Month: August 2021

Overwatch’s cowboy will be renamed after namesake’s sexual assault claims

Announcement of name change comes day after new accusation in California lawsuit.

Video game image of a grizzled Old West gunfighter.

Enlarge / The cowboy formerly known as McCree is currently the "Man with No Name." (credit: Blizzard)

Overwatch's cowboy is getting a new name.

This is Blizzard's latest attempt to salvage its image. The studio is dealing with a lawsuit filed by the State of California in July over employee claims of sexual discrimination and harassment, and its recent public defense was ill-received. The cowboy's namesake was Diablo 4's former lead designer Jesse McCree, who was fired after images showed him inside "the Cosby suite," where female employees reported they were harassed. The announcement comes a day after the Golden State accused the company of shredding HR documents in an amended complaint.

The cowboy McCree is a gun-for-hire loner in Overwatch lore. In-game, one interaction jokingly casts doubt about McCree's first name being Joel, but it was officially Jesse.

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Rocket Report: Webb telescope ready for launch, LOX shortage slows SpaceX

“Large NASA taxpayer investments are being thrown away.”

A suggestively shaped model rocket.

Enlarge / Estes is now selling a New Shepard model rocket for $69.99. (credit: Estes)

Welcome to Edition 4.13 of the Rocket Report! While there may be a LOX shortage in launch, there is no shortage of launch news this week. So this report runs long.

As always, we welcome reader submissions, and if you don't want to miss an issue, please subscribe using the box below (the form will not appear on AMP-enabled versions of the site). Each report will include information on small-, medium-, and heavy-lift rockets as well as a quick look ahead at the next three launches on the calendar.

Virgin Orbit to go public, expand offerings. Virgin Orbit will use the proceeds of a merger with a special-purpose acquisition company to expand its launch business and develop a satellite constellation for Internet-of-things and Earth-observation services. After merging with NextGen Acquisition Corp. II, in a deal expected to close at the end of this year, Virgin Orbit will receive as much as $483 million in capital before transaction expenses. The deal includes $100 million in funding from Boeing and AE Industrial Partners, SpaceNews reports.

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Afghanistan: Evakuieren und abschieben

Nach dem IS-Anschlag in Kabul: US-Präsident Biden in der Kritik. In Deutschland werden die Abschiebungen neu in den Blick gerückt

Nach dem IS-Anschlag in Kabul: US-Präsident Biden in der Kritik. In Deutschland werden die Abschiebungen neu in den Blick gerückt

The 2021 BMW X5 xDrive45e—a big battery gives this hybrid a useful range

BMW has doubled the battery capacity compared to the old model.

  • The BMW X5 xDrive45e is a 50 mpg plug-in hybrid SUV. [credit: BMW ]

It's been a while since we spent time with BMW's plug-in hybrid X5. Since then, the German automaker replaced the X5 with an all-new model called the X5 xDrive45e. The brand has returned to its iconic inline six-cylinder engine configuration under the hood and has doubled the traction battery in capacity, usefully boosting the SUV's electric-only range.

Styling-wise, the X5 xDrive45e is similar to its non-hybrid sibling. It's a big vehicle that looks particularly tall on the road. I think it lacks the handsomeness of the original X5, but the Internet already has enough takes on BMW styling and doesn't need another one from me.

On the inside, all the materials you sit on or touch feel high-quality, and the driver's seat has good forward and rear visibility. However, I felt a little like I was sitting on the car (in an overstuffed armchair) rather than in it. Ahead of the driver is a thick-rimmed multifunction steering wheel and a 12.3-inch digital main instrument display.

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IT-Jobs: Wie man als Freelancer das eigene Honorar verhandelt

Wer frisch in einen IT-Freelancer-Job startet, hat oft keine Ahnung, was er oder sie pro Stunde oder Tag verlangen kann. Wir geben Tipps für die Verhandlungen. Ein Ratgebertext von Marvin Engel (IT-Freelancer, LinkedIn)

Wer frisch in einen IT-Freelancer-Job startet, hat oft keine Ahnung, was er oder sie pro Stunde oder Tag verlangen kann. Wir geben Tipps für die Verhandlungen. Ein Ratgebertext von Marvin Engel (IT-Freelancer, LinkedIn)

Leaseweb Must Share Personal Details of ‘Pirating’ Customers With Movie Companies

A group of movie studios has obtained a subpoena that requires hosting provider Leaseweb to share the personal details of several customers. The rightsholders flagged 456 IP-addresses that repeatedly shared pirated movies via BitTorrent. It’s likely that the information will be used as ammunition in an ongoing lawsuit.

From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.

pirate-flagHosting providers are generally seen as neutral intermediaries, but some copyright holders believe that these companies should bear more responsibility.

This isn’t a new idea. Back in 2015, leaked documents from the Motion Picture Association revealed that the Hollywood group had considered taking legal action against a hosting provider. At the time it mentioned Leaseweb as an example.

The hosting company already entered the spotlight a few years prior. It was one of the hosting partners of Megaupload, which rented 630 servers from the company. This association also triggered a separate lawsuit by magazine publisher Perfect 10, but that was eventually settled.

Movie Companies Sued Leaseweb

Earlier this year, Leaseweb was targeted in a copyright lawsuit once again. This time, a group of filmmakers, including Dallas Buyers Club LLC and Rambo V Productions, accused the hosting company of failing to take action against copyright infringing customers.

These customers are VPN providers such as LiquidVPN that, in turn, have customers who allegedly shared pirated movies. The movie companies argued that they sent thousands of takedown notices to alert Leaseweb of this activity, but the hosting company allegedly failed to take action.

“Leaseweb continued to provide service to the subscribers such as LiquidVPN and DOES 1-10 despite knowledge that its subscribers were using the service to engage and facilitate massive piracy of copyright protected Works including Plaintiffs’,” the complaint read.

Leaseweb Must Expose ‘Pirating’ Customers

This lawsuit is still ongoing and Leaseweb has yet to respond to the allegations in court. However, it appears that the movie studios are keeping the pressure on, as they have just obtained a subpoena that orders the company to hand over customer data.

A few days ago, attorney Kerry Culpepper obtained a DMCA subpoena on behalf of dozens of movie companies. It specifically requests the personal details of Leaseweb customers connected to 456 IP-addresses.

Since it’s a DMCA subpoena, the court doesn’t have to decide over the request and it was quickly signed off by a court clerk.

leaseweb subpoena

This means that Leaseweb is required to hand over documents that can identify the customers connected to these IP-addresses. That includes all contact information and payment records it has on file.

TorrentFreak reached out to Leaseweb asking how the company plans to respond but we have yet to receive a reply.

More Pressure, More Defendants?

It is likely that the movie companies plan to use Leaseweb’s customer data to advance their legal efforts. This could include adding additional VPN defendants to the ongoing lawsuit.

Interestingly, the legal paperwork also sheds some light on the pressure Leaseweb faced before that lawsuit started. It includes a letter the movie companies sent last October, where they offered the hosting company an option to settle the matter outside of court.

This would involve terminating accounts of various customers who are deemed repeat infringers, as well as paying a sum of money to compensate for the piracy damages claimed by the movie companies.

“To do so, we request that: (1) Leaseweb agrees to immediately terminate all Internet service to the subscribers at the above IP addresses; (2) Leaseweb agrees to take the appropriate action to terminate subscriber accounts in response to all further copyright notifications received from my | clients’ agent; and (3) Leaseweb agrees to pay a portion of my clients’ damages,” the letter reads.

Leaseweb apparently declined this offer as the company was sued by the same movie companies a few months later. And with the recent DMCA subpoena, the legal pressure has only intensified.

From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.