Rockstar Games
"Red Dead Redemption 2" is getting a battle royale mode.
Good morning! This is the tech news you need to know this Friday.
- Alphabet's board of directors is being sued for allegations that it covered up claims of sexual harassment by top executives. The lawsuit, on behalf of an Alphabet shareholder, cites Android creator Andy Rubin's alleged $90 million exit package following an internal investigation. Rubin denies wrongdoing.
- Amazon is reportedly building a Netflix-like service for video games. Amazon's competition at Microsoft and Google are already openly preparing similar services, and Sony already has a streaming service for the PlayStation.
- Amazon-owned smart security camera company Ring gave its teams in the US and Ukraine unfettered access to people's home security camera videos and feeds, the Intercept reports. A source said research teams in Ukraine were allowed unlimited access to every Ring camera worldwide via a folder on Amazon's S3 cloud storage service.
- Samsung will unveil the new Galaxy S10 and official details on its first foldable smartphone at an event on February 20. Samsung's own head of mobile, DJ Koh, told media earlier last year to expect "very significant" changes with the Galaxy S10.
- South Korean taxi drivers are setting themselves on fire in protest of a proposed ride-sharing app. Two taxi drivers have reportedly died after setting themselves on fire to protest a new ride-sharing app from popular tech company Kakao.
- "Red Dead Redemption 2" is getting a "Fortnite"-style battle royale mode. The multiplayer online mode in "Red Dead Redemption 2" is currently beta-testing the new mode, which is called "Gun Rush."
- Video game publishing powerhouse Activision and blockbuster game development studio Bungie - the makers of "Destiny" - are splitting up. The two companies agreed to a 10-year, multi-game deal tied to the "Destiny" franchise, which has now been dissolved in what appears to be an amicable split.
- Buzzy $2 billion gaming startup Improbable was dealt a major blow thanks to a weird fight with Unity. Improbable says that Unity, which claims to be the most popular game engine, changed its terms of conditions to block Improbable's SpatialOS platform.
- Amazon struck a blow against Google by buying a tiny Israeli cloud company for a reported $200 million-plus. A tiny Israeli company called CloudEndure confirmed on Thursday that Amazon Web Services has acquired it in what industry experts say was a big miss for Amazon's arch competitor, Google.
- Peter Thiel-backed digital bank N26 is now Europe's most valuable fintech. The German fintech startup, raised $300 million in a series D funding round, putting it at a valuation of $2.7 billion.
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