Month: July 2023

Artist's conception of the FTC and Microsoft fighting over this deal in the courts.

The FTC has given legal notice that it intends to appeal a recent district court decision that denied a temporary injunction in Microsoft's proposed merger with Activision.

The appeal notice, filed with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals late Wednesday, is a rare move for the FTC in cases like this. The FTC is facing down District Court Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley's finding that the regulator "has not shown a likelihood it will prevail on its claim this particular vertical merger in this specific industry may substantially lessen competition."

An appeal would have to convince a circuit court judge of some key unconsidered area of fact or law to overturn that decision, which could be a high bar in this case. Still, the appeal filing itself shows that the FTC is not willing to give up easily in this high-profile case.

Enlarge / The Pixel Fold's inner display. (credit: Ron Amadeo)

After years of rumors and at least one canceled attempt, Google is finally releasing a foldable smartphone. Samsung has been in the foldables business for four years now, and with a ton of Chinese OEMs following in Samsung's footsteps, you could be forgiven for thinking that the Pixel Fold would simply copy what Samsung is doing. But Google is entering the foldable world with a vision of its own, and it's one I really like. This is the foldable I have long wished for: a device that's a phone when folded up and a tablet when unfolded.

The usual Android tablet app selection problems—which are getting better—are still present when in tablet mode. When you do find a tablet app, though, this feels like the first foldable that delivers on the promise of letting you do more on the big screen.

The Pixel Fold hardware also feels shockingly advanced. Google has turned in both the thinnest foldable on the US market and the one with the biggest battery, which is not what you would normally expect from the software company.