Joe Rogan Spotify controversy continues, best year for iPhones in India, MSI brings 12th Gen gaming laptops, and more.
February 05, 2022 / 11:57 AM IST
Spotify has been embroiled in controversy since famous musician Neil Young removed his music from the streaming platform, citing Rogan’s podcast and calling Spotify “the home of life-threatening COVID misinformation.” Officials responded by publishing the service’s platform rules and saying that Spotify would begin adding content advisories to podcasts about the coronavirus. However, JREMissing.com recently reported that around 70 episodes of Joe Rogan’s podcast mysteriously disappeared from Spotify. The podcast has come under heavy criticism for its spread of COVID misinformation, although there seems to be no apparent link between the episodes that were removed and the current controversy. Music streaming service Spotify added 25 million monthly active users for the quarter ended December 31, 2021, taking its total base to 406 million users.
Earlier this week, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted to approve a bill to rein in app stores of companies that exert too much market control. The bill particularly targets companies like Apple and Google, who are accused of holding monopolistic power over developers in their respective app stores. The measure would bar big app stores from requiring providers to use their payment system. Apple has raised concerns over the move, suggesting that it would be “side-loading” which would allow companies to avoid Apple’s “pro-consumer privacy protections.” Google has already lowered its charges for apps that use its payment system.
The sale of the iPhone, Apple’s flagship gadget, jumped by 34 percent year-on-year to 2.3 million units in the quarter ending December 2021, Bloomberg reported on February 3, citing the estimates shared by Counterpoint Technology Market Research. This marks one of the best quarterly performances for Apple in India. The California-based tech giant has been making sharp inroads in the country’s gadget market over the past couple of years.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has come under fire once again, and this time it is for a past tweet. In an old tweet from 2018, Musk wrote “Nothing stopping Tesla team at our car plant from voting union. Could do so tmrw if they wanted. But why pay union dues and give up stock options for nothing?” However, a three-judge panel recently questioned whether the Tesla chief threatened workers with the loss of stock options if they formed a union. The tweet came amid the United Auto Workers union’s years-long campaign to organise workers at Tesla’s Fremont, California, factory. The National Labor Relations Board in a decision last year said Musk’s tweet was illegal because a reasonable employee could construe it as a threat of reprisal for unionizing.
Oppo Reno 7 and Reno 7 Pro 5G have been launched in India. The new Oppo smartphones feature an AMOLED display with a high refresh rate support and sport triple-cameras on the back. The top-end Reno 7 Pro competes against the likes of Vivo V23 Pro, Xiaomi 11T Pro, and OnePlus 9RT. Here’s everything you need to know about the Oppo Reno 7 Pro, Reno 7 launched in India.
MSI recently dropped new gaming laptops in India, equipped with the latest 12th Gen Intel processing hardware and Nvidia RTX-30 series graphics. The line-up includes laptops across the company’s Stealth, Vector, Raider, Pulse, Katana, and Crosshair series. For more information, head on over to the link.
Xiaomi has announced the launch of the MIUI update in India. The MIUI 13 update for Xiaomi and Redmi phones will begin from Q1 2022. The new MIUI 13 update brings improved performance, multitasking features, and a refined design. The Xiaomi 11T Pro, Xiaomi 11 Lite NE 5G, Mi 11 Ultra, Mi 11X Pro, Mi 11 Lite, Redmi Note 10 Pro Max, Redmi Note 10 Pro, Redmi Note 10, and Redmi 10 Prime will be among the first devices to receive the MIUI 13 update starting from the first quarter of 2022.
Sony in an analyst webcast said they were dropping the sales forecast for PlayStation 5 again for the fiscal year. Compared to the PlayStation 4, which moved 20.2 million units during its holiday fiscal quarter, the PlayStation 5 has managed 17.3 million. Sony reported only 3.3 million PlayStation 5 units were sold in the key holiday fiscal quarter. Sony has lowered its sales forecast for the PlayStation 5 from 14.8 million units to 11.5 million units for the financial year ending March 31.
The Nintendo Switch had a strong holiday quarter, with 10.67 million units shipped between October and December. The number brings the system’s lifetime total to 103.54 million units shipped, which pushes the Switch ahead of the Wii (101.63 million) in under five years. While shipments were still down by eight percent year-on-year, Nintendo seems to be less affected by the current chip shortage.