said he would retire in June? He's had a change of heart and will keep working on future products. Meanwhile, two of the vice presidents who've been mainstays of Apple's recent plans, Mac Software Engineering VP Craig Federighi and Hardware Engineering VP Dan Riccio, have been promoted to Senior VP. All three will report directly to CEO Tim Cook, and both Federighi as well as Riccio will get their first turns at Apple's executive management team. While the shift isn't going to signal a dramatic change in strategy, it's notable that Riccio's role is expanding: he's moving from his earlier iPad focus to overseeing all the hardware Apple makes. We can only guess at what the ultimate goals might be for the new assignments, although we can imagine Apple jumping through hoops to keep a hardware executive as skilled as Mansfield on its side.
Apple's VP of Europe steps down after 12 years
French newspaper Le Figaro is reporting that Pascal Cagni is stepping down from his position as Apple's vice president of Europe. Cagni was hired by Steve Jobs in 2000 and has served as Apple's European VP for 12 years. He was responsible for Apple's explosive growth in the EMEA region, which saw revenue grow from US$1 billion to $19 billion per year under his leadership. This resignation hasn't been confirmed by Apple or Cagni and, as pointed out by The Next Web, Cagni's LinkedIn account has not been updated. Given the newness of this change, this radio silence is expected. [Via The Next Web]
HP on laptop design similarities with Apple's: it's a struggle as we drive to simplicity
HP's spent the afternoon here in Shanghai to share some details about its latest products and strategy, and to our delight, there was one session dedicated to "Style Meets Function," during which Vice President of Industrial Design Stacy Wolff talked about his design philosophy and design goals for the current market. Most notably, we learned that some of HP's latest laptop designs were based on the work of its research centers from 11 different cities, and the company isn't afraid of admitting that it used consultants for an outside perspective as well. Despite Stacy's upbeat presentation and interesting stats (apparently these days men have a boring color preference, from first to fourth favorite: black, gray, blue and white), the inevitable question popped up: One lady expressed her concern that the brand-spanking-new Envy Spectre XT reminded her of the MacBook Air a lot, so she wondered if HP's ever worried that Apple might sue. Stacy kept his initial reply pretty brief: "I would go back to the TC1000 [Tablet PC] from about 10 years, and that's a tablet. I think if you look at the new Spectre XT, there are similarities in a way, not due to Apple but due to the way technologies developed. Apple may like to think that they own silver, but they don't. In no way did HP try to mimic Apple. In life there are a lot of similarities." As always, we wanted more from the horse's mouth, so we grabbed hold of Stacy right after the session and had a little chat over this topic -- you can see the full and surprisingly candid interview after the break.
Windows Phone exec exits five months after being poached from Samsung
Microsoft's Gavin Kim was a high-profile capture for Redmond, as it poached the former Samsung and Motorola exec to bolster its Windows Phone marketing team. Now, just five months into the job, he's departing after marshaling the "Smoked by Windows Phone" campaign into the world. The company wouldn't go into specifics beyond saying that it was a personal decision to leave and Microsoft bears him no ill will -- but then that's what they always say. He'll be replaced by Eugene Ho, who now has the job of continuing the burgeoning platform's upward trajectory and winning around those European carriers who've greeted it with little more than apathy.
Samsung promotes DRAM chief to vice chairman, implements 'top-two' structure
Samsung reshuffled its managerial hierarchy yesterday, promoting Kwon Oh Hyun, head of its DRAM operations, to vice chairman. Kwon, who successfully steered Samsung through an industry-wide price slump last quarter, will continue to head up the company's chip and LCD divisions, while working alongside Jung Yeon Joo -- the former CEO of Samsung C&T Corporation who was also promoted to vice chairman. The restoration of this "top-two" structure was one of several moves the Samsung Group made on Wednesday, including the announcement of six new presidents. Kwon's advancement, however, is certainly the most noteworthy. As the Korea Times reports, the move has already garnered speculation among industry observers, some of whom believe that Kwon's new position signifies Samsung's equal commitment to both component and product divisions. In a statement, Samsung praised the executive for navigating its DRAM business through choppy economic waters, while crediting him for the "strengthening of Samsung's market leadership in memory products." Read more at the source links below.
Hideo Kojima becomes VP of Konami Digital Entertainment
Kojima Productions head and, of course, Metal Gear creator Hideo Kojima has been promoted to a vice president and corporate officer role for Konami Digital Entertainment (the game development and publishing division of Konami Corporation), effective April 1 -- while maintaining his more prestigious title of "Hideo Kojima." The other Konami producer whose games actually sell, Pro Evolution Soccer's Shinji Enomoto, has been promoted to the same position, as well. The new appointments come as part of a wave of executive shuffling, likely predicated by Konami's absorption of Hudson Soft. In fact, Konami's Kazuhiko Uehara is taking over the presidency of Hudson during this round of corporate musical chairs. [Image source: Mega64 (screencap)]
Anand Chandrasekher resigns from Intel after 24 years, leaves scandal mongers hanging
Well, as tech industry resignations go, this one's not exactly sensational, but Anand Chandrasekher's plan to leave Intel is no doubt a popular topic of conversation with chip makers this week. The chief of the company's Ultra Mobility Group (UMG) and the man behind Atom, apparently resigned "to pursue other interests." Intel Architecture Group's Mike Bell and Dave Whalen will co-manage UMG in Chandrasekher's stead -- and that's about it for sordid details. His resignation isn't apt to be marked by a Mark Hurd-style scandal, and we have a feeling this is a pretty straight forward changing of the guards, but, then again, we said the same thing when Dirk Meyer left AMD.
HP's Todd Bradley all but confirms webOS tablet for February 9th event, promises even more devices
We do love to hear from loquacious execs, and HP's Todd Bradley has been the very definition of one in an interview conducted with CNBC during CES. In a discussion revolving around webOS, Bradley was asked how HP intends to differentiate itself from the iPad and improve upon it, to which he quipped, "you and I will talk about that on the 9th." If that's not a confirmation that we'll finally have our unicorn of a webOS tablet next month, we don't know what is. Even more encouraging is the implication further on in the interview that HP could have debuted this slate at CES, but opted to do an unveiling at a separate event so as to properly highlight just how awesome it is. But wait, there's yet more good news for webOS fans: Bradley's crew sees its upcoming tablet as just "one piece" of the connected experience that is the company's goal and we're promised to be enlightened about a broad range of webOS devices at the February 9th event in San Francisco, though the lack of any Palm namedrops seems to suggest they might not bear the name of their maker. Even if they're called iPaqs, we just want to see them already!
Nokia's Peter Skillman talks design priorities, gives us hope for a sunny MeeGo future
A day before jetting off to London to commence his role as MeeGo's head of User Experience and Services, Peter Skillman was kind enough to sit down with the design junkies at ZURB and dish out his thoughts on what makes for good mobile design and where it is that most companies trip up. Lest you forget, this is the dude that was in charge of putting the Palm Pre together, so he's not exactly without credence in these circles. Which is a good thing, because he doesn't bother with pulling any punches. Peter namedrops Motorola's Motoblur as an unnecessary layer on top of Android, criticizes the failure of different groups within companies to communicate effectively, and finishes off his treatise with a list of priorities for successful design: consistency, emotional content, and a paranoid fear of mediocrity. Inspiring stuff, we're sure you'll agree. Other tidbits of import include the fact that Pete had to withstand nine days of interviews before getting the Nokia job, and also this memorable quote on the topic of smartphones: "if you're not succeeding at the high end, then you're absolutely doomed to failure." We've been saying the same thing for ages and it's encouraging to know that Nokia now has an exec with his finger on the market's pulse. Now let's see him deliver on those words. You'll find the full interview at the source link below.
Nokia hires Peter Skillman, former Palm Design VP, as MeeGo user experience chief (update: confirmed)
Now this, this is what we call exciting. Nokia has managed to scoop up Peter Skillman from the wreckage of the HP/Palm merger. One of the many senior VPs to leave Palm upon its assimilation into the HP empire, Peter spent 11 years with his previous employer and was in charge of the design team that produced the deliciously curvaceous Palm Pre. Now at Nokia, he'll be heading up the user experience and services division for MeeGo, which means that if you weren't excited for the platform already, you've now got a very good reason to be. Update: We met with Marko Ahtisaari, Senior Vice President of Design at Nokia, to get comment on this story. His response? "Right, I just hired him." So why not announce it, we asked, this is pretty big news? According to Marko, "We have products today, products are more interesting. Peter is looking after the user experience design of MeeGo and services and is a great new addition to the team." Marko's team, to be specific. To us this seems like another component that could help Nokia break into the US market with MeeGo. [Thanks, Dave]
