Month: September 2017

The latest NPD results has given Nintendo a big boost, with the company's Switch console outselling the PS4 and Xbox One once again.

This marks the second month in a row that the Switch has been the best selling console in the North American market, and the fourth month in the last six in which the Switch has been on top.

This marks a dramatic turnaround for Nintendo, whose last console, the Wii U, was poorly received by the market. The Switch's innovative design, which doubles both as a portable console and a home based console, has won it many fans, as has the relatively stronger line-up of games, a complaint that dogged the Wii U all the way until it was discontinued in 2016.

The popularity of the Switch has even caught Nintendo by surprise, with the company struggling to manufacture enough consoles to meet the demand.

The PS4, however, is still the best selling console for 2017.

Proving how interesting the current console war is, the battle for the popular console could change in Microsoft's favor after it debuts the Xbox One X, the most powerful console ever made, in November.

[via BGR]

Einen bezahlbaren schnellen Internet-Zugang will fast jeder haben. 53 Prozent der Bundesbürger wären bereit, für schnelleres Internet auch mehr Geld auszugeben. Ein Argument für den Glasfaserausbau. (Breitband, Studie)

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Once upon a time, people complaining about piracy would point to the hundreds of piracy sites around the Internet. These days, criticism is just as likely to be leveled at Google-owned services.

YouTube, in particular, has come in for intense criticism, with the music industry complaining of exploitation of the DMCA in order to obtain unfair streaming rates from record labels. Along with streaming-ripping, this so-called Value Gap is one of the industry’s hottest topics.

With rightsholders seemingly at war with Google to varying degrees, news from France suggests that progress can be made if people sit down and negotiate.

According to local reports, Google and local anti-piracy outfit ALPA (l’Association de Lutte Contre la Piraterie Audiovisuelle) under the auspices of the CNC have signed an agreement to grant rightsholders direct access to content takedown mechanisms on YouTube.

YouTube has granted access to its Content ID systems to companies elsewhere for years but the new deal will see the system utilized by French content owners for the first time. It’s hoped that the access will result in infringing content being taken down or monetized more quickly than before.

“We do not want fraudsters to use our platforms to the detriment of creators,” said Carlo D’Asaro Biondo, Google’s President of Strategic Relationships in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

The agreement, overseen by the Ministry of Culture, will see Google provide ALPA with financial support and rightsholders with essential training.

ALPA president Nicolas Seydoux welcomed the deal, noting that it symbolizes the “collapse of the wall of incomprehension” that previously existed between France’s rightsholders and the Internet search giant.

The deal forms part of the French government’s “Plan of Action Against Piracy”, in which it hopes to crack down on infringement in various ways, including tackling the threat of pirate sites, better promotion of services offering legitimate content, and educating children “from an early age” on the need to respect copyright.

“The fight against piracy is the great challenge of the new century in the cultural sphere,” said France’s Minister of Culture, Françoise Nyssen.

“I hope this is just the beginning of a process. It will require other agreements with rights holders and other platforms, as well as at the European level.”

According to NextInpact, the Google agreement will eventually encompass the downgrading of infringing content in search results as part of the Trusted Copyright Removal Program. A similar system is already in place in the UK.

Source: TF, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing, torrent sites and ANONYMOUS VPN services.

Cisco widerspricht Avast: Die zweite Stufe der mit Ccleaner verteilten Malware sei sehr wohl aktiviert worden. Angeblich sollen die Macher der Kampagne es auf Betriebsgeheimnisse großer Techfirmen abgesehen haben. (Security, Intel)

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Das internationale Angebot der Deutschen Telekom für das schnelle Einrichten von VPNs über Internet und Ethernet ist fertiggestellt. Mit dabei sind internationale Netzbetreiber. (Telekommunikation, Technologie)

Laut einem Finanzanalysten soll Apple noch nicht mit der finalen Produktion des neuen iPhone X angefangen haben. Entsprechend könnte es für Vorbesteller zu Wartezeiten kommen. Eigentlich soll die Lieferung ab dem 3. November erfolgen. (iPhone X, Smartphone)

Ein satirisch gemeintes Editorial der C't zur angeblichen Schätzung der Bundestagswahl hat Nachahmer auf den Plan gerufen. Der Bundeswahlleiter kann über den Scherz gar nicht lachen. (BTW 2017, Internet)

Die CDU nutzt ein uraltes Content-Management-System für eine simple Weiterleitung, die SPD gibt Datenbankpasswörter preis, im Grünen CMS sind IPs von Webseitenbesuchern offen einsehbar, Ortsvereine von SPD und FDP werben für Viagra. Um die Sicherheit der Parteien-Webseiten steht es schlecht. Eine Exklusiv-Meldung von Hanno Böck (Deutscher Bundestag, Wordpress)